When We Meet, I Find Peace

"This wanted criminal may look like a little girl, but she's an exceptionally vicious offender!" Spandine gritted his teeth, then bent low and whispered to Cairns, "She ate a Devil Fruit and destroyed six warships in the blink of an eye! I'm worried about Saint Sanming's safety. Have you seen her, Lord Cairns?"

"No." How could Cairns dare go against his master's wishes? Even the Gorosei had concealed the matter. Who the hell was Spandine?

"She must have hidden in one of the houses! Hurry, spread out and search every home—!"

Spandine immediately led his men back to search the way they had come. The Marines panicked as well. Such an important wanted criminal had escaped into the harbor. If they failed to catch her and happened to ruin the Celestial Dragons' mood while they ate... they might die!

Spandine was thrown into confusion too, but it was obvious after some thought: with experts like CP0 present, if Nico Robin had come anywhere near, there was no way she would have gone unnoticed. The only possibility was that she had hidden somewhere.

Yet no matter how hard he racked his brains, he could never have imagined that Robin was hiding beneath the Celestial Dragons' table.

The lamb chops were served. As Miming ate, two silent streams of tears rolled down his face. They were partly tears of gratitude, partly tears for Robin's tragic circumstances. More than anything, they came from his inability to do more to help her.

"Delicious," Miming told the terrified owner and waiters. "It's truly delicious."

At this moment, perhaps only Cairns beside him could understand some of the turmoil in his heart. He did not have the strength to protect Robin. He could not even let anyone know that he had any connection to her. Ohara's secret was a truth the World Government had been willing to launch a Buster Call and destroy an entire island to conceal. Even the Gorosei could not tolerate a survivor knowing even the slightest fragment of it.

By the time the meal was over, dawn was approaching.

Miming remained seated for a long time, unwilling to leave.

When he finally stood, the space beneath the table was empty. Only an empty teapot and some leftover food remained.

Robin had solved his problem herself. She had already escaped amid the chaos.

Celestial Dragons were dangerous beings who could never be trusted, no matter what. Robin's arrival and departure had been like a gust of wind, but Miming knew clearly that she had been there. After eating her fill, she had leaned against his leg and slept from exhaustion. Along the inside of his leg, he could still feel Robin's lingering warmth. It was so reassuring.

This was fate. Robin's appearance had made him feel safe for the first time since coming to this world.

I came to this world to meet all of you. My wish is to gather you around me once again!

"Cairns, we're going home!" Miming lifted his face happily, savoring the comfort brought by the dawn.

A few days later, Miming returned to the Holy Land of Mary Geoise.

The Holy Land's palaces were grand beyond compare, yet the Celestial Dragons within them were hideous beyond measure.

Except me.

Miming entered his bedroom and saw the maid who had always attended him. There was no denying that she was beautiful—confident and proud, proud of possessing some Celestial Dragon blood, proud of serving Miming, and around his age as well.

But Miming did not like a woman like her. He could even say that he found her troublesome. Her position and way of thinking had been shaped by what she had seen and heard since childhood, until they had become the values of the Celestial Dragons.

"Your name was... what again?" Miming thought for a long time, only to realize he had no impression at all. Just how much of a bastard had the previous Miming been? He had never even asked the name of the maid who served him?

"Hey, you." That was what he had always called her before. Miming scratched his head. "Go get... my stools."

The maid's expression changed, and she said, "I'm very sorry, Saint Sanming. Those three slaves need to be retrained. We did not expect you to return so suddenly, so they are temporarily unavailable."

Miming froze. "Retrained? Why? Didn't I say no one was allowed to hurt them?" He was about to lash out at Cairns when he suddenly remembered that Cairns had been with him these past few days. Clearly, this was not Cairns's fault.

A bad feeling rose in Miming's heart. He immediately stood. "Cairns, take me to see them."

The slave pens reeked of scorched flesh. Saint Ni had not had much success while breaking Fisher Tiger, leaving him in a foul mood. Many slaves who had made mistakes became outlets for his anger and were beaten to death.

Inside a cage even smaller than before, Miming saw the Boa Sisters. They were covered in wounds, without a patch of uninjured flesh left on their bodies. A bowl like a dog dish held rancid swill. The sisters lay there without moving, looking as though they were already dead.

"What happened here?" Miming's fury surged, and he flew into a rage.

Cairns was completely unprepared as well. He hurriedly opened the cage and dragged the sisters out one by one while explaining, "I truly did move them to a more comfortable place. This..."

Miming roared, "Who beat them? I said they were my personal slaves!"

"I did it," the maid said proudly. "Saint Sanming has been far too lenient with them. As slaves, they should have the proper awareness. I heard they actually dared sleep in Saint Sanming's bed and slack off under Saint Sanming's name! They had to be taught to understand their place! Then they even dared go on a hunger strike. If they were not valuable slaves Saint Sanming had specifically ordered us to preserve, they would have been disposed of long ago."

Miming picked up Boa Hancock, his face twisting with anguish. Her swollen face had been beaten beyond recognition, covered in whip marks. This was the face that would one day become the most beautiful in the world! Even the smallest scar on it was unforgivable!

A wild fury suddenly burst from Miming. He glared viciously at that hateful maid.

"The one who doesn't know her place is you!" Miming bellowed. "You dared defy my orders!"

"My duty is to manage the young master's slaves." The maid was not afraid in the slightest. Instead, her face flushed red with grievance. Gritting her teeth, she stared at Boa Hancock with hatred and shouted, "I have served the young master for ten years! The young master has never even called my name! But these three bitches... they are nothing but lowly slaves, yet the young master let them rest in your bed! You treat them so well! You treat these ungrateful bitches so well! Me—Young Master, look at me! Noble Celestial Dragon blood runs through my veins! How am I inferior to these bitches?"

With an enraged roar, Miming lunged forward and seized the maid's fair neck in one hand, squeezing so hard his fingers sank deeply into her flesh.

The maid's face twisted, but she did not struggle at all. She closed her eyes, and two lines of tears flowed down her cheeks.

Miming loosened his grip and pushed her away blankly.

The maid coughed and collapsed weakly to the floor, but quickly crawled back up and desperately straightened herself. She looked proudly at Miming. "Even if the young master does not remember my name, it does not matter. I am the most reliable person by the young master's side!"

"Send her away," Miming told Cairns. "I don't want to see her again. Send her back wherever she came from." He turned to the maid and said coldly, "I think leaving this place will be your best reward."

The maid stared blankly, then suddenly rushed over and hugged Miming's leg. "No, Young Master! I'll never dare again! Young Master, you need me! Don't send me away!"