Kuina's eyes were like those of a ghost, devoid of any emotion.
She'd received Ryuya's instructions to simply sleep and ignore anyone. Closing her eyes again, she drifted back into her dreams, envisioning herself practicing swordsmanship with her master.
After a while, Carina finally found the treasure room! She opened the heavy door to reveal a dazzling sight.
Even the darkness couldn't obscure the treasures' brilliance.
Carina almost gasped. She'd never seen such an extravagant hoard—mostly gold, but also stacks of neatly bundled Belly.
She estimated the Belly alone to be worth over a billion!
If she took it, she'd become instantly rich, no longer needing to steal!
Calming herself, she took out her small bag. She wanted the gold, but it was too heavy and would slow her escape. She settled for the jewels and the Belly.
A wide grin spread across Carina's face.
Excitement overwhelmed her, making her forget the ship's strangeness. She didn't notice Ryuya's knowing smile behind her.
She filled her bag until it could hold no more.
Leaving the treasure room, she rejoiced: "Perfect! Everyone's asleep! No one will know I took this!"
She also mentally criticized the ship's owner for their carelessness—no patrols, and the rooms were unlocked.
Unbeknownst to Carina, the ship had a ship spirit; without Ryuya's command, she wouldn't have even entered the cabin.
As for patrols? In the East Blue, where news traveled slowly, and people were overconfident, who would dare approach the Dawn Bird's Noah's Ark?
Smiling, Carina headed for the exit. Ryuya, who'd been observing her, extended his hand.
Bijo Bijo no Mi, Awakening: Ghost Wall! As an awakened Logia-type Devil Fruit, it could alter the surrounding environment.
Ryuya's was considered the strongest support-type Devil Fruit by the system.
Carina's senses were instantly distorted, similar to Sōsuke Aizen's ability in Bleach, but more advanced—a manipulation of the environment rather than just hypnosis.
Carina's smile faded as she sensed something was wrong. Following her memory, she tried to retrace her steps, but couldn't find the entrance.
"Did I get lost in this huge ship?" she wondered.
She tried again, carefully observing the cabins, but noticed the cabins repeating. A terrible thought struck her: she was walking in circles!
Goosebumps appeared. She removed an accessory and placed it on the ground, then walked straight ahead.
The path seemed endless. She prayed she was wrong, but when she saw the accessory again, her eyes widened. She was walking in a loop!
She remembered the ship's strangeness and trembled.
"I have to escape!"
She walked faster, only to see the accessory again. This time, she turned and headed towards what she thought was the entrance, but the accessory reappeared.
She checked a nearby door. Taking a deep breath, she opened it to reveal a staircase.
Hope surged! She climbed the stairs, only to find herself in an orange grove!
It looked familiar, but she didn't dwell on it. She could see the sky! She could jump from the trees to the deck!
She jumped, only to reappear in the ship's corridor!
Terror and horror gripped her. Even worse, when she returned to the grove, she recognized it as Nami and Nojiko's orange grove, identified by the inscription they'd carved into a tree.
Regret washed over Carina. Where had she come to?
Ryuya, unconcerned, returned to his room to sleep, his Devil Fruit ability still active…
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