Hawk Eyes fell to his knees,
The intense dizziness nearly knocking him unconscious.
"Mihawk!"
The old man flashed to his disciple's side and reached out to steady the swaying Hawk Eyes, looking at Roy as he awkwardly put away his sword.
"A mental attack... Interesting swordsmanship."
"Haha~ It was just a simple application of my fruit ability."
Roy sheathed his sword, looking embarrassed.
Savi, meanwhile, grinned and laughed. "Boss, that move of yours was downright nasty. Look, you even made that kid puke!"
Tesoro hurriedly covered his mouth. "Shut up! Do you want to anger that old man? You can tell at a glance he's no ordinary guy."
The old man finished checking Hawk Eyes over. After confirming that nothing was seriously wrong, he slowly stood up and looked at Roy with a little more admiration.
"Young man, your swordsmanship is unique. To be on the verge of entering the realm of a swordmaster at your age-aside from Mihawk, you're the second person I've seen accomplish that."
"My name is Joramille Saga. I'm Mihawk's master."
He pointed at Hawk Eyes beside him, then gestured to invite everyone in.
"Since you're here, why don't you come into the castle for a chat? Mihawk needs to rest, and you can take some time to recuperate on the island as well."
Roy readily accepted. "Then sorry for the trouble."
The inside of the castle was unexpectedly tidy, a stark contrast to its weathered exterior. After settling Hawk Eyes in, Joramille Saga led everyone to a tearoom.
"So you snatched a Devil Fruit from the World Government and the Golden Lion and fled here?"
"Mm! Not exactly. We didn't fight the Golden Lion head-on. Garp was holding him off at the time, and we were lucky to get our hands on it."
Roy accepted the tea Saga handed him. "Are there any newspapers about us here?"
Joramille Saga pointed to the newspaper on the table.
"It arrived this morning. 'Shocking! Mysterious youths snatch a precious treasure from the jaws of danger, taking it from the great pirate Golden Lion.' It goes into quite some detail."
Tesoro stepped forward and picked up the newspaper, also finding several wanted posters on the table.
"Not only that, it says the Devil Fruit you snatched was a Mythical Zoan."
The atmosphere in the tearoom abruptly grew tense.
Claws extended from Bullet's hands, and Tesoro immediately stepped back.
Roy, however, picked up his teacup and calmly took a sip.
"That's right, it was a Mythical Zoan, Model: White Tiger, but Bullet has already eaten it."
"I imagine pure swordsmen like you would disdain eating a Devil Fruit, wouldn't you?"
Saga stared at Roy for a moment, then suddenly laughed. "You're an interesting fellow. You're right, I'm not interested in Devil Fruits. All I want now is for Mihawk to inherit my swordsmanship."
Just then, the tearoom door was flung open.
Hawk Eyes, who had recovered, stood in the doorway, his eyes fixed on Roy.
"That move just now... What was it?"
"It was just an application of my fruit ability. When it comes to swordsmanship alone, I'm no match for you!"
"Hmph. A loss is a loss. But one day, I'll pay you back for today's humiliation!"
Joramille Saga frowned. "Mihawk, don't be rude!"
Roy smiled and waved a hand.
"Anytime!"
Dim golden sunlight slanted in through the window. After accepting Hawk Eyes' challenge, Roy drained his tea and turned to Joramille Saga.
"Then we'll be troubling you by staying on this island for a while."
"Welcome! Do you need me to prepare rooms for you?"
"No need. We have our own accommodations, though we'll need to take up a little space."
"Please, go ahead."
After receiving Saga's permission, Roy and the others made their way out of the castle to an open area outside. Tesoro hadn't forgotten to bring the newspaper and wanted posters with him.
At the edge of the clearing, Roy flicked a finger to clear away some debris on the ground, then took a few seeds out of Pea's storage bag.
Green light radiated from his hands, and he tossed the seeds into the clearing ahead. In an instant, a neat row of small wooden cabins appeared before them.
After everyone had settled into their rooms, they lit a bonfire in the clearing. Roy then had Pea use his ability to produce a dining table large enough for ten people and set out some delicious food. Everyone took a seat and began to enjoy the meal.
Tesoro spread the newspaper and wanted posters he'd brought across the table. The more he read, the deeper his frown grew.
"This caused a bigger stir than we imagined. And the World Government covered up their involvement, saying we snatched it from the Golden Lion. They even revealed the Devil Fruit's true ability."
He pushed one of the posters over to Roy.
"The Golden Lion has really lost face!"
Roy took the wanted posters. "Why are there two?"
Bullet was also holding two wanted posters, looking over his own bounties with interest.
"They're probably from when we left the Endless War Country last time."
Roy unfolded the posters. The first had a photo of him fighting Borsalino, with a bounty of 270 million Beli. The other showed him flying over the sea with Bullet, and the bounty had shot up from 270 million to 500 million. His title had also changed from 'Telekinetic Madman' to 'Heavenly Dao' Roy.
"Tsk, looks like the Navy takes me pretty seriously. Not only did my bounty rise quickly, they even adopted the title I recommended myself."
Bullet's bounty had also risen from 200 million to 450 million.
Tesoro and Stella's bounties had increased as well, reaching 60 million and 30 million Beli respectively.
Little Savi, who had never exposed his ability, had a bounty of only one million Beli. As for Pea, who had just come aboard, that went without saying.
"Now we've really caught the attention of the great pirates and the Navy."
"What's there to be afraid of? I'll beat them one by one, however many come! Don't tell me you're scared, Tesoro!"
"What did you say... you brat?!"
Tesoro grabbed Savi by the neck and shook him wildly, nearly making Savi throw up what he had eaten.
Bullet said nothing, simply looking at his wanted posters. He knew that the higher his bounty, the stronger the enemies he would encounter-the whetstones he longed for.
Roy put down the posters, picked up his drink, and took a sip.
"Tesoro's concerns aren't unfounded. The increase in our bounties means our journey from here on will be more dangerous. As we are now, there's still a huge gap between us and the top powerhouses on the seas."
He looked toward the imposing castle across from them.
"We'll spend some more time recuperating here. Bullet, you need to familiarize yourself with your White Tiger Fruit as soon as possible. Tesoro, continue training your physical skills. Once we leave this island, we'll go looking for the Devil Fruit you need. Savi, you can just keep following Bullet."
"As for me..."
Roy rubbed the hilt of the sword at his waist.
"Hawk Eyes' master, Joramille Saga, is a remarkable swordsman. If I can get his guidance, perhaps it'll help me take that step sooner."