One Last Look at This Era

"Neglecting your proper duties?"

Austin stood up and looked at the Navy justice cape Gick had disparaged in every possible way, then at the shipful of soldiers aboard the warship in the distance, too wary to make any rash moves.

The corner of his mouth twitched.

In the One Piece World, especially in the eyes of an old veteran pirate, was being in the Navy really considered neglecting one's proper duties?

Instead, going out to sea as a pirate and becoming a captain was considered carrying on the family legacy and bringing honor to one's ancestors...

"Yes, yes... I get it..."

"No matter what, let's go home first~"

Austin waved his hand, signaling for the soldiers on the warship by the shore to rest aboard the ship. He then followed Old Gick toward home.

Along the way, the old man kept rambling on.

"If you ask me, you were born to be a pirate. Don't waste your thoughts on any proper work~"

"Being a pirate is all about living freely and happily, without a care in the world."

"Just like back when I was in the Rocks Pirates. You hadn't been born yet then—no, wait, you were already a captain."

"We of the Rocks Pirates drank to our hearts' content together. If we wanted to rob a King, we robbed him. If we wanted to sink a World Government ship, we sank it..."

"And look at you now. You actually put on a Navy cape and became some kind of Vice Admiral?"

Old Gick kept recounting stories from those days as they walked, stories he had already told hundreds of times.

Austin had practically grown up listening to them.

When he was little, Austin sometimes could not help thinking about it.

If Old Gick had been King Luffy's grandfather, he