Gawain's expression stiffened.
Princess!
Princess!
My Wang Nima's princess!
"Hahahaha~"
The pirates gradually gathering around witnessed this scene and could not hold it back, bursting into laughter.
Even Akin, who maintained a cold expression most of the time, could not help turning his head away, expending a great deal of effort to control his emotions.
Yet the slightly uptight corners of his mouth still exposed his true expression.
Nami looked suspiciously at the crowd:
"What's wrong?"
Kuro glanced imperceptibly at Gawain and explained:
"Nothing, it's just that we all really love watching this movie~"
"Really?"
Nami's eyes lit up, and she immediately pulled Kuro aside to discuss the plot in detail.
At the emotional parts, Nami even turned red-eyed and shed unfilial tears.
Wait, you actually like it?
No, what on earth is good about this kind of thing?
Seeing this, Gawain didn't know where to start complaining for a moment, and noticing the surrounding pirates' expressions of wanting to laugh yet not daring to, he simply walked straight into the cabin.
Instead, Nami pulled Kuro along and talked relentlessly about the plot for several hours, chatting from the movie to the novel, and even to the derivative merchandise.
Kuro's expression also changed from suppressing his laughter at the beginning to indifference, and finally he turned completely numb in the face, transforming into a nodding machine.
The two chatted until late at night before Nami finally stopped.
Just as Kuro let out a sigh of relief, Nami's voice reached his ears:
"First Mate is not a fake fan, you really love this movie~"
"Continue tomorrow~"
Kuro stumbled underfoot and replied listlessly:
"Whatever makes you happy."
The night grew deeper.
Nami also entered the room assigned to her under the guidance of a crew member.
Screech~
The door pushed open.
Revealing a somewhat crude room.
A desk facing the porthole, a single bed, and a desk parallel to the bow, covered with books related to navigators.
The dim oil lamp raised a flame, swaying continuously with the rocking of the hull, and the warm firelight struck Nami's face, reflecting her complex expression.
Seeing that Nami was slightly surprised, the crew member beside her spoke in explanation:
"This is a room specially prepared by the captain for the navigator, but there are no other empty rooms on the ship right now, so it's temporarily assigned to you. If you don't like it, I can have the captain change it for you."
"No."
"I like it very much."
The crew member nodded, and after admonishing Nami a few more times, turned and left.
After a simple wash, Nami sat directly on the bed, reaching out to stroke the soft and dry quilt, then turned to look out the window.
Wondering what she was thinking about.
The following days.
Nami officially became a part of Gawain's crew.
She was already a notoriously seasoned thief in the East Blue, and socializing was naturally one of the most important foundational skills in this trade.
Over the past few days, she basically pried everything out of the crew members' mouths except for the identities of Gawain and the other two and their experiences over the recent period.
"A pirate captain who treats his subordinates with the utmost warmth and kindness and has never attacked civilians, yet suffered betrayal by his subordinates at the most dangerous moment, leaving him with no choice but to draw his sword and fight back..."
"A First Mate who fought for over a decade, wanting to become an ordinary person and live a stable and comfortable life, yet ultimately finding it difficult to achieve his wish—once a pirate, always a pirate..."
"The cadre most loyal to the leader, blocking blows for the leader, yet still ruthlessly discarded by the other party..."
Recalling her experiences over the past few days, Nami's gaze grew increasingly complex.
Yet as those faces from the village surfaced before her eyes, Nami's inner resolve also gradually grew firm.
It wasn't that she hadn't entertained the idea of shifting the disaster to someone else and letting the two pirate crews slaughter each other, but these few days of association had already made her abandon that thought.
In her view, Gawain and the others could by no means be Arlong's match; truly confronting Arlong would be nothing more than throwing their lives away in vain.
And now.
She no longer wished to watch Gawain and the others march to their deaths.
Woo--!
Accompanied by a blast of the ship's horn.
The pirate ship gradually steadied, and Nami lied to Kuro—who had come to find her to go to the port for procurement—that she was feeling slightly unwell, choosing to remain on the pirate ship instead.
Seeing the group slowly disappear into the port, she followed the intelligence she had wheedled out of the pirates over the past few days, knocked out the pirate guarding the door, and quietly slipped into the place where the treasure was stored.
And the things hidden inside did not disappoint her either.
Dazzling gems, brilliant gold.
Even without counting them in detail, she could precisely judge that the value of these things would be beyond imagination.
After packing up the treasure, Nami originally wanted to leave directly, but the faces of Gawain and the two flashed in her mind again. She raised her eyes to look at the weather in the port, then hurried back to her room.
After leaving a letter for the three of them, she took the treasure, changed into men's clothing, and quietly slipped away.
Inside the port.
Gawain and the other two looked expressionlessly at Nami's disappearing figure.
Akin and Kuro were veterans of the jianghu, and Gawain saw right through Nami's intentions from the start. How could they fail to see through such clumsy acting?
"Captain, I don't understand why you would indulge this woman to this extent."
Kuro looked at Gawain, his tone teasing:
"Could it be that you no longer love the princess, but fancy a young maiden instead?"
"Bring that up again and I'll slice you in half with a single slash!"
The corner of Gawain's mouth twitched, feeling as though he could no longer suppress the impulse to draw his blade.
He immediately led the two back to the ship, pushed open the door to the navigator's room, and discovered a letter placed on the desk.
The content of the letter was extremely simple, consisting of only two lines:
"Tomorrow night at eleven-thirty, Dia Port, a storm is coming. Leave as quickly as possible after finishing the procurement. As a token of gratitude, I'll be taking the treasure on board~"
At the very end, she even thoughtfully drew a little pinwheel pattern.
Looking at the contents of the letter, Kuro instantly reacted:
"This woman is the navigator you were looking for?"
"Pardon my frankness, but if there is any position on a ship that values experience above all else, it can only be the navigator."
"The sea is volatile; even the most precise calculations will have times when they go wrong. Accurate to the minute?"
"How is that possible!"
Kuro shook his head:
"She's only fifteen or sixteen years old. When I first went out to sea, she was still an infant."
Saying this, he glanced at Gawain again:
"And you were still flirting with the princess~"
"My Nima!"
Gawain's eyes turned red and he moved to draw his sword on the spot. Fortunately, Akin moved quickly, pressing his hand down on Gawain's blade:
"Captain, don't be like this!"
"Hmph!"
Gawain put his blade back into its scabbard with a darkened face and said indifferently:
"She can't run."
Gawain then looked at Kuro and spoke up:
"Why don't we make a bet? Let's stay right here for a day. If there really is a storm tomorrow night, you'll wash the socks of everyone on this ship!"
"For a month!"
Hearing this, Akin gasped, looking between Gawain and Kuro:
"Isn't the captain playing this a bit too big?"
"Fine!"
Without waiting for Gawain to refuse, Kuro answered directly:
"I truly don't believe that a teenage girl can reach such a high level in navigation skills!"
"Figuring out a storm is one thing, but she can even deduce the exact arrival time?!"
"Gawain, I'll be waiting for you to wash my socks!"
Before you continue