Twin Girls

Charlos extended a finger and pointed directly at the two girls in the cage. "Those two."

Shalria immediately looked puzzled and asked, "Brother, why did you choose two who are so frail?"

Charlos curled his lips into a faint smile, his tone casual. "I usually don't encounter any danger. Two pretty ornaments are just right."

"Pretty ornaments?" Shalria blinked, seeming to understand but not quite.

Charlos raised a hand and gently rubbed the top of her head, tacitly agreeing with her words.

The head of the Rosy Family beside them smiled and waved, signaling his servants to bring the two girls out.

The two girls were escorted before them. They looked exactly alike—they were twins.

A hint of satisfaction flashed through Charlos's eyes. "Twins, too. Very nice."

Seeing his sly expression, the patriarch teased, "You little brat have quite the appetite. You haven't even grown up yet, and you're already thinking about these things."

Charlos chuckled, his tone carrying a youth's reckless confidence. "Grandfather, won't I be fully grown in another couple of years?"

Shalria immediately pointed her little finger at a tall, muscular man among the crowd and cried brightly, "I want that big guy! I want him to be my mount!"

The head of the Rosy Family smiled and nodded, raising a hand to signal.

The servants immediately led the burly man out.

Shalria ran excitedly up to the man and stood on tiptoe as she urged him, "Hurry up and lie down!"

Watching this, Charlos spoke softly. "Shalria, don't have him carry you. How about Brother carries you instead?"

Just as Shalria was about to climb onto the man's back, she suddenly froze. She immediately turned around, her eyes curving with delight. "Okay, okay! Then Brother, carry me!"

He lowered his head to look at the girl in his arms, his tone serious. "Shalria, you can't ride people like this anymore. Understand?"

Shalria tilted her little head, her face full of confusion. "Why?"

Charlos said blandly, "If you ride them again, Brother won't hold you or carry you anymore."

The moment she heard that, Shalria panicked. She hurriedly wrapped her arms around his neck and pleaded coquettishly, "Mm-hmm! I won't ride them anymore, okay?"

The Rosy Family patriarch slowly walked up to Charlos and said earnestly, "Charlos, the Rosy Family has produced nothing but disappointments these past few generations. You're one of the few promising ones among your generation. You must work hard and bring glory to our Rosy Family."

Saint Rosward, standing nearby, clenched his teeth tightly and cursed inwardly.

Why? Why did Father place all his hopes on this little brat?

He was filled with resentment, but he did not dare erupt in public. He viciously turned his head away and stormed off.

The patriarch paid no attention to his loss of composure and simply said to Charlos, "Ignore him. He's nothing more than a short-sighted fool."

Charlos chuckled. "Perhaps."

Shalria immediately chimed in, "Father really is stupid sometimes. He keeps indulging an idiot like Charlos. Anyone can tell he's stupid beyond saving."

Charlos gave the patriarch a slight bow. "Grandfather, I'll head back first."

With that, he took the two slave girls, held Shalria in his arms, and left the courtyard for his own palace.

After returning to the palace, Charlos gently set Shalria down.

Shalria immediately pouted and said pitifully, "Why did Brother stop holding me? I still wanted you to hold me a little longer."

Charlos looked at her gently and said softly, "Shalria needs to grow into a great beauty someday, so you need to learn to walk by yourself. Otherwise, Brother won't be able to carry you in the future."

Shalria widened her eyes and stared blankly at Charlos, her face full of confusion. "Huh?"

At that moment, Charlos crooked a finger, and Akali immediately hurried forward.

"Take off their collars."

The two slave girls stiffened all over and slowly looked up at Charlos, their eyes filled with fear and unease.

Charlos spoke evenly. "There's no point in wearing collars all the time. I don't like them."

Akali bowed slightly. "Yes, Saint Charlos."

Shalria hurriedly said anxiously, "Brother, you can't take off their collars! What if they hurt someone after they're removed?"

Charlos raised a hand and gently rubbed Shalria's head, smiling faintly. "It's fine. Akali is an agent from Cipher Pol."

The instant his words fell, Akali's body trembled ever so slightly.

She said nothing more and efficiently removed the slave collars from the two girls' necks.

The cold shackles fell to the floor with a soft clatter.

The moment their restraints were removed, the twin girls' legs went weak. They collapsed to their knees, heads lowered tightly, not daring to raise them even slightly to look directly at Charlos.

Charlos slowly walked over to the two girls and asked softly, "What are your names?"

One of the girls slightly raised her head, her voice timid and gentle. "My name is Amira. This is my younger sister, Amina."

Charlos repeated their names under his breath. "Amira, Amina. Very lovely names."

He turned to Akali at his side and casually asked, "Do we have any Devil Fruits here?"

Akali lowered her head slightly and answered respectfully, "No, Saint Charlos."

Shalria instantly became interested. She blinked and leaned forward with a grin. "Brother! I know my father has several Devil Fruits hidden away. Even he doesn't know what types they are! Shall we take two and feed them to these girls? Hehe, I heard this game is especially fun!"

Charlos spoke slowly. "Shalria, Brother isn't playing a game."

Shalria looked confused. "Huh? Brother isn't playing?"

Charlos looked at her and said blandly, "Brother intends to form a personal guard unit of his own."

Shalria tilted her head in confusion. "But doesn't our family already have guards?"

Charlos chuckled. "Ordinary guards aren't enough. I want to form a guard unit made entirely of ability users. From now on, it will be called the Carlos Squad."

Shalria's eyes instantly lit up, her face full of admiration. "Wow! Brother is amazing! That sounds super awesome and so much fun! Brother, wait here. I'll go get the Devil Fruits right away!"

With that, the little girl spun around and dashed out in a flurry.

Charlos turned to the two girls, who were still kneeling before him, and ordered, "Akali, get them two sets of clothes to change into. Their current clothes are too ragged and improper."

Akali bowed in acknowledgment and was about to leave.

Charlos spoke again to remind her, "Bring two properly fitted maid uniforms."

"Understood." Akali answered and withdrew.

Amira and Amina looked timidly at Charlos, their bodies trembling slightly.

Charlos reached out and gently pinched Amira's cheek, his tone casual. "Your skin is quite soft."

Amira's body instantly went rigid. She squeezed her eyes shut, trembling uncontrollably.

Charlos asked softly, "Are you that afraid of me?"

"N-No, Saint Charlos..." The girl's voice was barely louder than a mosquito's buzz.

"If you're not afraid, why are you hiding?"

"I... I'm not hiding..."

Charlos released her and looked down at the two of them. "Do you know what the two of you will be doing from now on?"

The sisters shook their heads together, their voices timid. "N-No... we don't."

"The slave collars around your necks have already been removed."

Amira and Amina obediently nodded, not daring to make the slightest unusual movement.

Just then, Akali returned with two clean maid uniforms in her hands.

"Change into them quickly," Charlos ordered blandly.

Amina nervously looked at Charlos, then turned to her sister and asked in a low voice, "Sister... do we change here?"

Amira bit her lip, hesitated, then nodded lightly. "Mm... I think so."