The next day at noon, sunlight filled the courtyard of the Dawn Ship. The crew had gathered around a large dining table set beneath the open sky. Plates and cups were scattered across the table after a relaxed meal.
Kirk leaned back in his chair and looked toward Ash, who had just finished a Den Den Mushi call and now wore a thoughtful expression.
"What did that Marine grandma want with you?" Kirk asked curiously.
Ash rubbed his temple and let out a small laugh.
"She asked what bounty would be appropriate for us."
Kirk blinked.
"This... Are the Marines that accommodating now? Since when can bounties be negotiated?"
Youki and the others nearby also looked surprised.
Ash shrugged lightly and began explaining.
Back in Spring Queen City, during his earlier meeting with Vice Admiral Tsuru, they had discussed the meaning of bounties. It was not simply about crimes committed. A bounty could also represent how dangerous or influential someone was believed to be.
Kirk crossed his arms and thought for a moment.
"So it is not just about crimes, it is also recognition of strength. That makes sense, but something about it still feels strange."
Youki laughed loudly.
"Why think so much about it? The higher the bounty, the better!"
Kirk suddenly frowned.
"Wait a minute."
He pointed at Ash.
"What did you mean when you said our bounty? How are we involved in this?"
Ash laughed.
"Reporters from the World Economic Journal took photos of us traveling together from Gourmet City all the way until we escaped the Florian Triangle. Because of that, they labeled you all as my accomplices."
Kirk groaned.
"Even if it is technically true, calling us accomplices sounds terrible."
"That is why I said if we ever catch Morgans, we should beat him up," Ash replied with a grin.
Kirk and Youki immediately spoke at the same time.
"You must take us with you!"
Ash chuckled before raising a finger.
"Alright, back to the important matter. How much bounty should we set?"
He began counting on his fingers as he spoke.
"The currently confirmed Seven Warlords of the Sea include Pirate Empress Boa Hancock, eighty million Berries. Crocodile the Sand-Crocodile, eighty-one million Berries. Knight of the Sea Jinbe, two hundred twenty million Berries. Heavenly Yaksha Donquixote Doflamingo, three hundred forty million Berries. And Gecko Moria, who we just defeated, three hundred twenty million Berries."
Youki nodded immediately.
"Then ours should be higher than Moria's."
Ash shook his head.
"No. When I spoke with Vice Admiral Tsuru earlier, I told her clearly that my bounty must be higher than all the current Warlords."
Tsuki raised his hand with excitement.
"Then let us make it a sky high price. One billion Berries!"
Ash laughed.
"One billion is not really a sky high price."
Everyone looked at him.
He continued calmly.
"Besides, we have not even entered the New World yet. Even if we defeated every single Warlord, the Marines would still find it difficult to issue a bounty exceeding one billion Berries."
Seeing the puzzled looks on their faces, Ash quietly muttered to himself.
"Also, this is not the runaway era of inflated bounties that will happen nine years from now."
Youki tilted his head.
"Ash, what era did you just mention?"
Ash waved his hand.
"Nothing. Forget it."
Tsuki leaned forward.
"Bro Ash, if one billion Berries is not a sky high price, then what kind of bounties do those monsters in the New World have?"
Ash leaned back in his chair with a small smile.
"The monsters in the New World are the ones with real sky high bounties. The current Sea Emperors all have bounties worth several billions. Even their top commanders often reach the billion level."
Tsuki fell silent for a moment before snorting.
"Hmph. What is so impressive about that? No matter how high their bounty is, they are still pirates. A large bounty might represent strength, but it might also represent how evil they are."
Youki laughed loudly and wrapped an arm around Tsuki's shoulder.
"Exactly! Those Sea Emperors are nothing special. One day we will knock them down ourselves."
Ash burst into laughter.
"Haha, that is the kind of spirit you need. That is real Haki."
Kirk tapped the table.
"So what bounty would be suitable for us?"
