March 1, 1502, Age of the Sea Circle
A month had passed in the blink of an eye, and during that time Orion had remained in Dressrosa, in the company of his fiancée, Princess Scarlett. Although they hadn't taken the final step in their relationship, they had been thoroughly enjoying their nights together, conducting all sorts of experiments and demonstrating the vast imagination Scarlett possessed as the princess of the nation of passion.
Moreover, Orion had been working alongside the royal family and the Tontatta to set the economic revitalization plan in motion. They had already begun planting fields with the more common and easily obtainable medicinal herbs, while waiting for news from the Revolutionary Army branch led by Ivankov, who would be in charge of acquiring seeds of the rarer herbs on the Underworld market.
At present, the plan was still in its initial stage, and much remained to be done. Orion estimated it would take at least a year to obtain the first tangible benefits for the kingdom of Dressrosa, and that the mission to improve the economy would probably take several years to be successfully completed.
Even so, both Orion and the people of the kingdom were quite enthusiastic about the future, firmly believing that more prosperous times would surely come. Orion's economic plan was no secret, as a large number of people were already working on the development of the crops and other related industries.
After all, while the Tontatta were truly skilled at farming, their numbers were limited, so the cooperation of the kingdom's population was needed to complete the task. Orion had no intention of exploiting those small and gullible beings; therefore, to ensure that the project advanced as quickly as possible, the help of everyone in Dressrosa was required.
At the same time, Orion's status as prince consort had become firmly established in the hearts of the people of Dressrosa, who were eagerly awaiting the day of the grand wedding to celebrate the union between their beautiful Princess Scarlett and the duke from distant lands who had come to lift them out of poverty.
The grand wedding, which would be a national celebration, had been scheduled for the night of March 20, coinciding with the spring equinox. It was the most suitable date for the union of Scarlett and Orion, at least from the royal family's point of view, since it was considered an auspicious day that ensured prosperity and fertility.
King Riku was already cheerfully imagining what names his future grandchildren might bear, unaware that Orion still had no intention of becoming a father and would probably make him wait a few more years before that wish was fulfilled.
With only three weeks left until the wedding, the festive atmosphere had already begun to fill the streets of the kingdom, and the general morale of Dressrosa's inhabitants was even higher than usual.
In addition to dedicating their days to the development of the new economic project, Orion and Scarlett took every opportunity to immerse themselves in their romance, and over the past month, their relationship had grown so much closer that the princess's favorability had already surpassed 90 points.
Given the high favorability and compatibility with the beautiful princess, she could be registered as his first Main Wife once they took the final step and united on their wedding night. Orion couldn't help but wonder what kind of rewards the system would offer him, especially since even the benefits from registering a secondary wife had been quite significant.
Besides the advantages for him, registering his companions in the system also had very positive effects on them, often increasing their talents or even granting them specific abilities.
Overall, the last month had been completely joyful and fulfilling for Orion, who had adapted well to his new routine in Dressrosa, though he had never lost contact with Pacific Kingdom and the people living in his home on the other side of the world.
Despite being far from home, he continued to oversee the general direction of the kingdom's affairs with the help of Lolo and Giolla.
However, today, the calm he had been enjoying would abruptly come to an end when he received an emergency call from the South Blue.
"Orion! Captain Olive has been captured by the Marines!" came Ginrummy's voice through the Den Den Mushi.
"What happened? Calm down and tell me the situation in detail," said Orion, trying to remain composed, though inside he was deeply unsettled.
It was only natural for him to feel anxious when his beloved pirate wife had been captured by the Marines, but he knew very well that losing his composure before understanding the whole situation would only delay his ability to act and resolve it.
The fact that Ginrummy—the vice-captain of Olive's pirate crew—had called him in such desperation meant that the situation was far from simple.
"The captain wanted to help you investigate Umit Shipping's operations in the South Blue, so we had been attacking several of their vessels along the trade routes we already knew.
At first, everything was going smoothly; we managed to seize a large amount of loot, and Captain Olive even succeeded in interrogating two high-ranking officers..."
