"Perhaps, I can help you?", The female voice carried a trace of gentleness, and after hearing it, one's mind could settle down, unknowingly giving rise to a feeling of trust in her.
"Tch, to actually possess this level of Observation Haki, it seems you really are quite an extraordinary person."
"Mermaid, would you tell me your name? I don't recall there being such a powerful individual on Fish-Man Island," Moria's eyes slightly narrowed, completely unmoved.
He had already wandered through this bizarre world for some time and had indeed seen quite a number of people with special abilities.
Just by listening, he could tell that the mermaid was trying to influence his mind through words. If the opponent were facing an ordinary person, perhaps they really might have been deceived.
"My name is Otohime, just an ordinary mermaid," Otohime said softly, her tone returning to normal, even slightly confused.
That day, she was merely following her usual routine, moving through Fish-Man District, providing help to the fishmen there.
This was something she often did. Fish-Man District was the most chaotic place on Fish-Man Island, and the existence of such a place in itself was the fault of the royal family.
It was just unexpected that during one such ordinary aid trip, she instead suffered persecution from her own kind.
While she was helping a Fish-Man family, suddenly pirates appeared nearby, engaging in a battle with her guards, and the entire area became chaotic.
It was laughable to say.
After the incident, in such chaos, she didn't think much at all and fled in the direction provided by that Fish-Man family.
At that time, she merely thought that the Fish-Man's anxious expression was because of the sudden incident and concern for her safety.
By the time she realized something was wrong, it was already too late.
She was knocked unconscious by that Fish-Man, and when she regained consciousness, she was already inside a sealed box.
Outside, many humans came and went. She had also tried to use the special ability of Observation Haki to save herself, but even if someone was willing to release her, they would quickly be stopped by others.
Eventually, fewer and fewer people appeared around her, until Moria showed up.
It was only when she confirmed that only Moria was around that she began using her special ability to influence him, but unexpectedly, it had absolutely no effect.
"Otohime?", Moria muttered this name. To him, the name seemed somewhat familiar.
Back when he passed through Fish-Man Island, it seemed his companions had mentioned this name.
If nothing unexpected had happened, the mermaid was also a well-known figure on Fish-Man Island.
If he thought about it for a while longer, he should be able to remember.
But forget it. Right now, he didn't want to recall past matters at all.
Every time he thought of the faces of his companions, there would be a stabbing pain in his heart.
"I heard fishmen can go without eating, so you'd better behave. I don't want to know your background. Whatever thoughts or ideas you have, don't tell me, go tell Saint Rosse," Leaving behind these words, Moria waved his hand, signaling the nearby zombie to step forward, lifting the wooden box containing Otohime and carrying it into the ship.
Ever since the death of his companions, he never wanted new companions again.
It was better to rely on the power of the Shadow-Shadow Fruit to place the shadows of the living into corpses to create zombies.
With no companions, he wouldn't have to feel the grief of their deaths again.
"Lord Moria...", Otohime called out anxiously, trying to negotiate, but Moria completely ignored her. She could only feel that Moria was getting farther and farther away from her.
"I really am such a useless person, I can't even accomplish such a small task...", Inside the wooden box, Otohime curled her body, hugging her own fish tail tightly. Drops of tears flowed out, continuously blending into the seawater inside the box.
She wasn't actually afraid of seeing the Celestial Dragons.
During the previous two Levelies, she had been to the Holy Land and had communicated with the Celestial Dragons.
Although those people had no reverence at all, with Fish-Man Island's identity as a member nation, they wouldn't do anything to her.
Besides, she had heard of Saint Rosse's name.
He wasn't someone who liked killing and was always committed to eliminating pirates and threats to the stability of the World Government.
In that regard, Otohime did not believe she was in conflict with him.
Instead, the experiences along the way had left her mentally exhausted.
She trusted her kind, but ended up betrayed.
She tried constantly, and even though she had a special ability, she still couldn't protect herself.
This terrible feeling made her mood very unpleasant.
She used to think that as long as one opened their heart and communicated, there was nothing that couldn't be resolved.
But the experiences of the past few days seemed to be telling her that it was all just naive futility.
'What should I do now?'
———
[One Day Later, Skypiea]
"This is the Goro Goro no Mi? It looks quite ordinary," Rosse received the fruit from Gion, glanced at it casually, and tossed it to Sora.
Sora scrambled to catch it and gave Rosse a reproachful look, "Your Highness, this fruit is one of the most valuable Devil Fruits. A single fruit like this can nurture a Vice Admiral-level individual."
Having followed Rosse for so long, and with the Nomi Nomi no Mi absorbing knowledge so quickly, she understood the value of these top-tier fruits very well.
"Then try and see if it can be replicated," Rosse smiled.
At present, no one in his faction was suitable to use this fruit.
Holding onto it was merely to have it ready to deploy when a suitable candidate appeared.
For now, it could be given to Sora for research.
If he remembered correctly, Devil Fruits could indeed be replicated.
But that was a result Vegapunk achieved over ten years later and only for Zoan-type fruits.
To research in that direction, Sora would probably have to invest more energy.
"Replicating a Devil Fruit? I'll give it a try," Sora nodded lightly, roughly understanding Rosse's intention, and carefully stored the fruit away.
She definitely wouldn't use this fruit for experiments.
There were also several Zoan-type Devil Fruits on the ship, brought along by Zannie when she came to Arabasta and delivered to Rosse.
Those fruits weren't very valuable and were just suitable for use in experiments.
"When are we leaving Skypiea?", Gion, sitting nearby, asked eagerly.
She had a general idea of Rosse's itinerary. Next was a trip to the Holy Land, then directly to Wano Country.
In Wano, she still had an enemy to deal with.
Last time, King had escaped, this time, she wouldn't let him go.
"Let's leave tomorrow. Things are more or less stable here. With Conia's help later on, I believe Skypiea will stay very obedient," Rosse smiled slightly, his gaze falling on Conia, who was sitting nearby playing the piano.
Ding-dong!
Hearing that Rosse would leave tomorrow, the piano music obviously became a bit disordered. Conia looked over, somewhat reluctantly, "Lord Rosse, you're leaving tomorrow?"
"It's about time to go. From now on, Skypiea will rely on you," Rosse's lips curved slightly, his tone gentle.
He hadn't made a move on Conia yet, allowing their relationship to develop naturally.
After feasting on meat and fish, occasionally having some vegetables was also a different kind of flavor.
Toward this soft-outside, strong-inside girl, Rosse was also extremely fond.
But sometimes, emotions needed time to ferment to become even more sweet.
Next time they met, it would be when both will be were willing.
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