In the New World, two ships—one large and one small—broke through the surface of the sea.
The larger was Caelan's Wind Rider, and the smaller belonged to Gecko Moria.
"The New World... I'm back!"
Moria looked out at the endless ocean and let out a long sigh.
Years ago, he had challenged Kaido and suffered a crushing defeat. His crew had been slaughtered.
Disheartened, he'd retreated to the first half of the Grand Line and never recovered from the trauma. Kaido had left a deep psychological scar on him.
Now that he had returned to this land where only the strong survive, his feelings were different.
In the New World, there are only two ways to survive—either challenge one of the Four Emperors or serve under one.
In the past, he tried to challenge Kaido and got beaten half to death.
Now, he was following Caelan. He no longer had anything to fear.
"Kaido? Your mother's coming!"
Moria was brimming with heroic spirit.
It wasn't that he could defeat Kaido now, but he had found himself a powerful boss.
He was Caelan's man now!
What's that? You say I'm just riding coattails?
Hah! There are tons of people who would kill to ride Caelan's coattails.
Moria stared at the large ship ahead with pride swelling in his chest.
…
On the Wind Rider—
Caelan wasn't nearly as emotional as Moria.
To him, there wasn't much difference between the first half of the Grand Line and the New World.
It was just going from one victory to the next.
But the mermaids who had followed him out of Fish-Man Island were visibly excited.
Golden sunlight poured down, illuminating the endless blue sea. A gentle sea breeze brushed against their cheeks.
In the sky, a few seagulls soared freely.
The mermaid girls, stepping onto the surface world for the first time, looked around with wonder and curiosity.
"So this is the real sun?"
They looked up at the sky. Even though the light was dazzling, they couldn't bear to look away.
"The air is amazing!"
Shirahoshi took a deep breath, a look of intoxicated joy on her face.
Though Fish-Man Island, located 10,000 meters beneath the sea, also had light and air channeled through the Sunlight Tree Eve and its own unique customs…
Compared to the vastness of the surface world, it was undeniably small.
No wonder mermaids had always yearned to live on land.
At this moment, as they stared out at the open ocean, their worldview expanded.
"This is wonderful!"
The mermaid girls stretched their arms toward the sky, soaking in the warm sun and the gentle sea breeze.
It took more than ten minutes before they calmed down.
Shyarly gathered a few of them and instructed them to take care of the cafe equipment they had brought, preparing to reopen the Mermaid Cafe aboard the Wind Rider.
Camie and the starfish Papagg also reopened their fashion store, tailoring outfits for the crew. This was their way of thanking everyone.
Uta discussed singing techniques with Shirahoshi, occasionally breaking into a mermaid song.
Robin continued studying the historical Poneglyph copied from the Sea Forest, deeply intrigued by the agreement between Joy Boy and the Little Mermaid.
Hancock was with Rindo, learning to make desserts from the mermaid girls. She wanted to cook something decent for Caelan.
The other girls were busy with their own tasks too.
The arrival of the mermaids had made the ship more lively than ever.
Beside Caelan, his secretary Kalifa was giving him a focused massage.
"This is the life."
Caelan lay on a familiar beach chair, gazing out with satisfaction.
This was the kingdom he had fought so hard to build.
Hancock's icy exterior and warm heart, Nami's playful sensuality, Robin's intellectual tenderness, Tashigi and Gion's unwavering righteousness as Marines...
He liked them all.
And if he liked something, he would go after it, no hesitation.
He had once watched 5 Centimeters per Second. It left a deep impression on him.
If you miss the moment, it's truly gone. Takaki Tono was so devoted, yet he still lost Akari Shinohara. In the end, he could only watch the girl he loved wear someone else's wedding ring.
Caelan didn't want to live with that kind of regret.
If it were him, he wouldn't have let go of Akari. Even if she were married, he would have taken her back.
Which, now that he thought about it, made him kind of a scumbag.
Caelan stared off in thought.
"We've made it halfway through the legendary Grand Line! This is amazing!"
"Caelan, where are we heading next?"
Nami didn't realize what Caelan was really thinking. She just assumed he was feeling emotional about reaching the New World.
Her dream was to complete a world map. Having completed such a critical section, she was fired up with motivation.
Upon hearing her question, the other girls on deck looked at Caelan, eager to know what the next destination would be.
"Let's head to Punk Hazard first. There's a good Devil Fruit there that I want to give to Kalifa."
"Maybe we'll even strike it rich."
Caelan rubbed his chin, deep in thought.
Back when Nami, Tashigi, and Vivi had eaten Devil Fruits, he'd already set his sights on Punk Hazard.
The artificial Mythical Zoan: Azure Dragon Fruit that Vegapunk had left behind was an extremely powerful Devil Fruit.
Aside from the color, it was nearly a perfect replica of Kaido's Azure Dragon Fruit.
It was perfect for his secretary.
Not to mention, the artificial Devil Fruits created by Caesar Clown might still have some stock left in the warehouse.
Even if they were defective, they'd still fetch a good price.
"Caelan, you're so kind. I thought you'd forgotten!"
Kalifa hugged Caelan's head tightly and rubbed her face against his.
The fact that Caelan was willing to find her a Devil Fruit meant he truly accepted her.
She'd always worried that her past as a spy would make it hard for her to fit in. Now she could finally relax.
"I'm a man of my word. How could I forget?"
Caelan shifted his posture to make himself more comfortable.
Kalifa smiled warmly and resumed massaging him more diligently.
Nearby, Gion, having just been force-fed a load of PDA, spoke up: "If I recall correctly, that island is abandoned. There's nothing valuable there."
"Eh?!"
Nami, Kalifa, and the others looked at Gion curiously.
Gion didn't leave them hanging. She explained directly: "Punk Hazard is a designated life-restricted zone by the Navy."
"It was once the base of the Navy's scientific division, led by top scientists Vegapunk and Caesar. Later, Caesar tried to develop mass destruction poison gas weapons. Vegapunk opposed the project."
"Two years ago, Caesar detonated a poison gas bomb he created, turning all of Punk Hazard into a dead island. The research team had no choice but to relocate. Caesar escaped the Navy's pursuit and vanished."
"So now, Punk Hazard is just a poisonous wasteland with an abandoned lab."
Gion finished recounting the archives she'd read, then looked at Caelan with a provocative smile.
"Caelan~"
Kalifa turned to Caelan with a pleading look.
Alright, alright. You're trying to ruin my moment, huh?
Caelan gently stroked Kalifa's blonde hair to comfort her, then looked over at Gion.
"What will you do if Punk Hazard turns out exactly as I said?"
Gion hesitated. Caelan looked a bit too confident.
She thought about it. He must be bluffing.
When Punk Hazard was evacuated, Admiral Borsalino had grumbled for days.
"If that kind of stuff really is there, I'll stay with you all night!"
"If you lose, you'll go celibate for a year!"
Gion glared at Caelan, full of confidence.
She simply didn't believe a Devil Fruit could still be found on a deserted poison-filled island.
When the truth came out, she was going to savor Caelan's frustrated face.
"Deal."
Caelan hadn't expected such a pleasant surprise, and he nearly burst out laughing.
He was already imagining Gion's expression when Punk Hazard proved him right.
Nami and the other girls watched the two of them make their bet with amusement.
Then, without a word, they headed to the control room and sped the ship toward Punk Hazard.
They didn't care what came next.
They just wanted to watch the fireworks.
(To be continued.)
***
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