"I've also heard that Devil Fruit possess willpower, but I've never encountered this situation before. Since you have this feeling, why don't you have everyone search the surrounding area thoroughly? Maybe you can find it!"
As a former Marine Admiral, Zephyr knew a lot of secrets and had naturally heard similar statements, so he didn't doubt what Vic said.
Vic disagreed. He felt that the Flame-Flame Fruit couldn't possibly be here. Although it was still more than a decade before Ace ate the Flame-Flame Fruit- Flame Fruit, it was common for a Devil Fruit to not appear for decades. You had no idea where it might be hiding.
The world is still highly malleable and will not undergo significant changes due to the presence of time travelers. In fact, time travelers may sometimes become key figures in driving the plot forward.
Vic also made a token search of the surrounding area, as using Observation Haki to search was quite convenient.
Throughout the entire time, Princess Paula stayed by Vic's side, her gaze towards Vic seemingly capable of melting hearts. She completely ignored Rebecca and Wendy's presence beside Vic, with Rebecca maintaining a cold expression while Wendy found it somewhat amusing.
Vic searched around but found nothing. He already knew that the Flame-Flame Fruit wouldn't appear on this island. Devil Fruit don't just attach themselves to fruit just because there's fruit nearby; that's an extremely rare occurrence.
The Elite Camp recruits tied up all the pirates, planning to send them to a Marine Base. They weren't going to go back to Impel Down again; time was precious for the Elite Camp —only six months left, so they had to hurry.
In the end, only Zephyr took Vic and the three girls back to the palace, as a way of sending the princess back as an explanation, and then they would leave the island.
"Your Highness!"
After they returned to the palace, soldiers saluted Paula all the way, but she ignored Paula her eyes fixed on Vic without looking to the side.
This performance left Vic feeling helpless. He thought to himself: Saving people is risky. I must never do this again. I must act sooner rather than later. It's impossible to know what kind of biological reaction hope will produce after despair.
" Paula, you're back! Are you alright?" The old king, having received the news, also came out to greet his daughter.
But when he approached his daughter to speak, she ignored him, wearing a reverent smile. The old king initially thought his daughter had been mistreated, but when he noticed her gaze, he realized that she was simply experiencing the stirrings of first love.
"Ahem, Paula? Paula, what happened to your manners? Don't be so rude in front of the naval officers!" The old king coughed heavily a few times before his daughter came to her senses.
"Father!" Paula, now fully conscious, threw herself into her father's arms. She then recalled her ordeal in the cellar and wept bitterly. This was the first time in her life she had suffered such hardship. Reunited with her family, she finally began to let loose.
"My lords, what's wrong with my daughter?" the old king asked, puzzled.
"Oh, it's like this, when we found her, those pirates were about to kill her. We saved the princess from the brink of death. She must have been in great shock!" Vic said this not to take credit, but because if a father knew that his daughter was almost raped by so many people, how scared and guilty he would be. She was already old, and he might have even fainted.
"Alright, now that the princess has returned safely, and our mission is complete, let's say goodbye. We have other tasks to complete."
Seeing that things were more or less settled, Zephyr prepared to take his leave. He had never thought about any reward or anything like that; he could say that he had no material needs at all now!
"No, you can't leave!" Paula panicked when she heard that the group was leaving and shouted loudly and suddenly, startling the old king.
"Yes, yes, you can't leave! You've done me and my daughter a great favor, and I haven't repaid you yet. I can't let you go like this. If the other kings find out, they'll laugh at me for being stingy and rude!"
The old king reacted quickly; he immediately understood his daughter's meaning and tried to persuade her to stay.
"No need for that. We're not a regular unit yet; they're all trainee marines. There's no need for such trouble." Zephyr disliked these social niceties, especially with people he didn't know well; it wasn't something he was good at.
"You weren't a regular unit, so we should thank you even more. To be honest, this mission must have been assigned to you, it was already outside your regular duties, but you saved my daughter at a crucial moment, which makes it even more commendable!"
The old king had excellent interpersonal skills; otherwise, he wouldn't have been able to develop this island into such a prosperous trading nation.
Seeing that her father understood her meaning, Paula stopped talking and kept looking at Vic expectantly, hoping for Vic approval—a true example of a devoted fangirl!
"Well... alright then!" Zephyr wasn't particularly good at socializing, and since the king had already said so, and it had escalated to the level of the nation, he really had no reason to refuse.
"Then I'll send someone to invite all those junior officers over. Everyone has contributed, so let's have a banquet together!" the old king continued. Paula saw that Zephyr had agreed, her smile brightened.
"Alright, let's do it this way!" Zephyr also thought it wouldn't be bad to have a banquet together with the Elite Camp.
" Vic, your classmate will take a while to arrive. We don't have anything else to do in the meantime, so how about I take you for a tour of the palace?" Paula over, took Vic's arm, and said expectantly to Vic.
"I want to go too!" Rebecca retorted, grabbing Vic's other arm.
"Then I'll reluctantly go and take a look too!" Wendy said with a faint smile, seemingly without any particular curiosity about the palace.
Zephyr and the old king were both amused and exasperated by the scene. The two of them were being far too obvious. This truly lived up to the reputation of the pirate world—so straightforward!
The old king wasn't too optimistic about his daughter. It wasn't that he lacked confidence in her looks or figure; he could tell that Vic was no ordinary person. He had no respect for him, the king, and the princess's status was beneath his notice. But as a father, since his daughter liked him, he could only give it a try.
Vic was thus dragged away, sandwiched between the two girls, followed by a grinning man.
Vic didn't feel excited about being intimately touched by the beautiful girls. Both girls were sixteen or seventeen years old and hadn't developed yet, so he didn't feel that kind of pressure.
Wendy followed behind the three, casually looking around the palace. The country's trade was indeed thriving, and the royal family had made a lot of money; the palace was magnificent everywhere.
" Wendy, hurry up, you're almost lost!" Rebecca called out to Wendy, who was looking at something in the distance, as she turned a corner.
"Okay, here it comes!" Wendy snapped out of her daze and immediately followed.
Paula dragged Vic around the entire palace, during which she and Rebecca engaged in a fierce and uncompromising exchange of barbs.
Vic ignored her. He knew Paula was just grateful to him; she couldn't quite grasp her own feelings yet, and she would return to normal after he left.