My Name Is Carina

Arlong covered one eye with a hand and laughed out loud, only barely stopping when the gaze of Kuroobi at his side turned slightly uneasy:

"Eighty-five million?!"

"In a place like the New World, a bounty like that can't even prop up a Jolly Roger."

"Besides, even though I'm reluctant to admit it, for so many years my bounty has never gone up because of that guy and Rat, otherwise it would have already surpassed that number..."

"What kind of strong man could possibly be bred in a barren land like East Blue? Or humans who were born to be enslaved by Fish-Men..."

Arlong smiled with disdain.

Kuroobi at the side also nodded upon hearing this.

They had come to East Blue several years ago.

In the face of the sharp fangs and claws of the Fish-Men, the final end of countless powerful overlords who dominated their respective regions was nothing more than a miserable defeat.

One continuous victory after another also brought them self-confidence beyond imagination.

"But such a high bounty, and it's still in East Blue..."

Arlong's brow furrowed slightly. Out of caution, he took the Wanted Poster from Kuroobi's hand, and after a slight pause, the corners of his mouth curled into a playful smile:

"I know who this guy is."

"Knight Gawain, a former knight of the Goa Kingdom. He was reportedly wanted for sleeping with the princess, and at the time the bounty in the Underworld once reached fifty million Berries."

"The sudden rise in the bounty might also be related to this. After all, which kingdom's nobility in East Blue has no connections with the Marines?!"

Kuroobi nodded. Hearing Arlong put it that way, he completely let go of his doubts, and only after taking a close look at the Wanted Poster did it dawn on him:

"Is he the... prototype for the movie Chew likes the most?!"

"Ah~"

Arlong grinned hideously:

"Once Nami's business is settled, we'll take a trip over there, because after all, that's a head worth eighty-five million~"

"Shark-hahahaha~"

Inside the office.

A burst of harsh laughter drifted out, and the humans passing by in the vicinity quietly lowered their heads and quickened their pace away.

A few days later.

East Blue.

The wind was light and the waves were calm, the sky high and the clouds pale, as a small pirate ship sailed across the ocean surface.

Upon the sails.

A round shielding base with an engraved skull made the Jolly Roger stand out remarkably.

Pirates familiar with the situation in East Blue would flee in panic the moment they saw this flag.

This was simply because the master of this flag was none other than the man who was currently the top bounty in East Blue, and even faintly held the title of the Strongest Swordsman in the East Blue.

Knight Gawain.

Gawain was currently sitting on the deck, watching the rolling sea in the distance, but his attention was focused on the System Panel.

Over this recent period of time.

Kuro and Akin had secretly started competing against each other. Even during the voyage, they unfolded their respective training routines in the activity room.

If you train for twelve hours, I will train for thirteen hours, sticking to the mindset of working yourself to the bone as long as it does not kill you.

The two spared no effort, and in the end, of course, it all benefited Gawain.

In just one short week, his Physique gained over a thousand more points of experience, and Shave and Observation Haki also experienced no small amount of growth.

Even though there was still a clear distance to leveling up, who could not love such hardworking employees?

The only flaw was probably that, accompanied by the massive consumption of their training, the appetites of these two people had doubled several times over.

The direct consequence of this was that the reserve food supplies on the ship were running low.

A pirate dressed as a cook hurried out of the cabin, and with a rather troubled expression, spoke to Gawain:

"Captain, the food we have left is only enough to last for three days. If we continue sailing and can't get resupplied, I'm afraid..."

Gawain nodded:

"It's no trouble."

"There's a port just a few hundred nautical miles away, and it's not regulated by the Marines either. We'll go there to replenish our food and fresh water."

"Understood."

The pirate dressed as the cook breathed a sigh of relief. He nodded and then turned back into the cabin to prepare today's dinner.

The ship changed direction and sailed all the way toward the nearby Dia Port.

As the sky gradually darkened, a pirate standing in the crow's nest suddenly let out an exclamation.

"Captain, there's a small boat over there!"

"What the hell, how could that kind of thing be sailing on the ocean?!"

"It's a woman!"

At the sound, Gawain looked off into the distance.

At the edge of his vision.

A young girl was sitting on a small boat. She was around fifteen or sixteen years old, with a green face and short orange hair.

From Gawain's line of sight, he could even see the girl's pale complexion and chapped lips. Clearly, she had not a single drop of water for some time, and if she did not get timely supplies, death was only a matter of time.

Gawain paused slightly, only then connecting the girl before him with the image in his own memory.

"Even though she's much greener compared to my impression, there's no mistake. It's Nami."

"This really is effortless."

The corners of Gawain's mouth curled into a smile as he turned to look at the helmsman:

"Bring her in close!"

A few minutes later.

Nami sat on the deck, chugging down several large bowls of fresh water, and after eating some bread and oranges, she finally let out a long breath.

"I'm saved~"

Only then did she turn to look at Gawain beside her, wearing a tempted expression:

"Thanks a lot, handsome~"

"As long as I can repay you, I'll do anything~"

Gawain glanced at Nami's flat chest, and instantly found it thoroughly uninteresting:

"If you want to repay me, you might as well join my pirate crew. I need an excellent navigator."

Nami paused slightly.

Does he know my intel?

No, the fact that I draw nautical charts for Arlong is only known by the people of the Arlong Pirates and the villagers. I must have misunderstood.

However.

Carina hadn't been found yet, and this pirate crew should have quite a bit of treasure. Perhaps she could scrape together enough ransom to hand over to Arlong.

Thinking of this.

Nami secretly clenched her teeth, but on the surface she wore an infatuated expression toward Gawain:

"It's my honor to be a crew member for such a handsome captain like you."

"What's your name?"

The corners of Nami's mouth curved upward:

"My name is Carina~"

Instantly, Gawain understood what Nami was up to.

The corners of his mouth twitched slightly.

She pulled this the first time and now she's doing it a second time?

Did she really take me for a fat sheep, huh?

However, the monk may run away, but the temple can't run with him. As long as you can't leave Cocoyasi, you won't escape the palm of my hand.

A trace of a smile appeared at the corners of Gawain's mouth as he spoke:

"My name is Lancelot."

The others who had just walked onto the deck paused slightly, but did not speak up to interrupt Gawain's words.

Kuro, who was familiar with Gawain's ways, stepped forward directly, nodded toward Nami, and said:

"My name is Locke, and I'm the First Mate of this pirate crew."

Then, without waiting for Gawain to cut him off, Kuro continued:

"We experienced a great battle against the powerful pirate Gawain in the waters behind us. Fortunately, we ran fast, so we didn't suffer any major casualties."

Gawain: "..."

Good, very good. Is that how you all want to play it?!

You just wait for me; next time I'm definitely not letting you speak first.

Kuro ignored Gawain's murderous glare and quietly retreated behind Akin.

The psychological shadow area left on him by the previous incident was still too large, to the extent that deep down in his heart, he harbored a trace of wariness toward Gawain's style of operations.

Now looking at it.

Heh.

Just as expected~

Akin looked at the two people with their weird expressions, especially after hearing the familiar lines. The corner of his mouth twitched imperceptibly, and he introduced himself:

"My name is Agin, and I'm the combat captain of this pirate crew."

Nami gazed at the three of them with gratitude, her sight immediately lingering on Gawain's face:

"Captain, why do I feel like you look kind of familiar?"

"Is that so?"

Gawain reached out to touch his face. Worried that Nami might figure something out, he subconsciously defended himself:

"People always used to say I looked like a movie star."

"That's right, that's right!"

Nami nodded repeatedly:

"You're the... male lead from The Charming Queen and the Loyal Knight!"