Early the next morning, the Roger Pirates left Wano Country, returning to the open sea and setting course for Whole Cake Island.
On the deck of the Oro Jackson—
Valthior was doing push-ups.
With his physical strength, this level of exercise shouldn't have left him drenched in sweat. Yet now, sweat poured off him, and every time he pushed himself up, his muscles trembled violently.
This made Shanks and Buggy—who were sitting on his back—find it incredibly amusing. The reason was simple: seastone shackles were fastened around Valthior's wrists.
After confirming the course was set, Gaban smoothly slid down from the top of the mast. Landing lightly on the deck, he looked at Valthior and laughed.
"Pretty disciplined, huh? Didn't even need us to tell you—you've already started."
"My goal is to become the strongest in the world," Valthior panted. "You, Rayleigh, Captain Roger—you're all targets I plan to surpass."
"You've still got a long way to go," Gaban burst out laughing.
He walked over and sat down nearby, then teased, "So, did you have a good time with that woman last night?"
"What, jealous because you didn't find love in Wano?" Valthior replied, trying to keep his breathing steady.
"Jealous? Me!?" Gaban snapped. "Do you know who I am? I had three girlfriends in Wano!"
"Impressive," Valthior said flatly.
"I'm just curious—why didn't you bring that woman along?" Gaban asked again.
Valthior stopped, looked up at him like he was an idiot, and said, "If I did that every time, the Oro Jackson wouldn't have enough room."
He hadn't exactly been restrained on this journey—he'd indulged plenty. After all, Valthior wasn't the devoted, one-woman type.
Gaban paused, then grinned.
"Cut the act. You didn't see Olvia as just another one-night thing, did you?"
"Maybe," Valthior admitted calmly. "Like you said, she's different from the others to me."
His frankness caught Gaban off guard. He'd expected at least a little denial.
What made her different wasn't just her looks—though she did fit Valthior's tastes—but also because he already knew who she was.
The future mother of Nico Robin.
At that thought, a trace of restlessness stirred in his chest.
What happened last night… would it erase Robin's existence entirely?
No… but if things played out exactly like before, and Robin was still born the same way… that didn't sit right with him either.
"Your expression just changed," Gaban immediately noticed and laughed. "So you do care about her. That's just possessiveness talking. Happens to every man."
After all these years, Gaban had often gone out drinking and fooling around with Valthior. This was the first time he'd seen any real emotional shift in him over a woman—even if it was subtle.
"You're right. It's possessiveness," Valthior said calmly. "I probably should've taken her with me… or sent her to Mary Geoise."
"Then why didn't you?" Gaban pressed.
"Who knows? Maybe I'm just an idiot. Overconfident, perhaps," Valthior replied, resuming his push-ups.
Gaban blinked, then nodded thoughtfully.
"I see… confidence in yourself, huh? You've got your charm, kid. Maybe she really will wait for you."
In truth, Valthior didn't have any deep, irreplaceable feelings for Olvia. As Gaban said, it was mostly possessiveness.
After forcing himself through five hundred push-ups under the effects of seastone, Valthior finally stopped.
Gaban tapped his axe against the deck.
"Alright, time for today's special training. There's a big fight waiting for us at Whole Cake Island. You'd better get stronger before we get there."
...
Meanwhile, back in Wano Country—
The Roger Pirates' lingering influence, combined with Valthior's prior notice to the scheming Kurozumi Orochi that the Jaygarcia family would be taking over, kept the situation relatively stable even after their departure.
The scholar team continued their research under these conditions.
...
Deep beneath the Flower Capital's shogun residence, in the ancient ruins—
Olvia sat at a desk, carefully recording data from ancient texts.
Not far away, Professor Clover was assigning tasks. After a few scholars left, only the two of them remained.
"You sure you don't need some rest?" Clover walked over and asked.
Olvia froze for a moment, then understood, a faint blush appearing on her face.
"Professor, that's not a very gentlemanly question… Is it that obvious?"
Last night had been her first time. And Valthior's physique was… overwhelming compared to hers. She'd felt like she was dying and coming back to life over and over again.
Yet when she woke up, she found herself oddly unsatisfied.
Unfortunately, by the time she opened her eyes, the man from last night was already gone.
"It's not too obvious," Clover said thoughtfully. "Though I did notice the way you looked at him these past few days. Still, I didn't expect you to be that bold…"
"The New World is dangerous. We could lose our lives at any moment," Olvia said openly. "If I meet a man who stirs my heart, what's wrong with giving myself to him? Who knows if we'll die in the next storm? I don't want to regret never having experienced a man before I die."
It was clear their relationship was close—almost like family—otherwise they wouldn't be having such a blunt conversation.
"Fair enough," Clover sighed. "But… Valthior isn't someone you can rely on. He's not the kind of man who'd stop for a woman, nor one who'd devote himself to you."
"I know," Olvia said, a hint of dissatisfaction in her tone. "Otherwise, he wouldn't have disappeared the moment I woke up."
After a pause, she sighed softly.
"But then again… if he were the kind of man who'd be tied down by feelings, he probably wouldn't have attracted me in the first place."
"Well, as long as you understand," Clover smacked his lips.
He had once thought of introducing her to a promising young scholar back in Ohara. Now, that idea was clearly unnecessary.
Letting that thought go, Clover casually added:
"The work ahead is going to be intense. After Wano, we'll be heading back out to sea. So… you took precautions last night, right? If you end up pregnant, that'd be troublesome. The sea is dangerous."
He assumed someone as intelligent as Olvia would've considered that, so he asked casually.
But the moment he finished speaking, Olvia froze.
Clover immediately sensed something was wrong.
"You didn't…?"
"…It shouldn't be that unlucky, right?" Olvia said, a trace of unease appearing on her face.
...
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