As Monika spoke, she seemed to suddenly lose her strength, her soft body leaning forward, her silk robe and wavy golden hair sliding down together.
Kenji's heart stirred, and he extended his right arm to steadily support Monika. He raised his other hand, his fingers passing over the town below outside the stone window, finally pointing to a lone wooden house outside the city.
"Has Gloriosa been living outside the city ever since she returned to Amazon Lily?" Kenji asked with a hint of curiosity.
"Hmph! Her..." Monika's delicate nose wrinkled slightly, and she snorted softly.
"She once disregarded her Empress status, abandoned the country, and went out to sea on her own accord. She is a sinner of Amazon Lily."
"It is already merciful of this Empress to allow her to live outside the city..."
Monika's naturally charming big eyes showed displeasure, and she puffed out her cheeks, looking up at Kenji's face.
Gradually, the displeasure faded, and a 'silly smile' slowly appeared on her face.
Seeing this, Kenji's lips curved into a smile, and he reached out to smooth her hair, causing the Empress to twist her waist for a moment.
Outside the residential town of Amazon Lily.
Gloriosa stood in front of the wooden house, gazing at the brightly lit palace, high in the distance, a look of reminiscence in her eyes.
"Monika, this little girl, is lucky. The one she longs for is right before her eyes. She doesn't have to suffer..."
"To think I once suffered from lovesickness, not hesitating to abandon my imperial throne to go out to sea... but unfortunately, in the end, I still couldn't..."
Amidst her sighs, Gloriosa gradually pulled back her thoughts, her gaze once again becoming sharp and incisive, also revealing a shrewdness.
"Why does the Marine suddenly want to cooperate with Amazon Lily? But the conditions they offered are not bad..." She considered the cooperation terms Kenji had brought.
"The privilege of legal plunder is equivalent to an extra layer of identity protection."
Gloriosa did not doubt the authenticity of the conditions Kenji offered. After all, the other party was an Admiral.
He wouldn't speak big words or issue 'empty checks', would he?
And what Gloriosa focused on was not merely the surface-level legal plunder, she had a deeper consideration.
"With this identity and privilege, at least on the surface, we will be treated as half 'our own people' by the Marine?!"
"This identity is very important for Amazon Lily, we must obtain it!"
As for the price Amazon Lily had to pay, ostensibly, it was to obey Marine's deployment and provide combat power during wartime.
But Gloriosa felt that with the relationship between Monika and Kenji, at the very least, they would receive some care then, right?
After many years at sea and experiencing countless changes in human warmth and coldness, Gloriosa's mindset had clearly undergone a significant transformation, and she valued practical benefits more.
She even considered secretly teaching Monika how to 'tame' men.
However, in recent days, Monika had already become intimately close with Kenji, and Monika inherently didn't trust this previous Empress much.
Gloriosa still did not know what kind of wrath she would face from the current Empress.
Kenji continued to stay in Amazon Lily for four or five more days, awaiting the completion of the system mission.
This mission required 'subduing the Empress,' and the system's criteria for mission completion was to have Monika consistently obey commands for at least seven days.
The mission description and criteria seemed strict, but in fact, as long as the intimate relationship was maintained, it would suffice.
As a serving Admiral, Kenji naturally could not truly begin a 'retirement life'. He still needed to handle many affairs.
It was just that he couldn't be sure if the system would still judge the mission successful if he left Amazon Lily, so he simply stayed longer, waiting for the system to proactively give the completion prompt.
During these days on Maiden Island, Kenji's physique gradually changed, and his body began to grow again.
However, just as he had previously anticipated, because the Giant bloodline was still in its initial awakening, the extent of his physical changes was small, and the process was relatively slow.
But even such a small change naturally couldn't be hidden from himself, or from those close to him, such as Monika.
"According to the current rate of body growth... I estimate that in a few months, my height will at least exceed three meters." This day, after Kenji got up, he routinely checked himself in the mirror.
"Until now, I still cannot freely control my body size..."
"Could it be that Giant bloodline does not belong to a controllable ability?"
Kenji frowned slightly, then turned his head to look at the graceful figure on the bed beside him, her soft body still trembling slightly in her sleep.
He withdrew his gaze and secretly pondered possible solutions.
At this moment, a burst of light appeared before his eyes, and the long-awaited system mission completion prompt finally arrived.
[After nearly half a month of effort, you have finally successfully subdued Empress Monika of Amazon Lily, and at the same time, you have gained the goodwill of all the citizens of Amazon Lily!]
[Mission (Main): Subdue Empress Monika! (Maintaining the target's obedience to commands for seven consecutive days is considered met.]
[Reward: Upgrade a random owned trait 3 times!]
[Rewards being distributed...]
[Your Giant Bloodline (Dark White) has been upgraded... Super White... Light Blue... Blue!]
[Current Giant Bloodline (Blue)!]
"...Well, now I don't need to consider any solutions anymore." Kenji couldn't help but smile wryly after reading all the reward content.
"With the Giant bloodline advancing, gigantification is inevitable."
After a trait advances, the corresponding ability will be greatly enhanced, or rather, undergo a 'qualitative change'.
Kenji could already foresee that in as short as one month, or as long as half a year, his body would greatly increase in size, approaching that of a Giant.
For your information, Whitebeard's body grew to over six meters tall, while Charlotte was nearly nine meters, and these were just giant-sized humans.
"It seems I must study the Giant bloodline more deeply."
Kenji could only hope now that the Giant Bloodline trait could truly be freely controlled and retracted.
However, he was not at all discouraged, his mindset remained optimistic.
So what if he became a giant?
At worst, he would move to Elbaph to live and be neighbors with 'Supreme Gaban.'
At that time, 'Supreme Gaban' would only be a little brother, and might even seek out Kenji as a master to learn how to become the 'Strongest Man.'
"Mission complete, it's time to go... Hmm, I'll come back to visit during my next vacation."
Kenji stood before the stone window, gazing at the entire Amazon Lily, with some vague ideas in his mind.
He planned to establish a backup base on an island near Amazon Lily, mainly because its geographical location was very suitable, with the natural Calm Belt acting as a barrier.
However, he currently lacked manpower and funds, and Kenji's specific plan in his mind had not yet been perfected. He intended to start construction after careful consideration.
Several days later.
Kenji departed on Amazon Lily's pirate ship, with Monika reluctantly seeing him off.
As for the captured Rear Admiral Truger, Kenji was too lazy to inquire about such a fellow who extorted civilians. He had already reported the news to Kong, leaving the latter to worry about it.
(End of Chapter)
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