Cyborg Kozuki Oden (Continued)

Though Xia Le had not been there, the scraps in the newspaper were enough for him to sense the earthshaking scale of Fisher Tiger's actions—and the heroism behind them.

Anyone who freed slaves and challenged the old, rotten ways of thinking was a hero.

Fisher Tiger's courage had won Xia Le's admiration. That was why he had saved him in person that day: he wanted Fisher Tiger to shake the world in the days to come.

"Will you still die someday?"

Xia Le murmured the question and fell silent.

The death of a hero like him would leave the world with nothing but regret.

But no one could help Fisher Tiger overcome the barrier in his heart. He had to do that himself.

If he did, though, he would achieve even greater things.

"I hope my arrival, and what I said that day, will give you a different ending."

"After all, you're one of the seeds too."

His quiet words faded, and the office soon fell silent.

Few major events marked the year 1509 of the Sea Circle Calendar. After the sweeping slave liberation movement, the World Government placed a bounty on Fisher Tiger.

Xia Le was not implicated.

He lived quietly at West Blue Headquarters, still plagued by the day's work.

Not long afterward, Fisher Tiger founded the Sun Pirates and became famous across the world. What frightened some within the World Government was his fervent campaign to spread the ideals of freedom and equality.

Compared with the words Xia Le had once spoken to the world, Fisher Tiger's actions were far more radical.

Raising the banner of slave liberation, he preached equality and freedom to the world. On some islands, he even fought the nobles, freed their slaves, and won.

For a time, Fisher Tiger became a hero