Chapter 36 - Commodore Nelson Royale! Arriving at Warship Island!

"IDIOTS!!"

A loud and full of anger shout came from a huge mobile Marine base.

Mashing a report that was handed to him, an extremely fat and ugly man, dressed in some Marine clothes, angrily asked the soldiers in front of him.

"What kind of report is this???" Crushing the paper, he angrily threw it at a soldier's head before continuing, "This girl... she is the key for me to get the Dragonite. I've been looking for this treasure for years! Don't you realize the gravity of the situation??"

This man who was yelling is named Nelson Royale, a Marine Officer who commands the 8th Branch of the East Blue. He sports a long, thin, curved mustache, alongside red spiral marks on his large cheeks. His small, round eyebrows are considered a symbol of nobility. Additionally, he wears a costly-looking gold necklace with a red gemstone embedded in it.

"Hay, Sir!" The soldier who was assigned to deliver the report could only stand at attention to answer the rhetorical question.

Very angry with the situation, Commodore Nelson squinted his eyes and spoke loudly.

"Eric!"

And with his call, a figure became visible in the shadows of the place.

"At your service." Eric, a mercenary hired by Nelson, responded without expression.

Eric is a slender man with a square-shaped face, long, sharp fingernails, and hook-shaped, purple hair. His sideburns mimic the hook-like shape. He dresses in a grey blazer and pants with red sides, paired with a purple striped shirt. A golden brooch, shaped like a bird wing, adorns his chest. He also sports earrings with hanging pearls.

"I can't lose the trail to the elixir of immortality after searching for it so much!" With a dark and threatening look on his face, Nelson gave the order, "Join the fleet and find her, no matter the cost!"

"With all due respect, sir, but looking for the girl is not part of the contract." And Eric, still without changes in his expression, reminded him of his mercenary status. He was not just any marine who should follow his orders.

"I will pay whatever you want. I hired you for times like this." And adopting a treacherous smile, Nelson felt great satisfaction in provoking him, "Losing a clue like this would be quite a blow for you now too, right?"

And after a few moments of silence, Eric looked directly at the large obese man before nodding.

"Understood, Commodore Nelson Royale."

°°°

With a good hot meal in front of her, Apis devoured everything as if she hadn't eaten in days. And she really hadn't eaten for a long time.

And watching her devour the food were Noah, Nami and Nojiko. All of them had smiles on their faces for different reasons as they watched the little girl stuff herself.

"This food is very good!" With a sparkle in her eyes, Apis praised the food while she continued to shove large spoonfuls of rice into her mouth.

"Well, thank you very much. I try my best." Nojiko smiled at the girl's compliment and also ate a piece of meat with mikan sauce.

And after lunch, they went to the ship's deck to chat a little and catch some sun.

"Miss Nami." Apis sat down in a comfortable chair and looked at them for a while before calmly asking, "May I ask where you are going?"

"There's no problem in asking, Apis." Nami calmly smiled as she stroked her head, "We're going to the Grand Line."

"G-Grand Line?? That dangerous place??" Apis opened her mouth in shock as she looked at the three-person crew, "Isn't that place very dangerous?! And full of pirates??"

"Well, we are pirates." Nojiko laughed a little, amused by the girl's innocence.

"..."

Shock!

This expression was so strong on Apis' face that it seemed like she would die right at that moment from fright. Her mind began to wonder if the food that she had eaten had been poisoned and she could die at any moment!

'How the hell did I escape from those people to be captured by PIRATES!!!'

And with a shocked expression, Noah decided to ease the situation for her.

"Don't worry, we're not dangerous." Waving his hands, he smiled at her, "I just happened to get involved with the wrong people and now have a bounty on my head."

'That didn't make it any better!!' Apis continued to look scared at them, imagining that the wrong people they got involved with were even more dangerous pirates!

"Correcting what he meant." Nami rolled her eyes at him before looking at Apis, "We were in a dangerous place, ruled by a dangerous pirate and a bad marine captain. He defeated both and this made the Marines put a bounty on him."

With a childlike explanation, somehow Apis managed to understand what she was talking about. After all, she had seen firsthand the true face of the Navy. And considering that they in fact did nothing but take good care of her so far, she sighed with relief.

