"I... I understand..."
Hachi had no courage to refuse at all, because he knew that
if he angered Austin, then with Rayleigh absent, there was nothing he could do.
Fortunately, Rayleigh returned not long afterward.
"Austin? Why are you here?"
Someone had caused trouble at the auction house, and Rayleigh had just finished settling it when he returned to find Austin and the others sitting here.
Finding it strange, he asked directly.
After Austin explained what had happened, Rayleigh immediately said it would not be a problem.
"If it's coating, I can finish it quickly. Back when I coated the Oro Jackson, I even went to Fish-Man Island with Roger and the others."
Perhaps the sight had stirred old memories, and Rayleigh thought of those days.
Austin had once been a member of that ship as well.
"I trust Mr. Rayleigh's skills. Even if something goes wrong, my ability can keep seawater out for a while. Nothing will happen to the Oro Jackson."
Rayleigh shook his head with an easy expression. He was not particularly worried about whether the Oro Jackson would be damaged.
"I'm confident about that. After all, a man like you would never meet his end halfway across the sea."
"Of course not."
Austin drained the fruit wine in his cup.
"The time is getting closer and closer. I'm not willing to leave the stage now."
Rayleigh smiled knowingly at those words.
Looking at Austin's towering figure and the dependable companions beside him, he seemed to recall that youth who had carried Roger's corpse away from the execution platform.
"I'm truly sorry, Austin.
We selfishly excluded you from the New Era, even though you were clearly the person with the greatest hope of becoming the Pirate King..."
Rayleigh spoke calmly, but his words weighed a thousand pounds.