Custody Rights

"You've gotten quite a bit stronger too, Katakuri. Looks like you could've handled things here yourself."

Nanamo shook out her arms, then grabbed the Pirate flags these men had planted nearby and wiped her hands on them.

Her battle with Katakuri had ended almost simultaneously. From this moment on, the Fat Bottle Pirates had completely vanished from the seas.

"No, Sis. Having your help saved us a lot of trouble... What are you looking for?"

Katakuri walked over to retrieve his trident, then turned to see Nanamo rummaging through the pile of supplies nearby.

"These Pirates' treasure, obviously. What else would I be looking for? Isn't this their base?"

"Uh..."

The way she had fought just now had made Katakuri forget that his eldest sister was actually rather fond of money and had always taken a keen interest in spoils of war.

They might have been siblings, but Nanamo was still very different from the other members of the Charlotte Family.

Nereus and Charlotte Linlin had separated very early, and their relationship had not lasted long.

Nanamo had spent more of her time with Nereus. Though she would play with them, it had felt more like she was the neighbor's child.

To Katakuri, this eldest sister was not unfamiliar, but there was only so much he knew about her.

"Relax, relax. We'll split it evenly, so don't worry. Hermes! Stop watching from the sky! Come down and help!"

"No, that's not what I meant..."

Nanamo paid Katakuri no mind. After searching around, she found several treasure chests. Without even opening them to check what was inside, she picked out half of them as if choosing blind boxes.

She then tossed them toward Hermes, who had just descended.

Seeing the treasure chests fly toward him, Hermes opened his mouth and swallowed them all, one at a time. The Cloud's body also grew two sizes larger.

Its bodily structure was very complex, made up of nearly every kind of Sky Island Cloud. Inside it was a special stomach formed from Ball Cloud and Swamp Cloud.

Ball Cloud was a spherical Cloud that could hold things, while Swamp Cloud possessed properties similar to a swamp and could likewise contain quite a lot.

While it did not possess an ability like storage space, it could serve as a portable pocket, a role Hermes often fulfilled.

"Princess Nanamo, please be careful. These people were too weak—abnormally weak. For opponents at this level to dare ambush Mama's children, I believe whoever is behind this has yet to make a move."

As an elemental life-form, Hermes had no fixed shape. Its eyes rolled across its body as it carefully inspected the surroundings.

Although Homies possessed intelligence, Hermes was made of various Clouds. If it had been an animal, it might have had the chance to cultivate Haki like the Kung Fu Dugong from the original timeline.

But for Hermes, such a thing was as difficult as reaching the heavens. That was also why Homies generally only carried out supportive attacks.

Without Observation Haki to sense its surroundings, Hermes could only rely on its eyes.

"Mamamama, Hermes, you're still as timid as ever. Don't worry, there aren't any enemies nearby anymore."

A familiar voice came from nearby, causing Hermes to lower its guard. That voice belonged to its creator, Charlotte Linlin.

Still, Hermes spoke up in its own defense:

"Mama, this isn't timidity, it's prudence! I have to protect Princess Nanamo!"

"Then your prudence is a little excessive. I thought there was some formidable opponent, for Perospero to contact me in such a hurry. Turns out it was only a bunch of small fry."

Charlotte Linlin had come here because Perospero had ultimately called to contact her, just as Hermes had suggested.

However, the scene before her made Charlotte Linlin feel that she had come for nothing.

Zeus, wearing a baseball cap, floated over beside Hermes. Though they were different kinds of Clouds, the two of them were more similar in essence.

"Hermes, what delicious stuff did you eat? Share some with me~"

Zeus's voice was exceedingly lazy. Gluttonous as he was, he immediately noticed Hermes's round belly, swollen by the treasure. Yet in Zeus's eyes, the only thing that could be in that belly was food.

Hermes said nothing and simply drifted away in silence. It seemed to find this senior rather embarrassing, always thinking about eating no matter the occasion.

But Zeus persistently chased after it, and the two Clouds began circling each other in midair.

Charlotte Linlin no longer paid attention to Hermes and the Homies. Those Homies had always been like this, and Charlotte Linlin was long used to it.

"Mamamama, Katakuri, you truly are my finest son. You've improved quite a lot since before."

"Mama, what about Brulee..."

"She won't die. It's only a minor injury, nothing to worry about."

After taking revenge, Katakuri resumed worrying about Brulee, but Charlotte Linlin showed no concern whatsoever.

No one had died. In Charlotte Linlin's eyes, getting injured was hardly anything worth mentioning. Besides, compared to a weak daughter who could be retaliated against, she favored the strong son before her more.

"Nanamo... How has life been with that Nereus? It's time for you to come back and live with Mama, isn't it? Your younger brothers and sisters are all here. This is your real home."

Charlotte Linlin still placed great importance on custody of her children.

More accurately, in Charlotte Linlin's case, it was a pure desire for control.

Charlotte Linlin had a particular obsession with her children. She might not necessarily like a child, but whatever that child did had to remain within the bounds she demanded.

Her children could not defy her. They had to properly carry out the orders assigned to them, and if they failed to do so, they would be punished.

For example, the original Four Sweet Commanders had been reduced to Three Commanders after a single failure.

Charlotte Linlin was still young now, so this tendency was not too severe.

The elderly Charlotte Linlin took this philosophy to the extreme.

Under normal circumstances, Charlotte Linlin would never give custody to anyone else. Nanamo was an exception.

Of course, she had wanted to take the child away back then. The fundamental reason things had ended up this way was that she could not defeat Nereus.

People in the ordinary world went to court over the division of all sorts of things. The two of them had needed only one fight to settle their separation.

Hearing the question, Nanamo's movements stiffened for a moment. After blinking, she answered rather tactfully:

"Um... Actually, living with Dad has been pretty nice. I think things are fine as they are."

Charlotte Linlin's question made Nanamo a little awkward. This was not the first time Charlotte Linlin had asked; nearly every meeting led to the same situation.

She herself did not want to do as Charlotte Linlin wished, yet she always had to face these frequent questions. But since the other woman was her mother, she could not simply ignore her.

"...Mamamama, is that so? Then let's leave things as they are for now."

Nanamo's answer darkened Charlotte Linlin's expression, but the gloom vanished in an instant. Charlotte Linlin quickly smiled again, like a kind and loving mother.

Yet in Katakuri's eyes, this seeming "compromise" was something else entirely.