One Piece: The Celestial Dragons' Self-Cultivation

Page 8

Ignoring Dr. Clover kneeling on the ground, Black slowly walked up to Robin and placed his hand on her head.

Black could clearly feel Robin's body tremble, but she didn't flinch.

"What's your name?"

“Nicole Robin…”

Robin's voice trembled, and he spoke haltingly, clearly showing some fear.

Blake, however, seemed oblivious and continued to ask:

"Scholars should know I was coming today, so why are you here?"

"me……"

The Robin of today is not the seasoned and mature woman from the original story. Although Black's expression is gentle, it gives her a huge sense of pressure, and she can't think of a suitable excuse for a moment.

In reality, she simply intended to apply what she had learned.

She had always read about the Celestial Dragons in books, and the ancient scripts that scholars were secretly studying behind her back were also related to the Celestial Dragons, which made her increasingly curious.

Robin originally thought that she could get away with it without anyone noticing, thanks to the Flower Flower Fruit ability, but she didn't know that there was a power in this world called Observation Haki, and she was caught red-handed.

"Your Highness Black..."

At that moment, Clover's voice came again, seemingly wanting to plead for Robin.

Blake finally turned his gaze back to Dr. Clover and said calmly:

“I am not a cruel person. I would not kill someone just because she looked at me.”

Before Clover could even breathe a sigh of relief, Blake's voice rang out again:

"But rules are rules, and those who look directly at the descendants of God must pay the price."

“Wildgrass! Tell him about your experience.”

Huang Mu immediately stepped forward, looked down at Dr. Clover, and recounted what had happened in the Kingdom of Taya.

Dr. Clover hesitated.

After all, the Celestial Dragons are well-known, and Robin is still a child.

Although he was a retainer, if anything happened to him, he wouldn't be able to explain it to Olvia.

The Olvias have already sacrificed one of their children in their research on ancient writing; if something were to happen to their only child, Clover feels she could die of shame.

While Professor Clover was still hesitating, Robin, who had already come to her senses, spoke first:

"Your Highness, I am willing to become your retainer, and I hope you can forgive my mistakes."

Blake chuckled inwardly; this was the power of knowledge.

The broken window theory still applies even in the world of One Piece.

If Black had suggested making Robin a retainer from the beginning, neither Robin nor Professor Clover would have agreed.

But now, with a minor mistake on their side and Huang Mu offering his perspective, their mutual resentment is greatly reduced.

Blake nodded in a pretentious manner:

"In that case, you will be my retainer from now on."

"Yes, Your Highness Black."

Perona muttered to herself:

"Hmph! Pretending!"

Although her voice wasn't loud, she was being held by Blake, so he heard her words clearly.

He glared at Perona fiercely, reached out and ruffled her hair, messing up her pink fur.

"Ugh! Damn it!"

Perona straightened her hair, no longer daring to provoke her.

Upon seeing this, a hint of surprise flashed in Robin's eyes.

"It seems there's no need to worry about danger anymore, what a pity..."

Thinking of her mother, whom she hadn't seen in a long time and whose memory was fading, Robin felt a pang of sadness.

Having achieved his goal of coming to Ohara, Blake wasn't in a hurry to leave. Instead, he took Stella, Perona, Robin, bodyguard Aramaki, and the two couples to explore the island.

With less than a year left until the Buster Call, the World Government should have noticed something amiss with Olvia and her research team in the last few months. After they leave this time, the island of Ohara will cease to exist, so it's good to take advantage of the time to see the world.

"This is my treehouse. Whenever I'm feeling down, I come here to spend some time."

Following the direction Robin pointed, everyone looked closely and saw that there was a hidden world behind a small tree hole.

It has a feeling of "at first it was extremely narrow, barely enough for one person to pass, but after walking a few dozen steps it suddenly opened up into a bright and spacious place".

Robin placed some books and tools in the tree hollow, which was spotless.

Clearly, she uses the "tree hole" frequently, or perhaps she often encounters unhappy things.

And so, Robin became everyone's guide in Ohara.

The little girl was much more approachable than the old man Clover, and Blake found her mature demeanor amusing.

Afterwards, Robin took Black to the beach where they collected seashells and the forest where they discovered the Devil Fruit...

She seemed to know that she would hardly be able to come back after this departure, and that it was less about introducing things to Blake and the others, and more about leaving herself something to remember them by.

As evening approached, Robin went to his uncle's house to say goodbye.

Although both lived with relatives, Robin's life was not as good as Harry Potter's, but since it was the family that raised her, Black did not stop her.

About half an hour later, Robin returned, looking somewhat dejected.

Blake didn't ask, presumably because the farewell wasn't pleasant.

"Now that we're back, let's get on the ship and head to our next destination."

As soon as I returned to the ship, a guard rushed over, holding a Den Den Mushi in his hand.

Chapter 12 The Brilliant Perona

Blake was somewhat surprised.

He was invisible, both in Mary Geoise and at sea, so how could anyone contact him using a Den Den Mushi?

