June, 1497, sea calendar.
It had been a year and a half since the Beasts Pirates took up residence in Wano Country.
Onigashima had undergone a significant transformation, with many new buildings, no longer as crude as when they first arrived.
During this time, Kaido wasn't idle; he continuously recruited crew members, though on a small scale.
It wasn't yet time for large-scale development, all because of one person.
Kozuki Oden.
If it were just Oden alone, Kaido wouldn't be afraid, but Kozuki Oden was connected to two massive Pirate Ships: the Whitebeard Pirates and the Roger Pirates.
Kaido couldn't contend with either of these two at his current strength; Kaido was warlike, yes, but he wasn't foolish. If he only knew how to fight, he wouldn't be able to sit in the position of a Four Emperors.
Karl's changes over the past year were also immense, the most intuitive being his height. Karl was already one meter fifty tall, like a giant compared to ordinary people his age.
His strength had also made considerable progress; he could already exchange dozens of moves with King. Karl was very satisfied with his current strength; he was still young and hadn't reached his growth spurt.
Now, apart from the veteran members Kaido brought from the first half of the Grand Line, no one dared not call Karl 'Lord'.
Among the newly recruited people, many initially looked down on Karl, thinking he was just a little kid. However, after witnessing Karl defeat a Pirate with a bounty of 35 million Berries, they truly understood Karl's strength.
Karl was overjoyed for a long time when he learned they called him Lord Karl.
Although Karl's strength was already superior to most of the original three hundred-plus members of the Beasts, it was almost impossible for Karl to order them around.
Now Karl could finally order others to do things, which made him very happy; he didn't have to do many things himself.
Moreover, with the Beasts' intervention over the past year, the Daimyo had become much more compliant, which made Orochi very happy. He took it upon himself to send Kaido many young, beautiful maidens as attendants.
Kaido wasn't interested in these, but since Orochi had sent them, he simply let his subordinates choose for themselves.
King also had no interest in these at all; for him, sending maidens was less useful than sending him a few prisoners to interrogate.
Queen, that pervert, picked several. Karl, feeling exhausted from daily training, also selected a few to serve him and Yamato... "My Lords, breakfast is ready."
Karl was already accustomed to this scene. He picked up the still-sleeping Yamato and shook her awake.
"Mmm, let me sleep a little longer, Karl. I was so tired yesterday."
Yamato rubbed her sleepy eyes, not wanting to get up.
"It's the first time. Just endure a few more days, and you'll get used to it."
(Those who thought otherwise should go reflect on themselves.)
Karl didn't care if Yamato was awake or not. He held Yamato with one hand and accepted the maid's service.
Under the maid's service, Karl, along with a reluctant Yamato, washed up and ate breakfast.
Arriving at yesterday's training spot, Karl took off his top, revealing his well-built muscles. Although he was still young, it didn't prevent him from having muscles.
This was the physique he had dreamed of in his previous life, and he never expected to achieve it in just two years in this world.
If those fitness fanatics knew, they would definitely cry until they fainted in the bathroom.
Karl had already started warming up. After warming up, he would begin today's new round of special training.
Yamato, however, showed no signs of moving.
"Karl, I'm really tired."
Yamato's face was drooping, clearly showing her reluctance to train.
But that was right; Yamato currently had no specific goal. It was just a whim yesterday that she wanted to train with Karl.
"Yamato, have you forgotten the stories of the sea I told you? Without strength, you can't sail the sea, you know."
Karl was now like a wicked uncle, coaxing the young Yamato.
Just like in the original story, Yamato, brainwashed by Kozuki Oden's diary, initially only yearned for adventures on the sea.
Hearing that she wouldn't be able to adventure on the sea if she didn't become stronger, Yamato instantly became anxious.
"No! I want to go to sea, I want to adventure!"
"But Karl, how strong do I need to be to go adventuring on the sea?"
Yamato currently had no concept of strength. The people she had encountered since birth were basically members of the Beasts, and no one had told her what the strong people of this world were like.
Upon hearing this, Karl revealed a mischievous smile. Kaido, prepare for your filial daughter!
"To sail the sea, you must at least be able to defeat Kaido."
"Defeat my bastard father? Okay! Karl, let's go defeat my bastard father now and then go adventuring on the sea!"
Yamato was full of fighting spirit, and as she spoke, she was about to pull Karl to challenge Kaido.
This scared Karl quite a bit. Challenge Kaido now?
It would be a nine-to-one chance.
Kaido would kill Karl nine times with one strike.
"Stop, stop, Yamato, it's not time yet. Kaido is very powerful. To defeat him, we must train hard!"
Karl was afraid this foolish child would get a sudden burst of courage and challenge Kaido. If Kaido found out that he had incited Yamato to challenge him, he didn't know if Yamato would be okay, but he would definitely not escape a Kaido-style education.
"Okay! Karl, starting today, I will also train hard, and then we will defeat my bastard father and go adventuring on the sea together!"
After saying that, Yamato started training as if she had been injected with a stimulant.
Seeing this, Karl smiled slightly, "You little rascal, I can still handle you."
Yamato was such a foolish child that if Karl sold her, she would still be counting the money.
Yamato was training so hard, so he couldn't fall behind either!
Just as he was about to train, a recently recruited member of the Beasts ran over.
"Lord Karl, Lord Karl, we've found something at the coast, as you asked us to monitor."
The man ran to Karl, panting heavily, clearly having run all the way.
"What happened?"
"Lord Karl, according to the brothers in Kuri, a Pirate Ship suddenly appeared in that sea area."
The man quickly relayed the message to Karl.
"What! Which Pirate Ship is it? Can you confirm?"
Karl frowned slightly, because during this period, there had been no shortage of reckless Pirate Ships trying to target Kaido, a former Rocks Pirates crew member.
They were either subdued or fed to the Sea Kings.
So Karl wasn't sure if this ship was the Roger Pirates.
"It seems to be the Roger Pirates."
As he said this, the man was visibly flustered. Roger was a formidable figure, on par with Whitebeard Newgate!
Whitebeard already subtly held the title of the world's strongest, and his strength was still at its peak. Kaido only refrained from causing chaos in Wano Country because of his apprehension towards Whitebeard.
Who would have thought that Kozuki Oden would get involved with the Roger Pirates again?
Upon first hearing this news, Kaido was somewhat hesitant about going to Wano Country, but in the end, he gritted his teeth and entered Wano Country.