The current Alber was already an adult. Even without pressure from the outside world, he would still strive to become stronger on his own.
Hatred was the shared driving force of all the surviving Lunarians. They and the World Government shared a blood feud.
Compared to the grown Alber, part of Nereus’ attention had already begun shifting toward Chloe.
Compared to ordinary children, raising Chloe was actually far less troublesome. At the very least, there were far fewer things to worry about in daily life.
Things like drowning or burns simply did not exist as concerns for Chloe. Instead, it created new topics of discussion, such as whether Chloe would learn to swim first or learn to fly first.
There was also no need to worry about the danger sharp objects posed to children. Perhaps due to a self-preservation instinct ingrained in life itself, Lunarians would instinctively master their flame-enhanced high-defense mode.
Forget slightly sharp objects with edges, even blades could not cut through those tender little hands.
Combined with a powerful physique capable of solving ninety-nine percent of problems through immunity after a single sleep, illness and pain were naturally kept far away. Calling it Free-range parenting would not be an exaggeration.
What actually required attention was other people.
After all, Chloe had become more active now and would come into contact with the others living in Ryugu Palace, but she still could not properly control her abilities.
This was true for both her flames and her natural strength. If someone with a glass-cannon constitution like Otohime came into contact with Chloe, there was a high chance she would have her bones crushed on the spot.
Children at this stage could not properly control how much strength they used, and many times once they grabbed onto something, they simply refused to let go. That was also why the number of people who interacted with Chloe remained limited.
Brook had once suffered cracked finger bones because of Chloe and had to drink plenty of milk before recovering.
However, this sort of danger did not exist for parents like Nereus and Amphitrite. The tiny amount of strength within Chloe’s little body was no different from that of an ordinary infant in front of them.
【A strange feeling… Is she a king?】
【No idea. She’s different from before, very special. Maybe after a few more years… we’ll be able to tell…】
Deep beneath the sea, the gazes of certain gigantic creatures occasionally shifted toward Fishman Island. They were enormous Sea Kings that had survived since ages long past.
And today, even they felt puzzled.
But they did not take the matter to heart. For these long-lived creatures, several hundred years was not a long time. Even if there were slight surprises, they could simply wait for the next one.
Because of the distance, Nereus did not hear the conversations of those Sea Kings. He was merely planning some things for the future.
Meanwhile, Cricket, who had been brought from North Blue to the New World, had already arrived at Dressrosa and met those wondrous dwarves.
“A chestnut-like hairstyle!”
“He must be the great hero’s descendant!”
“Nereland really kept the promise!”
After arriving there, Cricket received an extremely enthusiastic welcome. That identical chestnut-shaped hairstyle made the Tontatta Tribe recognize his identity immediately.
After seeing the statue the dwarves had built for Noland, Cricket broke down in tears. He had never imagined that the ancestor who had been mocked by the world as a liar for hundreds of years still had a group of admirers here.
From that moment onward, Cricket began to truly face his ancestor’s legacy and resolved to clear his name by finding the legendary City of Gold and washing away the disgraceful title of “Liar.”
As for what Cricket would do afterward, Tiger no longer concerned himself with it. The task he had received was only to safely bring Cricket to Dressrosa and then safely send him back.
However, Cricket refused Tiger’s idea of escorting him home. Instead, he planned to retrace the places Noland had once visited and search for the missing City of Gold.
This action received the dwarves’ support. The dwarves were not completely isolated from the world; from time to time, some members would leave the Tontatta Kingdom and travel across the outer seas.
To clear the name of the great hero Noland was also a very serious matter in their eyes. Thus, several dwarves became Cricket’s companions and embarked on the journey together with him.
Examples like this were not uncommon on the seas nowadays.
Chasing dreams, pursuing wealth, escaping enemies, or fleeing uninhabitable environments—there were countless reasons to set sail, and ships from various islands would occasionally set sail on voyages.
On Delta Island, the territory under Nereus’ control, a ship was likewise preparing to depart.
The composition of this ship’s crew was equally diverse: Fish-Men, Merfolk, human-Fish-Man hybrids, members of the Longarm Tribe, Longleg Tribe, and Minks. The crew nearly encompassed more than half of the races found across the seas.
However, they were not setting out to become pirates. At least for now, they did not carry the title of pirates, though whether the World Government would label them as such in the future was another matter entirely.
After all, the World Government’s definition of pirates was extremely broad.
They were heading out to temper themselves, hoping to grow stronger and someday contribute under Nereus’ command.
Although their average age was only in the teens, on these seas, people of that age were usually already treated as adults, and venturing out alone was a common occurrence.
As for the position of captain, Luna was temporarily filling the role.
The reason was simple: she had once been an apprentice of the Fish-Man Pirates. Although after Nereus’ initial plans were accomplished, the name “Fish-Man Pirates” had temporarily vanished from the seas, and there had long been no signs of activity from that group, that name still symbolized hope to the people of Delta Island. Combined with her relatively powerful strength, she was naturally chosen.
On nights of the full moon, as long as they did not encounter those famous monsters of the New World, Luna was more than capable of handling most pirates. Such was the explosive power the Sulong form granted the Minks.
“With our current situation, it isn’t suitable for us to wander directly through the New World. This ship was modified by Captain Nereus himself. As long as we don’t make a huge commotion, we can safely pass through the Calm Belt.
So I think we should first cross the Calm Belt into the Four Seas and start our voyage from the beginning.”
Compared to the Four Seas, the dangers faced by those living in the New World were generally much greater.
Those who set sail in the New World were either people with solid foundations and considerable strength already, or people who immediately joined someone else’s crew for protection after heading out. Otherwise, they would easily become cannon fodder.
Heading to the Four Seas and starting from the beginner stage again was actually a more reasonable choice. Nereus also knew of their decision and did not stop them. After all, flowers blooming in a greenhouse could not withstand the storms of the outside world.
However, just as the adventure team departing from Delta Island was about to cross the Calm Belt, they discovered something unusual. In the seas near Fullalead Island, a large number of pirate ships were gathering there for unknown reasons.
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