"Now the plans have all been ruined, and things have taken the worst possible turn. However, there's still some time Luffy Laugh Tale, so for now, we can only try to think of something we can do during this time!"
After hanging up Luffy's call, Vic fell into deep thought. All his previous plans had fallen apart, and now he could only try his best to make amends!
Thankfully, Luffy didn't call him after returning from Laugh Tale, otherwise Vic would have been completely lost!
With the speed of the Thousand Sunny and Nami's ability to control the wind, plus their clear objective, the Straw Hat Pirates should be able to reach Laugh Tale in at most three months. Vic probably only has that much time to prepare!
The speed of a sailboat depends on the wind. As long as it has a tailwind, the speed of a sailboat is no less than that of a foreign warship. Unfortunately, Nami is the goddess who controls the weather. She can make the wind and rain come as she pleases, and she can make sure that the Thousand Sunny has a smooth journey!
Nami's abilities were developed with Vic's help, which is simply a tragedy!
However, there is some good news: the portal to the alternate dimension where Laugh Tale is located appears at a fixed time, and if you miss it, you'll have to wait another year.
The portal is still six months away from opening, meaning Vic has a six-month buffer period. How Vic makes use of this time is up to him!
Vic gathered his companions for a small meeting, and the next day he folded his space and went to Lodestar Island, where he would wait for the opening of the alternate dimension where Laugh Tale was located!
He needed to know as soon as possible what Joy Boy had left in Laugh Tale so he could devise a better strategy!
Lodestar Island is not an uninhabited island. Although there is no country on the island, there are still some towns and small villages.
Because the island is located deep in the New World and does not belong to any power, it was rarely visited by outsiders before the Paramount War.
So before this, the island's residents were quite safe. Since Luffy first sailed here more than seven years ago, the island has become relatively more lively.
However, only the Four Emperors' crews or great pirates like Kid and Law can come here. Other pirate crews have to pass through the territory of other Emperors' crews to get here, which is not an easy process!
Therefore, not many pirate crews can come to Lodestar Island. Apart from Kid's arrogant and Kid attitude, the others will not cause trouble for the common people.
But most people who come here are after the One Piece. Even Kid doesn't pay much attention to the civilians. They need to find food and drink from the island's natives, right? So when Vic arrived at Lodestar Island, the atmosphere was still quite harmonious!
Vic found a cave to continue his seclusion and study the Law of Space, waiting for the opening of the Laugh Tale alternate dimension. He hoped that in the next six months, he could complete the most crucial step in understanding the Law of Space!
While Vic was in seclusion on Lodestar Island, studying the Law of Space, Luffy and his crew also left Loguetown. He wasn't returning to the East Blue alone; he was taking his crew with him.
Now that they have the four Road Poneglyph, the Straw Hat Pirates are about to set sail once again to conquer the Grand Line and seize the One Piece!
Although they have Nami, a navigator who can control the weather, the Straw Hat Pirates is clearly not in a hurry to travel, because Robin has already sorted out the information from the four Road Poneglyph!
The Straw Hat Pirates now know the details of Laugh Tale and that they need to enter the special space where Laugh Tale is located at the right time and in the right place.
With more than six months to go, they weren't in a hurry. With their current strength, and assuming minimal delays along the way, six months was more than enough time to sail around the Grand Line!
Five months later, the Straw Hat Pirates, sailing at varying speeds, finally arrived at Lodestar Island. However, they did not linger on the island, instead waiting for Laugh Tale to open.
Instead, they rested for two days and resupplyed before continuing their voyage to the seas behind them. They needed to determine the four coordinates on the Road Poneglyph and pinpoint the entrance to Laugh Tale at the intersection!
Only by preparing in advance can one avoid missing the Laugh Tale. Roger and Oden did the same thing back then, which is why they had to leave Buggy and Shanks on Lodestar Island!
"Sigh! I still lacked that final spark of inspiration!"
Vic opened his eyes. He sensed Luffy and his crew's arrival and knew that Laugh Tale's opening was imminent. However, he had not yet been able to take the final step into the Great Perfection of the Law of Space he had been studying!
With the opening of Laugh Tale now in its final countdown, he no longer has time to continue his contemplation. He must join the Straw Hat Pirates to pinpoint the location of the entrance to Laugh Tale!
In fact, Vic had almost fully comprehended the Law of Space. It was like a video download getting stuck at 99.99%. He only needed a flash of inspiration to fill in the last missing detail of the Law of Space of Law of Space, and then he would have complete mastery of them!
But such flashes of inspiration are rare and hard to come by, just like his Law of Speed and Slowness, which has always been stuck here!
With Vic by their side, the Straw Hat Pirates spent the better part of a month determining the four coordinates marked on the Road Poneglyph and creating four Eternal Pose on the islands where those coordinates were located!
When the time comes, we only need to put these four Eternal Pose together, and we can determine the interdimensional entrance to Laugh Tale based on the cross-pointing relationship of the four pointers!
Vic thought this was a good idea, guessing that Robin and Nami came up with it on their way to Lodestar Island. As for the rest of the Straw Hat Pirates? It's unlikely they'd have such a brain!
Luffy and his crew sailed, they observed the relative direction of the Eternal Pose and corrected their course along the way. Finally, a week later, they located the entrance to Laugh Tale!
All that could be done now was to wait. The Straw Hat Pirates was too excited to sleep on the Thousand Sunny, while Vic entered a different dimension where he could observe the outside world, waiting for Laugh Tale to open!
Ten years ago, the Straw Hat Pirates were officially established in the East Blue, and they sailed onward, inviting like-minded companions along the way!
A month later, the Going Merry, carrying five passionate young people, ascended Reverse Mountain amidst the surging currents. The Reverse Mountain towering waves, clearly recorded the dreams of the five young people!
"I'm doing this to find AllBlue!"
"I want to be the Pirate King!"
I will become the greatest swordsman!
"I want to draw a map of the whole world!"
"I... I want to become a brave sea warrior!"
Although their dreams differ, that doesn't stop them from tentatively setting Laugh Tale as their final destination!
Throughout their voyage and adventures, they experienced laughter and tears, joy and sorrow. Their companions grew, their bonds deepened, their opponents became stronger, and their battles intensified. Meanwhile, they themselves grew more famous and powerful!
Ten years have passed, and today, they finally stand at the door of Laugh Tale. The excitement and anticipation, the anxiety and fear of loss, are all overwhelming them!
Although Luffy's dream is to become the Pirate King, what he truly desires is freedom, to be able to sail freely on all the seas!
In fact, with his current strength, he has almost achieved this, and only the World Government remains in his way!
So even if Luffy does obtain the One Piece, he won't gain true freedom without crashing into the World Government. Therefore, regardless of whether Vic exists or not, Luffy will eventually face the World Government; this is unavoidable!
Zoro's ambition is to become a great swordsman, which he achieved a long time ago. Now he wants to go even further and fulfill his promise to Kuina!
From Hawk-Eye, he learned that Vic was the World's Greatest Swordsman. Defeating Hawk-Eye would have fulfilled his ambition, since he was the one he had promised to Kuina. However, due to some personal reasons, he now wanted to defeat Vic even more!