Despite thinking this, Black still picked up the Den Den Mushi:

"Mosimoxi?"

"Lord Black Saint, I'm sorry to bother you."

The Den Den Mushi, simulating a face resembling a golden lion, solemnly declared:

"Orders have come from Naval Headquarters, requiring all senior officers to return to Marineford immediately. At the same time, news has also come from Mary Geoise that the Five Elders hope you can temporarily return to Mary Geoise."

Blake was taken aback upon hearing this.

It sounds like something big has happened.

So he asked:

"Lieutenant General Gumir, do you know what happened?"

Gumir on the other end of the phone was silent for a moment, seemingly finding it difficult to speak, before finally saying:

"Your Highness, according to the information I have received, Marshal Kong has encountered the great pirate Lone Red—Barorick Redfield—in the New World."

"The two sides fought for ten days. Although Vice Admiral Garp arrived in time to arrest Lone Red, the Air Marshal is still unconscious."

"So that's what happened."

Blake breathed a sigh of relief; he had almost thought that something drastic had happened in the plot.

The game doesn't specify when the Red Earl was arrested by the navy, and Black didn't seem to care much about it.

After all, someone like the Red Earl would never submit to anyone, and even if you pulled him out of the deep-sea prison, it wouldn't make a difference.

I never expected this matter to escalate to such a huge extent.

"That makes sense, though the game clearly states that the Red Earl is the winner, it doesn't specify the exact casualties on either side."

"It seems that Steel Bone Kong was badly beaten and hasn't woken up yet."

"The Red Earl must be having a hard time either, otherwise it would be very difficult to keep a top expert from leaving, and Garp wouldn't have been able to easily take advantage of the situation."

Thinking of this, Black spoke to the Den Den Mushi:

"In that case, let's turn back."

This is not as simple as a one-on-one defeat.

Kong, as the Fleet Admiral, represents the Navy's highest combat power. His defeat by a great pirate in a one-on-one battle is a major blow to the prestige of the Navy and the World Government.

From now on, the pirates' fear of the Navy will be greatly reduced, and it will take a long time to recover.

Unfortunately, only one year has passed since Roger started the Great Pirate Era, and pirates wanting to set sail in search of the One Piece are as numerous as fish in a river.

Perhaps in the next few days, some pirates will think that the Navy is nothing special, thus losing their respect for the Celestial Dragons and attacking Black's fleet.

Even if Black is not injured, it will further damage the World Government's prestige, which is why the Five Elders are in a hurry to recall the Celestial Dragons who are away.

Having figured all this out, Blake had no intention of being the first to stick his neck out.

If you tell me to go back, I'll go back; the main point is to be obedient.

"Stella, pass on the message: return to Mary Geoise."

"Yes, Your Highness."

Stella went to instruct the slaves to return, while Perona blinked her big eyes at Blake, her eyes filled with curiosity and longing:

"Are we going back to the Holy Land? I've been curious about it for a long time. I heard it's the dwelling place of God."

"It's not wrong to call it the abode of the gods, but Mary Geoise isn't as good as you think. Behave yourself, or I won't be responsible if you get captured by the guards of the other Celestial Dragons."

Blake casually made a scare remark.

However, what he said wasn't entirely false. Once they returned to Mary Geoise, he wouldn't be able to joke around with Perona like that anymore; at least they would have to maintain a respectable appearance outside the manor.

Robin added:

"The Holy Land Mary Geoise, as the seat of the World Government, is home to countless high-ranking government officials, and the inner city is the residence of the Celestial Dragons."

"As descendants of gods, the Celestial Dragons enjoy all privileges according to law, and we must be careful with our words and actions."

“If you offend them, you will be demoted to a slave at best, and killed on the spot at worst.”

Robin's words seemed to have truly frightened Perona. Her big eyes welled up with tears as she looked at Robin in horror, unable to understand why this older sister, who wasn't much older than her, would say such terrifying things.

Perona clung to Blake's leg, tears welling in her eyes, and said:

"Huh!? The Holy Land is so dangerous? Shouldn't we stay here instead?"

"Haha, now you're scared? Aren't you usually so brave?"

Blake was amused by her appearance.

The little girl, who has been making sarcastic remarks about herself all the time recently, was actually scared like this.

"But...that's a Celestial Dragon!"

Blake crouched down and reached out to pull her face to the sides.

"Waaaaah...it hurts! Damn it! Let me go!"

The pain from her bruised cheeks lessened her fear, and the incredibly brave Perona returned as a queen once again.

Blake asked, somewhat amused:

"Have you forgotten, little girl? I'm a Celestial Dragon too. Watch out or I'll make you my slave!"

Perona was clearly taken aback.

For the past month, she had been bickering and joking with Blake, which had almost made her forget Blake's identity and that she had actually been tied to the ship by him, even though she had been thinking of escaping before.

How did it turn out like this?

Perona's little head was filled with big question marks.