(Mikael's POV)
[An Island in The New World, A Month Later]
"The New Ship is coming along nicely." Marlon said as he was reading the newspaper, "We'll make our way towards Elbaf in no time."
We were in a building on a port town where we had a ship commissioned, waiting on Newgate and Xebec to return from further inland. It had been quite some time since we've recruited Marlon into the crew. We went to that nation Xebec spoke of, and we stole the materials needed. Now, we had the ship in construction and soon, we'll get back to our journey.
I nodded as I was holding a bowl of gunpowder, "Mhm." I said, scooping some up with a spoon, "That's good. That way, Rocks can shut up about it already."
"You got that right." He said as he had his cigar in his mouth, the reflection of the newspaper was visible on his shades
I was eating the gunpowder, chewing on it before gulping it down, as if it were crushed up cereal. It had a certain taste to it, one that I was getting used to by now.
"Ewww!!" Stussy exclaimed with a disgusted tone, "Why do you keep eating that, Mikael?!"
She was sitting down next to me, drinking some tea as she scowled at me.
"I told you." I said, "It's part of my ability."
Sulfuric Appetite.
It allowed me to consume Sulfur as it was the main diet of a Gogmazios. But in this case, it was not just a form of nutrition for my Gogmazios form; it actually enhanced the effectiveness of my Heavy Oil abilities, such as Heavy Oil Armor and Heavy Oil Waves. Not just that, it also allowed me to "cool" down the stored heat from Superheat's ability.
I've only needed to use Superheat once, and it was during sparring against Newgate and Xebec. I was still Haki training, and I was able to unlock Observation, further progressing my abilities. With that, Xebec was confident in our crew's prowess.
With Sulfuric Appetite, allowing me to eat Gunpowder, I can basically use it to strengthen my Heavy Oil while in Dragon Form. This was a really useful ability, and there were other levels to it, similar to Superheat.
I haven't gotten any more tasks during the time I was training, which I found odd. I guess I needed to improve myself personally before getting more abilities. My stamina while in dragon form has naturally improved due to my constant sparring with Rocks.
Now, I can hold it out for much longer than before. With that, I am a bit confident in my abilities.
Stussy looked at me with a scowl, "I hate kissing you after you eat gunpowder." She said as she stood up, "Gross."
I watched as she walked away, going into the living room, "Hm." I muttered, "We only kiss when we have sex."
"Quite the interesting situation you got yourself into, Mikael." Marlon said, "That woman's feisty. I wouldn't want to deal with her at any time."
"Yea, well that's you." I said, "I like her. She's pretty and she's enjoyable to spend time with. Sometimes."
"That mentality will attract even worse experiences." He said with a sigh, "Be careful."
I nodded, "Thanks for the advice." I said, still eating more gunpowder, "When it comes to that, I'll handle it, worry not."
The doors opened and Xebec walked in, "Alright, listen up!" He said with a smirk, "We got word that Harald is parading about the seas, making allies and whatnot! We head straight for Elbaf!"
I looked at him, "The ship's not ready." I said with a scowl, "What do you mean?"
"After the ship's done, obviously." He said as he walked up to me, "It's only a week left!"
"Okay." I said as I chomped on more gunpowder, "What do we do till then?"
"Vohaha!" He said, "We try to have some fun, of course! I heard the Marines are out there, somewhere. Let's sink some Navy warships, eh?"
"Sounds like a plan." I said with a smirk, "Let's do it."
"I like the way you think!" He said, "Vohahaha!"
*************
[A Week Later]
"The ship's not bad!" Xebec said he stood on he front of it, "This will do!"
The new ship was ready, and we were setting sail, making our way towards Elbaf.
I nodded as I sat on the side of the deck, "Quite spacious, even more than the last one." I said, "Also, someone is more than happy about that."
I looked at Stussy, who sat on a chair, holding a glass of wine with a satisfied smile.
"Of course, the walls were padded so not much noise can be heard from it~" She said as she gave me a wink, "We can go all out when we want to, Mikael~"
"Can you two calm down?" Newgate said, "Always with the sex talk, the two of you?"
"Sorry." I said
"Fufu~" Stussy gave me another wink
"Alright, ya bastards!" Xebec shouted, "We'll try and get Harald to join us. Then, we'll take the world by storm!!"
"Sounds like a plan." Marlon said, "You think he'll agree to it?"
"We won't know until we try, Vohahaha!" He laughed
I stood up and walked to the center, rubbing my neck, "Even if he does, what'll be the move then?" I asked, "That Island?"
"What do you think?" He looked at me with a smirk
I nodded, "Very well."
"The sooner we get Harald on our crew, the better!" He said, "Then, we'll challenge everything in our way, and we'll conquer them with our might!"
Harald is definitely a powerful individual. It makes sense why Rocks would want to recruit him. With him on the crew, we'd be an unstoppable force.
"Quite the ambitious goal." Stussy chuckled, "Are you sure we can do it?"
"Vohahaha!" He laughed even more, "I don't know! That is what makes it exciting, doesn't it? When the time comes, we'll have no choice but to defy it."
"The entire world!"