Just as Carlos wished he could disappear into the ground, a voice sounded beside him.
"Carlos, with that bear‑like appearance, you're actually a First Division Captain?"
Startled, Captain Carlos instantaneously covered his body with Armament Haki, blackening his form as if transformed, trying to look intimidating in front of Jona.
But he immediately snapped back to his senses. That voice… wasn't it the Young Master's?
Jona had recognized it from the beginning. Now she looked as though she had been caught doing something terribly wrong, panic filling her eyes as she stood frozen.
Lloyd's figure emerged from the darkness like a shadow, tilting his head slightly as he teased,
"All right, I didn't expect to catch a pair of sneaking cats."
At the sound of Lloyd's voice, both Carlos and Jona's expressions changed, and they knelt at the same time.
"Young Master!"
Lloyd wore a playful smile as he looked down at them.
"What? Is this bowing to heaven and earth in front of me? I can't accept that."
Carlos swallowed hard, and without meaning to, a phrase escaped his mouth as if guided by some strange force.
"Young Master is our heaven!"
Jona stared at Carlos in disbelief, thinking, Why couldn't you even manage a single word to me earlier?
Even Lloyd was taken aback by Carlos's sudden proclamation.
Originally Lloyd intended to scare them a little, but Carlos's earnest declaration made him laugh, completely losing that intention.
Lloyd raised a hand, signaling them to get up, but neither dared.
Lloyd smiled and said,
"Isn't it just talking? What are you afraid of?"
Carlos muttered,
"Young Master, I was absent without leave, which violated regulations."
"You're very honest."
"I dare not deceive the Young Master!"
Carlos's sincerity was the main point. Beside him, Jona also admitted her mistake, just as seriously as Carlos.
Lloyd stroked his chin thoughtfully and asked,
"Have you two told Saint Garling about your relationship?"
Carlos answered without hesitation,
"Not yet. I plan to inform Saint Garling once our relationship is confirmed."
That was essentially a roundabout confession. Jona's face immediately flushed crimson as she secretly glanced at Carlos.
Lloyd was not the type to break couples up. Seeing this, he simply said,
"All right, Carlos, you should take the initiative to report this to Saint Garling later. Don't forget you are First Division Captain."
After speaking, Lloyd vanished in a swirl of darkness, leaving Carlos and Jona stunned, staring at each other in place.
Returning to his own bedroom, Lloyd flipped his wrist. A bright red cantaloupe appeared in his palm — the Heat‑Heat Fruit he had obtained from Charlotte Owen. Among Paramecia Devil Fruits, it was considered extremely powerful.
Just now he had thought about giving the Heat‑Heat Fruit to Carlos. After all, Carlos had been loyal to Saint Garling for so long, serving the Figarland Family with unwavering dedication.
However, gifting it so hastily felt premature. Lloyd wanted to observe a little longer before making such a decision.
He tucked the Heat‑Heat Fruit away and walked to his bedroom door.
But as he opened it, two startled cries echoed from inside.
Lloyd peered in and found that Monet and Sugar were actually in his room.
Both little girls were barefoot, their tender white feet exposed. Monet stood near the wardrobe, a thin frost lingering on its surface, holding a clean white towel as she wiped at it.
Sugar was kneeling on the ground, also holding a towel, sweat beading on her fair forehead as she worked.
Lloyd stepped inside quietly. When the door opened, the two busy little girls were startled to see him.
Monet, having regained her composure, quickly bowed to Lloyd and spoke softly,
"Young Master, you're back."
Sugar mimicked her sister's words from the ground, her tone echoing Monet's nearly perfectly.
Lloyd nodded in acknowledgment, then surveyed the room — it was noticeably brighter and cleaner than before, so spotless in places it even reflected light back.
This wasn't because the maids who had cleaned his room were lazy before — rather, it was because Monet's Sugar Sugar Fruit ability had an enormous advantage in cleaning.
Having a Logia Devil Fruit user specifically for cleaning was something Lloyd knew he was unique in the entire world for.
Seeing that Lloyd hadn't spoken right away, Monet suddenly worried he was unhappy with their efforts, even though they hadn't finished cleaning the room yet.
She bit her lip and stammered,
"Young Master, I am truly sorry… we aren't very skilled yet, so the speed is a bit slow…"
In fact, they had been cleaning quite diligently. Today was simply the first time Lloyd had come back early, and his room was indeed vast — the living space of an ordinary family was nothing compared to it.
Sugar looked timidly toward Lloyd, then quietly stuck her little bottom out as she resumed scrubbing the floor with effort. However, she stepped on a patch of frost she hadn't noticed, slipped, and nearly toppled toward the bed leg.
Swish!
Lloyd appeared instantly in front of Sugar, scooped her up, and gently patted her little head.
"Idiot, who told you to come and clean? Don't you know how small you are?"
Sugar pouted, her lips forming a wronged expression.
Monet quickly explained,
"Young Master, Sugar saw me getting tired washing the wardrobe… so she wanted to help."
Lloyd nodded upon hearing this, reached out, and hooked Sugar's tiny nose with his finger, saying softly,
"So that's how it is. It seems I misunderstood little Sugar."
At that moment, a bunch of grapes appeared in Lloyd's hand as though by magic. Sugar's eyes lit up the instant she saw them.
Lloyd smiled slightly, placed Sugar gently on the bed behind him, and handed the grapes into her arms.
"This is a reward for a good child. Eat."
Then Lloyd called Monet over and spoke with seriousness, almost like a parent.
"Do not do cleaning like this from now on. You two are still young. I will have a teacher come tomorrow to teach you properly. Study comes before anything else."
To the Monet sisters at this stage, this was indeed the most important thing.
Monet met Lloyd's gaze steadily, her heart pounding fiercely with an indescribable feeling.
She suddenly remembered Jona's words that Lloyd was a Dark‑Dark Fruit user. But in her eyes, at this moment, Lloyd was like a sun radiating warmth and light, almost melting her into a puddle of pure snow.
Lloyd began to feel drowsy again. He yawned, his eyelids lowering slightly.
"All right, the room is already very clean. You two go back and rest. Wake me up early tomorrow."
With that, Lloyd lay back on the bed and, without further hesitation, fell asleep immediately.