One Piece: Alucard the Immortal

Chapter 675 - 674: The Void Century

Two days later, as the flag of the Immortal Pirates rose over the borders of Wano, Kozuki Oden, the leader of the pro-war faction, faced a public execution by the Shogun of Wano for that very reason.The Kozuki estate had already been raided and confiscated. Among his retainers, those led by "Foxfire" Kin’emon, Kanjuro, and Raizo had vanished without a trace the day Oden was captured. A nationwide manhunt had been issued by the authorities of Wano.

On the day of the execution, countless citizens gathered to watch. Bound tightly, Kozuki Oden knelt upon the execution platform, an executioner standing behind him with a raised katana.

After Imai stepped forward and read a lengthy list of Oden’s "crimes," he turned and mocked him in a low voice, "Any last words, Oden-sama? Oh, wait, not that it matters even if you do."

With disheveled hair, Oden lifted his head. In the sharp, piercing voice of a kabuki actor, he roared to the heavens, "Kill me or carve me, I, Oden, am at your mercy!!"

A look of cold indifference crossed Imai’s face. He turned to the executioner and commanded, "Kill him."

The katana was slowly drawn. Under the watchful eyes of the Wano populace, a spray of crimson erupted as Kozuki Oden’s head was severed.

No one noticed a man below, clad in a black hooded cloak that obscured his face, clutching a six-year-old child tightly to his chest. He clamped his hand firmly over the boy’s mouth, stifling his cries.

"Momonosuke-sama, we must go!"

Kin’emon whispered urgently, quickly leading Momonosuke away from the execution square.

It wasn’t until they retreated toward the city gates that the citizens heard the patrolling samurai shout, "It’s Foxfire Kin’emon and Kozuki Momonosuke! Over there! Hurry!"

...

Half a month later, Nico Robin, who had been staying obediently in Arderay, arrived in Wano under Alucard’s personal orders. Within the Kozuki Clan estate, she beheld two rubbings of the red Poneglyphs.

"Can you decipher them?" Alucard asked, walking up behind her.

Robin bit her lower lip slightly and nodded. She placed a hand gently on the rubbings. After nearly an hour, she turned halfway and explained, "They record a sea route, but it’s incomplete. I’m afraid we’ll only get the full route once all the rubbings are collected."

The end of this route was almost certainly the Final Island, Laugh Tale. However, Alucard had no interest in that. "Is it only the route?"

Robin kept one hand on the stone wall and continued, "It also records an event. During the Void Century, the descendants of twenty kings moved from their respective countries to reside in Mariejois. Only the Nefertari family remained in Alabasta. This lists the original locations of the countries belonging to those twenty descendants of the ’Creators’."

"The original countries..."

The twenty descendants of the Creators naturally referred to the Celestial Dragons. Alucard knew of Nefertari’s Alabasta and Donquixote’s Dressrosa, but he was unfamiliar with the other eighteen.

"It indicates that during the Void Century, Mariejois carried out certain actions against these twenty nations, but the specifics are cut off mid-text," Robin added.

"Which twenty nations are they?" Hancock stepped forward, placing a hand on her hip.

"The Nefertari family’s Alabasta, the Donquixote family’s Dressrosa, the Rosward family’s Missidia, the Mjosgard family’s Palom-Polom, the Hadilly family’s Stupeo..."

"Wait, hold on!"

Urdaha interrupted halfway through. "Stupeo... isn’t that our territory?"

Stupeo was one of the Twelve Kingdoms previously destroyed by Alucard. It was currently one of the three largest islands under the Immortal Pirates’ control, second only to Arderay.

"If there isn’t a second Stupeo in the world, then yes," Robin nodded solemnly.

The Void Century was an era the Government desperately tried to hide. During that gap in history, they had undoubtedly committed unspeakable acts. And the key, it seemed, lay within these twenty nations.

Robin proceeded to list the names of the twenty nations and the Celestial Dragon families they originally belonged to. Aside from Stupeo, the others were not under the Immortals’ control.

Fifteen of them, including Alabasta and Dressrosa, were affiliated with the World Government.

Of the remaining five, one was under the Immortal Pirates, two were within Big Mom’s territory, and two were in the former territory of the Whitebeard Pirates, though it was currently unclear who had seized them.

"I want to research this," Robin said, her eyes gleaming with unprecedented resolve. She wanted to uncover what the Government had done during those hundred years. It was the reason she lost her mother, her family, and her home; it was her purpose for living.

"Urdaha," Alucard said suddenly.

"Yes, Alucard-sama!" Urdaha replied immediately.

"Notify everyone. We are going to conquer all twenty of these nations," Alucard said calmly.

Fallon and the others were stunned. Alucard was going all out this time; he truly intended to turn his sights on the Government first.

"May I take charge of the research on Stupeo?" Robin asked proactively.

"Do as you wish," Alucard replied indifferently, cracking his knuckles. "It looks like things won’t be boring for a while."

"I have been to Alabasta before. I believe I can persuade the Nefertari family," Robin added.

"The same goes for Dressrosa. I will return to see my father," Scarlett cut in.

"Which two islands are under the Big Mom Pirates?"

Robin glanced at the rubbings again. "The Mjosgard family’s Palom-Polom and the Charlos family’s Barbaricia."