Ash thought for a moment.
"I will call Grandma Tsuru again. As long as it is higher than those few rotten fish among the Warlords, anything below one billion is fine."
At that moment, Youki suddenly spoke again.
"If possible, it would be better not to issue bounties for me and my sister. We do not like that idea."
Ash nodded.
"I will tell Grandma Tsuru."
Shortly afterward, Ash contacted Vice Admiral Tsuru again through the Den Den Mushi. The two confirmed the bounty matter and also arranged to meet at the Sabaody Archipelago several days later.
Just as the call ended, an albatross carrying a camera and a newspaper bag landed nearby.
The bird stared directly at them.
Ash raised an eyebrow.
"Heh, a paperboy?"
The News Coo did not respond. It simply hopped forward and presented a Den Den Mushi toward Ash.
Ash looked surprised.
"This is for me?"
Then realization quickly dawned.
"Morgans wants to talk?"
The News Coo nodded.
Ash picked up the Den Den Mushi.
A moment later, the call connected.
The snail's face changed, transforming into the exaggerated bird-like expression of Morgans.
A dramatic voice immediately rang out.
"This is our first conversation. Allow me to introduce myself. I am Big News Morgans, president of the World Economic Journal."
Ash, Kirk, and Youki instinctively exchanged glances.
None of them spoke.
Morgans continued excitedly.
"I maintain excellent cooperative relationships with the Marines and the World Government, so I have already learned that you will soon become one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea."
Ash nearly rolled his eyes.
He believed Morgans had sources within the Marines or the World Government. That much was obvious. But claiming to have an excellent relationship with them was pure nonsense.
Ash thought quietly to himself.
I have seen the original story. This guy is an underworld broker who deals with people like Big Mom regularly. He leaks secret information all the time and constantly annoys the World Government. If he was not so good at hiding, they would have eliminated him long ago.
Ash spoke calmly.
"Alright, Big News Morgans. What do you want from me?"
His tone sounded slightly bored.
"You did not contact me just to brag about your intelligence network, did you?"
Morgans laughed loudly.
"Of course not! I would never be that boring."
He paused dramatically.
"I have serious business to discuss with you."
Ash raised an eyebrow.
"Serious business? Go on."
Morgans lowered his voice slightly as if sharing a secret.
"Since it is already confirmed that you will become one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, you will need a powerful epithet."
He began listing examples enthusiastically.
"Boa Hancock of the Kuja Pirates is known as Pirate Empress. Jinbe of the Sun Pirates is called Knight of the Sea. Donquixote Doflamingo of the Donquixote Family is known as Heavenly Yaksha."
He continued explaining.
"An epithet is just like a bounty. It helps the world remember you and represents the image of your power."
Then Morgans spoke slowly.
"You would not want other people to give you an unpleasant nickname, would you?"
Ash silently rolled his eyes.
This dramatic journalist really loved building suspense.
Morgans continued speaking with increasing excitement.
"Look at how pirate crews are named in this world. A captain who uses a giant axe forms the Great Axe Pirates. Someone who uses guns forms the Firearm Pirates. A captain with a long nose becomes the Long Nose Pirates. A fat captain leads the Fat Pirates."
He chuckled.
"The creativity of those people is painfully predictable."
His tone suddenly became serious.
"You would not want to end up being called something like Black Haired Kid, right?"
He continued with another example.
"Look at Red Haired Shanks. Because of his red hair, his crew is simply called the Red Hair Pirates."
Morgans laughed again.
"It is extremely unimaginative."
Ash shivered slightly.
Honestly, the naming style of pirate crews in this world was indeed questionable.
Since arriving in this world, he had gradually realized something else.
Aside from the unbelievable technology scattered across the seas, the general education level of ordinary people was... worrying.
In the end, Ash nodded.
"You actually make a good point."
He leaned forward slightly.
"Alright then. Let us talk about my epithet."
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