"My advice is, if you don't want Klee, Sanji, and those other members of the Cat Mink Tribe to end up in danger, try not to get involved with Nico Robin. Find an opportunity to 'pass her on' to someone else. That woman's very existence is a danger."
Xie Wen fell silent once again.
Not only did he have no intention of following Uncle Cody's advice, but...
The man really wasn't acting like a CP Agent. Instead, just as he himself had said, he seemed to be more of "good old Cody" at the moment.
"I knew you wouldn't agree so easily..." Cody sighed helplessly again, but there was a trace of gratification in his expression. "You really are a good kid."
"Uh..."
Xie Wen scratched his head awkwardly. After all, his real age wasn't as young as he looked now, so praise like that felt decidedly strange to hear.
Fortunately, Cody didn't continue "praising" him. "I know you must have plenty of questions. Since nobody will disturb us here, I'll explain everything to you bit by bit. Ask whatever you want."
So Xie Wen promptly asked his first question-
"Of course I'm grateful that you care so much about me, Klee, and the others, but... there's something I don't understand. Why are you doing this? Aren't you a member of Cipher Pol? You're a little different from what I understood them to be..."
"Because I wasn't a CP Agent brainwashed and trained by the World Government from childhood. Cipher Pol took notice of me and recruited me after I demonstrated excellent intelligence-gathering skills in the Navy." Cody shook his head and kindly reminded him, "There are quite a few agents in Cipher Pol who joined partway through their careers like me, but don't go thinking everyone else is as