Chapter 49: High Ground and the Spider
The sounds of battle roared behind him, but Su Xiao paid them no mind. He knew the Straw Hat Pirates had arrived. His target was the Judicial Tower, the highest point of Enies Lobby.
Glancing at the dozens of specially crafted bullets in his storage space, a smile crept onto Su Xiao’s face. These were custom-made rounds he had commissioned from Vegapunk, the exact model needed for the Spider Empress sniper rifle.
Vegapunk was undeniably a genius. In just one day, he had replicated the special ammunition for the Spider Queen.
This wasn’t free. Su Xiao had helped him manufacture dozens of high-grade Alchemy Bombs in return. Those bombs were produced at Vegapunk’s own expense, and their ownership belonged to Vegapunk as well.
Su Xiao’s pace quickened. After crossing a drawbridge, he reached the Main Island. Beyond this island lay the Judicial Island itself.
Tina followed closely behind, her expression grim. She sensed something was wrong. The moment Su Xiao set foot on the island, a group of pirates had arrived.
“Mr. White Night, let’s take shelter on the Main Island for now. We can’t go any further.”
Tina stopped in her tracks, seemingly asking for Su Xiao’s opinion, but her tone left no room for negotiation.
The Main Island, the second island, wasn’t a good place. If the direction of the decisive battle shifted, the Main Island would be caught in a pincer attack.
“Alright, let’s rest on the Main Island for now.”
Su Xiao’s cooperation pleased Tina. She quickly walked toward the courthouse on the Main Island.
Inside the courthouse.
The courthouse was no longer under the control of the CP department. It was filled with corpses, each bearing several gunshot wounds. A man dressed like a cowboy was observing from the highest point of the courthouse.
In the revolver-wielding man’s eyes, the courthouse didn’t deserve its name. There was no justice here—only a place for arbitrary convictions, run by the CP department’s lackeys. So he had killed everyone inside.
Seeing Su Xiao approach the courthouse, the revolver man smiled.
“A bit early, but fighting here isn’t bad. The terrain gives us an advantage.”
Just as the revolver man expected Su Xiao to enter the courthouse, he suddenly noticed Su Xiao had stopped in his tracks.
At that moment, Su Xiao stood still, a pained expression on his face.
“Mr. White Night, what’s wrong?”
Tina looked at Su Xiao in confusion, her internal guard raised. Her Devil Fruit ability was already primed.
“Ugh…”
Su Xiao spat out a mouthful of blood, faint traces of pale blue visible within.
“That poison sac… burst…”
Su Xiao’s face turned ashen, and even the light in his pupils began to fade.
“Impossible. Didn’t I already give you the suppressant?”
Tina was shocked but remained vigilant.
“I took the suppressant this morning. So why did the poison sac burst?”
Su Xiao slumped to the ground, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.
“You took it this morning? That’s even more impossible. How many did you take?”
“Two.”
Tina’s face went pale.
“Didn’t I tell you to only take one?!”
“Wouldn’t two be… more effective? What if the poison sac burst because of my movement?”
Su Xiao’s answer made Tina’s vision blur. That thing could only be taken once. Taking two—she had no idea what the reaction would be.
“Hurry, let’s get into the courthouse. There are doctors here. The poison sac shouldn’t have completely ruptured.”
Tina’s heart turned cold. If the poison sac burst, Su Xiao was as good as dead. Losing an important researcher under her watch would be a heavy blow to her career.
“I don’t think the poison is too severe. I might still have a chance to be saved.”
Su Xiao sat on the ground, struggling to extend his arm. Tina quickly stepped forward, draping his arm over her shoulder to help him into the courthouse.
Su Xiao’s full weight pressed down on Tina, but she supported him effortlessly as they moved forward.
This was a perfect opportunity!
After a few steps, Tina suddenly felt something was off. The man she was supporting felt strong, not like someone poisoned.
Su Xiao suddenly lunged. The arm draped over Tina’s shoulder hooked around her neck, instantly forming a chokehold.