However, everything began to spiral out of control when the Marines started moving abnormally to protect Umit Shipping's vessels. In just one week, we had to fight several times against the highest-ranking Marines in the South Blue, and today, we were finally ambushed by a combined attack from the South Blue Marines and those from Headquarters!"
Ginrummy's voice still carried deep concern, though speaking with Orion seemed to calm her slightly. Perhaps she trusted that he would find a way to resolve the situation, one way or another.
"What happened to Olive? You said she was captured—where is she now?" Orion asked, frowning.
"The captain fought against Rear Admiral Nakamura and the Marines from Headquarters, and… she stayed behind to cover our retreat. She is currently being held prisoner at Marine Headquarters in the South Blue, and the Marines have announced they'll execute her in a week!"
Upon hearing those words, Orion began releasing his Conqueror's Haki involuntarily, though fortunately no one was nearby to suffer from his loss of emotional control.
Finally, after taking a deep breath to steady himself, Orion said,
"Don't worry. Everything will be fine. I'll be there soon."
After ending the call with Ginrummy, Orion went straight to see Scarlett. With such an emergency unfolding in the South Blue, it was impossible for him to remain in Dressrosa doing nothing. However, using his Space Gate to return there meant that the long-awaited wedding would have to be postponed.
He quickly found the beautiful princess and, after briefly explaining the situation, apologized for having to leave so suddenly without being able to celebrate their grand wedding.
"Don't be silly. Do you think I'm so spoiled that I'd get angry over something like this?" Scarlett said, caressing his cheek. Then, standing on her tiptoes, she kissed him gently on the lips, showing all her affection.
"Go and save Olive. Even though I don't know her, I'm sure she must be frightened, waiting for you to arrive. Don't worry about the wedding—we can hold it anytime, there's no rush," said Scarlett with a radiant smile.
Orion felt a warmth spread through his chest and took a step forward, embracing her tightly. For several minutes, they stayed in each other's arms in silence, simply sharing the warmth of their bodies.
At last, Orion stepped back from the beautiful princess and, after promising to return as soon as possible to carry out the wedding, he opened a Space Gate and set off through the space-time tunnel.
…
Fortunately, this time Orion did not encounter an interruption from the red-eyed entity while traveling through the Space Gate, as had happened before. Had he been intercepted midway and failed to arrive in time to save Olive, he would never have forgiven himself.
After nearly a minute traveling through the space-time tunnel, Orion arrived at Pacific Kingdom. As soon as he appeared in the central plaza of the kingdom, people were already there waiting for him.
"Orion!" Giolla cried as she threw herself into his arms, hugging him tightly.
After several months apart, she couldn't help but feel overwhelmed with emotion upon seeing him again. Even so, she knew the current situation was quite delicate, so after a brief moment she stepped back and switched into "work mode."
"Orion, we've already prepared the troops for departure. We're just waiting for your orders," Giolla said seriously.
Christina and Ginny, leaders of the Royal Army and the Southern Revolutionary Army, stepped forward with determined looks. Among Orion's wives there was great harmony, and the fact that Olive had been captured by the Marines had stirred every powerful woman with an important role in Orion's forces to act immediately to help her.
Orion shook his head and met their expectant gazes.
"I appreciate your readiness to act without delay, but it's still too early to launch a massive assault on the Marines," Orion said seriously.
At present, Olive was being held prisoner at Marine Headquarters in the South Blue. If Orion used his armed forces to mount a direct attack, it would be tantamount to a declaration of war. He still didn't possess enough power to confront such a colossal organization as the Marines, and such an action would cause more problems than benefits.
Pacific Kingdom was developing rapidly, largely because it had maintained a low profile, avoiding conflicts with other nations or with the Marines. If Orion were to arrive with his armies to free Olive, even if they tried to conceal their identities, the chances of it having negative repercussions on the kingdom's future were quite high.
