57 The Heist #57

Two months later

After waiting for the Marine soldier to pass by, Cedric grinned as he let go of the wall and quietly dropped to the ground. He stuck the landing and lingered a moment as he looked around to ensure no one else was coming.

Once he was sure the coast was clear, the young man got to his feet and started running further into the dark corridor with a severe, determined expression, clearly up to no good.

Consulting the rough map he held as he ran, Cedric made several more turns before bumping into another marine soldier patrolling the hallways. But the young man had already memorized the patrol schedule and timing, so the encounter did not come as a surprise.

He maintained his calm as he hid behind a stack of barrels and waited for the marine to pass by before emerging. "I'm finally here..." He muttered to no one in particular as he made another turn and stopped before a locked steel door.

Cedric surveyed the area one last time, sighing in relief as he kneeled before the steel door and reached into his pocket. "Time to put those lockpicking lessons from Pike to the test..." He said, taking a deep breath as he retrieved a hairpin and jammed it into the lock.

He fiddled with the pin for a while before smiling as he heard a satisfying click. "No wonder they shipped that guy to G-5... he really knows what he's doing..." Cedric said, shaking his head as he opened the door and entered the room.

The young man rubbed his hands together with a gleeful expression. And his smile instantly widened as he looked at the shelves and saw rows upon rows of vintage wine bottles meant only World Government digintiaries visiting Marine HQ.

"Jackpot..." Cedric said as he picked up the nearest bottle and pried the cork open with his teeth. He only paused momentarily to sniff the wine before putting the bottle to his mouth and raising it high.

He emptied the bottle, his face flushing as he turned to the rest on the shelves. "Damn... that was good..." He said as he lunged at the racks and stuffed bottles into his backpack until it was packed full.

'Now to get out of here...' He mused as he quickly put on the backpack and headed for the store room's exit.

...

I couldn't help but grin, barely resisting the urge to laugh out loud as I ran away from the storage area, leaving behind a group of confused marine soldiers searching for an intruder that was no longer there.

"I wonder if I should drink all this stuff or sell--" I muttered, pausing halfway through my sentence as I hit something solid and fell flat on my back.

The sound of shattering glass following my fall caused me no small amount of emotional pain at the loss of some good wine, prompting me to groan as I turned and looked up to see what I hit.

I saw a giant black shoe attached to an equally gigantic leg clad in formal brown pants. I sighed, stretching my neck to look further up, and saw a sleeveless pink shirt with two huge, soft-looking bulges.

"I still can't figure out how you can move so sneakily, Val..." I said with an exasperated sigh to draw the attention of the giantess, and she finally noticed my existence as she turned to me with a smile.

"Oh, Cedric... that explains the alarms in the storage..." The giantess said with a chuckle. "Did you try to raid the vintage wine again?" She asked, sounding genuinely amused.

"I made it too, but it's all gone now..." I said as I got up and emptied the glass shards from my backpack. "This is gonna leave a stain too..." I added as I looked at my marine coat, stained red.

"Hahaha! So you finally did it!" Val said, slapping the butt of her spear into the ground and almost causing an earthquake as she laughed. "Come on, kiddo. I know what will cheer you up..." She added as she kneeled down and extended an open palm toward me.

"Gunnar got his hands on some spirit from our home, and becket came back from the Calm Belt with a delicious-looking sea king today..." The giantess concluded, and that was all I needed to jump onto her palm without hesitation.

...

"Oh, you're here, Val," Said Becket, a giant who looked like an orc with two light yellow skin, pointy ears, and two protruding tusks, turning away from the fish-like sea king roasting over an oversized gigantic bone fire once he noticed the giantess approaching. "And you brought company, I see," He added, grinning as he looked at her shoulder and saw me standing there.

"Val and Cedric are here? Now it's a party," Said Gunnar, a giant with darker skin and a scraggly beard, wearing a backward marine cap and marine coat with nothing beneath it.

"Evening, fellas," I greeted the two giants with a grin. "You're back from your deployment early, Becket... did you get the pirate you were after?" I asked, tilting my head.

"Aye, he's already rotting in Impel Down..." Becket replied with a nod. "But never mind the boring details, sit down and let's have some fun..." He added, and I shrugged, jumping off Val's shoulder, and landing on a stone some distance from the fire.

"You too, Val," Becket went on, gesturing toward an oversized log near the fire, and giantess obliged. "So, how's your training with Z-sense been so far, Cedric?" He asked as he turned back to the fire and tended to the sea king, rotating it over the flames.

"As well as it could," I replied with a shrug. "Z-sensei is a great teacher, but if I had to complain about something, it's gonna have to be my fellow students..." I said with a sigh as I scratched my head.

"That Prince guy is too uptight, and Vice Admiral Tsuru's granddaughter gives me the creeps..." I said, my spine tingling as images of Kujaku pulling her whip sword flashed in my mind. "Then there's Zsensei's aides... Ain hates my guts for some reason, and Binz is a fucking weirdo..." I concluded, shaking my head.

"Well, if I caught someone staring at my ass, and then he whooped it, I'd be mad too..." Val said with a loud laugh that almost raptured my eardrums, causing me to roll my eyes.

"I wasn't staring at her ass, though..." I said, shaking my head to remove the buzzing in my ear. "And that's another complaint I'd like to add... how come there are no brothels on this damned island...I'm getting a serious case of blue-balls," I added with an annoyed scoff.

"You're not hard on the eyes, kiddo..." Val remarked, rolling her eyes at me. "Just find someone you like and talk to her... I'm sure you'll secure a date at least," She added, shrugging her shoulders.

"Well, how about going on a date with me? You're not hard on the eyes yourself..." I jokingly said, grinning as I looked up and stared the giantess in the face, earning a scoff for my effort.

"You're a hundred years too young and at least 15 feet too short for me, kiddo," Val replied, chuckling as she shook her head. "But maybe I'll give you a chance if you can take down a yonko or something..." She added, winking at me.

"There are easier ways to die, Val..." I said, rolling my eyes at the words of the giantess, much to her amusement. "So... I hear you've got your hands on some Elbaf spirits, Gunnar...?" I said, changing the subject as I turned to the bearded giant.

"Not just any old Elbaf spirits..." Gunnar replied as he patted the giant barrel he sat on. "This stuff is the finest aged mead you'll find anywhere," He added, clearly resisting the urge to bust the barrel open and drain its contents.

"Hold your horses, Gunnar. It'll taste better with the meat..." Val said as she noticed the thirsty look the bearded giant had. "How's the sea king roasting, Becket?" She asked as she turned to the orc-like giant.

"It's ready to eat..." Becket said as he removed the sea king from the fire with the broadest and most eager of grins. "Start pouring the mead, Gunnar," He added as he turned to the bearded giant.

"You only needed to ask..." Gunnar said, matching Becket's excitement as he poured the mead into barrel-sized wooden cups.

If someone told me I'd be drinking and feasting with a punch of marine giants two months ago, I would have probably laughed in his face. Even now, I couldn't wrap my head around it, especially with how I met these guys.

But that's a story for another time. The mead won't drink itself, after all.

...

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