Robin's expression grew deeply focused as her fingers traced the engraved golden symbols. It was a long message, an expression of gratitude directed toward ??? God whose name was intentionally erased...
The message spoke of an ancient catastrophe.
Large portions of the tablet had been lost to corrosion, yet enough remained for Robin to piece together a story.
According to the inscription, the sea levels had risen relentlessly over time for reasons now lost to history. At first, the people simply retreated to higher ground, then higher, eventually, there was nowhere left to go.
Hope had nearly vanished when an existence they called the ??? God appeared.
This being constructed colossal walls over two hundred meters tall around the city, forming a massive sanctuary that protected millions of poor refugees from all over the world, from the rising sea level and the relentless attacks of Sea Kings.
But the story did not end there.
Over the following fifty years, the water continued its terrifying rise. In the end, the civilization was forced to abandon the city entirely. By then, the ??? God had already disappeared. The reason for the god's vanishing had been missing from the tablet.
Still, before they left, the people had carved their gratitude toward the ??? God who had given them precious time.
Robin slowly moved toward the shattered stone mural next.
Unlike the tablet, this artifact contained very few words. Its meaning came mostly through the images of countless people kneeling and worshipping many moons above them like a divine entity.
Robin studied the remaining carvings in silence for a moment before speaking.
"It seems the civilizations of that era worshipped many gods," she murmured. "When they lost any figure to turn to… they began worshipping the moon and sun instead." Her finger gently traced several faded symbols. "Sun God… Forest God… Earth God… Rain God…"
The rest of the names had worn away beyond recognition, finally, she looked up at Leo, with bright curious eyes.
"Where exactly did you find all this?"
Leo answered truthfully.
"Laboon found a ruined city nearly two thousand meters beneath the sea level, this is everything we managed to scavenge, though there could be more."
Robin's eyes widened at the revelation. She turned toward the massive whale with genuine admiration.
"What a cute little friend you have…" A soft, sincere smile spread across her face.
For a moment, she looked like she genuinely wanted to walk over and pat the enormous whale before containing herself.
"Bwahaha!!" (Praise me more!!)
Laboon responded proudly while Leo casually translated for the others.
"You can actually understand him?" Robin asked, staring at Leo in open fascination.
Leo simply shrugged. "I don't know why, but I can only communicate with Laboon. Not other sea kings, if that's what you're wondering."
For what felt like the Nth time since boarding the ship, Robin looked utterly captivated.
A man who could speak with a giant whale… The more she learned about Leo, the more intriguing he became.
After a brief silence, she quietly admitted, "I'm a historian as well."
Still, the excitement in her eyes was unmistakable as she glanced back at the ancient relics.
"This is probably the first time anyone has uncovered knowledge from such depths," she said, her voice filled with awe.
"Normally, humans can't explore ruins that deep because of Sea King threats and the lack of proper technology…" Her gaze shifted between Leo and Laboon. "But with someone like Laboon… and your ability…"
"…It might actually be possible."
Leo smiled faintly at her conclusion.
"Then why don't you leave Baroque Works and join my crew?" he offered.
"We have an opening for an assassin, historian and archaeologist, or, you can just join us because we like your company. Same as Nojiko and Laboon, they're not here because they're the strongest. They're here because I like having them around."
"You said it, boss… you like us…" Nojiko pretended to wipe away fake tears.
"Bwahhhahhh!!" Laboon joined in dramatically.
Meanwhile Bon Clay was still sulking dramatically in the corner for not receiving an invitation yet despite spending the most time with the crew.
Leo merely glanced at him teasingly, already having plans for the man while intentionally making him suffer a little first.
Robin paused, then gave a small, apologetic smile.
"…I appreciate the offer. But I still have goals I need to achieve while staying with Mr. 0."
She didn't explain further, and Leo didn't press her.
At the very least, Leo wanted to meet Mr. 0 in person and judge what kind of man he was before making another attempt to recruit Robin.
"I'll either recruit your boss if he proves useful…" Leo declared calmly, "…or kill him and take his place. Either way, you'll end up working under me."
"Fufufu… I look forward to it," Robin replied with an amused laugh.
"Now that I'm going to meet your boss anyway," Leo continued, "is there really any need to keep his identity secret? You could just tell me."
Robin smiled knowingly. "I could…" Her eyes curved with mischief.
"But I'd rather see your expression when you meet him in person. So I think I'll keep it to myself." That answer clearly annoyed Leo.
"Come on, you can take one artifact for free." Robin calmly set the artifacts aside.
To his disappointment, Robin showed no further interest in them. She had already learned everything she could from them.
'Should've bargained before showing her everything.' Leo thought with a sigh.
Just like that, the night slowly continued. The sea remained calm as Laboon followed the giant turtle guiding them toward Alabasta.
During the quiet journey, Robin suddenly spoke again recalling an interesting detail.
"By the way… your name is similar to someone famous..."
"I know, I know," Leo replied, visibly irritated. "Portgas D. Ace, right? I get that a lot. I have no connection to him. Portgas was my mother's surname, that's all. I don't have a brother."
"No need to get so annoyed," Robin said calmly. "I only mentioned it because I heard reports that Ace was recently seen in Nanohana, the port city we're heading to."
Leo blinked in amusement.
"There were also rumors of a troublesome Marine causing chaos for pirates there…" Robin paused, recalling the name. "Marine Captain Smoker. Apparently the same man you escaped in loguetown."
At the mention of Smoker, Leo remembered the white haired Marine who had given him and Luffy quite a trouble back in Loguetown.
Nojiko instantly broke into a nervous sweat. "Shouldn't we avoid that city then?"
"Oh…" A slow grin spread across Leo's face. "I did promise that guy a duel back in Loguetown, didn't I?" He pointed forward. "Next destination… Nanohana Port City!"
Once again, the crew settled down across the deck. Some chatted quietly, others rested. Even Robin joined the late night conversation while the bonfire crackled softly beneath the starry sky.
Eventually, one by one, everyone drifted off to sleep as the fire slowly died out.
Morning arrived with the familiar cry of a News Coo descending from above. The bird dropped fresh newspapers and bounty posters onto the deck before flapping away.
And once again, on the front page, Leo's opinion had shifted, from rising heroic rookie who killed corrupt marines to wanted criminal who stole livelihood of an entire island.
***
Author's Note: Don't worry, the Straw Hats are still in Drum Island, so Leo won't be running into them in Nanohana.
Also, look forward to the next chapter! There's a major development coming that will shape the future direction of the story.