The next day, Luo Chen woke up and looked at the woman beside him.
Robin sensed his gaze, her eyelashes trembling slightly as she slowly opened her eyes. Her red lips pursed into a faint smile as she said, "I never thought there would be a day like this."
"Why do you say that?" Luo Chen asked with a smile.
"I felt like I would die at sea one day—that there would never be the time or the mood to talk about love," Robin spoke softly.
She had always believed she would either die at the hands of the Marines or perish at the hands of the pirates and other dark forces. A historical scholar, the Demon Child, a bounty of 79 million... these titles meant there were far too many people who wanted her dead. With her strength alone, she simply didn't have what it took to survive on these seas.
It was all thanks to Luo Chen.
Since their meeting, he had shielded and helped her time and time again. He had even founded the Jinghai Army and crushed the World Government and the Marines. Only now, after twenty years of exile across the ocean, did Robin truly feel a sense of stability and peace. This comfortable life was something she had never dared to imagine or hope for in the past. Although her work was busy, she was no longer in constant mortal danger.
Compared to before, she was far happier.
Luo Chen pulled Robin into his arms, stroking her hair as his thoughts drifted. In truth, Nami, Hancock, and Carina had also mentioned similar feelings. Previously, they had to worry about Marine suppression as well as pirate harassment. Now, the Jinghai Army was in its prime, and no one dared to provoke them; they had finally achieved a life of peace and security.
*I must deal with Imu and the Dark God as soon as possible.*
*Additionally, I cannot let my strength improvement fall behind.*
The Dark God was currently the only existence that posed a threat to him and the Jinghai Army. Without eliminating this hidden danger, Luo Chen could not be completely at ease.
Over the next few days, he spent time accompanying Robin, Hancock, and the other women. Just on the eve of his departure for the Rainbow Mist space to begin his closed-door cultivation, the Germa Kingdom arrived for a visit.
They called it a visit, but in reality, it was an attempt to curry favor. The King of the Germa Kingdom, Vinsmoke Judge, was Sanji's biological father. He had likely heard that Sanji was with the Jinghai Army and hurried over. He hoped to use Sanji's acquaintance with Luo Chen to form an alliance between Germa and the Jinghai Army.
The reason it was framed this way was that Judge had never liked his son, Sanji. Consequently, on the first day of his arrival in Totto Land, he found Sanji and put on a tearful performance of a father and son reuniting after a long separation.
Luo Chen saw through the falseness of Judge's emotions at a single glance. Issho's Observation Haki was capable of sensing emotions and had detected the same thing.
For such a person, Luo Chen would show no face. He simply informed Judge that an alliance was out of the question; he could either draw a clear line with the Jinghai Army or submit and join them. After saying this, he departed, preparing to say goodbye to Hancock and the others before heading to the Rainbow Mist space.
That night, Luo Chen was in his office at the Tianyun Pavilion, reading through the Jinghai Army reports. Once he finished the report in his hand, he intended to go to Hancock's bedchamber. Tonight, both Nami and Hancock were there.
However, before he could leave, an unexpected guest arrived.
Luo Chen sat in the chair behind his desk and looked at the woman opposite him.
"Miss Reiju, may I ask what the matter is?"
His gaze swept over her. Like Sanji, Reiju possessed swirly eyebrows. However, this peculiar eyebrow shape did not ruin her elegance and beauty. Her pink, medium-length hair covered her right eye, her skin was fair, and she wore light pink lipstick. Her left azure eye looked at Luo Chen coldly. After a moment of silence, she spoke slowly:
"Father sent me to be your woman."
As Reiju spoke, she reached up and pulled away the red cloak on her back. The white dress clinging to her skin began to slide from her collar toward her shoulders, revealing delicate collarbones and rounded shoulders.
Luo Chen used gravity to halt her movements and said calmly, "Even if you offer yourself, the Germa Kingdom is not qualified to form an alliance with the Jinghai Army."
Reiju shook her head. "He understands what you mean."
"However, rather than drawing a clear line with the Jinghai Army, Father would rather establish a connection with you. If I become your woman, even without an alliance, the Germa Kingdom will become an existence that no one dares to provoke."
Luo Chen's eyes shifted slightly. Seeing that an alliance was impossible, Vinsmoke Judge wanted to take him as a "son-in-law"?
*The old man's calculations are quite loud; he really will use any means necessary,* Luo Chen thought to himself.
Reiju spoke then: "Fleet Admiral Luo Chen, could you please release me?"
"Father gave an order, and I must execute it."
The arms she had crossed over her chest to hold her clothes were trembling incessantly. Her veins were bulging, her blood vessels were turning a deep red, and blood was even seeping through the surface of her skin. She seemed to be using every ounce of her strength to try and break through Luo Chen's gravity. Even though she was already being injured, she did not stop.
Luo Chen frowned and withdrew the gravity.
The technology of the Germa Kingdom, especially their modified human and cloning technology, was quite advanced. Judge's children were all modified humans. The drawback of being a modified human was the loss of emotion and 100% obedience to Judge's orders in exchange for a powerful physique and strength.
Reiju had also been modified. Like Sanji, she had miraculously retained her emotions. However, she was unable to disobey the orders issued by Judge. If Luo Chen did not withdraw the gravity, Reiju would have crawled onto his bed even if she had to break all four of her limbs.
As soon as the gravity vanished, Reiju's movements were no longer hindered. She first took off her pure white dress with clinical efficiency. Then, kicking off the pink high heels on her feet, she walked toward Luo Chen barefoot.
As the two drew closer, Reiju closed her eyes tight, her eyelashes trembling uncontrollably and her chest heaving violently. It was clear her heart was far from calm.
"If I were to stop you now, it would be the same as killing you," Luo Chen said, and Reiju opened her eyes.
She was almost face-to-face with Luo Chen. A hint of sorrow was clearly visible in her beautiful eyes.
"I truly wish you could kill me," Reiju whispered. "Unfortunately, Fleet Admiral Luo Chen probably wouldn't be able to bring himself to do it."
She knew of the Jinghai Army's deeds. Now, the Four Seas were at peace, and pirates had been purged almost to extinction. Unrestrained bandits and the royalty and nobles who oppressed the people had been wiped out. The Jinghai Army was a true army of justice. As the Fleet Admiral who founded the Jinghai Army, Luo Chen's moral character was beyond doubt. It was impossible for him to kill someone with whom he had no grievance.
Luo Chen smiled. "Killing you is impossible, but I also don't want Judge to get his wish."
"After tonight, you will take over the Germa Kingdom."
"As for Judge... let him go into retirement."
The fundamental goal behind all of Vinsmoke Judge's actions was to use the Jinghai Army's prestige to gain more power. The best punishment for such a person was to strip him of all authority.
Reiju looked at him in surprise and nodded silently. She took a deep breath, and for the first time, a smile appeared on her face. "In that case, my heart feels much more at ease."
After Reiju finished speaking, her teeth bit down on her lower lip, and with a light twist of her waist, she completed her father's command. Her brow, which had furrowed in pain, slowly smoothed out. She pressed her lovely face close to Luo Chen's and whispered:
"Don't move. There is poison in my body. Just in case, leave it to me."
She was a modified human, and her body contained extremely potent toxins. She could both release toxins to kill and absorb the toxins of others.
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**Would you like me to translate the next chapter, or would you like to refine the tone of this specific scene?**
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