Robin's Inner Desire

Along the way, Robin tried several times to speak, as if she had many questions to ask but did not know how to bring them up.

Lin Feng saw what was on Robin's mind and took the initiative to speak:

"If there's something you want to ask, just ask. Isn't it uncomfortable to keep it bottled up?"

Robin hesitated for a moment before finally voicing the doubt in her heart:

"Y-You really believe me? I'm the 'Demon Child,' an enemy of the World Government."

Lin Feng smiled and said indifferently:

"'Demon Child'? So what? I'm the captain of the Whitebeard Pirates. Do you really think I'm afraid of the World Government?"

After a pause, his tone turned serious. "Besides, I trust my own judgment. You're not a bad person."

Hearing Lin Feng's words, warmth surged through Robin's heart. It was the first time in all these years that someone had trusted her so completely.

She looked at Lin Feng with a resolute gaze, her voice carrying a trace of pleading:

"Lin Feng, I know you're not an ordinary pirate. I... I want to join your crew. Please take me with you so we can uncover the truth behind all this, clear the names of Ohara's scholars, and fulfill my mother's dying wish!"

Seeing the hope in Robin's eyes, Lin Feng fell silent for a moment before asking the system inwardly, System, if I let Robin board the ship, will she meet the criteria for a companion?

[Beep! Robin does not meet the companion requirements. Bond cannot be activated]

Lin Feng's brows drew together slightly, and a trace of confusion filled his heart.

How could Robin, a girl with extraordinary intelligence and potential, fail to meet the requirements for a companion?

He pondered in silence. Could it be that the system's criteria for a companion were not based solely on personal ability? Perhaps it also considered deeper bonds and the workings of fate.

Lin Feng watched the resolute Robin before him, his fingers unconsciously rubbing the patterns on the weapon at his waist.

The light of dusk swept across the stubbornness between her brows, reminding Lin Feng of the archaeologist who had wandered alone through the dust of history in the original story—she was destined to set foot on another thorny road, meet my foolish little brother, and shatter the shackles of fate on the burning Enies Lobby.

Perhaps the gears of fate had already set her course, making it impossible to change easily.

A gentle smile appeared on Lin Feng's face, but his words carried a hint of refusal:

"Sorry, Robin, but I can't agree to that."

At his words, the light in Robin's eyes instantly faded, like a flame extinguished by a fierce wind. Her face filled with undisguised disappointment.

She bit her lip, forcing down the emotions surging in her heart as she waited for Lin Feng to continue.

Lin Feng softened his voice further, like a breeze brushing past the treetops.

"Have you ever seen seagulls chasing the waves?" he asked softly. "They never stop for any ship, because beyond the storm lies a vaster sky."

Lin Feng raised a hand and brushed a fallen maple leaf from Robin's shoulder, his fingertips carrying a barely perceptible tenderness.

"Some bonds aren't chains, but routes followed by migrating birds..." His voice was as soft as a sigh. "You should go and meet the people who will make you willing to burn your life in pursuit of the answers."

Robin's fingers suddenly tightened, clutching the hem of her clothes. The archaeological notes hidden in her sleeve made a faint rustling sound.

"Do you believe in fate?"

Lin Feng continued with another seemingly cryptic question, like a pebble tossed into a lake and sending ripples across its surface.

Robin froze, clearly not expecting Lin Feng to ask that. Fate? That ethereal thing was something she had never seriously considered.

She had wandered from place to place since childhood, been scorned by the world, and been hunted by the government. She had long grown used to facing everything alone. In her eyes, fate was more like a cold, merciless player who toyed with her in the palm of his hand.

"Fate..."

Robin murmured to herself, her gaze somewhat unfocused as if she had fallen into a memory.

Lin Feng looked at Robin with deep eyes, as though he could see through the secrets buried in her heart.

What Robin needed at this moment was not an answer, but an opportunity—an opportunity to reexamine herself and the world.

"I didn't believe in fate either."

Lin Feng spoke slowly, his low voice carrying a trace of weariness. "But later, I met an old man who changed my mind."

"An old man?" Robin raised her head, a hint of curiosity flashing in her eyes.

"Yeah, an incredibly powerful old man." Lin Feng smiled, a trace of nostalgia flashing through his eyes.

"He told me that everyone's fate was in their own hands. As long as you were strong enough, you could break the shackles of fate and create your own future."

Robin listened quietly, an inexplicable emotion surging through her heart.

Lin Feng's words were like a beam of light shining into her dark inner world, allowing her to glimpse a sliver of hope.

"So you believe I can find companions of my own? People who can... protect me?"

Robin asked softly, her voice carrying both uncertainty and anticipation.

Lin Feng did not answer directly. Instead, he asked, "What about you? Do you believe you can meet them?"

