Chapter 164: The Bud of Harmonious Coexistence
On the magnificent sea, Louis, facing pairs of eyes filled with endless gratitude, swung his sword, splitting open one set of shackles after another and liberating the group of locked-up people.
CLANG
As the last set of shackles landed on the deck, the eyes of the tormented people became moist, and with glistening tears, they let out a cheer. Then, the group of ragged, filthy slaves all turned to look at Louis, with his long, pale-golden hair and his slightly spread, flawless white wings.
"Lord Archangel, please let us follow you!"
"We are willing to help you seize that legendary great treasure!"
"Please let us repay your kindness!"
They had all recognized the person who had saved them, knowing he was now a famous and powerful figure in the world. Therefore, many proposed to join his crew and help him obtain the great treasure.
Louis, however, was not interested in this. In this operation, he had already refused the requests of those he had saved more than once. The vast majority of them had only been ordinary people before, and the few pirates and rare races among them were pitifully weak. Besides acting as cannon fodder on the battlefield and consuming enemy bullets, they were of no use.
"There's no need. It's better for you all to return to your original lives." Louis did not think too much about it, but tactfully refused their request. They had all been captured and imprisoned but had not yet been taken to be auctioned or branded as slaves. Returning to their original lives would not pose any risk.
The ragged group heard him, and the expressions on their faces instantly froze. They opened their mouths as if to say something, but in the end, they did not speak. In fact, their desire to follow him was mostly an impulsive decision. Deep down, they had not truly made the decision to become pirates. After all, not many people could truly make up their minds to abandon their families and throw themselves into the life of a pirate.
After glancing at the group, Louis turned and left, heading in the direction of Dressrosa.
"..."
Soon, Louis caught up with the few he had arranged to head to Dressrosa first. He folded his wings and landed softly on the deck of the sailing ship.
The fish-men, Mink, and mermaid saw him, and a strange look appeared in their eyes. They all stepped forward and surrounded him. The Mink, who looked like an upright walking animal, covered in fur, with the head of a golden retriever and feminine features on her body, face, and hair, even pounced over, as if to hug him.
"Garchu!"
Louis saw this and raised an eyebrow, decisively placing a hand on her face to stop her enthusiastic action. Although he had long heard that the Mink tribe was extremely affectionate toward friendly humans, when he truly faced it, he was still at a loss.
"There's really no need to be so enthusiastic, Serena."
Serena was the name of the Mink before him. Not long ago, after Louis had saved her, she had decided he was a good person and told him her name.
Serena heard him, and the expression on her face softened slightly, but the tail behind her was wagging slowly, revealing her current mood.
Then, Louis looked at the two fish-men and the mermaid, taking in their nervous state. He spoke to comfort them, "Don't be nervous. When I get back to Dressrosa, I'll contact Neptune or Jinbe and have them come and take you back."
Louis explained that he was an acquaintance of Neptune and Jinbe and would not do anything to them. He had brought them to Dressrosa because he currently did not have a Log Pose that could lead them back to Fish-Man Island. The traffickers' ships did have some Log Poses, but they all pointed to illegal places. Sending them there would undoubtedly be sending sheep into a tiger's den.
The group from Fish-Man Island heard him, and the nervous expressions on their faces eased.
After a long while, Louis led the ship through the underground port and, under the respectful gazes of a group of grunts, returned to Dressrosa.
Louis walked through the streets of Dressrosa with the group without any reservations, heading straight for the King's Plateau. Along the way, the three who had lived on Fish-Man Island all their lives could not suppress their curiosity, looking left and right at everything around them. From the citizens dressed differently from those on Fish-Man Island to the unique style of the buildings and the plants growing all around, their eyes shone with a golden light.
Unlike the three from Fish-Man Island, Serena, who was from Zou, appeared very calm about all this. Seeing this, a sense of curiosity rose in Louis's heart, and he posed the question. "Serena, you don't seem to be a stranger to the world at sea?"
To this, a faint smile appeared on Serena's face with its pale-golden fur. "Of course!" she replied with great enthusiasm. "I was a member of the Nox Pirates back then! I've been to many places on the sea with my two big brothers."
Serena explained that she had once belonged to an organization called the Nox Pirates, whose members were all Minks who loved adventure. But a short while ago, the crew had been designated a pirate crew by the World Government and had been pursued. The expedition team had also suffered casualties. The two big brothers had decided that one of them would lead the remaining members back to Zou, while the two of them continued their exploration.
As they walked, Louis listened to Serena's story, and two names appeared in his mind. "Pedro, Zepo."
Then, Louis asked again, "What happened later? Were you attacked by human traffickers on your way back to Zou?"
Serena heard him, and a hint of sadness appeared in her eyes. "That's right," she replied in a low voice. "We were attacked on our way back to Zou under Pekoms's leadership. I was careless and got captured, and their whereabouts are now unknown."
Louis heard this and fell into thought.
While the group from Fish-Man Island was sizing up their surroundings, the citizens of Dressrosa were also sizing them up. Even stranger expressions appeared on their faces, and they began to whisper among themselves.
"Are those fish-men?"
"Although they look a little strange, they don't have the fishy smell of the rumors!"
"A mermaid! So cute!!"
"Is that a Mink? She's very pretty too!"
The whispers from all around made the three from Fish-Man Island feel a little dazed. At this moment, they felt that the people of the sea were not as hostile toward them as the rumors had suggested.
At this moment, the petite figure of Uta simultaneously appeared in all three of their minds.
Soon, Louis led the group through the hollow passage of the King's Plateau and returned to where Yelena and the others were.
When Louis returned, in the training ground at the top of the King's Plateau, only Yelena was left standing. Around her lay everyone else, including Hajrudin. All of them were covered in wounds, their faces bruised and swollen. Even Gerd was no exception.
Seeing Louis return, Yelena lifted her war hammer, pointed at the fallen group, and cast a meaningful glance at him.
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