"One Piece:The True Codex"Chapter 360: A Good Impression
William gave an indisputable order to Karslana and Joey Fello regarding the ship's navigation. Karslana was to handle the daytime sailing, while Joey Fello would manage the night shifts.
Joey Fello had no objections, and with all external communications cut off and everyone's lives in William's hands, Karslana dared not resist either.
After assigning tasks, William and Gin left the captain's quarters, leaving the room for Joey Fello, who couldn't venture out during the day.
As the two strolled side by side across the deck, Gin asked, "How's that woman, Perona, doing?"
"She's just a young girl. It's hard for her to adjust her mindset so quickly. Once she calms down, she'll figure things out," William replied with a smile.
"She's being uncooperative?" Gin caught the implication in William's words and sneered, "If you ask me, we should just kill her and save ourselves the trouble. We're not far from the Sabaody Archipelago now. All we need to do is carefully avoid the Marines, and we'll be fine."
"Her Devil Fruit abilities are quite useful. Killing her would be a waste," William said.
In truth, there were two main reasons why William hadn't killed Perona. The first was his urgency to reach the Sabaody Archipelago. Perona's scouting abilities could help them avoid the Marines and save time. After all, reaching the New World required completing an essential step—coating their ship.
Only with the coating could the ship withstand the immense pressure of the deep sea, allowing it to pass beneath the Red Line and safely arrive in the New World.
Diving tens of thousands of meters under the sea was an extremely dangerous endeavor, so finding a skilled craftsman for the coating was crucial.
Finding the right person and completing the coating would take significant time. While William didn't need to meet or negotiate with a Yonko before Dampier's planned talks with the Gorosei, he had to ensure that if the negotiations broke down, he could immediately enter the New World. He wasn't willing to waste any time.
The second reason was that William's Plaza of Fate was running low on ordinary Threads of Fate.
Previously, due to the rarity of unique Threads of Fate and their ability to unlock special feats, ordinary Threads of Fate had seemed abundant.
However, with the introduction of the Devil Fruit Bonsai and the feature to exchange unique character feats, the once-plentiful ordinary Threads of Fate had suddenly become scarce. The creation of new Paths of Fate also required a large amount of these silver threads, consuming them at an alarming rate.
Currently, William's Plaza of Fate housed three growing Devil Fruits: the Float-Float Fruit, the Shadow-Shadow Fruit, and the Clear-Clear Fruit.
The Fuzz-Fuzz Fruit, obtained from Barbarossa, had already borne fruit. William had left it in the Calm Belt under the care of Sherlock and the others watching over Garp.
William had instructed Sherlock that if an emergency arose in his absence—forcing them to flee with Garp to avoid capture—they could consider feeding Garp the Devil Fruit to prevent his escape. Combined with Seastone restraints, this would ensure control over the hostage.
Few in the world would think of using a Devil Fruit as a poison to restrict a critical hostage's actions, but William, ever pragmatic, had no qualms about it. However, he hoped Sherlock and the others wouldn't have to resort to such measures, as the fruit was worth hundreds of millions of Beli.
The slow production of Devil Fruits in the bonsai was due to their reliance on ordinary Threads of Fate as nutrients. Without a continuous supply of threads, the fruits couldn't mature.
Both the Float-Float Fruit and the Shadow-Shadow Fruit were immensely powerful, based on William's knowledge. He hoped they would bear fruit as soon as possible. Introducing another Devil Fruit into the Plaza of Fate would only further strain the already limited supply of ordinary Threads of Fate, something William wanted to avoid.
However, William believed that if he could successfully become one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea and execute his subsequent plans, the current scarcity of Threads of Fate would eventually be alleviated.
As William and Gin passed by Perona's room, they saw Portia emerging with a bloodstained hospital gown.
"Beckler—no, Mr. William," Portia greeted him cautiously with a small bow.
It was worth noting that the aliases William had chosen for himself, Gin, and Selkirk were not random. Gin was using the name "Ganis," while Selkirk was "Bedivere"—both names of knights from the Arthurian legends in William's previous life. William's alias, "Beckler," was inspired by a legendary pirate from his past life's history. This choice revealed William's subtle vanity beneath his outward modesty.
William inquired about Perona's condition, and Portia reported everything in detail. Hearing that Perona had eventually eaten the apple he had left for her, albeit while crying, William and Gin exchanged amused glances.
…
East Blue, Navia Kingdom, Kalmar City.
While William was racing against time to reach the Sabaody Archipelago, Aramis was leisurely enjoying afternoon tea with a guest.
The middle-aged man sitting across from him had an inverted oval face—his chin was broader than his forehead. His plump cheeks were adorned with two long, upward-curving mustaches. Dressed in a pink tuxedo, his attire was already striking enough, but what truly drew attention were his disproportionately thin and long legs, which looked comically out of place with his bulky upper body.
This man was none other than Baron Tamago, a member of the Big Mom Pirates, whom Edmond had mentioned to William during a phone call.
Kalmar City had become the eye of the storm. Though it appeared calm on the surface, Aramis knew this peace was merely an illusion. Once the Marines and the World Government uncovered William's plans, the tranquility would be shattered.
When Aramis received news that Baron Tamago had arrived in East Blue as a representative of the Big Mom Pirates, he was overjoyed and treated the matter with utmost importance, personally accompanying the baron throughout their interactions.
Of course, Aramis had his own motives. He knew that countless Marine and World Government spies were watching him. By frequently associating with Baron Tamago, word would inevitably reach the Marines and the World Government, letting them know that William had potential allies among the Four Emperors.
Though Aramis wasn't privy to William's exact plans, his sharp mind allowed him to leverage the threat of the Yonko to strengthen Dampier's position in negotiations.
It was fortunate that William had entrusted the temporary management of East Blue to Aramis. Coming from a merchant family, Aramis had the best upbringing among William's original four-man crew. His knowledge of etiquette, though useless against ordinary pirates, greatly appealed to Baron Tamago, leaving a favorable impression on the New World envoy.
(End of Chapter)
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