Chapter 4: Into the Auction

The Auction house is filled with people, including rich nobles, Heart Pirates, and Eustass Kid. The stage is dark, and people chatter excitedly.

Lights turn on, and a high-pitched voice emanates from the background, "Okay, ladies and gentlemen. It's the moment you've been waiting for: Groove 1's monthly great human auction is about to commence."

Colorful lights start to blink, and people dance on stage as Disco enters, his face adorned with a happy smile."So, what are you planning to buy today?" a man in the audience asks a girl sitting next to him.

"I'm planning on purchasing a nice man. The last one I bought had his mind broken in just a week. What about you?" the girl replies.

"I'm planning to buy two to three young girls to serve as eye candy," the man responds, and they both giggle and smile, thoroughly enjoying the show.

In the storage unit

A gloomy aura fills the air. Camie feels scared and horrified, her heart racing at the thought of her collar exploding if she tries to escape.

"Camie? Is that you? What are you doing here?" Zoro notices Camie and cuts open the cell as he walks in.Camie's eyes fill with hope as she sees Zoro.

"Zoro-chin, I got captured and..." She starts to cry, unable to speak more, "I...was...""Cry or talk, but do one thing at a time," Zoro says in an irritated tone.

After calming down, Camie explains the situation to Zoro."The collar will explode?" Zoro grits his teeth in frustration and anger. "What the hell am I supposed to do? I can't cut it, and I can't take you away; otherwise, the collar will explode."

Yash, standing on the sideline, witnesses everything and shares the same feelings, but he is in no better situation than them.

Zoro arrives at a conclusion after thinking for some time, "The guy who has the remote control of the collar should be nearby. I'll knock him out and get Camie out of here." Zoro pats Camie's head."Don't worry. I'll be back." After saying so, Zoro runs out of the storage unit.

"What am I supposed to do?" gritting his teeth with frustration, Yash's heart starts to beat faster.

Before Yash can arrive at any conclusion, some men wearing a uniform of green shirts, white undershirts, and green pants enter the storage unit.

Noticing people coming in, Yash quickly gives Buro something and tells her to stay.

"Huh? Someone cut open the cell," says Man no. 1 with panic.

"Don't worry; all the merchandise is still here. Take out entry no. 1," says Man no. 2.After that, Man no. 1 grabs Yash's arm, drags him out of the cell, puts some chains on him, and starts to pull him toward the stage.

"Hey, where are you guys taking me?" asks Yash as nervousness in his heart increases. The guards don't reply and keep pulling Yash toward the stage.

'Think, Yash, think. What do I usually do when I have no control over the situation? Yes, take a deep breath and focus. Things haven't gotten worse yet.' Yash thinks and takes a deep breath. The uncertainty and hesitation in his eyes vanish as he continuously looks around him for a way to escape his situation.

They enter the stage's spotlight as Yash is presented in front of the audience."Ladies and gentlemen, the first entry in today's auction is this young man with a fair face and skin. Just look at his face and muscles; these are clearly of those who have never experienced any difficulties or problems in their life. Let's start the bidding for the man with the price of 480,000 berries," says Disco.

"Oh my, look at the glare he is showing us. He looks like the perfect replacement for my previous slave. You remember? The one whose mind got broken. I bid 550,000 berries," says the girl in the audience.

"The number 6 has bid 550,000. Does anyone want to bid anymore?" asks Disco to the audience.Two of Disco's men hidden in the audience raise the price to 650,000 by bidding, making the girl pay 660,000 for Yash's slave contract.

This is a common strategy of Disco's that he uses to increase the bid of the merchandise in the auction.

After the bidding for entry 1 (Yash) is over, Yash is dragged into the shipping facility of the Human Auctioning house.Yash sits down on the ground and waits.

After a while, a musician enters, looking like a pirate, followed by ten male workers who have just been sold as slaves.Then a girl wearing a maid outfit with yellow hair enters, followed by many beautiful women sold as slaves.

"I don't want to be someone's property; help me, please. Call the Navy or something; please, get me out of here," protests one girl with purple hair, tears flowing from her eyes. Her voice trembles Yash's heart as he feels really bad and guilty for not being able to help anyone.

"Please, save me... Hikk..hikk..." Wiping away the tears, the girl falls to her knees.Boom..... A loud noise shakes the entire Human Auctioning house, and Yash gasps.

"What happened?" asks Man no. 1; another guy runs inside in a panic. "Get to the main auction stage quickly. The notorious Pirate Monkey D Luffy has just struck a Celestial Dragon."

Taking advantage of the chaos, Yash quickly takes action and whistles loudly in a high pitch. "Now that's going to ensure my escape." Yash relaxes and sits down on the floor again.

Two minutes later, Buro runs inside the room and sniffs Yash, barking."Good girl, did you bring it?" Yash says as he quickly pulls out a faucet from Buro's collar. The same faucet that was used by Rayleigh.

"You've got some nerve, brat, stealing alcohol from a man like myself isn't a nice thing to do," an elderly voice says as someone walks in.

"Old Man Rayleigh, will you not forgive me?" asks Yash.