Contacting Issho

Despite their best efforts, the warships still took nearly two days to reach Navarone Fortress. After all, no matter how anxious Vidal and Bullet were, their speed was limited.

Fortunately, they didn't encounter any pirate crews along the way, otherwise Vidal felt he might have really gone on a killing spree.

As soon as he entered the large iron gates of Navarone Fortress, Vidal sensed that something was wrong; the marines' faces were filled with worry.

This made him feel even worse.

[Smack!]

"Father!!"

Vidal pushed open the door and ran inside with Bullet following behind, not even bothering to take off their shoes.

"Uh..." But they were stunned when they came in.

In the living room, the father, Cornell, the mother Enid, and their youngest son Enel, were gathered around the coffee table drinking coffee, seemingly not as grief-stricken as one might imagine.

What's going on?

And Cornell looks perfectly normal; wasn't he supposed to be seriously injured?

"Hey, you've arrived!"

Cornell happily sat on the sofa and greeted them, while Little Enel jumped right off Enid's arms and ran quickly toward Vidal and the others.

"Dad!"

"Elder brother!"

"Hey! Son!"

When Vidal saw him running over, he smiled and crouched down to pick him up, but the little rascal actually jumped past him and went straight to Bullet behind him!

Seeing that Cornell was alright, Bullet relaxed and caught Enel. The two brothers then began to talk quietly.

"How's your learning going? How many characters can you recognize now?"

"I can read storybooks by myself now!"

"Oh? What storybook did you read?"

"Liar Noland!"

Vidal stood up awkwardly, a string of black lines on his forehead. Helpless, he ignored the two of them and went over to sit on the sofa.

"Didn't they say you were seriously injured?"

As he spoke, he glanced intentionally at his father's feet and found that there was indeed no shadow, which made him frown.

"He was seriously injured. When he came back, he was covered in blood and could barely stand on his own!"

Ms. Enid glanced at her husband with lingering fear, then said to her son, "Well, at least you left a lot of Green Beans before you left, and he didn't take them all with him when he set off."

"So that's how it is."

Vidal Satori, indeed, while the therapeutic effect of a single Green Bean was limited, the effect of dozens of mung beans would be different.

This made him glad he had done what he did back then; otherwise, he would be seeing his father lying in a hospital bed right now.

"Now it's just a matter of shadows, and I've lost my position as branch commander," Cornell sighed, looking down at the empty space at his feet.

It's impossible not to feel regret and pity for a position earned through half a lifetime of hard work.

"I will find the Shadow for you one day. As for your position, please try to put it aside," Vidal comforted him.

"The Fleet Admiral Kong told me that he would take you all with him when we returned, and that you would Marineford."

"Oh, and Enel too. When he gets a little older, you can train him yourself, just like I did when I was a kid!"

Cornell glanced at Little Enel in Bullet's arms, nodded, and thought that this was the only way.

"Dad, can I go where you and my brother went too?" Little Enel exclaimed excitedly, then looked up at Bullet.

Bullet patted his little head, then gently pinched his long earlobe, and whispered, "Yes, when you get there, there will be many children your age."

"Great!!" Little Enel cheered.

Although the conditions at Navarone Fortress were quite good, there were no children his age there, so he could only study and read with Ms. Enid or by himself every day.

Seeing his delight, Vidal smiled as well, wondering if Marineford had any notable figures around Enel's age.

It seems not.

The closest in age, Smoker, who was only three years younger Enel, joined the Navy ten years later at the age of fourteen.

Hina is a possibility, if she comes from a naval family, but she's only two years old.

"Vidal, how many days Admiral Zephyr give you?" Cornell asked.

"Ten days, but two days were already spent on the journey here, so we can stay here for about six more days."

"Alright, let's have a good family dinner tonight. By the way, your mother and I have lived in this fortress for decades," Cornell sighed, looking up at the crystal chandelier on the ceiling.

These words saddened Vidal and his mother Enid, for this place held all their memories.

This made Vidal hate Moria even more.

After a moment of silence, Enid stood up and smiled, "A person can't stay in one place forever. Let's just consider this the beginning of the next stage of life."

"I'll go make you a big dinner!" she said, and strode towards the kitchen.

"Oh, right, Father, I brought you a gift. It was earned for you by that Bullet!" Vidal pointed to his eldest son sitting on the opposite sofa.

"Oh?" Cornell looked at Bullet with surprise.

Bullet pursed his lips. He wasn't good at expressing himself in these matters and didn't know what to say, so he simply took the long sword from his back and handed it over.

"This is."

Cornell took the longsword and examined it carefully. As a seasoned swordsman with decades of experience, he immediately sensed its extraordinary nature.

The scabbard is bronze-colored, while the hilt is pale gold. You can immediately sense the vicissitudes of its history; this is definitely not an ordinary weapon.

[Swish--]

As he gently drew the hilt of the knife, a burst of silver light shot out, but it immediately concealed its brilliance, revealing its blade to its new master.

The blade is 63 centimeters long and 1 centimeter wide at the back. It is flat and smooth, and looks flawless. The edge of the blade is covered with delicate ancient and pale yellow patterns.

When Cornell saw that the boiling particles on the blade resembled quicksand, he immediately recognized it as the 'sand flow pattern' in the blade's texture.

Combining the overall image of the scabbard, hilt, and guard, the corresponding sword name immediately comes to mind.

"This is the Skillful Grade Blades, Echizen!"

"Impressive, you can even recognize this?" Vidal chuckled, having only learned its name after consulting the encyclopedia.

"Of course, I've memorized the illustrations of Famous Swords!" Cornell gently stroked the blade and smiled, "I never imagined I'd own such a Famous Sword. Thank you."

Although it was only the lowest grade of Skillful Grade Blades, it was enough to make most Vice Admiral envious.

When Bullet heard Cornell thank him, he quickly said it was nothing; if it weren't for Vidal, he wouldn't have thought to ask Zephyr for it.

"But how did you earn that?" Cornell asked Vidal, Vidal stood up and replied.

"Let Bullet, as the person involved, tell you what major things he did at the Navy Academy."

I'll go back to my room first.

Back in his room, which resembled a botanical garden, he first took the two Devil Fruits out of his body—yes, inside his body, just like he had brought the Rumble-Rumble Fruit in the first place.

Because he can transform his body into a plant form at any time and control it, he can create a small space within his body.

It just so happens that his three-meter-tall frame is big enough; otherwise, an average person could only fit one at most.

Soon, the Rumble-Rumble Fruit and the Combine-Combine Fruit hanging on the tree found new partners, and now he had a total of four Devil Fruits!

However, Vidal didn't pay much attention to them. Instead, he took out a Den Den Mushi and made a call. After the call connected, a voice came from the other end.

"Vidal?"

"It's me, Yixiao. I need your help with something!"

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