Chapter 179: CP9's Retreat
Lucci said nothing.
His expression had dimmed, carrying confusion, doubt, and a trace of humiliation that even he could not fully hide.
Anyone placed in his position would have felt the same.
If the fight had continued until he lost, he would have accepted it. Defeat was defeat. But being spared like this, being allowed to live because the other side had simply decided to stop—how could someone as proud as him endure that?
"...Why?"
His voice came out low and strained.
"Pity?"
The question caught Axel off guard.
He had not expected Rob Lucci, of all people, to ask something like that. Wasn't this man supposed to be the type who fought, lost, and walked away in silence?
After a brief pause, Axel gathered his thoughts and answered.
"No reason, really. We were never in a life-or-death feud to begin with. Killing you would only bring me more trouble. Besides, by now, you should understand that solving this by force isn't rational. I doubt you'll try that again."
He lowered the wooden blade in his hand.
"So it's better to end this peacefully."
Lucci could not deny the logic.
Their conflict was not some blood feud that could only end with one side dead. Their attack on Axel had come from a mission. Their true objective was to investigate whether the Pluton blueprints had truly been destroyed, not necessarily to arrest him.
And the facts had already proven one thing.
Capturing Axel was not simple.
Lucci alone could not do it. Even if the rest of CP9 joined him, the outcome was still uncertain.
Axel's reasoning was also correct. Killing Lucci would only create far greater trouble than the investigation itself.
But Lucci hated this feeling.
Being spared.
Being let go.
For a man with such pride, for someone who upheld justice with near-fanatical conviction, this was no different from mockery.
In the end, it came down to two words.
He was weak.
At that moment, Rob Lucci, hailed as the strongest and coldest killing weapon in CP9 history, felt the desire to become stronger.
He had tasted weakness.
For a man who believed weakness was a sin, who believed weakness could not protect justice, this was a bitter humiliation.
"Lucci!"
The arriving CP9 members froze when they saw Lucci supporting himself with one hand on the ground.
It was a scene they had never imagined.
Lucci had lost?
Their shock lasted only a moment. Then they moved immediately, surrounding Lucci in a defensive formation. Aside from Kaku, who had taken Blueno away for treatment, the remaining members of CP9 stood ready for battle.
Seeing them assume their stances, Axel muttered inwardly.
Troublesome.
His fight with Lucci had looked one-sided at the end, but it had not been effortless.
The fact that he had managed to pull himself out of that frenzied state was proof enough. His mind was completely exhausted. He wanted nothing more than to find a quiet place, lie down, and sleep.
But he had pride too.
He could not show that weakness here.
Mental fatigue meant calculation errors. His attacks would become unstable. If he forced more calculations into his strikes now, they might not strengthen him. They might weaken him instead, or even backfire.
More importantly, if another fight started, he was not sure his mind could hold out.
Before Axel could speak, Lucci forced out words he had never said before.
"Mission... failed. Retreat."
Silence fell.
The CP9 members stared at him, unable to believe what they had just heard.
Lucci had declared the mission a failure.
That was unthinkable.
It felt like watching the world turn upside down.
"Lucci, what nonsense are you saying?" Jabra blurted out, his jaw nearly dropping. "That isn't like you!"
Despite the hostility he often showed Lucci, Jabra respected him deep down. In his eyes, Rob Lucci was not someone who would abandon a mission halfway.
Lucci answered with silence.
Yet that silence made one thing clear.
He had his reasons.
Jabra gritted his teeth, but did not press further. After witnessing Axel's strength for himself, he understood.
Lucci had made the right call.
Like that, the tension scattered like smoke.
The CP9 members withdrew using Moonwalk, leaving the harbor behind.
Axel watched them go, then turned back toward the base.
Halfway there, he suddenly remembered something and spun around. Gathering what little strength he had left, he shouted at the figures vanishing through the air.
"Wait! You haven't paid for the damages! The repair costs! The base repairs!"
The CP9 members immediately sped up.
"..."
Axel stared after them for a moment, then shrugged.
Fine.
He would just have to squeeze the money out of Headquarters and pin the bill on the World Government. With luck, he might even manage to inflate the estimate a little.
For a brief second, he imagined a future filled with luxurious meals paid for by repair funds. The thought made his steps a little lighter.
Of course, most dreams were only dreams.
When he returned to the training ground, he did not stop to bask in the admiring gazes of the Marines.
If anything, he felt a little guilty.
In that frenzied state earlier, he had nearly cut through everyone present. Fortunately, his instincts had judged Lucci as the greatest threat and focused almost entirely on him.
Right now, Axel only wanted peace and quiet.
He did not want anyone disturbing him. He did not want questions. He did not want praise. He especially did not want some fool turning "peace and quiet" into the name of a woman and asking who she was.
With CP9's retreat, the San Faldo Marine Base had won the exercise.
Strictly speaking, the Enies Lobby Marines had held the overall advantage. Their rank-and-file soldiers were stronger and better trained. But in this world, victory was often not decided by the ordinary soldiers below.
It was decided by the strength of those at the top.
That was the most basic rule of this sea.
Strength.
That was also why so many Marines looked at Axel with admiration.
Strength was the most fundamental currency in the Marines.
A good commander was something every soldier hoped for, but if that commander was weak, they might be liked, perhaps even respected, but they would never truly inspire awe.
In this world, strength mattered more than anything.
Especially at the rank of Vice Admiral and above.
There were no weaklings there.
To stand against pirates, the Marines needed people with power.
Eulia watched everything in silence, then changed his mind.
His original goal had only been to climb higher. He wanted to remove obstacles from his path and take advantage of the situation. He had never expected this child's strength to be so astonishing.
Or perhaps it should have been expected.
After all, Axel was Vice Admiral Garp's grandson.
Since Captain Axel possessed such strength, in this Great Pirate Era, he would not remain long at a mere branch base.
There was no need for Eulia to take such risks.
Axel waved away the jubilant Marines and dragged his exhausted body toward the ruined base, heading for his room.
Then he remembered.
His bedroom, which also served as his office, had been destroyed by his own hands.
He stopped.
A deep sigh escaped him.
Then he turned in another direction.
Before he had gone far, a large figure blocked his path.
Axel looked up and saw Tom.
"It's you."
His voice was tired.
Under normal circumstances, he would have called him Mr. Tom. But right now, even saying one extra word felt like a waste of strength.
Tom looked down at the exhausted yet stubborn child before him.
Axel could easily have ordered his subordinates to arrange a place for him to rest. Yet even now, he refused to show weakness in front of them.
Something warm and heavy rose in Tom's chest.
This child had gone this far for him.
How could he not be moved?
Especially since Tom had always been a sentimental man.
"Let me take you to rest," Tom said.
Before Axel could object, Tom bent down, scooped him up, and carried him toward an empty resting room.
.....
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