How to Become the Pirate King, and Minos's Ingenuity

"Oh!? So it's confirmed—Stussy really is an agent of the World Government?"

Having eaten her fill, Big Mom held a cup of black tea and narrowed her eyes after listening to her children's report.

Although Charlotte Linlin often had episodes and possessed a violent, volatile temperament, her intelligence was actually perfectly intact when she was normal.

Leaving aside everything else, when she had been with the Rocks Pirates in her youth, she had been bold and generous, with astonishing presence. There had been no sign at all of the foolishness she would display later.

Of course, Minos felt it was quite possible that Charlotte Linlin had stayed lucid and sharp back then because the Rocks Pirates had been full of monsters. If she had an episode, she might very well have been beaten to death.

It was only after becoming a Yonko, when she had few enemies and fewer concerns once her children had grown up, that her daily binge eating and drinking had turned her into the barrel-shaped figure she was now.

In this era, the Red-Haired Pirates had only made a name for themselves in the New World; they had not yet fully become a Yonko Crew.

Of the remaining three Yonko, Kaido and Big Mom had always been quite close. Would they brave mountains of blades and seas of fire for each other? Certainly not. But would they give each other some face and avoid a large-scale conflict? That was perfectly normal.

As for Whitebeard, he did not have much ambition in the first place, and there was also the old bond from their time in the Rocks Pirates. Thus, there was not much conflict between Whitebeard and the Charlotte Pirates either.

The other Great Pirates had no conflicts with her, while the Marines and the World Government were wary of the New World being packed with pirates and were unwilling to make a move. It was probably this environment that had allowed Big Mom to degenerate into her current state.

While Minos was still turning this over in his head, Katakuri spoke. "That's right. We're preparing to turn her into a double agent, and we already have leverage over her... What do you think, Mother?"

Charlotte Linlin picked up a photograph of Stussy holding a banner, an eerie sneer appearing on her face. "Mamamama... The crime of deceiving me is not so easily forgiven."

As she spoke, Zeus, the white cloud in the sky, transformed into a thundercloud. Prometheus, the ball of light, also erupted into roaring flames.

But Charlotte Linlin soon restrained her anger. "Tell Stussy that if there isn't sufficient compensation at my next birthday Tea Party, this photograph will be spread across the entire sea!"

After she said this, several members of the Charlotte Family exchanged looks and breathed sighs of relief. The reason they had not brought Stussy here directly was because they feared Big Mom would fly into a rage and steal Stussy's soul outright. It seemed Big Mom's mind had been working properly lately.

Charlotte Linlin took a sip of tea, then grabbed a stack of "small" cookies as large as pot lids and tossed them into her mouth. Her mood seemed to have calmed again. Smiling, she looked at Minos.

"You're Minos, right? You did well this time. Is there any reward you want?"

Charlotte Linlin remembered Minos, one of the Three-Eyed Tribe, very clearly. She thought Minos's Three Eyes looked far better than those of her daughter, Charlotte Pudding. For Charlotte Pudding, being good-looking counted as a favorable impression.

Moreover, Charlotte Linlin still dreamed of becoming Pirate King, and the abilities of the Three-Eyed Tribe were an important part of that dream.

Minos tilted his head slightly, thought carefully for a moment, and said, "If I had to name something, Captain Charlotte, I do have an idea..."

"Captain Charlotte, you value me so highly because of the Red Poneglyphs—the coordinates for becoming Pirate King, correct?"

"However, I heard there are four such Poneglyphs in total. Captain Charlotte should currently possess only one."

Hearing this, Charlotte Linlin's face took on a thoughtful look. "From the way you're speaking, you have a way to help me obtain the other Poneglyphs?"

Minos smiled faintly. "Actually obtaining them would not be easy, but there is indeed a compromise."

"Though I am also from the Three-Eyed Tribe, the ability I developed is Clairvoyance. In other words, no matter where someone hides a Red Poneglyph, I can easily see the writing on it from hundreds or even thousands of miles away."

"So, as long as we know the locations of the other Poneglyphs, although I cannot seize them directly, I can copy their contents. However, to translate these copied Poneglyphs, we would need someone truly proficient in Ancient script; we cannot use the abilities of the Three-Eyed Tribe or the Voice of All Things as substitutes."

That was perfectly normal. The Voice of All Things and the abilities of the Three-Eyed Tribe could directly obtain information from the actual Poneglyphs, but they could not glean any information from copied inscriptions.

No matter what, this was already far easier than the previous task. Nico Robin, the Devil Child and the sole survivor capable of translating Poneglyphs, might be difficult to find, but it was still far better than the hellish task of collecting Red Poneglyphs.

Of the four Red Poneglyphs, the confirmed ones were the one in Big Mom's possession, one in Kaido's hands, and one on Zou Island. As for whether Fish-Man Island still had one, that was hard to say. If it did not, then perhaps it had fallen into Whitebeard's hands. htt

The one on Zou Island was mainly difficult because its exact location could not be determined. The remaining two would not be easy either. Given Kaido's temperament, if they wanted the Red Poneglyph in his possession, they would definitely have to fight him first.

If the one on Fish-Man Island was still in its original location, that would be ideal. But if it was not, it might have ended up in Whitebeard's hands. If they wanted it, Whitebeard would definitely stand in their way.

That meant facing two Yonko Crews. Even for an organization as large as the Charlotte Pirates, obtaining them would absolutely count as hell-level difficulty.

But if all they needed were copies of the inscriptions, it would be very easy. With Minos's Clairvoyance, he only needed to observe carefully from a thousand miles away to learn all the contents. There would be no need to fight any other pirate crew at all.

Upon hearing this, Charlotte Linlin froze for a moment, then broke into a delighted smile. "Mamamama! As expected of clever Minos! How did I not think of this method?"

"Mamamama, it looks like fate has decreed that I will become Pirate King!"

Minos:...

How did I become clever Minos? And aren't you making becoming Pirate King sound a little too easy?

In truth, Charlotte Linlin had previously wanted to become Pirate King, but she had never had a concrete plan. She had only had a rough idea—raise someone from the Three-Eyed Tribe to read the Poneglyphs' contents, then search for or seize the Red Poneglyph stone tablets.

As for whether she could actually succeed, Charlotte Linlin had never thought about it. It had merely been a wish.

However, after hearing Minos's words, Charlotte Linlin felt for the first time that the position of Pirate King was so close to her. Finding Nico Robin might be difficult, but for the Charlotte Pirates operating at full force, it was not an impossible task.

As for the locations of the Poneglyphs, they at least had clues now. The odds of finding them were high—far better than searching like headless flies as before.

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