“You…”
Crack, crack, crack.
Su Xiao tightened his grip with all his might around Tina’s pale neck, his face expressionless. Tina’s eyes rolled back as she struggled, slamming her elbow into Su Xiao’s side with all her strength.
The blow to his side made Su Xiao grunt, but he didn’t loosen his hold.
Five seconds later, Tina’s body went limp, slumping against Su Xiao, unconscious from lack of blood flow to the brain. Drool even dripped from her mouth.
This little tail, Tina, had to be dealt with. Otherwise, all his actions would be hindered.
Hoisting Tina over his shoulder, Su Xiao spat out the blood in his mouth. The blood was real—otherwise, he couldn’t have fooled Tina. As for being poisoned, that was impossible.
Su Xiao looked up at the high point of the courthouse. Someone was watching him.
“Want to come up and fight?”
The revolver man’s eyes held no hatred. Their earlier fair fight, where he had his bladder pierced, was his own lack of skill. He accepted it.
“Too early, don’t you think? Want to get ambushed and have your Scarlet Card stolen?”
“Of course not. Then I’ll see you at the Judicial Tower. By the way, contractors on the front island are already being cleared out. The ones on the Main Island are hiding. I’ll deal with them soon. The Judicial Island at the back hasn’t been touched yet.”
“Is that so?”
Su Xiao carried Tina toward the Judicial Tower. The revolver man didn’t stop him.
On his way to the Judicial Tower, Marines occasionally ran past him. Some stopped to question him, but after he showed his research unit credentials, they let him through.
Su Xiao was now on the Marines’ side, and he also had some connections with the CP department. So he smoothly crossed the second drawbridge, left the Main Island, and arrived at the third island, home to the Judicial Tower.
As he reached the main entrance of the Judicial Tower, a large group of black-suited special agents and Marines surrounded him. This strange combination was surprising—when had the Marines and the CP department become so chummy?
“Who are you?”
“Stand guard! He’s carrying Captain Tina on his shoulder!”
“Put down Captain Tina! Get on the ground!”
Surrounded on all sides, Su Xiao remained calm.
“I’m White Night from the research unit. I’m here to find someone. Here are my credentials.”
After showing his credentials, the surrounding people visibly relaxed.
“What happened to Captain Tina?”
“We were attacked by pirates after landing. Captain Tina fought them to protect me and then passed out.”
Su Xiao handed Tina over to the Marines. He had considered whether to kill Tina, but doing so would completely sever his ties with the World Government.
If that happened, the Pluton blueprints in his hands would become worthless—just a mission item.
Su Xiao had injected Tina with a drug. She wouldn’t wake up for 48 hours. That was enough.
After confirming Su Xiao’s identity, the agents let him into the Judicial Tower. Officially, he was there to find Kalifa on Enies Lobby. If Kalifa knew about this, she would probably faint.
Running quickly up the stairs of the Judicial Tower, Su Xiao aimed for the highest point.
In less than a minute, Su Xiao reached the end of the staircase. An iron door blocked his way.
Instead of breaking it down, Su Xiao spent some time unlocking it. He then stepped onto the highest point of the Judicial Tower—and the highest point of Enies Lobby.
The rooftop was small, with only a few square meters of usable space.
Locking the iron door behind him, Su Xiao lay down on the small, flat area, placing a blanket underneath.
Bubu Wang followed suit, seeming to know they couldn’t be exposed now.
Pulling out the Spider Empress sniper rifle and setting it up, Su Xiao surveyed his surroundings. The view was excellent. Everything below was laid out before him. Anyone trying to enter the Judicial Tower would be exposed to his sight.
The rifle was ready. Now, he just waited for the enemy.
The decisive battle would begin in 36 minutes. At that point, the Pluton design blueprints would be sensed by all contractors.
Checking the mission progress, it would take 2 hours and 36 minutes to complete. That meant he had to protect the blueprints for two hours.
Su Xiao could already foresee that in 36 minutes, a flood of contractors would swarm toward him, right into his crosshairs.