If he had no other choice but to resort to such a method to save his beloved Olive, he wouldn't have hesitated to go there and attack the base directly, even if it meant declaring war on the World Government ahead of time. But fortunately, there was no need for such a drastic action.
Thanks to his special abilities, which were particularly efficient for infiltration, he could rescue Olive without triggering a major conflict with the Marines—though it was true that he might not be able to avoid a small-scale fight if there happened to be a powerful person guarding the sensual pirate.
Christina and Ginny lowered their heads, a bit disappointed that they couldn't assist Orion in his confrontation with the Marines, yet they didn't voice any objections, respecting his decision. However, Orion's next words shifted the situation once again.
"Even so, although it's not necessary for you to come with me to rescue Olive, I want you to lead our armies to Verdant Island."
Upon hearing Orion's words, Christina's eyes widened slightly in surprise, and she asked,
"Verdant Island?… Are you planning to attack—"
"That's right. We're going to attack the Nakamura family's base. I believe it's finally time to take care of this problem once and for all," Orion said with a firm nod.
Orion hadn't forgotten his grudge against Nakamura and Yasirugi, and for a long time, he had been waiting for the right moment to eliminate those pests.
In the past, he hadn't been strong enough to deal with the corrupt Vice Admiral Nakamura, but now things were different. Not only had Orion's personal strength grown to the point that he could defeat the Vice Admiral in battle, but the military forces under his command were now powerful enough to crush the Nakamura family.
This time, it had been Nakamura himself who had collaborated with Marines from Marine Headquarters to capture Olive. Orion was tired of that corrupt high-ranking officer who ruled over much of the South Blue as if it were his own domain, and he had decided the time had come to get rid of him.
Still, he also needed to deal with the entire Nakamura family, for if he didn't, the aristocratic clan would only produce another individual to replace him.
Moreover, dealing with Nakamura would also serve as a way to deliver justice for everything his wife Christina had suffered because of that corrupt Marine. He had promised her that one day he would take care of the Vice Admiral and his nephew, and now the time had come to fulfill that promise.
As for Yasirugi, he was currently in Marineford, which meant he could avoid the coming calamity for a while longer. Nevertheless, Orion had no intention of letting him escape and was already considering going after him soon to end his life as well.
Perhaps it was time to look for his fiancée and childhood friend Gion to bring her back to her homeland—and, in the process, he could eliminate Yasirugi and also visit Doll and Hina.
In any case, that would be something to think about later, since the most important matter now was rescuing Olive before anything terrible happened to her. Although the Marines had announced they would execute her in seven days, it was hard to know what kind of torment she might endure in the meantime.
After Orion gave instructions to Christina and Ginny to lead their troops toward the Nakamura family's base, he immediately prepared to leave for the stronghold where Olive was being held prisoner.
However, before he could do so, two figures appeared before him—or rather, three.
"Orion, I want to go with you to save Olive," said Hototogisu, ready to depart, her spear already in hand.
"Yes, Orion! Take us with you in case you need help! We can definitely assist you!" said little Lily Enstomach, sitting on Hototogisu's shoulder in her tiny form.
Orion looked at the two determined girls, and although it was quite likely they wouldn't even have the chance to participate in Olive's rescue, he didn't reject their offer. After all, they simply wanted to help however they could.
Though Hototogisu and Lily's power levels were much lower than his own, they were far from weak and could indeed be useful should something unforeseen occur—especially Hototogisu, who, after years of intense training, could instantly become an elite Marine if she ever chose to join their ranks.
With a simple thought, Orion opened a gate to his Pocket Dimension, and Hototogisu leapt inside without saying another word, perhaps fearing Orion might change his mind and leave them behind.
Then, Orion turned his gaze toward the third figure who had appeared: the young mermaid Shyarly.
Several years had passed since Shyarly had arrived in Pacific Kingdom, and she had grown considerably during that time. Her body was now about the same size as Orion's adult form—around two meters tall (6'7")—perhaps even a little taller.
Even so, she was only a ten-and-a-half-year-old girl, just beginning the first stage of her explosive development. It was clear that in the future she would become a petite giant compared to Orion.