"So, since it's like this..." She gathered courage for a while before speaking, "I'm being selfish, but could you-"

"Send you back home? We are already on course." Noah interrupted her speech giving her good news. Nami had a large amount of maps and redrew some she managed in Loguetown. As it was a nearby island, there was also a map of Warship Island.

"... thank you so much! I don't know what to do to thank you!" Apis immediately became happy when she heard what he said, and her impression of him improved even more.

And Noah had not changed for anything more than the safety of the girls and Black Artemis.

In the original story, the Straw Hats had rescued the girl, but only actually decided to change course the next day. And this led them to face a fleet of ships, and later they were dragged to the Calm Belt, almost being eaten by some Sea Kings.

As much as it was an interesting experience to live, he did not want to damage his ship and face an entire fleet of sailors for no gain.

Not to mention that his interest was in something on that island. Something big and majestic that had lived for a long time and was about to reincarnate.

Sennenryu (Millenial Dragon).

°°°

After a few hours of sailing, without actually finding anything of the navy or entering any dangerous place, they arrived in an area with a large amount of fog ahead.

And on Nami's instructions, which claimed they were going the right way, they kept going forward and entered the fog.

"It should be around here, so why not…" Apis, leaning on the edge of the ship, was closely watching the fog when her gaze caught something. And her expression became happy when she pointed her finger and shouted, "There, it's there!"

And as if it were at their command, the fog cleared before their eyes and something like a large warship began to emerge in the distance. And as Apis had already told them that the island was named because of its appearance, they knew they had arrived.

"It looks like we've finally arrived at your home, right?" Nojiko approached Apis and tapped lightly on her head.

"Yes! And there's the dock!" Pointing to the small village with some small bridges over the water, she was very happy and grateful to them.

And just as they were sighting the island, all the island's inhabitants could also see their arrival. And that's when a big commotion started.

With the black sails and a large pirate flag at the top, the village went into a state of high alert as women hid their children indoors and men armed themselves with spears and harpoons to protect everyone with their lives.

"Hey, I think the people of your village don't want you to come back." Noah pointed to all the people gathering on the shore and looked at Apis.

"That's because they think you're bad pirates!" And having already gotten used to them, Apis just stuck out her tongue before running to the edge of the ship. Cupping her hands in front of her mouth, she yelled for everyone to hear, "Hi, everyone! I'm home!"

And with shocked looks, the inhabitants below looked at her as if they were seeing the unbelievable.

"Apis!"

As soon as they docked the ship at the wharf, Apis immediately got off, going down the stairs that were on the hull. And right away someone asked her in shock.

"Why are you on a pirate ship?"

"Well, they're pirates, but they're not evil!" Apis quickly stepped forward as Noah and the girls disembarked from the ship, "They saved me and brought me here!"

With skeptical eyes, the villagers looked at them for a while. But another man soon asked.

"But hadn't you been taken by the Marines? Did they raid the ship? That's not being a good person."

"No no. I escaped from the Marines and spent two days on a boat at sea before they found me and saved me. And then they were kind enough to bring me here."

Aside from Noah, who already knew about her abilities and the reason she had been captured, Nami and Nojiko were clearly surprised that she had been taken hostage by the marines before they met. And this made them wonder why, but they decided to wait until she herself would tell.

But contrary to an immediate warm reception, the inhabitants simply began to question her, as if they were afraid.

"Apis, what have you done?"

"We don't know why, but the Navy was after you."

"You can't go back home. They're still out there."

"But… what can I do?" Apis wondered aloud, knowing that her presence here could be dangerous for everyone.

'They're not wrong to ward off danger, but I feel uncomfortable seeing this...' Noah, who felt a bit of anger every time someone denied her stay here, was about to take a step forward.

But a loud voice soon interrupted her steps.

"Apis!"

Everyone made way when they heard the voice, and soon an old man walking with the support of a cane was revealed.

"Come to my house. You will be safe there."

And under the surprised looks of Nami and Nojiko, Apis really began to run to the old man with joy in her eyes.

"Grandpa Bokuden!"