Chapter 15: Gerd's Ability

"Huh!?"

When El returned to the coast and revealed Carmel's true identity to Gerd, the giant girl stood frozen in shock, unable to believe what she had just heard.

"Sister Carmel was a human trafficker? Is that true?" she asked, her voice trembling.

"Yes, that's exactly the situation..." El shrugged, continuing, "But now, I'm going to take the children from the Sheep's House away from Elbaf and move them to a nearby island."

"I'm going to lead them in creating a utopia, a place where all races can live happily together!"

"Is that your dream, El?" Gerd asked, filled with amazement, clasping her hands together, admiration shining in her eyes. "That's incredible!"

"Really?" Linlin's eyes sparkled as she eagerly raised her hand. "Big Brother El, can I come too?"

"Of course, Linlin, you're like my wings!" El chuckled, patting her head with a warm smile.

"Hehe..."

"Then I want to come too!" Gerd declared confidently, not wanting to be left behind.

"Alright, but you'll have to wait until you're a bit older. Otherwise, your uncle and aunt won't allow it!" El teased, playfully pinching Gerd's chubby cheeks. "In the meantime, you should train hard and get stronger!"

"Okay, I'll do my best, El!" Gerd responded enthusiastically. Then, as if remembering something, she excitedly added, "Oh, El! I think I've learned Sister Carmel's magic! Look..."

She stretched out her small, white hands toward the flowers at her feet. "All of you, start moving!"

Swoosh... swoosh...

To the surprise of both El and Linlin, a strange light emerged from Gerd's hands, enveloping the flowers. In an instant, the flowers displayed childlike faces, smiling cheerfully as they swayed and danced.

"I'm a flower~!"

"A flower~~~ A flower~~~"

"Flower~~~ Flower~~~"

The brightly colored flowers had taken on human-like faces, dancing and singing, leaving everyone in shock.

"Wow! That's amazing! The flowers have come to life..." Linlin blinked her wide eyes in awe, looking at Gerd with admiration. "Gerd, can you do magic like Big Brother El too?"

"Hehe..." Thrilled by the praise, Gerd puffed out her chest proudly. "Pretty cool, right?"

"Is that... the Soul-Soul Fruit's ability?" El was dumbfounded. Carmel had often demonstrated her powers to the children of the Sheep's House, calling it magic. Gerd, having seen it before, naturally assumed it was real magic. However, El recognized it immediately as the ability of the Paramecia-type Soul-Soul Fruit.

He had gone to great lengths to search for the randomly reborn Soul-Soul Fruit, only to come up empty-handed. But now, it seemed Gerd had unknowingly inherited the ability.

"Did you eat a strange fruit with special patterns on it?" El asked directly.

"A strange fruit?" Gerd tilted her head, thinking for a moment before recalling, "Oh right! Not long ago, Linlin found a weird fruit in the forest, and we shared it!"

"Yes, the fruit was so pretty, but it tasted awful!" Linlin chimed in happily.

"You say that now, Linlin..." Gerd, still unaware of her incredible luck, playfully knocked on Linlin's head and scolded her, hands on her hips, "If you hadn't shoved it into my mouth, I wouldn't have eaten it! It was so disgusting!"

El: "..."

He hadn't expected the power he failed to reclaim had ended up with Linlin, who then shared it with Gerd. Was this fate, or did the Devil Fruit choose its own wielder? Either way, it was a twist of fortune that had resulted in Gerd obtaining the Soul-Soul Fruit's abilities.

"Alright, Gerd, don't blame Linlin anymore..." El chuckled, patting both Gerd and Linlin on the head with a smile. "You've really lucked out!"

"That wasn't ordinary magic; it was the power of the legendary Devil Fruit. Sister Carmel didn't have some magical ability—she had the Paramecia-type Soul-Soul Fruit."

He explained to Gerd and Linlin, "It seems when I killed Sister Carmel, her power randomly reborn somewhere in Elbaf's forest, and Linlin ended up finding it!"

"It's a power that grants souls to inanimate objects, bringing them to life. It's an ability many would envy but can never obtain!"

"You should thank Linlin—she's the one who gave you this incredible power!"

Although Linlin had missed out on acquiring the Soul-Soul Fruit's abilities by accident, it wasn't a loss for her. Strictly speaking, the Zoan-type Mythical Beast fruits were far more suited to someone like Linlin, a naturally powerful being. These fruits provided substantial boosts to physical capabilities, as well as additional abilities, enabling users to unleash even greater strength.

Coincidentally, on his journey from the Calm Belt to Elbaf, El had passed by a place called Forgotten Island and, after some effort, obtained a rare Mythical Zoan Fruit from an ancient ruin there. It was a perfect match for Linlin.

"Huh!?"