Chapter 38 - Cooperation

After hearing the other party's words, Nicholas just smiled.

On the high seas, there might be allies, but most of them are not very reliable, after all, betrayal is common among pirates.

"What can I get?" Nicholas asked succinctly, as there was no reason to refuse such a windfall.

"The friendship of the lawless zone and an invitation to the Wine Hero Conference held on Barks Island next month. After all, as long as the two of us join forces, we can definitely get a piece of the pie," Kallet said.

Hearing Kallet's words, Nicholas fell into thought.

The so-called Wine Hero Conference, in the world of pirates, many places celebrate certain big festivals with drinking contests, comparing who can drink the most.

After all, in the pirate world, alcohol is like hard currency. For pirates drifting on the high seas, alcohol is undoubtedly a remedy for loneliness.

Thus, the World Wine Hero Association was formed by all the wineries worldwide, and events like these drinking contests are often very popular. Participants come from all walks of life, including commoners, nobles, marines, and pirates.

Even during the Wine Hero Conference, many opposing factions temporarily set aside their grudges. If anyone were to act rashly, they would not only face their opponents but also pressure from the Wine Hero Conference.

However, the Wine Hero Conference Kallet mentioned was completely different from these conferences.

Because Barks Island also has another name, the Island of the Wine God.

"Are you saying that the wine spring is about to spout fifty-year-old vintage?" Nicholas asked, but he shook his head right after, "Impossible, the legendary wine spring spouted fifty-year-old vintage just twenty years ago. According to the timing, it will take another thirty years for it to reappear."

Nicholas had also obtained information about Barks Island from Shakky. After all, this magical sea is full of various unknowns, some things have not been discovered yet, and some things have already been utilized by people.

Just like the magical shells in the Sky Islands, which have various incredible effects despite being similar to ordinary shells in the Blue Sea.

And the wine spring on Barks Island is one of the many things discovered and utilized by people.

Barks Island grows various fruit trees, and even many trees that originally grew in extreme conditions of severe cold or extreme heat can be found on Barks Island. It's not an exaggeration to say that the climate on Barks Island is a miniaturized version of the Unhappy Island climate.

When the fruits on the island mature, they fall directly to the ground and, due to unique reasons, these fruits do not rot but enter a unique fermentation state.

Then, the juice flows into the deepest part of the island through the soil, where it undergoes decades of fermentation to produce divine wine.

"Of course, it's not fifty years this time," Kallet said with a smile.

"Because this time, what will appear from it is the Wine God that appears only once every hundred years. The reliability of this news is extremely high. After all, I paid a huge price to get this information from within the Wine Hero Association.

Normally, I wouldn't be interested in things I can't get my hands on. Whether it's the World Government or those huge forces, they all aim to obtain things that can help people improve their strength without side effects, as they are the most sought-after commodities in this sea.

This time, according to the information, it seems that your captain intends to start a war big enough to change the world. And this war will undoubtedly attract the attention of all parties, so this is our chance."

Hearing Kallet's words, Nicholas admitted that he was tempted.

After all, these things don't have much effect on those who are already at their peak. Although drinking it can improve one's physique to a certain extent, whether it's fifty years or a hundred years, a person can only drink it once in their lifetime.

Apart from the first time, subsequent drinks are just about enjoying top-quality wine.

For Nicholas, this was indeed a rare opportunity. While Stussy had developed a drink that could unlock potential and enhance strength, there were more opportunities to become stronger. Who would want to miss out?

Moreover, the enhancement of strength would give him more confidence in the upcoming major war and survival after the war.

"Well then, happy cooperation!"

"Happy cooperation."

After agreeing on the time, Nicholas left the lawless zone with his backpack.

Watching Nicholas leave, the person next to Kallet asked, "Boss, is this guy reliable?"

"Whether he's reliable or not doesn't matter. What's most important is that this guy's strength is strong enough. With him, I'm completely confident that we can get a bigger share," Kallet said indifferently. For him, the trip to Barks Island was a very important plan. After all, major forces need a solid foundation to support them, and as for those pirates on the sea, they're just that.

Although they seem glorious and can dominate the sea for decades, when they get older, their body functions decline, and their strength declines. How many of them can end well?

Since the establishment of the World Government to the present, there have been top-tier powerhouses in the sea, but now the World Government is still the World Government, and the Celestial Dragons are still the world nobles. But those guys?

"Alright, go prepare. Also, let the funeral home come and deal with these guys' bodies, and see if the intact parts of these guys' bodies can fetch a good price."

After saying that, Kallet walked towards the deepest part of the lawless zone.

It can be said that the businesses of the bosses in the underground world are quite extensive.

Slaves, weapons, brothels, smuggling, these are relatively normal industries, and various things that can easily stir up ordinary people's nerves can be easily found in the underground world.

And the funeral home Kallet mentioned is one of the forces in the underground world.

Their main job is to collect corpses, and depending on the situation, they occasionally work as doctors to collect organs from corpses for recycling.

It can be said that collecting corpses for others is just a sideline, their main business is organ trafficking.

And Nicholas found a hotel to stay temporarily. After informing Stussy and the others with a transponder snail, Nicholas called the waiter downstairs and ordered a meal for thirty people. After eating hastily, he lay down to rest.

After all, today was quite satisfying, and he had received a batch of wine and two good Swords, so it was time to reward himself.

Most importantly, he was not far from Mary Geoise, so he needed to rest and keep himself in peak condition at all times.

The next morning, Nicholas woke up early.

After waking up, Nicholas felt very relaxed all over his body, and his mind was extremely clear. He felt full of vitality, as if his body was filled with energy, so maintaining good sleep was also very beneficial to the body.

Out of habit, he deployed his Observation Haki and found that there were no enemies within a two-kilometer radius, which made Nicholas wonder.

Could it be that the Lehman Brothers just gave up like that? After all, he had just given them a zero-dollar deal.

But even if the Lehman Brothers didn't come, it wouldn't matter.

After eating a breakfast for ten people, Nicholas picked up his backpack and headed towards the 13th Port District.