Chapter Fifty-Three: Strike While He’s Weak

A big job?

Langshu’s heart jolted—he immediately guessed at Maud’s intentions.

“A big job? What do you mean?”

Feigning ignorance, Langshu raised his glass and took a hefty swig.

Maud narrowed his eyes slightly, responding in earnest, “As the saying goes, strike while the iron’s hot—finish them off when they’re down.”

Langshu wanted to shut this topic down as soon as possible. “Never heard that saying.”

Maud, unconcerned about killing the conversation, nodded. “Doesn’t matter. Now you have.”

“…”

“Langshu, time isn’t on our side, and sitting around waiting to die isn’t our style. That means we have to take the initiative—while Kazt and Aibei are wounded, we should…”

With a solemn expression, Maud’s hand mimed a blade slicing down, his intention clear as day. “Otherwise, once they’ve recovered, they’ll come for us without delay.”

Langshu hung his head, resisting the urge to bash his glass over Maud’s head.

If it weren’t for you, you scoundrel, would I even have to worry about this?

And the only reason I offered you information about Aibei and Kazt was to get closer to you, not to die together!

Clink—

Seeing Langshu’s silence, Maud pressed his advantage, resting a hand on Langshu’s shoulder.

Langshu flinched slightly and looked up at Maud, who wore a face brimming with righteous concern.

Meeting Langshu’s conflicted gaze, Maud said gravely:

“Langshu, truth be told, I’m not afraid of Kazt and Aibei coming after me. What I worry about… is your safety. We’re friends, after all—how could I just stand by and do nothing?”

“I know this is a difficult, dangerous task, but for a friend—what’s danger to me?”

“So rest assured, Langshu! I swear on the name of Usopp, no matter how perilous, I’ll help you see this through!”

Langshu stared dumbfounded at Maud’s impassioned words and gestures, as if thunderstruck.

No, he truly was thunderstruck.

That such a person could twist black and white so brazenly!

Amidst his shock, Langshu suddenly realized a crucial point.

“That’s right—with ‘Trickshot’ the old man around, Usopp has nothing to fear from Aibei and Kazt. But me—I’m different…”

“No. I can’t let Usopp drag me into this. They’re after him, not me—so what am I afraid of?”

“But…”

Langshu recalled what happened at the Battleaxe Tavern.

Remembering how he’d taken the initiative to stop Kazt then, he wanted to slap himself.

Too late for regrets.

Realizing that Maud really didn’t need to worry about Aibei and Kazt’s revenge, Langshu finally understood: the one in true danger was himself.

Langshu wept.

He truly shed tears.

“You’re right! Strike while they’re down. Instead of waiting for them to come for revenge, better to get rid of them first and be done with it! Usopp, I never expected you… to be so concerned for me, I…”

Having figured it out, Langshu fell into the role in an instant—first letting a trace of murderous resolve show, then displaying heartfelt emotion as bitter tears streamed down his cheeks.

Maud clapped Langshu heartily on the shoulder, then raised his glass in a toast.

“Say no more—it’s all in the drink.”

“Cheers!”

With a belly full of bitterness, Langshu clinked his glass against Maud’s.

Behind the bar, Tatam kept his gaze lowered, hiding the smile that had crept upon his lips.

Strictly speaking, he was just an outsider.

So he could clearly see how Langshu had dug a hole for Maud, only for Maud to drag Langshu into it instead.

Maud and Langshu each downed their drinks.

Tatam then took out a bottle of white rum and poured each of them a fresh glass.

“For you both.”

“Thanks.”

Maud, though he’d had enough, still thanked Tatam for the drink.

He swirled his glass gently, turned to Langshu, and said seriously, “Langshu, the longer this drags on, the worse it is for you. We should act tonight—what do you think?”

“…”

Langshu cursed inwardly at Maud’s shamelessness, but after a moment, he agreed, “I think so too.”

At this point, he figured—well, it’s about taking out pirates anyway, so he might as well go along with it.

Besides, both Aibei and Kazt were big pirates with bounties over thirty million. Taking them out wouldn’t be a bad thing.

As a Marine at heart, Langshu weighed the pros and cons and found the plan acceptable.

He was alone here, so gaining Maud as an ally was all to the good.

Maud had no idea what Langshu was thinking. He knew that relying on the vague threat of the future wasn’t enough to make Langshu give his all. Besides, he needed to kill Aibei and Kazt with his own hands.

“Langshu, I’ve thought it over. I’ll take on the most dangerous part—the actual assassination. All you need to do is distract Aibei and Kazt’s men.”

“This…”

Langshu looked at Maud in surprise.

Maud continued, “Of course, this is just talk for now. The first priority is to gather as much information as possible. Even if it doesn’t increase our chances, it should at least reduce the risk.”

At this, a troubled look crossed Maud’s face. Picking up his black raven knife, he sighed, “But I just bought a blade from Tatam, and now I’ve only got a few thousand Berries left—not enough to buy any intel. How about you, Langshu…”

“I’m broke.”

Langshu told the truth.

Given his work as a Marine undercover, any money he made had to be spent quickly.

Otherwise, if he died suddenly, all that money would go to waste.

“You’re broke too? Well, nothing to be done, then.”

Maud sighed—he’d hoped to squeeze some money out of Langshu.

Langshu’s mouth twitched. “I may not have cash, but I do know a few things about them.”

“Oh?”

Maud’s eyes lit up.

Light at the end of the tunnel.

He wanted intel both to reduce risk and to boost the returns in his hunter’s log.

When it came to information, Langshu adopted a tone of authority and said gravely, “Listen. Among the pirate crews that frequent Mad Hatter Town, there are seven with bounties over fifty million Berries. Aibei and Kazt’s crew is among them.”

“And both Aibei and Kazt have bounties above thirty million. Under their command, they have several officers with bounties over ten million. If you want to assassinate Aibei and Kazt, these are all factors to consider.”

“Of these officers, the one to watch out for most is Lagren, who has a bounty of nineteen million. He’s one of Kazt’s officers, and a skilled swordsman.”

As he spoke, Langshu watched Maud’s face closely, subtly probing for a reaction.

He’d mentioned Lagren deliberately, as a minor test.

Maud’s expression shifted, and he said seriously, “A nineteen-million bounty swordsman, huh? Definitely someone to be careful about.”

This was just the sort of prey he wanted; even if he couldn’t kill Kazt, taking out Lagren would be a huge win.

Langshu saw Maud’s reaction, and said calmly, “Fortunately, Lagren was taken out not long ago.”

“???”

Maud thought, “He’s already dead, so why even bring him up?”