Chapter 351: An Eternal Harbor
East Blue · Dawn Island
The night was as dark as ink, and a gentle sea breeze brushed through the air.
Roy's figure appeared soundlessly in the mountain forests outside Dawn Village. In his hand, he was lugging the already unconscious Daifuku. With an impatient flick of his wrist, he tossed the massive body into a dark cave, dusting off his hands as if he were disposing of nothing more than a piece of insignificant trash.
In the next instant, he stood before that familiar wooden door—the warmest place in his memories: home.
Roy gazed at the slightly weathered yet still cozy door. His chest heaved slightly as he took a deep breath, before reaching out to knock gently.
Thud, thud—
Creak—
The wooden door slowly swung open, and a slightly stooped but still energetic figure appeared in the doorway. When Irene looked up and saw that familiar face, she froze for a split second. Then, her eyes welled with red, and tears came pouring out.
"Roy..."
"I'm home, Mom."
Roy spoke softly, his voice gentle enough to melt into the night.
The next moment, Irene lunged forward and hugged him tightly. Her small fists pounded lightly against his arms, her sobs carrying a hint of fury. "You brat! Two years without a single word! Do you have any idea how worried we were?!!"
Footsteps sounded from inside the house, and Rock walked out as well. Seeing his son at the door, he was stunned for a moment before he straightened his face and feigned a stern voice.
"Brat! You finally decided to come back?!" He huffed. "Spending all your time causing trouble... you only know how to make your mother worry!"
However, his trembling hands and the redness in the corners of his eyes completely betrayed the excitement in his heart.
Roy lowered his head with a smile. "Dad, Mom, I'm back."
Inside the house, under the warm glow of the lamps, Roy laid out the specialty dishes he had packed from the Baratie one by one.
"This is the Baratie's signature roast meat, and some fish steak soup... it's all still hot."
The aroma instantly filled the room.
Irene wiped away her tears, grumbling even as she moved. "Coming home is enough, why bring food... honestly..." Yet, her hands didn't stop for a second as she hurried to grab the bowls and chopsticks.
Rock let out a "Hmph," pretending not to care, but his eyes were already snaking toward the golden-brown roast meat. "At least you still have a bit of a conscience, kid!"
The family of three finally sat around the table. Irene kept piling food into Roy's bowl until it was a mountain, her eyes filled with an ache of maternal love she couldn't hide.
Roy smiled and placed a tender piece of fish into his mother's bowl. "You eat too, Mom."
The atmosphere at the dinner table was warm and lively. It wasn't until the meal was halfway through that Irene finally couldn't help but ask softly: "Roy... where have you actually been these past two years? Why wasn't there any news at all?"
Roy's movements paused for a moment, then he smiled. "I was on some classified missions. They required secrecy, so I couldn't get in touch."
"But it was safe, nothing dangerous. See? I'm perfectly fine."
As he spoke, he deliberately suppressed the sharp, overwhelming aura he usually carried, looking for all the world like a normal young man returning from a business trip.
Rock shot him a sideways glance and snorted. "You'd better be! If you ever dare come back with an injury, I'll give you a thrashing myself!" But the worry in the depths of his eyes had long since turned into warmth.
Irene clasped her hands together, smiling through her tears. "As long as you're okay, that's all that matters... coming home safe is better than anything."
With that, she placed the largest piece of roast meat into Roy's bowl.
Roy shared a few anecdotes that he was allowed to tell, making Irene laugh until she was wiping tears away. Even Rock, who had been keeping a stiff face, couldn't stop the corners of his mouth from curling up.
Outside the window, the sea of stars was brilliant, and the sea breeze was soft. In this moment, Vice Admiral Roy—the man who had fought a hundred battles and whose name shook the seas—was not a "monster" or a "nightmare." He was simply a child who had weathered the storm and finally returned home.
Looking at his parents' warm smiles, Roy felt a profound peace in his heart.
"No matter where I go... this place will always be my eternal harbor."
After dinner, the living room was filled with the scent of tea and a lingering warmth. The glow of the oil lamp reflected off the wooden walls, and the air was filled with a quiet, peaceful serenity.
Roy leaned lazily against the sofa, listening to his parents' soft chatter. It felt as if the past two years of drifting and slaughter had been left far behind. When he heard that Ace and Luffy had actually visited with Nami and Nojiko a while back, a smile tugged at the corners of his eyes.
He made a show of speaking casually. "So, what did you think of those two girls?"
Irene's eyes lit up instantly. She set down her teacup, her entire demeanor brightening. "That Nami girl? She's beautiful and so sharp! She's efficient and speaks her mind—you can tell she's the kind of girl who can manage a household perfectly!"
Rock nodded in agreement, a smile on his lips. "Nojiko is gentle and sensible, and her cooking is excellent. When she was here last time, she even helped your mother make a bunch of snacks..."
"Those two brats are certainly lucky!"
Roy couldn't help but burst into a hearty laugh, adding with a touch of pride: "Of course! Back at Headquarters, they're famous as elite female officers."
"Their suitors would stretch from the gates of Marine Headquarters all the way to the Sabaody Archipelago!"
The two elders' eyes bugged out in unison. Irene slapped the table in a panic, her voice full of anxiety: "Then what are we waiting for?! We can't let someone else snatch them away! Ace and Luffy need to hurry up!"
Rock also furrowed his brow, muttering under his breath: "Those two blockheads... they spend all day thinking about fighting and eating meat. They don't have a single romantic bone in their bodies!"
"Roy, you're their big brother. You need to teach them properly!"
Roy was about to nod when Rock suddenly changed targets, glaring at him. "Hmph! You have a lot of nerve talking about others! What about yourself?!"
"You're already in your thirties, and you don't even have a girlfriend! How is a bachelor like you supposed to teach anyone else?!"
Irene immediately joined the fray, grabbing Roy's hand with worry. She spoke even faster than before: "Roy, I'm not trying to nag, but look—even Ace and Luffy have brought girls home. You're the oldest, yet there isn't even a shadow of anyone!"
"Is work too busy? Should you just take a leave of absence and find someone?"
Rock added a final blow from the side: "Exactly! All you do is fight and go on missions! Look at old John's grandson next door—he's already old enough to run errands for the family!"
Caught in the pincer attack of his parents, Roy didn't get annoyed. Instead, he just sat there smiling and listening quietly. As he calmly refilled their tea, he watched their anxious faces, his eyes full of tenderness.
"This kind of nagging... it really has been a long time."
He reached out and gently patted his mother's hand, comforting her with a smile. "Don't worry, Mom. I just haven't met the right one yet."
Then, he looked up toward the starry sky outside the window, his voice turning steady. "The New World... it's not exactly peaceful right now."
"We'll talk about it once everything settles down."
Rock and Irene exchanged a look and sighed, choosing not to press further. They knew the weight their son carried on his shoulders was something others couldn't even imagine.
In the end, Irene just hugged Roy tightly and whispered, "No matter what... you must stay safe."
"Find someone who can take care of you soon... only then can I truly be at peace."
Roy was slightly stunned for a moment, then he reached out to hug her back, nodding with a smile.
"I will."
The night grew deeper, and the tea steam curled into the air. In this moment, the Vice Admiral who shook the four seas was not the "monster" of the battlefield, but simply the eldest child who gave his parents something to worry about.
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