Hina opened her mouth as if to say something in response to Arton, but in the end, no words came out. She understood that, for the most part, Arton was right. Given Saint Charlos's personality, the moment he returned, both Hina and Tashigi would be subjected to brutal revenge by the World Nobles. Indeed, it was highly likely she would no longer be able to remain in the Navy.
"Now, let's talk about the two of you," Arton said.
"Can you tell me why you ended up on that island? By all rights, you shouldn't have arrived there. Do you have some special way of tracking me down?"
He narrowed his eyes, carefully observing the pair. If the Navy truly had a method of locating him, that could be dangerous. Arton felt it necessary to find out exactly how Hina and Tashigi had managed to discover his whereabouts.
Hearing that, both Hina and Tashigi tensed. In truth, they had found him by following his Diary entries. But how could they possibly admit that? Apart from being physically incapable of mentioning the Diary Copies to Arton—any attempt to disclose it resulted in a terror that gripped their hearts—they also feared Arton might grow wary of them if he learned of the Diary Copies' existence.
"…Not willing to answer?" Arton said after a moment's silence.
"In that case, I'll have to use some special methods. Nojiko, can you help me out?"
Arton turned his head toward Nojiko.
"What is it, Captain Arton?"
Hearing him call, Nojiko walked over quite naturally.
"Oh, nothing much. I just want to fuse with you."
"Fuse…?" Nojiko gave him a teasing smile. "Arton, you're pretty bold, aren't you? Going to do that right here?"
"Huh? What are you talking about, Nojiko?" Arton asked, confused.
"Aren't you the one who said we should fuse together? I didn't expect you to be so impatient." Nojiko's lips curved upward, and her cheeks took on a faint blush. "Though it's a bit embarrassing, if it's your request, Arton…"
"I don't mind at all," she continued. "No matter when or where you want it, I'll do my best to satisfy you."
Leaning close to Arton's ear, she breathed softly,
"I've been reading some books about… relations between men and women lately."
"I've picked up a lot of interesting techniques."
"Turns out a woman's body has all sorts of ways to take down a man."
"For you, Arton, I'm willing to try them all."
"As long as you're not worried about wearing yourself out, that is."
Her hand began to slide down Arton's abdomen, inching toward a place it shouldn't.
Violet: "As expected of Nami's older sister—she's even more extreme than Nami. But, hmm… wearing him out might actually be a real problem. If she tries all those positions shown in those comics, Arton's stamina will be drained for sure."
Ulti: "I can imagine that once Nojiko starts earning points by combining with Mirajane's template, she might really become quite the 'beast.' Arton could be in for a rough time. Even a single woman could sap a lot of his strength in those situations."
Gion: "This Nojiko is as troublesome as I expected. Carina can't possibly keep both Nami and Nojiko under control. If the chance arises, Nojiko will absolutely end up joining Arton's crew."
Doll: "And then, just like Uta, Nojiko might gain a bunch of points from Arton."
Kujaku: "We can only hope Uta wants to keep the spoils to herself and won't let Nojiko get close to him. Or maybe she can just drain Arton so much he has no energy left for Nojiko."
Belo Betty: "A man like Arton should have plenty of stamina, right? If he's too weak, then my plans might be in danger."
Galette: "No! We have to find Arton quickly. No matter how strong a man is, if too many women crowd around him, he'll still be overwhelmed eventually. He already has more than enough women. If he's still fine now, it's probably because not all of them have actually been intimate with him yet. If they all do, he might really end up too exhausted to accept me. That would be terrible."
Nojiko's voice was soft, but many of the female Diary holders in the live chat still caught every word. A number of them, all hoping to gain power from Arton, now started fretting about his physical condition. Even Smoothie and others who were far away worried, as did Nami and Carina, right there on the ship.
[Nami: "Arton's not really going to become weak, right?"]
[Carina: "Hard to say. Women do have the advantage there sometimes."]
[Nami: "But Arton is strong. I'm sure he's different from other men."]
[Carina: "How about I test him first to see if he's truly that strong?"]
[Nami: "You scheming little fox—don't you try sneaking behind my back!"]
Arton, however, didn't catch any of their conversation. His focus was entirely on Nojiko, especially since her hand was almost reaching a rather forbidden area. Quickly, he grabbed her wrist to stop her.
"Stop, stop! That's not what I meant. I just want to fuse and use your power."
"Oh, my power… So that's what you meant," Nojiko replied with a slight laugh. "I thought you couldn't hold back your desires anymore."
Arton looked rather exasperated at the playful gleam in Nojiko's eyes. Deep down, he mused that the elder sister was far more formidable than the younger one.
"Well then," Nojiko said, still smiling, "let me see what it's like to fuse with you."
She placed her hand in Arton's. Without further ado, once he activated his special ability, a radiant light surrounded the two of them. In moments, Nojiko vanished, and Arton's attire changed dramatically.
His hair turned into long black locks, and two towering demonic horns sprouted from his head. His clothing shifted into a loose-fitting, revealing kimono-like garment. From the point of view of the onlookers, Arton suddenly exuded a touch of seductive charm.
Smoothie: "This must be his Mirajane template, turning him into a demon form. I don't recall seeing that specific transformation in the earlier skill demonstration videos."
Gion: "It's likely a deeper aspect of Mirajane's powers that Nojiko has inherited. But what exactly does Arton plan to do in this state?"
Ain: "Is he planning to do something to Hina and Tashigi?"
Ulti: "This demon form really does look like an Ancient Zoan or Mythical Zoan user."
Black Maria: "I wonder what kind of powers Arton has in that form."
Inside the fusion space, Nojiko found herself in a half-translucent bubble, almost like a soap bubble. She stretched out her arms toward the rays of light streaming in at an angle, feeling cozy and warm. She knew Arton could see her clearly from the outside, so she deliberately struck an alluring pose to show herself at her best.
Sure enough, Arton could see everything happening inside that fusion space.
"What a little enchantress," he thought with a sigh. "If Nojiko keeps getting closer to Mirajane's level, who knows what'll happen?"
Ever since Nojiko had obtained Mirajane's template, Arton could tell her figure had improved considerably. It wasn't as dramatic as Kaya's sudden development after getting the Tsunade template, but her bust was noticeably fuller now than it had been before.
It didn't surprise Arton. Mirajane, the iconic poster girl of Fairy Tail, had a figure that stood out even in a series where most women were extraordinarily well-endowed. He had always remembered that vividly from the Fairy Tail manga.
After snapping ten erotic photos of Nojiko with his Diary, Arton shifted his focus back to Hina, Tashigi, and the World Noble.
"[Satan Soul: Mirajane Seilah]—Mirajane took over the demon Seilah's powers," he reminded himself.
"Seilah possesses the Macro curse magic. Using it, I can force Tashigi and Hina to tell me how they tracked me down. And I can also get that male World Noble to reveal the whereabouts of that female World Noble."
With that in mind, Arton slowly opened his eyes, which now glimmered with a magical aura.