Charlotte Linlin seemed to be in a fairly good mood today. After swallowing the dessert in her hand in one bite, she gestured for Katakuri to hand over the newspaper.
"Mamama~ I see… So you really are putting your beliefs into practice and pursuing your dream, Nereus…"
Though the two of them were not on the same path, their fundamental ideas overlapped in some ways.
Mariejois was the largest slave hub in the world. Anyone who didn't live in some remote backwater and had even a basic understanding of the Celestial Dragons would realize that.
What Nereus had done was nothing more than staying true to his original resolve, carrying out the words he had spoken back then.
"Katakuri, go and seize those two nearby islands for me. Totto Land needs a much larger territory. Zeus and Prometheus will assist you."
"Yes, Mama. I'll handle it."
Nereus' actions seemed to have prompted Charlotte Linlin to speed up her own plans and complete Totto Land as soon as possible.
Katakuri had thought that would be the end of it, but in the next instant, Prometheus and Zeus at his side suddenly began to tremble.
It was a shudder that came from the soul itself. There was only one reason the two Homies would be so terrified.
Their creator was angry again.
"But sneaking off with my daughter… this isn't over… Nereus, you b*stard. A child belongs with her mother. You'd better return Nanamo to me…"
Katakuri quickened his pace. Over the past two years, Charlotte Linlin's emotional swings had grown increasingly severe; her mood could change in an instant. Drawing her ire right now would be a terrible choice.
"Well?"
Outside the castle on Whole Cake Island, Perospero had been waiting. Originally, he was supposed to deliver the newspaper, but after seeing the news about Nereus, he didn't quite dare.
He couldn't withstand Charlotte Linlin's fury, let alone after he had previously failed to seize the two islands she mentioned.
At times like this, it was better to let Katakuri handle it. After all, he was stronger and more favored within the Charlotte family.
"Why don't you go in and see for yourself?"
"Perorin♪… forget it. I don't think that's a good idea…"
Watching groups of Homies fleeing from the castle in droves, Perospero already had his answer.
"Oh, by the way, you forgot this."
Perospero pulled out a stack of bounty posters. Normally, bounty notices were delivered together with the newspaper. They weren't sold, of course, more like flyers stuffed onto a door handle.
"If you want to deliver them, do it yourself. Showing Mama sister's bounty at a time like this, are you trying to make her even angrier?"
The updated bounty posters were, naturally, for Nereus and his crew. Whenever a pirate stirred up a major incident, the World Government would update the bounties. Even if no immediate action followed, they still had to do it.
By distributing bounty posters across the world, they showed that they were taking matters seriously, and not sitting idly by.
"One hundred and fifty million Berries… Sister didn't seem to do anything this time, did she?"
"After all, Mr. Nereus stormed Mariejois. If you're not afraid of Mama getting angry, then you can deliver them yourself."
With that, Katakuri shoved the bounty posters back into Perospero's hands.
Staring at the bold words "Daughter of Nereus" printed on the poster, Perospero ultimately didn't have the courage to walk into the castle.
Charlotte Linlin cared deeply about her eldest daughter. If she saw that the World Government was describing Nanamo that way…
Perospero shook his head, casting aside the nightmarish image.
Such changes in bounty were commonplace. When a captain's bounty underwent a massive jump, the core subordinates and family members would inevitably be affected as well.
"Worororo! Impressive, Nereus, so you charged into Mariejois alone?"
On a Marine transport ship, Kaido was sailing through an unknown stretch of sea with a dozen pirates in tow, men he had recruited as underlings.
As for the ship, he had simply snatched it after flying around for a while. A traditional pirate still needed a ship of his own.
Traveling alone was inconvenient, and these men were too weak for Kaido to regard as true subordinates.
"Rocks killed an Admiral, and you killed the Fleet Admiral. To surpass you… would I have to take down that shadowy monster from back then? Or the World Government's Commander-in-Chief?"
Kaido was probably the calmest among those who read the news. He simply admired Nereus' strength and pondered when he himself would be able to accomplish something like that.
"You lot!"
"Captain Kaido, what are your orders?"
"You're too weak. From now on, you're not my underlings anymore!"
"Huh? Captain Kaido, what do you mean by that?!"
It was common on the seas for weaker pirates to seek protection under stronger ones. Without Kaido, sailing the New World would be extremely difficult for people like them.
"Wasn't I clear enough? I'm going to do something big. Keeping you around would only slow me down! If you can grow stronger and survive in these brutal waters, we'll meet again someday! Worororo!"
Kaido transformed into an azure dragon and shot straight into the sky. Judging by the look of it, who knew who he was off to fight this time.
Meanwhile, on Delta Island, people who read the newspaper were rushing around spreading the news.
"Mr. Nereus has done something huge again!"
"Mariejois… Mr. Nereus liberated all of Mariejois! He rescued every slave from that place!!"
Many people on this island had once been slaves, or rather, aside from those born after getting saved, nearly everyone here had endured that kind of suffering.
Some had even been imprisoned in Mariejois. They understood just how difficult what Nereus had done truly was. In their hearts, calling it a miracle would not be an exaggeration.
"Mr. Nereus… are you really the Warrior of Liberation?"
On campus, the older students and teachers were spreading the news as well. The younger children couldn't quite understand why this news made everyone so emotional.
But they still followed along behind them, joining in the excitement and shouting Nereus' name.
Kuma sat on the steps, watching it all—the heartfelt laughter, the figures running freely. The scene before him made Nereus' image increasingly resemble the figure of Nika in his heart.
"Kuma, do you have time right now?"
"Yes, I do. What's wrong? Do you need help?"
"Mr. Nereus rescued so many slaves from Mariejois this time. A lot of them will definitely be sent here.
There should be quite a large number coming. The principal asked those of us without classes to help the islanders tidy up and prepare to welcome our new companions."
"That's true. Their previous lives must have been very hard. I'll come right away."
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