Rouge Takes the Initiative!

Also within the Marine Headquarters, in the residential area, in the courtyard of the Ortolan family's residence.

At this moment, Zephyr was talking to Rouge about something.

"Didn't you even say hello to Ortolan?" Zephyr asked curiously, a cigar dangling from his lips.

Rouge stood by the courtyard gate, carrying her packed luggage in her hand and holding the sleeping Ace in her arms. With a gentle smile on her face, she said, "I plan to go and give him a surprise."

"Looks like you're missing him terribly. So is Ortolan. He's been gone to G-5 for so long. It seems unlikely that he'll be transferred back to headquarters anytime soon. It's really not appropriate for you to be here alone with the child. Ace is already three years old. He really needs to be with his father as he grows up..." Zephyr said with some emotion.

After a slight pause, Zephyr asked, "What about Robin-chan and Lucci?"

"I'm going with Aunt Rouge!" As soon as Zephyr finished speaking, Robin came out of the house carrying a small suitcase, looking expectant.

Before Zephyr could speak, Robin proudly declared, "I've already graduated from basic education as the top student in my school. My teachers all say there's nothing more they can teach me. Next, after I graduate, I'll enlist in the army, and I'll apply to your training camp, Grandpa Zephyr!"

Seeing Robin's adorable appearance, Zephyr smiled kindly and reached out to ruffle Robin hair, saying, "Really? Our Robin-chan is so smart and sensible. Grandpa Zephyr will be very pleased that you're taking classes with me. In the future, you might become a pillar of the Marines like Chief Staff Officer Tsuru, so you must work hard!"

"I will try my best!" Robin immediately promised.

Robin has an exceptionally strong learning ability and is quite intelligent. The planned school life was supposed to last eight years, but she completed it all in just three years and even graduated first in her class, skipping grades.

If she weren't only ten years old this year, and there were no other options for her to join the Marines, Zephyr would have wanted to take her under his wing and train her.

Lucci then came out of the house, looking at Rouge and Robin with a reluctant expression, and said, "You're all leaving. Am I going to be all alone here?"

"If you leave too, won't I be all alone?" Zephyr glanced at Lucci and said.

Over the years, although Lucci has not served in the Marines, he has always been taught by Zephyr. It can be said that although he is only eleven years old this year, he is better than many Marines officers in terms of knowledge and strength.

As a renowned Marines instructor, Zephyr fully unearthed Lucci's already exceptional talent and tailored his teaching accordingly, allowing him to develop his full potential.

Over the years, Lucci has practically grown up alongside Zephyr. With Zephyr losing his son and Lucci being an orphan, the two have become each other's only support. Zephyr treats Lucci like his grandson, and Lucci treats Zephyr like his grandfather.

On the contrary, although Ortolan personally brought Lucci back to the Marines and personally asked Teacher Zephyr to educate and take care of Lucci, Ortolan actually did not spend much time with Lucci.

But Lucci still felt grateful and respectful towards Ortolan, considering Ortolan a benefactor who changed his life.

Furthermore, because Teacher Zephyr lived very close to the Ortolan family, Lucci's relationship with Rouge and Robin was also very close. He and Robin were like siblings, and he was also like Ace's older brother.

Rouge's trip to G-5 was something she had planned for a long time, but Lucci was not going with her. He would stay by Zephyr's side, accompany Zephyr, and continue to receive Zephyr's training and education so that he could become a pillar of the Marines in the future.

The reason why Rouge had been planning this for a long time is because before this, it was really inconvenient for her to go to G-5, since Garp, who knew the truth, was slacking off at headquarters all day.

In Garp's mindset and plan, it was normal for Ortolan not to return to headquarters. This was necessary to build up superficial conflicts. After another year or two, when the time was right, Rouge could use this method to propose a divorce, and then Ortolan would be freed.

This was something we agreed upon back then.

However, Garp was completely unprepared. After becoming Rouge's Rouge, her thinking underwent a significant change, and she has been trying to change the initial course of events ever since.

However, due to the constraints of the Garp headquarters, she couldn't take any action. For example, if she had said today that she wanted to go to G-5 to find Ortolan, the Garp headquarters would have found it strange and might have even tried to stop her from doing so in private.

