One piece: I,Akaino will not die easily

By the time the sun had just risen above the horizon the next day, the Marines were already busy. Machetes, fresh water, military tents, and the essential insect repellent were all being prepared.

Lindemann deliberately brought a camera to record any dangerous environments or edible flora and fauna on the island that needed attention.

The colonel found it odd when he noticed the major in the same cabin, who had a neatly trimmed buzz cut, seeming to have prepared nothing at all.

"Uh… Major Bell?" Lindemann squinted his eyes and pointed at the other man's light outfit. "This island is full of jungle, meaning there's probably no proper pathways. Are you sure you don't need a machete?"

The short-haired, blond major lightly patted the dagger at his waist. "I appreciate your concern, Colonel Lindemann, but this will be enough for me."

Lindemann shrugged slightly and walked out of the cabin. Anyway, the Marine Headquarters had plenty of oddballs—one more who was obsessed with daggers didn't make much of a difference.

Sakazuki was standing on the deck, waiting for everyone to assemble. They had sailed into the island's inner river the previous night and dropped anchor in a calm section of the waterway, making it convenient for their reconnaissance mission this morning.

When he saw Lindemann, the vice admiral waved him over.

"Good morning, Vice Admiral." Lindemann, with a camera hanging from his chest, saluted him with a hint of surprise.

"Isn't your training time important?" He had assumed that the officer would have already set off for the volcano to train.

"The Fleet Admiral originally only gave me four months of training time, but Instructor Zephyr had me training officers, so I got a few extra months from him."

The vice admiral nodded and asked, "How's the preparation work coming along?"

The colonel laughed loudly. "Everything is ready, awaiting your orders."

"Very well. But allow me to remind you once more—this mission is to reconnoiter the entire island, and the threats here don't just come from the prehistoric beasts." Sakazuki seemed to be implying something.

"Huh? You mean…?" Lindemann didn't immediately grasp the meaning.

"There are other things here, Lindemann," a childish voice came from behind the colonel.

Robin was wearing loose long pants today—mosquito bites in the jungle were more than just annoying.

"Good morning, Robin. Are you saying there's something else on this island?" Lindemann turned around and greeted the little girl.

Robin was holding an adventure book in her arms. She opened it and pointed to a passage. "Have you read The Writings of Explorer Louis Arnold?"

"...Not at all. Does that book contain information about this island?" Lindemann humbly asked the child for guidance. He was a meticulous person, and gathering information about this island in advance would undoubtedly help with the exploration.

"The name of this island is 'Little Garden.' It was named that way by that adventurer." Robin pressed her index finger on the text and read it aloud: "To its inhabitants, this island is like a small garden. 'Little Garden'—that's what I shall call this land."

Lindemann's eyelids twitched, and he exhaled deeply. "Inhabitants?"

Sakazuki pointed to the jungle behind him, which was echoing with strange sounds. "For someone to consider an environment like this their 'small garden,' what do you think they are?"

Lindemann was silent for a moment before hesitantly looking up. "Giants?"

The officers who had finished their preparations and gathered for the mission overheard Lindemann's shocked words, and their expressions became somewhat unnatural. Clearly, these men, who loved swords more than books, had never considered the possibility that this island might be home to giants.

"Huh? No way! Why would giants be here? Elbaf, in the New World, is the homeland of the Giant Tribe!" The buzz-cut major casually closed the door behind him.

"Have you ever heard of the almost invincible Giant Warrior Pirates?" Sakazuki asked in a deep voice.

"If remnants of the Giant Warrior Pirates were left behind on this island, then it makes sense." Lindemann sorted out his thoughts.

"Thanks to Robin mentioning this during breakfast this morning, I realized that we might be dealing with remnants of the Giant Warrior Pirates."

Of course, Sakazuki knew that the two leaders of the Giant Warrior Pirates were dueling here, but the others had no idea. If these officers were to stumble upon the giants while scouting for a campsite and rashly attack them, they would most likely be killed by those elite warriors.

The vice admiral could only use Robin's vast reading knowledge to hint at the potential danger, warning the others without making them suspicious.

For the first time, Major Bell genuinely appreciated having the little girl on board as an intern. He could handle wild beasts with ease, but giants were definitely not on his menu. Besides, as a major, there was no way he could defeat a giant capable of matching a vice admiral of Marine Headquarters.

Ever since Elbaf had signed a cooperation agreement with the World Government, the Marines had gained more giant officers, including Vice Admirals John Giant and Haguar D. Saul.

Terrifying strength, skin tough enough to withstand small-caliber artillery without injury—even direct hits from heavy cannons were not necessarily fatal to them. Based on the World Government's evaluation of their combat prowess, giants were considered on par with Marine Headquarters vice admirals who had mastered Haki.

"Proceed with caution. We cannot yet confirm whether any giants are still living on this island. If you encounter a giant during reconnaissance, do not engage—return to the warship immediately and report to me."

Sakazuki scanned the three reconnaissance teams that had assembled and prepared for departure.

"Yes, sir!"

However, the Marine officers who landed on Little Garden for reconnaissance soon welcomed their first "guests." Contrary to their expectations, they were not attacked by giants—the first to launch an assault were the island's native creatures.

"There really are dinosaurs?" Lindemann planted his machete in the ground and drew the sword at his waist.

He stared at the scene ahead—a carnivorous dinosaur hunched over the carcass of a stegosaurus, feasting.

"That's a Tyrannosaurus rex," Major Bell whispered, keeping his eyes on the bloody feast before them. "I wonder if dinosaurs taste good."

"I don't know if they taste good, but I think we're about to become the meal instead," said a ponytailed lieutenant commander, scanning their surroundings with a tense expression.

"Yeah, we're being surrounded like prey. Do you think they'll invite us for tea?" Lindemann remained unbothered. For Headquarters officers, dealing with these beasts was a trivial matter, so he still had the leisure to crack a joke.

The buzz-cut major drew the dagger at his waist and reversed his grip. "Look, it's velociraptors watching us from the shadows. The reason they haven't attacked yet is because they're wary of the T. rex that's having breakfast right in front of us."

As the leader of this three-man reconnaissance team, Lindemann leisurely lifted his camera without adjusting the exposure and snapped a shot of the feeding scene.

"Click!"

The T. rex, startled by the sudden flash, immediately stopped eating and roared, charging toward them.

"Hey, Captain, at least turn off the flash!" Even as a nearly ten-meter-long bloodthirsty beast rushed toward them, Major Bell still had the time to make a sarcastic remark.

The T. rex lowered its head and snapped its jaws toward Lindemann. Just as the beast thought it had caught its prey, the colonel's figure blurred into a flickering afterimage.

"Soru."

When he reappeared, his sword was stained with blood.

"Its skin really is tough," Lindemann muttered in admiration.

But before he finished speaking, the colossal beast collapsed to the ground.

A massive wound had opened up across its abdomen.