Drum Island, Miss Universe Competition

Black puppets aren't necessarily black; the name merely represents a more advanced level of divine technique.

By integrating seastone into the puppet's bones, its durability is enhanced, and it gains the ability to restrain those with Devil Fruit powers.

"Done!"

Arias clapped his hands, and with a thought, the puppet opened its eyes. No one would guess that this was a magical creation.

"My weapon crafting skills have surpassed even those of Chief Ma!"

However, Vegapunk can create clones indistinguishable from humans, though it's unclear whether he uses mechanical technology or biotechnology.

Then there's the Seraph, which merges cloning technology, the Lineage Factor, and other advancements to replicate Devil Fruit abilities. Its strength rivals that of the original Shichibukai.

This old guy is no simple character!

But Vegapunk isn't truly loyal to the World Government. He has always had his own motives, and the Seraphim only follow his commands.

I need to find a way to communicate with this old man when I get the chance.

The so-called magical machinery is technology developed based on Lianjie's theories, which aren't at odds with natural science.

If I can get my hands on Vegapunk's research, my divine machinery will be greatly enhanced!

But those plans are for later. For now, the priority is to improve my strength.

"Hello, my name is Arias."

Arias smiled and extended his hand towards the puppet. Then, he manipulated it to speak:

"Master, please give Daji your orders."

Oh! That's a bit creepy, Arias thought, feeling a shiver run down his spine.

He hid the puppet in the crafting room, feeling pleased with himself.

He didn't plan to tell anyone about the puppet's existence—not even Hancock.

In the future, many tasks that are inconvenient for him to do personally can be handled by the puppet.

Like recruiting Franky.

Franky is twenty-four years old now, and Tom hasn't been executed yet.

What he wants isn't just Franky, but also Tom, the great shipwright.

To fight against the World Government and the Celestial Dragons, he needs to build his own power.

So, like Roger and Luffy, just having an elite crew isn't enough. He needs a large-scale fleet and sufficient manpower.

To achieve this, he needs shipwrights, or even shipyards.

And who better to build Roger's ship than Tom?

To gain Franky's loyalty, he'll have to start with Tom.

Saving Tom at the moment of his execution is his best hope!

But this means making an enemy of the World Government, and he doesn't want to draw attention before he's ready.

The temperature on the route kept dropping until snowflakes began to fall from the sky.

At the port of Cigu Island, a ship was anchored.

"It's clearly not winter, so why is it so cold?"

In the cabin, a few youngsters huddled around a fire to keep warm.

Since they hadn't prepared winter clothing, they were shivering from the cold.

Arias, Hancock, Yamato, and others used Qi to insulate their bodies, essentially making themselves invulnerable to cold and heat.

Hiyori, who had reached a small level in Qi cultivation, also had good resistance to the cold.

Kuina transformed into her human-beast form, using her thick panda fur to maintain her body temperature.

The rest of the group wasn't so lucky. Even sitting by the stove, their teeth chattered from the cold.

"D-d-damn, it's s-so cold! B-brother Ye, let's g-go to another island!"

"M-master Arias, it's t-too cold! I'll s-stay on the boat!"

Nami, Carina, and Nokigao huddled together for warmth, unwilling to step outside.

"I-I'm n-not c-cold! N-no, not at all!"

Zoro insisted he wasn't cold, despite his teeth chattering like drumbeats. He stubbornly started high-intensity training to warm himself up.

"I-I'm n-not c-cold either! N-not at all!"

Little Sanji didn't want to admit defeat to Zoro, so he moved away from the fire and began training just as intensely.

But Usopp wasn't as prideful. He was so cold that he wanted to crawl right into the fire.

"Alright, you all stay on the boat. I'll go check out the island. If I'm lucky, I'll bring back a pet."

"A pet?"

Salome immediately perked up. She didn't care about these human cubs, but she didn't want a pet stealing Arias and Hancock's attention.

"Sister-sama, I want to go too!"

Salome clung to Hancock's arm, and Hancock affectionately patted her head.

"Anyone else want to go?"

Arias asked the group. Yamato, Hiyori, and Kuina, who could all withstand the cold, wanted to see the magical Winter Island. But if they all left, the oldest remaining person would be Nokigao, and the most powerful would be little Zoro.

That wasn't very reassuring.

"Alright, I'll go buy some warm clothes on the island first, and then we can all explore together. You've never seen anything like this, right?"

Arias shared his plan and summoned three Ruhua dolls from his pocket.

He'd made these after finishing the black puppet.

They could help with cleaning and act as guards.

While their combat power wasn't as strong as the black puppet, it was on par with Krieg.

They could guard the ship and hold off enemies until his reinforcements arrived.

Moreover, with a black puppet hidden in the cabin, no pirate in the Grand Line would stand a chance against it! (Except maybe Crocodile…)

Arias landed on Drum Island with Hancock and Salome.

Although the villagers lived in heavy snow year-round, they could still manage to make a living.

The Drum Kingdom on the island was known for its medical expertise, boasting some of the world's most famous doctors and the best medical facilities.

Many outsiders came to Cigu Island for treatment, providing the islanders with more opportunities to earn money.

It was now the year 1510 of the Sea Circle Calendar, and Wapol was still a prince. This was a significant reason why the islanders could manage to get by.

As they arrived in a village, they saw it decorated with lanterns and banners.

Upon closer inspection, they discovered that the Miss Universe competition had come to Drum Island.

The Miss Universe competition was a major event in the pirate world, attracting a large audience and many participants.

Beautiful women, in any world, are always highly popular.

If you believed you had an outstanding figure and appearance, you could sign up for the pre-selection in your hometown.

After the pre-selection, the competition would send these beautiful girls to perform around the world, with the champion ultimately selected by global votes.

Once crowned, the winner's value would skyrocket!

Becoming a princess wouldn't be out of the question!