A Mother's Departure and the Elf Tribe

Meanwhile, Shiki and Edward Newgate had risen to prominence in the Rocks Pirates, making names for themselves across the New World.

A year earlier, Charlotte Linlin—the "Iron Balloon," with a bounty of five hundred million Beli at just fifteen—had joined the Rocks Pirates.

With her terrifying natural physique and overwhelming strength, she had become a rising star of the Rocks Pirates alongside Shiki and Edward Newgate.

Not to be outdone, the Marines had put forward their own young stars: "Iron Fist" Garp, "Buddha Sengoku," who had eaten a Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit given to him by Kong, and Tsuru. They, too, began making names for themselves in the New World.

All three were young Marine officers who had shown remarkable strength and intelligence.

It also sent a clear signal: the conflict between the Marines and the Rocks Pirates seemed poised to flare up again.

Many people still remembered the long war they had fought years ago.

The Perfume Yuda docked along the shore of Rusukaina Island. Hades and Titan were already waiting when it approached.

Their mother, Nyx, had left half a year earlier, once she realized Hades and Titan were no longer in danger on the island and that a powerful protector was watching over them from the shadows.

With no need to worry about Hades's safety, she had matters of her own to attend to.

She wanted to prepare the way for Hades—and find him a suitable woman.

The second goal sounded a little absurd, but she was serious. Hades was growing stronger, Titan was at his side, and a top-tier powerhouse protected him in secret.

As his mother, there was little more she could do for Hades. She could only do what she could: search for Devil Fruits and a daughter-in-law she approved of.

Hades's father, "Grim Reaper" Jaeger, had once founded an organization that handled both intelligence and assassinations during his adventures at sea, before the Rocks Pirates was formed.

Jaeger had kept his identity hidden while secretly controlling the organization, known as Dark Night.

Even after his death, Dark Night had not disbanded. It had continued operating and growing with covert support from the Tartarus Family.

Nyx now held control of the organization.

After nearly twenty years of development, Dark Night was still only a small assassin organization in the New World. Its assassins were not especially strong; the highest-bounty Pirate they had ever killed had been worth nearly forty million Beli.

Though Dark Night appeared to be an assassin organization, its main focus was intelligence gathering. Outsiders simply did not know it.

Dark Night had also gained some renown in the first half of the Grand Line. Compared with the weaker powers of the Four Seas and the first half of the Grand Line, it had made a name for itself.

Nyx used Dark Night to communicate secretly with the Kronos Kingdom, search for Devil Fruits, plant informants, and gather intelligence.

Dark Night also belonged, in part, to the Underworld Prison.

Hades cared little about its assassinations. Dark Night had been established to plant a foothold in the Underworld and strengthen the Underworld Prison's intelligence network.

Over the years, Dark Night had grown, even if it could not compare to powers with mighty backers and centuries of history.

Hades did not know what his mother was doing now. What left him speechless was that she really had found two girls from the Elf Tribe for him.

The Elf Tribe, also known as the Pointy-Eared Tribe, was a rare people.

Elf girls were famed for their beauty. Their people had once had a Kingdom, but slave hunting had gradually weakened them and dwindled their numbers. Now they had all but vanished from the seas.

The entire Elf Tribe lived hidden on a mysterious island called the Jade Forest.

The Jade Forest lay in dangerous waters with extreme weather, and it had formidable defenses. Few slaving crews dared venture there; most were destroyed by nature before they could even find it.

Still, every dozen years or so, a lucky few managed to capture Elf girls from the Jade Forest. Whenever that happened, fierce bidding followed.

Each Elf girl could fetch a price comparable to a mermaid girl's at auction. Rarity had its value.

Perhaps Hades's mother had seen him deliberately seek out information about the seas' unusual peoples and assumed he liked that sort of thing.

Don't put that on me, Hades thought.

But I can't say I mind.

After all, he really had considered collecting them.

Nyx was Hades's mother, all right. She had read him perfectly.

When he looked into it, he learned that the two Elf girls had been captured by slavers and made slaves. His mother had heard about them and rescued them.

As for word getting out, nearly everyone who knew had been silenced. How could the news have spread?

Ever since Hades had grown stronger, Nyx had resolved to remain behind the scenes, managing his forces and intelligence network in the Underworld.

He would soon be joining the Rocks Pirates, and he needed forces supporting him in secret as well.

When Nyx left, she took Ananke with her. For Ananke, personal strength was not essential.

Hades and Titan were growing stronger far too quickly. If Ananke stayed by Hades's side, she would only hold him back.

Beyond her Fruit Ability, Nyx wanted to develop Ananke's other talents so she could help Hades.