Arrival at Ohara

Dawn pressed his advantage, using his left hand to absorb the surrounding air into a pocket dimension while instantly compressing it through the dimension's properties, then firing it through his right hand.

"Air Pressure Gatling!"

Boom boom boom boom—!!!

One invisible yet terrifyingly powerful air cannon after another struck the Frog Sea King at an extreme frequency before it could regain its balance.

Wherever the air cannons passed, they plowed deep trenches through the sea. When they slammed into the beast's body, they produced an unending chain of violent explosions, while surging shockwaves rolled outward and flung mist high into the air.

As the echoes of the explosions gradually faded and the mist slowly settled, restoring some calm to the sea, the Frog Sea King was already floating belly-up on the surface, devoid of all life.

Half an hour later, on the deck.

Under Stella's resentful little glare, Dawn carried several mountain-sized chunks of the Sea King's finest meat, which had been cut apart, back onto the deck.

A thick smell of blood filled the air, but compared to the immense life energy radiating from the Sea King's flesh, that odor seemed insignificant instead.

Stella, who had grown accustomed to remaining in her beast form since gaining her powers, slapped the soaked deck with her paw and snapped, "Are you trying to tear this ship apart completely?! If this keeps up, how are we supposed to keep sailing?!"

Dawn casually dusted off his hands, though there was no dust on them, and looked at the heap of meat.

"We're almost at the West Blue anyway. This wreck of a ship is nearly at its limit too. Once we're ashore, we'll find a port and grab another... no, 'borrow' a sturdier sailing ship."

He deliberately chose a word that sounded slightly more civilized.

Stella was speechless for a moment. She actually wanted to say that she could not bear to part with this ship she had lived on with Dawn for months.

She had once been nothing more than a lowly slave with no control over her own fate. After Dawn bought her, she had thought she would merely escape the wolf's den only to enter the tiger's maw, condemned to a dark life as someone's plaything.

But she had never expected that this man, who constantly claimed he had bought her to be his wife, would treat her like his wife in every respect.

She could not understand why, despite displaying immense strength and... a rogue's disposition, he also seemed to deliberately maintain a certain restraint.

What confused her even more—and secretly made her heart flutter—was that although Dawn had never again brought up the embarrassment of that day, he did not treat her like a master treated a slave. Instead, he treated her like... well, a somewhat mischievous but generally competent husband treated his shy wife.

This feeling of being respected and cared for was something she had experienced for the first time in her life. It made her understand the taste of "happiness."

She had even secretly pretended to be sick to test him, but Dawn had believed her completely. He had shown no intention of taking advantage of her vulnerability, only awkwardly yet painstakingly caring for her. The worry in his eyes had been genuine.

With all those complicated, indescribable emotions piling up, what she felt for Dawn was no longer simple gratitude or fear.

At the thought of abandoning this battered ship that held so many memories of their life together, a deep reluctance clenched her heart.

She took a deep breath, her nine white tails swaying slightly with agitation.

"Anyway, I won't let you throw this ship away!"

Dawn raised an eyebrow. Looking at the little fox's somewhat excessive reaction, he seemed to understand something, and a teasing curve appeared at the corner of his lips.

"Oh? Don't tell me... you can't bear to part with this wreck? Don't worry, Stella. Out with the old, in with the new. Besides..."

"As long as you're here, anywhere is home."

As if she could hear blood rushing to her head, Stella felt her cheeks instantly turn scorching hot. Even her white fur seemed to take on a pink tint, and faint steam rose from her head.

He had actually... actually seen right through her! And that last line... that was completely unfair!

"W-What are you suddenly saying?! Have some shame!"

In utter panic, Stella blurted that out incoherently. No longer daring to look into Dawn's smiling eyes, she turned and ran back into the cabin like a startled rabbit, slamming the door shut behind her.

More than a month later.

Sea Circle Calendar 1518, January.

West Blue, waters near Ohara's northwestern coast.

A steamship even more battered than before creaked as it sailed, as though it might fall apart at any second. Like a ghost ship from some tale, it struggled across the sparkling sea.

It had completed an almost impossible journey, crossed the Calm Belt, and reached the destination of this voyage.

Dawn stood on the scarred deck and gazed ahead. At the edge of his vision, the outline of an island gradually came into focus. At its center stood the enormous Tree of Knowledge, seemingly holding up the heavens themselves—a monument to civilization that stirred the soul.

