Blackmailing Me? Dolls Do Things Without Any Scruples

West Blue, Obanro Island.

A large sailing ship docked at the port. Arias was about to control the puppet to disembark when Solomon hurriedly reported:

"Lord Yongye, Morgans just called and said that Nico Loba is missing."

The foot that was about to step off the boat suddenly stopped mid-air.

"Gone?"

Solomon's expression was one of fear. This was a task personally assigned by Lord Yongye, yet the people under his command had failed!

He was worried that Arias might kill him in anger.

Arias's cold eyes glanced at Solomon, making the strong man feel as if he had fallen into an ice cave.

"Heaven, because..."

Solomon trembled as he tried to speak, but no words came out. Was it Arias's fault for rejecting the proposal to capture Nico Robin directly? If Arias hadn't insisted on seeing Robin in person, she would have been brought to them by now!

But Solomon didn't dare to voice these thoughts.

Arias retracted the foot that was about to step out and said thoughtfully, "She's sharp. She likely sensed that someone was spying on her, so she fled in advance. But the sea is treacherous, and it's not easy for a person to sail alone. Without a large ship, she can only hide on Obanro Island. Besides, she's a landlubber."

After considering the situation, he decided to disembark.

He would ask around to see if any ships had set sail in the past few days.

"I'll get off the boat to take care of some things. You continue practicing," he instructed Monet and the others, before leaping off the boat and quickening his pace.

He opened the phagocytosis sac, releasing a swarm of flying insects that spread across the island. Donning a monocular, he closely monitored the vision of each insect.

As he stepped off the boat at the port, a young boy, around eleven or twelve years old, ran up to him, asking if he needed a guide.

"Sir, our Obanro Island is a famous tourist resort in West Blue! I've heard even the nobles of the Holy Land admire the beautiful scenery here!"

The boy was talkative, singing praises of his hometown. Due to the island's beauty, foreign tourists often visited, though not as frequently as the boy claimed. Otherwise, he wouldn't be the only one at the port trying to attract customers. But at his young age, this was the most suitable and easiest job for him.

Arias stopped and asked, "Are you familiar with this island?"

Seeing Arias engage with him, the boy responded eagerly, "Sir! I know every street here! No matter where you want to go, I can find the quickest route for you!"

"Good."

Arias agreed to hire the boy as a guide. The boy quickly introduced himself, "Sir, my name is Dulu, but people on the island like to call me Gulu. My sister calls me Gulu too. You can call me Gulu if you like!"

Arias wasn't interested in the boy's name. He began walking and asked, "Have any ships left the island in the past two days?"

Dulu replied, "No! I wait here for new tourists every day. Usually, a group arrives every three to five days and stays for a while before leaving. The last ship left about a week ago."

If no ships had left recently, it was highly likely that Nico Loba was still on the island.

Arias left a flying insect at the port to monitor the ships. If any were about to depart, he'd know immediately.

Not knowing exactly where Robin was hiding, he asked Dulu to take him around the island.

Dulu proved to be a qualified guide. He knew the island's routes well and narrated stories about the various places with great enthusiasm. However, they found no trace of Nico Robin along the way.

Robin was skilled at hiding—a survival skill honed over more than ten years. But Arias wasn't in a hurry. The flying insects had spread out across the island, and he would find her as soon as she appeared.

On their way, they encountered a man who bullied Gulu. Arias slapped him, causing him to lose a tooth, and the man quickly became docile.

"My lord! If you hit Job, he'll seek revenge," Gulu warned. Though grateful that Arias had defended him, he was also concerned.

Arias raised an eyebrow. Did this guy have some background? Was he the island owner or something?

"Job doesn't have much of a background," Gulu explained. "But he's a well-known gangster around here. He causes trouble with a few thugs. You're an outsider, and they outnumber you. You might suffer a loss."

It's often said that dealing with minor thugs is more troublesome than facing powerful adversaries. This type of gangster, though not powerful, was indeed a nuisance.

"Just a gangster," Arias muttered dismissively. The worst that could happen was that he'd kill them all.

He told Gulu not to worry and continued to explore the island, enjoying some local delicacies.

"Hey, this necklace is quite beautiful."

Arias casually picked up a handmade necklace. The materials weren't expensive, but the craftsmanship was exquisite.

"Sir..." Gulu quietly tugged on his sleeve, but Arias paid him no mind.

After examining the necklace for a moment, he decided to put it back. However, the shopkeeper, a stout woman, wasn't pleased.

"You've soiled my product, so you have to buy it!" she demanded.

"What?"

Arias was taken aback. "I just picked it up and looked at it."

But the shopkeeper insisted, "Our rule here is that once you touch it, you buy it! Otherwise, don't touch it! If everyone handled it like you, it would eventually get damaged!"

It wasn't entirely unreasonable, but Arias still found it hard to believe. The necklace was indeed beautiful, so he asked, "How much?"

"One hundred thousand Baileys!"

The shopkeeper's outrageous price made Arias chuckle as he tossed the necklace back. "Trying to scam me?"

The woman's face darkened. "My jewelry has always been sold at this price. If you didn't want to buy, why'd you touch it? Don't blame me for following the rules."

"Heh."

Arias turned around, unamused. "You think I don't know the value of this material? At most, it's worth three hundred beli. Asking for a hundred thousand? That's blatant extortion!"

The shopkeeper stood up, her voice raised. At that moment, a group of enforcers with armbands approached. "What's going on?"

The shopkeeper quickly pointed at Arias. "This outsider took my merchandise and refuses to pay for it!"

The enforcers immediately surrounded Arias. "If you don't pay, it's theft. Pay up, or we'll arrest you!"

Arias sneered, "She's trying to blackmail me. I put the item back. What payment is there to make?"

The leader pointed a finger at him. "You touched it, so you have to buy it! Now pay up!"

Arias quickly realized that these people were working together, intending to extort money from outsiders.

No longer in the mood to waste words, he activated the power of the Iron Fruit. The weapons in the enforcers' hands turned into molten iron and then solidified into steel blades, cutting off their heads.

While Arias's true self might hesitate to act so violently, his puppet, Yongye, had no such reservations.