Thoughts

"It really was him! Though that old bastard was only an ordinary colonel under my command, I remember he was quite proficient in the Six Powers. I never expected him to be beaten into this state!" Garp said with a sigh.

"What exactly is the background of these Phantom Pirates?" Sengoku muttered.

"Right, what exactly did you come here for?" Sengoku seemed to remember something and asked Garp.

"Ha! Ha! Ha! If you hadn't mentioned it, I almost forgot. I came to ask for leave. Isn't my grandson about to turn seventeen? I'm going back to bring him here to join the Marines." Hearing Sengoku's question, Garp immediately remembered why he had come.

"Hmph!" Sengoku shot Garp a glare before continuing, "There's no need to ask for leave. You should make a trip to East Blue and capture these Phantom Pirates."

"Fine, it's on the way anyway," Garp said indifferently.

"Alright, get going! And tell the guards to bring me another desk while you're at it." Sengoku dismissed Garp while wrestling the sheep beside him for the documents that had just fallen to the floor and were being chewed by the sheep.

"Tch! Call them yourself!" With that, Garp left with his doughnuts.

"You old bastard!" Sengoku cursed, then instructed the guard at the door, "Go get me another desk."

Although Sengoku cursed him aloud, he trusted Garp. Garp might not be very reliable in everyday matters, but his commitment to justice was unquestionable. With him stationed in East Blue this time, as long as the Phantom Pirates showed themselves, there was no way they would escape.

At this moment, Locke sat alone at the bow, fishing. Beside him, a little figure he had conjured was playing a piece of pure music called The Original Scenery of Hometown.

Fishing while enjoying beautiful music was a wonderfully relaxing way to live. He looked nothing like someone who had just experienced a major battle.

Three days had passed since they attacked the Marine base. During those three days, the Phantom had been blasted full of holes by cannon fire, and Yun Zhinnan had been seriously injured at the time. With no other choice, Locke could only repair the ship himself.

He had barely managed to patch the holes, but Locke truly had no talent for such work. The places he repaired were simply unbearable to look at.

The damaged areas of the hull had been randomly nailed together with planks by Locke, with no discernible pattern at all. Carmen had mocked him at the time, saying his repairs were hideous, but Locke insisted it was art. Art, after all, was supposed to be incomprehensible.

Carmen merely rolled her eyes at Locke's defense. After leaving behind the words, "Wait until Yun Zhinnan wakes up and has him repair it again," she left Locke to continue admiring his own work.

Still, Carmen was not the only one aboard who appreciated Locke's so-called art. Annie was the one who always stood by Locke's side.

After repairing the ship, Locke had not thrown himself wholly into training as he had in the previous days. Aside from his daily basic physical training, he spent nearly all his time fishing at the bow.

As he fished and listened to music, Locke constantly reviewed every battle he had experienced since setting sail. By recalling those fights, he continuously accumulated combat experience and reflected on his gains and losses.

But today, Locke was not thinking about those battles. He was reminiscing about his past.

In his previous life, Locke had merely been an ordinary college graduate. In that world where graduation meant unemployment, he had been honored to become one of the unemployed.

It was not as though Locke had never worked after graduating. It was just that every company he worked for either fired him or went bankrupt. He had been helpless and had even begun to wonder whether he was some cursed loner. How else could he be so unlucky?

Whenever he had nothing to do, Locke's favorite pastime was sitting alone on a rooftop, listening to music, smoking cigarettes, and admiring the city he hated to the bone yet could never leave.

He did not know whether it was lucky or unlucky, but in a moment of carelessness, he had actually transmigrated into this passionate pirate world—a place where one could change the world as long as one had enough strength. But after transmigrating, he could never return home to see his parents and relatives again. That was Locke's greatest regret.

Fortunately, he still had a younger brother at home. After Locke transmigrated, at least there was someone to stay by their side, so they would not be left without anyone to care for them in their old age.

Wasn't his desire to change the world in this life also born from how ordinary his previous life had been? And in this world, he had a lofty goal that required effort and struggle. Wasn't that also a form of escape from his previous life?

"Big brother, what are you thinking about?" At some point, Annie had flown onto Locke's shoulder.

"Nothing. I was just thinking about some things from the past," Locke explained with a smile.

At that moment, a head suddenly leaned against his other shoulder. Smelling that familiar fragrance of hair, Locke knew it was Carmen. He had no idea when she had come over with a fishing rod and sat beside him, her head resting lightly against his shoulder.

The scene reminded Locke of Chrisby Island. Back then, Locke had also liked sitting alone atop the mountain, watching the sunset slowly sink beneath the sea. Carmen would often sit silently beside him like this, keeping him from feeling so alone in this world.

At some point, Carmen had quietly entered his heart and become an inseparable part of him. She had only been around twelve years old at the time. Locke had not understood it at all then. Could he have been a lolicon?

At this moment, Locke sat at the bow, Carmen sat beside him with her head lightly resting on his shoulder, and petite Annie sat on his other side. It was a beautiful picture, like a happy family.

Of course, the scene would have been even better if Annie were not glaring viciously at Carmen, who was leaning against Locke's shoulder.

"Captain, our wanted posters have been updated!" Panda ran over from behind them, shattering the beautiful scene.

Speaking of which, Big Bear and Second Bear had thought they could relax for a few days. Yet even while injured, Yun Zhinnan still came out and lay in a chair, watching them hold horse stances. Only Panda, who was also injured, escaped the ordeal. He sat off to the side watching the show and reading the newspaper. There had been no useful news, but when he suddenly spotted Locke's wanted poster, he hurried over to let Locke know.

The music stopped at once, and Carmen immediately sat upright. She no longer leaned against Locke's shoulder and instead pretended to fish with great seriousness.

"Updated? Bring it over and let me see," Locke said naturally as he turned around.

Panda obediently handed the wanted poster in his hand to Locke, then stood to one side.