Stella transformed into her snow-white Nine-Tailed Fox form and stood quietly on his broad shoulder. Her gemlike fox eyes were likewise fixed on that legendary tree, filled with curiosity.

After more than five months of arduous travel and crossing the dangerous Calm Belt, they had finally reached their destination.

More than ten minutes later, the steamship let out a groan of relief and finally lurched onto a deserted shoal northwest of Ohara.

With a canvas bag on his back and the Nine-Tailed Fox on his shoulder, Dawn lightly leaped onto the soft sand of the shore.

"Alright, we're here. I'm going to dismantle that ship and recover the materials now. You don't object anymore, right?"

This time, Stella, in her White Fox form, did not show the resistance she had before. More than a month of sailing and reflection had helped her understand many things.

What mattered had never been the ship itself, but the people aboard it and the time they had spent together.

She obediently nodded her little head.

"Mm, I don't object. It is time... to get a more reliable ship."

Having received an affirmative answer, Dawn no longer hesitated. Turning to face the battered ship that carried their memories of several months, he used Black Hole to store it in his pocket dimension.

After finishing, Dawn turned back and gently rubbed the little head of the Nine-Tailed Fox on his shoulder.

"Alright, put away the other eight tails. Nine tails are too conspicuous. We need to keep a low profile for now."

The Nine-Tailed Fox obediently nodded. With a thought, a cloud of pink smoke burst open with a poof. When it dispersed, the nine gorgeous, eye-catching tails had vanished, leaving only one fluffy white tail swaying gently behind her. She now looked like nothing more than an exceptionally beautiful ordinary White Fox, no longer so astonishingly conspicuous.

In the form of an ordinary White Fox, Stella raised her little head and looked at the smiling blond youth.

"Dawn, what do we do next?"

Dawn looked toward the Tree of Knowledge, his gaze deep as he said calmly,

"Wait."

"Wait?"

Stella tilted her head in confusion.

"Wait for someone to come find us."

Dawn casually explained, a cryptic smile playing on his lips.

"We don't have scholar credentials, so it'll be difficult to openly enter the Tree of Knowledge's core area. We'll have to use some... unconventional methods."

After explaining, he had a thought, and selectively released some of the steamship parts that had just been sucked into the pocket dimension—mainly the largest wooden boards and twisted metal components that most resembled the remains of a ship's hull. They scattered chaotically along the shore.

Once that was done, he casually walked over to the largest plank, curled up his tall body, and lay down. He even deliberately messed up his long blond hair and smeared some sand and dust across his face, making himself look utterly exhausted and like a survivor of a disaster.

Watching his seamless series of actions, Stella became even more confused.

"Y-You... what are you doing?"

"Disguising ourselves."

Dawn answered succinctly.

"Disguising ourselves as survivors of a shipwreck. Ohara's scholars are known for their kindness and thirst for knowledge. They won't leave people in distress to die."

He could have used his ability to turn invisible and sneak in, but his invisibility only made him unseen; it did not let him ignore physical collisions. Inside the Tree of Knowledge, where scholars gathered and people came and went, the risk of exposure was too great.

It was better to do the opposite and actively get "rescued."

More precisely, Dawn wanted to steal Saul's role ahead of time. He wanted to replace Saul in Robin's heart, and this stretch of coast happened to be a place Robin often visited.

By probability alone, Robin was also the most likely person to discover him.

Of course, he would not tell Stella directly about something like keeping one eye on what was in his bowl while coveting what was in the pot.

Most importantly, if he wanted to overthrow the World Government and deprive those high-and-mighty swine of their privileged living conditions, Robin's knowledge was indispensable to Dawn.

The wreckage of the steamship, dismantled by the pocket dimension, looked no different from the aftermath of a tsunami. Combined with his carefully crafted bedraggled appearance, he was completely confident he could fool them.

"Stop asking. Hurry up and lie in my arms. Remember, we're now a master and pet who depended on each other, drifted at sea for a long time, finally spotted land, only for our ship to be destroyed and leave us stranded."

Dawn winked at the White Fox.

Stella's fox face heated slightly. She obediently jumped into Dawn's arms, found a comfortable position, and curled up. She even took the initiative to rub her head against Dawn's chin, playing along with the act.

One man and one fox lay quietly amid the "wreckage" on Ohara's desolate shore. Golden sunlight fell over Dawn's handsome yet deliberately weary face and Stella's flawless white fur, like a frozen oil painting.