CHAPTER 44:Timed Delegation

After the giants used "Elbaf's Spear: Hegemony," they were visibly weakened. It was clear that the move placed a tremendous burden on them. Weiwei, setting aside her doubts for now, decided to think more about "Hegemony" later. For the time being, drinking and building rapport took priority.

They drank while cursing the World Government.

Weiwei seized the moment and suggested the giants leave the island, but the two were adamant about resolving their duel. Even if the sky fell, they would fight—nothing seemed more important than settling their ancient grudge.

"Well, I'll pass the news on to my friend and have her notify the two giants," Weiwei offered.

Deep down, she hoped they wouldn't leave. If the two giants just kept fighting here—two matches a day, every day for three years—she could farm an insane amount of attributes! This was a goldmine refresh zone!

Karoo could control the puppy, and Weiwei was sure that the panel the duck saw was different from hers. For instance, Karoo had a timed delegation function to assign tasks to the puppy, a feature Weiwei didn't possess.

While the giants drank, one person, one duck, and one dog held a peaceful negotiation. In the end, Karoo arranged a timed delegation for Xiuxiu to pick up attribute drops at 9:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. each day, for 15 minutes at a time. All attributes gathered during that window would be automatically transferred to Karoo via remote sync. Outside these times, the puppy could roam freely around the giants' combat zone.

If a fight occurred outside those time slots, and Xiuxiu missed it, tough luck—nothing could be done. The timing of giant fights was too random to track accurately.

At this stage, the best they could do was estimate and trial the arrangement over a month or two, analyze the giants' activity pattern, and make adjustments later.

Weiwei clicked her tongue and gave Karoo a playful knock on the head. "Tsk, tsk! This plugin looks like it's yours, but it's technically mine. In the end, though, it benefits you most!"

Tori the Blue Ogre and Brogy the Red Ogre continued drinking, completely oblivious to their surroundings.

Together with the giants, Weiwei helped Xiuxiu build a wooden pet house modeled after the pet shop in Orange Town. When idle, the puppy could rest there. She even brought plush toys, rubber balls, chew sticks, and other comfort items to leave behind.

Karoo gave Xiuxiu the red Christmas hat that Weiwei had knitted and solemnly promised to return within two months to check on him.

Before leaving, Weiwei entrusted Xiuxiu to the two giants. Since they sat at the top of the island's food chain, the region was relatively safe. Xiuxiu would be fine as long as he stayed close to them.

Her excuse? "My friend—she knows you both. She asked me to leave the puppy in your care."

"I'll leave this Den Den Mushi here," Weiwei continued. "If anything happens to you two, or you settle your duel and want to leave the island, you can use it to contact us."

She handed the Den Den Mushi to Xiuxiu for safekeeping. The puppy nodded vigorously, accepting the important task of acting as liaison.

The giants agreed with the plan. The Den Den Mushi was too fragile to carry during battle, and trusting it to the small white dog seemed like a safer option.

Weiwei recounted Xiuxiu's story softly—how he'd loyally guarded the pet shop of his deceased owner for years.

"This little guy's got heart. Leave him to me!" Brogy grinned, thumping his chest. "I'll take good care of him!"

Weiwei gave her camera to Karoo and asked him to snap a group photo of her, Xiuxiu, and the giants, commemorating their alliance.

After finishing their drink, Dorry and Brogy returned to sleep. Meanwhile, Karoo gave his duckling underling a lesson, and Weiwei woke up a camp of dazed bounty hunters scattered in the jungle.

"A massive beast passed by earlier! It was terrifying! Just the pressure of its aura knocked us all out and stole our booze! Let's get off this island ASAP—the treasure can wait!"

Nobody questioned her story. The night roars of colossal beasts echoed through the Little Garden, and panic dulled their logic. With fear weighing on their minds and Weiwei charging off, the group followed in a herd-like frenzy. Even the skeptics didn't dare stay behind. In the end, everyone rushed back to their ships, hoisted anchors, and fled Little Garden Island.

Upon returning to Whiskey Peak, Weiwei submitted her mission report to Ms. All Sunday.

"There are large numbers of prehistoric beasts on the island. No signs of human habitation." Using the Den Den Mushi's fax feature, she also sent in several pictures of the area. Task complete, and reward secured.

Weiwei had completed many missions recently and was now on friendly terms with Ms. All Sunday—at least over the phone. As the call was ending, Weiwei asked a question.

"Ms. All Sunday, you've been to a lot of places, right?"

Nicole Robin paused. She neither confirmed nor denied it. "Why do you ask, Ms. Wednesday?"

"I've got a personal matter. Have you heard of Torrance Town? Supposedly, it's located near a strange ocean current. The current brings floating debris that forms a small, mobile town on the sea."

Weiwei was searching for a specific Devil Fruit rumored to be in that town. There was no boss to fight—just finding the town was enough to secure the fruit. But it was too obscure. Alabasta's intelligence network didn't have anything concrete. All she knew was that the town existed somewhere in the second half of the Grand Line—in the New World. No idea which nation it belonged to.

Nicole Robin thought it over. She was well-read and had traveled extensively. As a fugitive from the World Government since age eight, she'd spent her life hiding in forgotten corners of the world. Tiny islands and obscure settlements were her specialty.

"I read a travel journal back in the West Blue," she said thoughtfully. "It mentioned a town formed by an ocean current's collision, located somewhere in the Kingdom of Prodence. Survivors had formed a floating settlement there. I can't say for sure if it's Torrance Town, though."

The Baroque Works agents had low internal cohesion—everyone handled their own affairs. Robin didn't treat the matter as urgent, but she did flip through her personal library. Soon, she sent Weiwei a nautical chart and some official documents from the local kingdom describing the island in question.