Dice Inspection

As the upheaval caused by "Golden Lion" Shiki gradually subsided, Yaen's days also became increasingly comfortable.

At the very least, when a Navy warship sailed across the Great Sea, there were hardly any Pirates foolish enough to come provoke it. Most would keep their distance.

If they were sailing under a pirate flag, however, they would likely be chased by patrolling Navy warships one moment and have to beware of fellow Pirates turning on them the next.

Peaceful, comfortable...

That summed up Yaen's mood during this period.

The only slight drawback was that the weather on the Grand Line was truly headache-inducing—calm seas one moment, raging winds and torrential rain the next, then hail and frost.

This inverted, chaotic, disorderly weather could only be dealt with as it came. Aside from a very small number of exceptional navigators, ordinary navigators had no way to predict it in advance.

"So... Nami really is amazing!"

Having experienced it firsthand and realized Nami's value, Yaen sincerely praised her in his heart.

If he had Nami, then when he was sunbathing, he would not occasionally have to suffer such embarrassment and have his mood ruined.

However, it was only the year 1500 now. Yaen roughly estimated that Nami might not even count as a fertilized egg yet.

Therefore, Yaen had no intention of wandering around at this point in time, precisely to avoid losing an outstanding navigator like Nami.

When that happened, it would not merely be Yaen's loss—it would probably be a loss for the entire Great Sea.

Then, Yaen did not forget to take out his memo and remind himself not to forget to go pick oranges in the East Blue more than a decade later.

Second Lieutenant Hope, who had come up carrying snacks for Yaen, inadvertently saw the word "oranges" in the memo and asked curiously.

"Eh, Lord Yaen, do you like oranges?"

Yaen answered casually. "Who could refuse a sweet, juicy orange?"

Second Lieutenant Hope seemed to understand something and said, "I understand, Lord Yaen. I'll go peel some oranges and bring them up right away."

?!

Yaen.

"No need. You can't handle the oranges I like. I'll do it myself."

Second Lieutenant Hope frowned tightly, scratched the back of his head with one hand, and instinctively flexed the muscles in his arm, utterly baffled.

They're just oranges, a kind of fruit. Why would Lord Yaen say I can't handle them?

But recalling Yaen's admirable wisdom from before—wisdom that could even improve the entire Navy promotion system—Second Lieutenant Hope felt that things were not so simple.

Could it be... Lord Yaen was hinting at something?

I can't handle them?!

Was he implying that my wrist and arm strength were insufficient, and that I needed to train harder?

However, Second Lieutenant Hope soon remembered the important matter he needed to report and asked.

"Lord Yaen, we'll reach the North Blue waters shortly. Which Navy base should we inspect first?"

"Inspect Navy bases? What Navy bases are we inspecting?" Yaen asked in surprise.

"This..."

Second Lieutenant Hope asked in confusion.

"Lord Yaen is with the North Blue Inspectorate Division and has the authority to oversee the entire North Blue Navy. Shouldn't we inspect the various Navy bases one by one?"

"What nonsense are you talking about? Should I openly go conduct inspections and let those base commanders waste the Marine Soldiers' energy putting on a show for me?" Yaen retorted.

"Then... then what should we do?" Second Lieutenant Hope asked.

Yaen, who had originally planned to idle away his days and stay in the North Blue for ten or twenty years to develop properly, said casually.

"Just wander around. The North Blue is so vast—roll a dice, and whichever direction it lands on, we go that way."

"Yes."

Upon hearing this, Second Lieutenant Hope hurried down to make the arrangements.

However, although the Navy warship was stocked with all kinds of supplies, it did not have something like dice.

Thus, Second Lieutenant Hope personally pinched a dice out of steel, engraving its six faces with "East, South, West, North, Roll Again, Roll Again."

The Navy helmsman looked at Second Lieutenant Hope, who was solemnly shaking the dice, and asked in confusion, "Second Lieutenant Hope, what are you doing?"

"This is Lord Yaen's order. We sail in whichever direction the dice indicates," Second Lieutenant Hope answered.

"Th-That's far too casual, too random, isn't it?" The elite Navy helmsman could not help but smile wryly. He had never heard an order like this before.

"Random?!"

Second Lieutenant Hope froze and muttered the word again. In an instant, he seemed to reach a realization and shouted, "I understand now."

"What does Second Lieutenant Hope understand?" the Navy helmsman asked.

"What Lord Yaen wants is precisely this randomness, to prevent the remaining Navy bases from judging our inspection route. That is why he is simply using dice to determine our sailing direction. Only through surprise inspections can we ensure that we see the Navy bases as they truly are."

"And this dice will be like a Sharp Sword hanging over the heads of every corrupt Marine in the North Blue. They will never know when it will point at them."

In the end, Second Lieutenant Hope could not help sighing in admiration. "As expected of Lord Yaen. Brilliant."

The surrounding Marine Soldiers pondered his words, and admiration inevitably showed on their faces.

All of this amply proved that Lord Yaen was an officer who genuinely wanted to get things done and truly find the problems within the North Blue Navy.

Combined with Yaen's image from the Ohara Incident—unafraid of powerful authority and protective of Civilians—the Marine Soldiers suddenly felt that Officer Yaen's image in their hearts had grown far taller and more complete.

For a time, while Yaen was still somewhat dazed, he felt that the morale of the Marine Soldiers aboard the warship had risen considerably, and the way they looked at him had become increasingly respectful.

However, the unexpected came even faster than Yaen had imagined.

The moment the warship entered North Blue waters, before Second Lieutenant Hope had even used that Steel Dice, a full eight North Blue Navy warships appeared ahead, blocking their path.

"What... are they trying to do?"

Yaen raised his sunglasses and looked toward those warships, muttering to himself.

"Could these North Blue Navy men be planning to intercept me here and take out me, the North Blue Inspectorate Division?"

"What?!"

Second Lieutenant Hope wore a shocked expression and immediately ordered all Marine Soldiers aboard the warship to prepare for battle.

After thinking for a moment, Yaen gave an order. "Keep our distance. Send someone over to ask what's going on."

Soon, under Second Lieutenant Hope's command, several Marine Soldiers rowed a small boat toward the North Blue Navy warships opposite them.

A short while later, that little boat returned with great difficulty, crammed full of people.

"Thud, thud, thud..."

Several hurried footsteps rang out. The several Lieutenant Commanders and Colonels from the Marine branches who had come with the boat had not even reached the deck when their voices carried over first.

"A warm welcome to Lord Yaen's arrival in North Blue to inspect our work..."