“Mr. Crocus, you really did enter the Grand Line.”
“That voice… Brook! It really is you! How did you end up like this?! What exactly happened to the Rumbar Pirates back then?”
Although he had been invited aboard as a ship doctor, Crocus himself also possessed decent combat ability. Even when the Roger Pirates sailed through the New World, he could participate in battles as a combatant.
Still not old at this point, he was quite agile, directly flipping down from the ship’s railing.
Seeing that Crocus had found the person he wanted to meet, the other members of the Roger Pirates were happy for him and didn’t interrupt. Instead, they headed off together to other places, planning to tour Fish-Man Island, which they hadn’t visited in a long time.
“Back then…”
When Crocus asked about it, Brook briefly summarized what had happened back then, though he didn’t go into too much detail.
Crocus didn’t press further. Brook had luckily survived because of the Revive-Revive Fruit, but for Brook, that might not necessarily have been a blessing.
“After all these years, why haven’t you returned to Twin Capes yet? Have you forgotten Laboon?! Don’t you know Laboon has been waiting for all of you this whole time?!”
“Laboon… how could I possibly forget it…
And besides… I don’t really know how to face it. Do you expect me to tell Laboon that everyone else died…
So I want to fulfill the promise we made back then. After traveling through the entire Grand Line and circling the world once, I’ll return from the other side.”
Brook’s tone was filled with sorrow. Memories were certainly precious, but memories one could never return to were also scars that could never fade.
Even though only bones remained of his body, the painful memories were still engraved into his soul.
When he first heard news about Laboon, Brook had been overjoyed. But after calming down, he instead found himself unsure of how to face it.
The routes of the New World were dangerous. Without a powerful senior officer leading the way, trying to complete the journey with only a single flag was obviously unrealistic.
And Nereus hadn’t arranged any ships like that during this period, so Brook’s voyage had remained stuck at a standstill without making any further progress.
“I really didn’t expect you to risk entering the Grand Line, Mr. Crocus.”
“Hmph, you lot sure have it easy. I’m the one who raised Laboon all these years. In my eyes, it’s just like my own child…
Besides, that Roger… is also quite a good companion.”
At first, Crocus had only wanted to search for traces of the Rumbar Pirates. But after spending time together during this journey, Crocus had already begun treating Roger as a true companion and wanted to help him complete this final voyage.
“Thank you for your trouble, Mr. Crocus…”
“It’s nothing. Have you been doing well here?”
“It’s been fairly good. Mr. Nereus was another benefactor who pulled me out of that lonely sea of fog… I want to repay his kindness, but I’m far too weak. It feels like I can’t help much at all…”
Brook let out a somewhat self-mocking laugh. The other benefactor he referred to was the king of the West Blue’s Toroa Kingdom. To repay that kindness, Brook had put aside his dream of going out to sea as a pirate and became the leader of his battle convoy.
Yet as a convoy leader, Brook felt he was unqualified. Even after all these years, it seemed like nothing had really changed.
“Maybe you’re not ready yet, but Laboon has always been waiting for you all. After this voyage is over, I’ll find a way to call you. When that time comes, talk to Laboon first.”
Crocus’s goal was Brook, while most of the Roger Pirates were simply admiring the unique undersea scenery or buying some undersea local specialties.
Only one person kept staring upward, wandering through the plaza with something heavy on his mind.
That person was none other than Douglas Bullet.
Unlike the rest of the Roger Pirates, Bullet was thinking about only one thing right now. How to challenge Nereus, the powerful man Roger kept talking about.
Although Bullet repeatedly emphasized that he was merely a challenger aboard Roger’s ship and had never acknowledged things like companions, he failed to realize that deep within his heart, some subtle changes had already taken place.
Accustomed to traveling alone, Bullet normally paid no attention to anyone else’s orders. Roger alone was the exception.
Roger was the first person to make Bullet experience repeated defeats, and also the person he admired most now. Before landing on the island, Roger had ordered everyone not to cause trouble, so Bullet gave up the idea of causing a huge disturbance to draw the other side out.
Bullet had absolutely no interest in the scenery of Fish-Man Island. As he wandered around, he eventually arrived at one of the island’s martial arts dojo.
Because of the martial culture promoted by Nereus, all sorts of dojos had sprung up across Fish-Man Island over the years, and combat matches were a common occurrence.
Even the Neptune Army had personnel stationed here, responsible for recruiting people with combat talent, and they occasionally joined the matches themselves.
There were no racial restrictions in these challenges. To increase the diversity of battles, even humans from the surface could participate, and there were even quite valuable prizes.
【If I beat all these Neptune Army guys… that should be enough to lure out that Nereus, right?】
With that thought in mind, Bullet stepped onto the arena and casually sent his opponent flying off the arena with a single punch.
Bullet swept a contemptuous gaze over the surroundings. To him, his opponent from just now didn’t even qualify as a warm-up.
That attitude naturally displeased the others. Whether they were watching pirates, Karate masters from Fish-Man Island, or members of the Neptune Army, challengers gradually stepped onto the stage one after another to face Bullet.
But without exception, every single one of them was blasted off the arena with one punch.
Though he showed a slight degree of restraint, they still suffered some injuries. Only after a Fish-Man soldier belonging to Nereus’s royal guards was also knocked off the arena with a single punch did it begin drawing even more attention.
“Is that all you’ve got? Doesn’t this place have anyone stronger? How boring…”
Bullet already looked down on the weak. Even though he restrained himself somewhat because of Roger’s words, his tone remained full of provocation. If it managed to draw out someone truly capable, Bullet would be more than happy about it.
Naturally, an arena centered around martial combat had stronger people nearby watching over things in case trouble broke out. It was only at this moment that Alber, who had been napping nearby, slowly opened his eyes.
Perhaps due to the effects of the Kirin Fruit, his sleep quality was exceptionally good now. As long as there was something to lean against, he could fall asleep anytime.
But to him, that wasn’t a bad thing. Within dreams, Alber could also train his Devil Fruit ability.
After glancing around at the defeated challengers, including some of his own students, Alber casually walked onto the arena.
At this point, Alber was only nineteen years old himself, still at the age of youthful vigor.
“Interesting. In that case, I’ll be your opponent next.”
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