Now that Garp has been tricked by Sengoku and Ortolan into hunting down that unlucky guy Mihawk in the New World, Rouge is no longer trusted by anyone on the Rouge who knows her secrets.

Taking this opportunity, she said she wanted to reunite G-5 with her husband, Ortolan, and bring their child, etc. No one in the Marines thought anything was wrong.

Even Zephyr thought this was normal. In the past, it was because Ace was too young to travel far. Children who are too young need a more comprehensive medical system to ensure their safety, so it was reasonable for them to stay at headquarters.

Although Ace is still young, he is no longer fragile. At this time, it is perfectly reasonable for Rouge, as his wife and mother, to seek a reunion with her husband and child!

"The conditions at G-5 are not as good as at headquarters. If you have any trouble adjusting after you get there, come back as soon as possible, understand?" Zephyr didn't try to persuade him, but instead gave him a serious reminder.

As he said this, Zephyr suddenly coughed. Seeing this, Rouge frowned slightly, stepped forward, stood on tiptoe, and took the cigar from Zephyr's mouth, saying, "Teacher Zephyr, please don't smoke cigars like that anymore. It's bad for your health. We've told you that so many times..."

Zephyr looked with a pang of heartache at the Rouge had tossed on the ground and stomped out, then, as if remembering something, he smiled and pulled a medicine box from his pocket, saying, "Actually, I've been showing signs of improvement lately, all thanks to that guy, Ortolan. He specifically went to Punk Hazard and found Dr. Vegapunk, using his own blood as a sample, to have the doctor make some related medications for me. That kid..."

Zephyr is Marine Admiral. Since he was born, it's clear that the complexities of Ortolan's decision to give a blood sample to Vegapunk, a mad scientist, must have been immense.

Borsalino had visited his teacher when he was at headquarters, and specifically mentioned that Ortolan had refused to provide a blood sample, but when Dr. Vegapunk said it would help his Zephyr condition, Ortolan immediately agreed.

Indeed, thanks to Ortolan's existence, the relationship between Borsalino and Zephyr did not become strained due to differences in their ideologies. Nowadays, Borsalino respects Zephyr as his teacher, and although Zephyr occasionally reminds him, he doesn't force anything.

After learning some inside information from Borsalino, Zephyr became even more grateful to Ortolan. Thinking about it carefully, Ortolan would Den Den Mushi him every few days, asking about his well-being and showing concern from time to time. He had heard that Rouge as frequently.

If it were someone else, Zephyr would have suspected that the guy was so attentive to him because he was trying to curry favor with him.

However, Ortolan clearly did not have such a need. He had a very close relationship with Admiral Sengoku and enjoyed a high reputation within the Sengoku Headquarters. His former colleagues and associates had all risen to high positions. He himself was an important part of the Marines power circle and had no need for Zephyr to provide strong assistance.

Therefore, Zephyr never took Ortolan's concern as a sign of flattery or any other kind of ulterior motive. At first, he didn't notice anything, but now, he felt that there was a real romantic feeling between him and Ortolan.

This situation is extremely special. From a career perspective, Ortolan and Sengoku have a closer connection, and the two can be said to have reached a tacit understanding.

However, judging from his family and private environment, Sengoku did not have much contact with Ortolan's circle of relatives and friends. On the contrary, Zephyr was very close to Rouge, Ace, Robin, and Lucci, like an elder in this big family. Marineford took good care of them.

"I've already arranged the warships for you. I happen to have one of my students on G-5 today. That guy's a troublemaker, but by some chance, Ortolan took a liking to him and got him on G-5. You can go with him; it's safer on a warship, and you'll have someone to look out for you on the way..." Zephyr chuckled, "If anything really happens, don't act rashly. Just say you're family members of G-5 Marines Bane Ortolan. I doubt anyone in the New World would dare touch Ortolan's family, hahaha..."

Looking at the kind and gentle Teacher Zephyr, Rouge's eyes also showed a hint of reluctance as she said, "Teacher Zephyr, please take good care of yourself..."

As she spoke, she reached out and gently patted Lucci's head, her eyes tender as she said, "Lucci, if we leave headquarters for the time being, I'll have to ask you to take care of me. Please keep a close eye on him, make sure he smokes less, and don't let his condition worsen..."

"I understand, Aunt Rouge..." Lucci nodded reluctantly in response.