One minute later, Gleiber reverted to his male form.
With a complicated expression, he glanced at Sally but said nothing before turning to leave.
While he coveted the chief's position, he wasn't a fool.
He could see that Sally's departure was for the good of Forest Village.
However, gifting the Favor of the Forest to outsiders still seemed unforgivable in his eyes.
Yet with Forest Village's meager forces, there was no hope of reclaiming it.
Perhaps setting sail was truly necessary—even if it meant exchanging other treasures to retrieve the Favor of the Forest.
Picking up ropes and bamboo baskets, he silently entered the forest.
With few capable fighters left in the tribe, he counted himself among them.
Though his legs weren't agile, setting traps was still within his ability.
"That old bastard actually knows how to contribute," Narcissa sneered, arms crossed as she watched Gleiber's retreating figure.
Every day she delivered game to the village, she'd hear Gleiber lecturing children about how men should behave one way and women another.
Of everyone in Forest Village, she detested Gleiber the most.
"His thinking is outdated, but his heart's in the right place for the tribe," Sally said, returning the Favor of the Forest to Dier before walking over to pat Narcissa's shoulder with a smile.
"Let's work well together from now on, Captain."
Their temperaments aligned perfectly, their dreams nearly identical.
Narcissa aspired to surpass men, while Sally sought proper respect and status for women.
"The sea's far more exciting than here—you'll love it," Narcissa said, pulling Sally into a tight embrace, cherishing this kindred spirit.
Nearby, a certain sailor watched the two women with silent tears, pulling out his journal to write:
"Note: Narcissa prefers women. Maybe I should request permission from the boss to use the Green Disc."
Clap clap—
Dier drew attention with two sharp handclaps, addressing the group:
"Enough idling. Head into the forest—hunt game for our voyage provisions."
"Aye!" came the chorus as Geno and others acknowledged before arming themselves and disappearing into the woods.
A newcomer from the Apple Ship whispered curiously:
"Who's that guy? Why's everyone obeying him?"
Another shrugged, equally puzzled:
"No idea. Even Captain Geno follows his lead, so I just do the same."
Catching up to Geno, they voiced their confusion.
Geno smiled mysteriously, patting their shoulders:
"That man's someone important. You'll understand tonight."
Meanwhile, Dier had returned to the Apple Ship.
A newcomer awaited him in the cabin.
Removing his sunglasses, Dier shifted into his two-meter-tall white-haired form. His first words upon entering were:
"Do you trust me?"
...
At dawn the next day, the five outsiders aboard the Apple Ship had become allies.
Fifty-seven children chose to leave, alongside twenty-five tribal adults loyal to Dier.
All would board the Apple Ship bound for Colon Island, where the adults would supervise the children to prevent information leaks.
With roughly thirty capable hunters remaining in Forest Village, Dier arranged for substantial food reserves to be left behind for them.
The others would still need time to recover, and these thirty people alone weren't enough to sustain a tribe of several hundred.
Fortunately, as long as they could hold on for a while, the rest would gradually regain the strength to hunt.
By the time everything was settled, the two ships sailed away from the nameless island together.
The sun was shining brightly today, though the sea breeze carried a slight chill.
The sails billowed, propelling the ships forward as they cut through the water. The speed wasn't fast, but the journey was exceptionally steady.
Narcissa took Sally around to explore the ship's facilities, helping the primitive girl quickly adapt to modern life.
The boatswain leaned against the railing, watching the Apple Ship fade into the distance, his expression full of regret.
Meanwhile, Dier, lounging on a deck chair and basking in the sun, took a sip of apple juice through a straw and sighed:
"Winter's almost here again."
In a little while, it would be three years since he arrived in this world.
Looking back at the past two years, he had accomplished almost nothing.
His body was weak, and his physical strength had barely improved—even Robin had surpassed him in that regard.
His Hypnosis ability was feeble, requiring considerable effort just to make someone believe in something as simple as breathing fire. Progress in developing his abilities had been painfully slow.
Moreover, Robin's disguises couldn't be maintained for long, so the two of them spent most of their days cooped up in their room, only venturing out occasionally to gather information or scout for people in need of Hypnosis to earn a little money.
It wasn't until two months ago, when his Hypnosis ability finally advanced to the point of fully controlling someone, that their lives began to improve.
But even then, things didn't get much better. After leaving Colon Island, one incident after another kept him constantly busy.
"I hope the people on that island don't freeze to death."
On another deck chair, Robin reclined, flipping through a book before asking:
"Now that the Poneglyph matter is settled, what's next?"
"Of course, we're going on a trip!"
Dier grabbed a Black Gun and crunched it down noisily.
"Hina, let me enlighten you about my dreams."
Hina, lying on the third deck chair, turned her curious gaze toward him.
She could roughly guess Robin's dream—collecting Poneglyphs.
But as for Dier's dream, she truly had no idea.
Robin closed her book and said softly:
"Two dreams. One is to become the strongest in the world while lying down, and the other is to travel the world."
"Right? Have we had a moment's rest this past month?"
Dier sat up indignantly.
"The night we left Colon Island, we ran into a Sea Cow. The next day, we landed on some weird Hunter Island. After leaving Hunter Island, we stumbled upon a Poneglyph. We drifted at sea for days, only to arrive here and end up hunting and fighting yaks."
"I've decided—before the New Year, we're doing nothing but traveling and enjoying the sights of other islands!
Oh, and buying a pocket watch."
Hina timidly interjected:
"I don't think the pocket watch is important."
"I think the pocket watch is very important!"
Dier turned his head, sizing up Hina on the deck chair.
"Speaking of which, Hina, what's your dream?"
"My dream?"
Hina rested her chin on her hand, lost in thought.
For the past decade or so, she had only ever thought about finding a career she loved and then running away from home.
As for the career—well, she had already found it. A bounty of one million Belly was proof enough.
She conjured a Black Gun in her hand and declared firmly:
"My dream is to shine in my career and become the greatest Pirate!"
"Hina is determined!"
These days she had been training diligently, even while lying here she continued crafting Black Guns to hone her Devil Fruit Ability.
At the same time, she prepared some snacks for Dier.
"Hahaha~ Then you've boarded the wrong ship," Dier laughed:
"We're not like ordinary Pirates. I'd rather call us a traveling troupe."
"Boss!!"
A sailor leaned out from the second floor and shouted:
"Your Den Den Mushi is ringing."
"Bring it down."
He thought for a moment—it was probably Bege calling.
A few days ago, the latter had hung up on him without explanation. This call was likely to make amends.
The sailor moved quickly, and soon the Den Den Mushi's ringing reached his ears.
Purupurupuru~
Click~
"Come quick, I've kidnapped a prince!"
Hina: "..."
And he calls this a traveling troupe? Shameless!