New World, Dressrosa.
"Sir, have you heard that Caelan defeated Aokiji?"
Violet looked down at the newspaper and asked Doflamingo, seemingly casually.
"Hmph, I knew long ago."
"Why? Is something bothering you?"
Doflamingo's voice was calm, as if he didn't care.
But Violet clearly saw Doflamingo's hand tremble slightly.
So, you're afraid too!
"No, I just wanted to remind the young master that this is a dangerous man."
There was no emotion in Violet's brown eyes, as if she were merely stating a fact.
After delivering a cup of freshly brewed coffee to Doflamingo, Violet left the study.
"What are you pretending for? Weren't you all excited to go pick a fight with him a few days ago? Now you're back in disgrace. You've offended someone that strong, Doflamingo... your death isn't far off."
Finding a quiet corner, Violet's thoughts grew active.
She was originally the princess of Dressrosa and had been forced to serve under Doflamingo to save her father.
Now that she saw Doflamingo shaken by Caelan, she started to form a plan.
Violet took out two newspapers—one reporting Caelan liberating Alabasta, and the other his defeat of Aokiji.
"If you could accept Princess Vivi's commission to save Alabasta…"
"Then accepting a commission from me and Rebecca to save Dressrosa should be no problem, right?"
Violet smiled with hope.
If it meant saving their country, both she and Rebecca were willing to sacrifice anything.
…
In the Florian Triangle, aboard Thriller Bark.
"This guy defeated Crocodile and beat Aokiji? So brutal!"
Gecko Moria trembled as he held the newspaper.
Based on the route Caelan was traveling, he was getting dangerously close to his territory.
Please don't come here. He just defeated an admiral!
Moria had been in a slump ever since losing to Kaido years ago.
Facing someone like Caelan, who could beat an admiral, he really didn't have the courage to go head-to-head.
"Oh God, please don't let him come here. I'm one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, but I'm not worth anything. I'm not as strong as an admiral. I'm just a small fry."
Moria pressed his hands together, muttering like he was praying.
"Wait... if I think about it this way, there's really no reason for him to come after me!"
Moria listed out all his own shortcomings and suddenly froze.
As long as I'm useless enough, no one will want to provoke me?
So I'm safe!
Thinking of it that way... it's kind of sad.
"If you're gonna fight someone, go find Kaido! He's the one with power and a huge bounty. He's the one you should face!"
"I'd love to see both of them injured!"
Mocking himself, Moria suddenly felt a surge of malice.
Whether it was Kaido or Caelan, both were people he couldn't afford to offend.
If those two fought, Moria would laugh in his sleep.
In the next moment, Moria threw the thought aside and returned to studying how to find a suitable shadow for Oars.
…
At this time, Caelan, the one Moria was so afraid of, had entered a dark sea covered in dense fog.
"So weird, it was sunny just a moment ago. Why did it suddenly turn so gloomy and creepy?"
Nami hugged her arms tightly, a little uneasy.
"This is the Florian Triangle, shrouded in fog with no sunlight year-round and no sense of direction. Even with a Log Pose, navigation is extremely difficult."
"Please don't let us get lost here, Nami-chan!"
Robin, knowledgeable as always, smiled and explained while teasing Nami a little.
"Who do you think you're talking to? No matter how dangerous the sea is, as the best navigator, I won't get lost!"
Nami puffed out her ample chest proudly.
"Haha, is that so?"
"But I heard there are ghosts in these waters."
Robin's lips curled into a sly grin.
"G-Ghosts?!"
Even though they were all strong, hearing about ghosts still gave them chills.
"Robin, that's just a legend!"
Nami forced a smile, tugging at the corner of her mouth.
"But the books say people have seen ghosts here."
"Nami-chan, if we meet one... should we exorcise her?"
Robin deliberately slowed her speech and made a cutting motion across her neck.
"Ahhh!!!"
Nami and Vivi, one on each side, instantly threw themselves into Caelan's arms.
"Oops, I went too far!"
Robin looked at the two girls and chuckled behind her hand.
She had only meant to tease Nami, but didn't expect Vivi to get scared too.
"Caelan, look at her!"
Vivi and Nami's heads pressed against Caelan's chest as they rubbed against him and acted cute.
"Ahem, Robin, see what you've done!"
"I'll have to teach you a lesson later."
Caelan gently stroked Nami and Vivi's backs, pretending to be serious.
"Alright then. I'll wait for the captain to punish me."
Robin rolled her eyes at Caelan, not bothered at all.
"Caelan, I'll help you teach her a lesson!"
Nami's eyes sparkled mischievously.
"I want to join too!" ×3
Vivi, Tashigi, and Kalifa, who had fully embraced their new roles, all shouted in unison.
"Fine, fine. You wanna play like this? Bring it on!"
Caelan welcomed them all without hesitation. With full A-rank stats, dealing with them was like child's play.
Hearing his response, the girls burst into laughter.
After a while, Nami still felt uneasy and asked nervously, "Caelan, are there really ghosts here?"
"There aren't ghosts... but there is a Ghost Princess."
Caelan smiled as he answered half-jokingly.
"G-Ghost Princess?!"
Nami's eyes widened instantly as she dove back into Caelan's arms.
Seeing her get tricked again, the other girls couldn't help laughing like a chorus of silver bells.
"That's not a ghost. It's just one of Moria's subordinates."
Caelan patted Nami's head with a helpless smile.
"Ugh, I hate you. You scared me again!"
Nami lightly pounded Caelan's chest with her small fists.
"Alright, stop messing around. Look at what's ahead."
Caelan turned Nami's head toward the front of the Wind Rider.
A massive three-masted ship appeared before them. The enormous vessel exuded a dilapidated and eerie aura, like a floating island of the dead.
"This is Moria's stronghold?"
"It feels like something out of hell!"
Nami looked at the gloomy ship and couldn't help but complain.
The girls all nodded in agreement. Choosing such a depressing place as a base was definitely not normal.
Caelan didn't feel anything, though. On the contrary, he was excited.
Moria, Perona... I'm coming for you!
(To be continued.)
***
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