Previously, their journey to Elbaf had started from Wano Country, with a different departure point.
Though Michael wasn't exactly directionally challenged, his sense of direction at sea was merely passable—nowhere near professional navigators' level.
Someone like Nami would have recognized the destination immediately.
"A rainbow bridge?" Michael looked up in surprise. "Don't tell me... your leader is a giant from Elbaf."
"He's in Elbaf, but he's not actually a giant..." Donquixote stood up, leaning on the ship's railing.
"Though he can appear in giant form."
The moment the rainbow bridge appeared, the helmsman sprang into action.
This seemingly ordinary cargo ship began climbing the rainbow bridge connecting the sea to Elbaf's surface world.
And once on the bridge, the familiar sensation hit instantly!
After defying physics with an upward current, the ship slowly entered an absurdly massive harbor.
Even Donquixote couldn't help but marvel.
"Though I've been to Elbaf many times... every time I see these colossal structures, I'm struck with awe."
"Only in Elbaf do we truly understand what it means to feel small."
Michael rolled his eyes, ignoring Donquixote's poetic musings, and instead turned to pick up Toki and Lily, who were equally stunned.
Then, spreading his six wings, he flew up to the harbor.
"Hey! Why don't you take me up with you while you're at it?"
"King Donquixote... I really don't have a habit of carrying men."
...
After ascending the stairs at Elbaf's port, King Donquixote let out a long sigh.
In a way... it was no different from climbing a small mountain just now.
"Your ability is really convenient, being able to fly anytime, anywhere."
"You think this is convenient? You'll see even more convenient things in the future." Michael turned to look at King Donquixote.
"Now, please lead the way."
Although Michael had been to Elbaf before, that was eight hundred years later—an Elbaf that had known peace for a long time.
The new generation of children not only failed to inherit the warrior bloodline of Elbaf but had even grown distant from or averse to combat.
This was an inevitable outcome in relatively peaceful times.
But now, eight hundred years in the past, Elbaf remained the world's strongest martial nation at its peak.
Even the Celestial Council, led by the Lunarian Race, kept a respectful distance from Elbaf.
Faced with a race whose individual prowess was overwhelmingly powerful, they had no confidence in defeating them on the battlefield.
So, they simply ignored Elbaf. After all, this race, obsessed only with fighting and drinking, wasn't particularly keen on territorial expansion.
Loving combat didn't mean they loved war.
Those were two different concepts.
Of course, within Elbaf, there were also hawks—led by the Ancient Giants and ordinary giants with Ancient Giant blood—who advocated for waging war abroad.
However, their numbers were far too few to influence Elbaf's overall decisions.
Michael knew all this from reading ancient Elbaf texts in the Owl Library back then...
Though, of course, the Owl Library didn't exist in Elbaf yet.
"Alright, follow me."
King Donquixote stomped his feet a couple of times, savoring the feeling of solid ground, and smiled contentedly.
Finally, he could temporarily bid farewell to the misery of seasickness.
...
Along the way, King Donquixote kept greeting the giants they passed, clearly on familiar terms with them.
Their journey was unimpeded.
Soon, they arrived at the forest behind the western village.
"He... is hiding in the forest?"
"Not hiding. He just prefers staying here." King Donquixote shrugged helplessly. "He says that compared to the noise of crowds, he prefers the whispers of nature in the forest."
Michael keenly caught the phrase "whispers."
If King Donquixote wasn't just being overly poetic, then it meant...
This person possessed the same ability as Roger, Oden, and Michael himself.
The Voice of All Things.
And in this era, barring any surprises, only one person had that ability.
At that moment, Michael glanced at King Donquixote and suddenly felt a surge of excitement.
Why?
Because he realized that the histories of the future...
Could be trusted, but only to a point.
This world was far more insane than he had imagined.
Following Donquixote through the towering trees of the Giant Forest for quite some time, they finally came upon a small, unremarkable-looking wooden cabin.
Why unremarkable?
Because Michael's Voice of All Things detected a familiar resonance from the cabin...
It was the voice of Adam Wood.
Using Adam Wood to build a cabin was somewhat extravagant.
Donquixote stepped forward and gently knocked on the door.
Three short knocks, one long, then two short.
After the knocking, a few seconds passed...
But the cabin door remained closed.
Donquixote froze awkwardly on the spot.
Michael simply extended his Observation Haki slightly, covering the entire forest.
"No one's inside the cabin..." Michael said, turning to look in another direction. "He's over there... and he'll be back soon."
Donquixote was taken aback when, in the direction Michael faced, the bushes rustled.
A wild boar, as large as the cargo ship they had arrived on, emerged... but it was already lifeless.
"Well, well, Donquixote, you're here... Hmm? And with a new friend? Seems I hunted this boar just in time!"
A perpetually cheerful young voice rang out from beneath the boar.
A man of similar stature to Michael revealed himself...
And at first glance, his appearance was indistinguishable from Luffy in his awakened Nika Fruit form.
His hair resembled white swirling clouds, with the same ethereal mist coiling around his body.
Michael gently set Kozuki Toki and Lily down on the ground before stepping forward and extending his hand.
"Hello, my name is Michael. Angel D. Michael."
"Oh, hello, hello!"
The young man hastily tossed the boar aside, wiped his hands on his clothes, and then shook Michael's hand.
"My name is Joy Boy."
"Pleased to meet you."
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