After years of living happily in Pacific Kingdom, Shyarly had become far more outgoing and cheerful than she'd been at first, though with the onset of preadolescence, her innate tendency toward a calmer personality had begun to reemerge.
She had let her hair grow freely, and now her long black hair reached halfway down her back, though she still covered one of her eyes with part of her bangs, just as she had when she first arrived.
Overall, the current Shyarly was a blend of her natural self and the traits she had developed as a result of the environment in which she had grown over the past few years. And although she still missed the depths of the ocean from time to time, she was genuinely happy to have been magically transported to Pacific Kingdom to begin a completely different life from the one she had before.
"Orion, do you need my help?... I can swim very fast, I could carry you, and that way we could reach Olive's location quickly," said the mermaid with a determined look.
Even though she had helped Pacific Kingdom's fishing industry flourish and played a very active role in the kingdom—being regarded almost as a national treasure—she still wanted to assist Orion directly in moments like this, when he had to face powerful enemies.
Unfortunately, she had little talent for combat, so even if she trained day and night, she would probably never be able to fight alongside Orion without being a burden to him. This caused considerable tension in the young mermaid, who felt she was of no help to Orion and feared being forgotten because of it.
Her only talent was those stupid visions of the future she couldn't even control! How could that possibly help Orion at all?
Those were the thoughts running through the girl's mind, though she had no idea that those very "useless" visions were, in fact, a far more valuable power to Orion than mere combat ability—something neither of them yet knew.
With a gentle smile, Orion used his "Gigantification" ability, growing large enough to place one hand on the soft dark hair of the girl and tenderly stroke her head.
"I appreciate the thought, Shyarly, but it's not necessary. I have a method to get there quickly. The best way you can help me is by staying here and keeping yourself safe."
Orion's words were as kind as possible, since he knew that being too blunt would hurt the mermaid's self-esteem. However, even such gentle words made Shyarly feel deeply disappointed at not being able to help him once again. She couldn't even assist him using her natural advantages as a mermaid!
In truth, had Shyarly been an adult mermaid, Orion would probably have accepted her proposal, since mermaids were known to be the fastest swimmers in the world—their speed far surpassing that of any ship.
However, the young mermaid was still just a child and lacked the stamina to endure such an arduous multi-day journey. The best thing for her was to remain calm and safe within Pacific Kingdom.
After his short conversation with Shyarly, Orion bid farewell to everyone present, and, glancing in the direction indicated by his system map, he began to run at full speed.
Indeed, the "method" Orion had told Shyarly he would use to reach Olive quickly… was simply to run all the way there!
It was something he had done on a smaller scale before, but this time he would have to push the concept to its absolute limit if he wanted to reach Olive before her scheduled execution. By using his Pocket Dimension, Orion could run continuously while employing Soru at regular intervals.
Of course, this process was extremely exhausting, as it required constant use of one of his special abilities. Unfortunately, Orion had no other choice but to rely on this method, since otherwise, he wouldn't arrive in time to save his beloved.
Running at full speed, he reached the coastline and entered the Pocket Dimension without stopping. Within minutes, he had crossed the vast inner space of that small parallel world, and opening a new gate, he leapt forward—appearing high in the sky above the South Blue.
Then, using Geppo, he kicked off the air to propel himself upward and reentered the Pocket Dimension to continue running. This method would be repeated tirelessly until he reached the Marine base where Olive was imprisoned.
If exhaustion became too great for him to continue with this approach, his only option would be to rest while traveling aboard one of his ships—in which case, the presence of Hototogisu and Lily could prove quite helpful.
As Orion dashed at full speed, continuously employing his spatial abilities, he couldn't help but think how convenient it would be to have a long-distance transport power like Kuma's. He wondered whether the mission connected to the gentle revolutionary—one he still had yet to complete—might grant him a similar ability someday.
Orion's journey toward the Marine base had officially begun, and it would likely take him several days to reach his destination.