Robin fell silent. She did not know. She had been alone all these years and had long grown accustomed to solitude. Companions and protection were words too distant—and too extravagant—for her.

"If you don't even believe in yourself, how can you hope for others to believe in you?"

Lin Feng's voice sounded again, carrying a faint smile. "Robin, you're an intelligent woman. You should understand that."

Robin raised her head and looked at Lin Feng, a glimmer of understanding flashing in her eyes.

"That's right. If I don't even believe in myself, how can I hope for others to believe in me?"

"I..." Robin had just begun to speak when Lin Feng interrupted her.

"All right, don't overthink it." Lin Feng patted Robin on the shoulder, his tone relaxed.

"The road ahead is still long. We have plenty of time to get to know each other."

With that, Lin Feng started walking toward the exit of the tomb.

"Let's go, Bart. We should head to the next place."

Bart nodded in acknowledgment and followed close behind.

Robin watched Lin Feng's back, her expression complicated. This man was always like this, impossible to figure out. He seemed to know everything, yet never said anything.

"Hey, wait for me!" Robin came back to herself and hurried after them.

The three of them walked out of the tomb. Blinding sunlight spilled over their bodies, warm and pleasant, filling them with comfort.

"Where are we going next?" Bart asked.

"Sky Island." The corners of Lin Feng's mouth lifted slightly as he spoke the two words.

"Sky Island?!" Bart and Robin exclaimed at the same time.

"That's right, Sky Island." Lin Feng repeated himself, excitement flickering in his eyes. "There's some 'good stuff' waiting for us there."

Robin and Bart exchanged a glance, seeing shock and confusion in each other's eyes. Sky Island was a legendary place. Did it really exist?

"Captain, are you sure you're not joking?"

Bart scratched his head, still finding it hard to believe.

"Do you think I'd joke about something like this?"

Lin Feng countered, the expression on his face showing no sign of deception.

"Then let's part ways here."

Lin Feng turned to Robin. "Until we meet again."

"Until we meet again," Robin replied.

Lin Feng and Bart turned and left, while Robin stood where she was, watching them disappear into the distance.

"Lin Feng, why didn't you let Robin board the ship?"

Bart asked in confusion. "She's the 'Demon Child' and can decipher the Poneglyphs. That should make her very useful to us."

"Bart, what kind of person do you think Robin is?"

Lin Feng did not answer Bart's question directly, instead asking him in return.

"She..." Bart pondered for a moment. "She's a very strong person. Even after going through so much suffering, she never gave up hope."

"That's right." Lin Feng nodded.

"Robin is a strong person, an intelligent person, and an even kinder person. She deciphered the Poneglyphs not to satisfy her own desires, but to uncover the truth of history, clear the names of Ohara's scholars, and fulfill her mother's dying wish."

"A person like that deserves our respect," Lin Feng said. "But she isn't suited to become our companion."

"Why?" Bart was even more confused.

"Because she has her own fate and mission. The road I have to walk will be even more difficult than hers. My enemies may be the entire world—I may have to stand against the whole world."

Lin Feng looked at Bart, his gaze as calm as a deep pool. "Bart, have you really thought this through? My enemies are powerful—unprecedentedly powerful."

"Of course," Bart answered without hesitation, a matter-of-fact resolve on his weathered face.

"From the moment you brought me out of that hellhole, I decided to follow you, Captain."

Lin Feng patted Bart on the shoulder and said nothing more. His gaze merely grew deeper.

"Lin Feng, you said just now that Robin... has her own fate?"

Bart scratched his head and asked gruffly, "Do you know something?"

"I know a little." Lin Feng gave an ambiguous answer, the corners of his mouth curling into a mysterious arc.

"This world is far more complicated than what we see. Everyone has their own path. Forcing a change isn't necessarily a good thing."

"Path... fate..."

Bart muttered to himself. His simple mind truly could not understand such abstruse things.

Looking at the bewilderment written across Bart's face, Lin Feng's lips curved upward slightly, and he let out a soft chuckle.

"Forget it. If you can't figure it out, don't think about it."

He raised a hand and patted Bart on the shoulder, his tone light.

"You'll understand these principles gradually in time."

Before his voice had even faded, Lin Feng abruptly stopped smiling, his expression suddenly turning solemn.

He spun around, his gaze as sharp as a blade, stabbing toward the giant cactus ahead in the desert.

In the distance, two indistinct shadows were silently lying in wait there.

The aura around Lin Feng changed in an instant. His former laziness and casualness vanished without a trace, replaced by a chilling killing intent.

He was like a sleeping beast that had suddenly opened its devouring eyes.

"Compared to those ethereal things..."

Lin Feng's voice lowered, carrying a barely perceptible pressure.

"Right now, we have something more urgent to deal with."