"You bastard! If you were gonna summon a ship, why didn't you say so earlier?!"
Zoro, dripping wet, shouted at Genrou with his mouth wide open.
"What's the big deal? It's just a little seawater," Genrou replied with a grin. "And thanks to me, you don't even have to row anymore."
"Shishishi! That was amazing! So this is the real Golden Stag, huh?"
"I'm definitely gonna build a pirate ship like this someday!"
Luffy pressed down his hat, eyes sparkling with excitement.
"Building a ship like the Golden Stag isn't so simple. You really think you can pull that off, rookie?"
A new voice rang out from the deck.
Zoro and Luffy turned around to see a group of pirates dressed as sailors walking toward them. The one who had spoken was clearly the leader.
"Huh? Who are you guys? You here to steal our ship?"
Luffy asked with a frown.
"Steal? No, no. This is our ship—how could we steal it?"
"What? Your ship? But didn't Genrou summon it with Drake's power?"
"That's true," the sailor admitted, "but don't you think there's something missing if you just summon a ship?"
"Missing?"
Luffy tilted his head, clearly not understanding.
"I think he means that when the ship is summoned, the original crew of the Golden Stag comes with it too," Nami offered.
"Smart lady," the sailor nodded. "Exactly. After all, a ship still needs a crew to sail it."
"So when the Golden Stag appears, those of us who once served aboard her are summoned too."
"Bit of a shame, though. I was hoping I'd finally get to see Captain Drake again…"
"Looks like she didn't get summoned this time."
He glanced at Genrou with some regret.
Genrou, however, wasn't surprised in the slightest by the appearance of the sailors.
He understood why Drake might have appeared too—after all, her Noble Phantasm, Golden Stag and the Stormy Night, worked a lot like the Conqueror King's Ionioi Hetairoi.
Just as Hephaestion could summon Iskandar using Ionioi Hetairoi, Genrou could summon Drake when calling forth the Golden Stag.
Of course, summoning a full Heroic Spirit like Drake took tremendous energy.
For a simple journey, it wasn't worth the cost.
Still… he was definitely interested in the sea-conquering woman of the Type-Moon world.
"Alright, I'll leave the sailing to you guys. Our destination is that island up ahead."
"I've got something I need to discuss with our navigator, so I'll be taking my leave for now."
Genrou smiled and waved to the sailors, then gently pulled Nami along toward the captain's quarters of the Golden Stag.
"Heh, looks like the boss is just as free-spirited as Captain Drake."
"Well, you heard him. Let's get to work, boys!"
The sailors quickly snapped into action and scattered to their positions.
"Wait… you can summon even Drake herself through that ship?"
"I wonder if I'll be able to summon Kokushibou one day…"
Zoro mumbled as he stared at the sailors moving across the deck.
"Shishishi! Zoro, isn't Genrou awesome?"
Luffy patted Zoro on the shoulder and jogged off to chat with the crew—his kind of people.
…
"Genrou… these… these are your personal treasures?!"
Nami's eyes widened in disbelief at the dazzling jewels and ornaments packed inside the briefcase.
Just moments earlier, Genrou had emptied the upper layer of Beli notes.
Then he removed the false bottom to reveal the real prize beneath: two Devil Fruits… and countless sparkling gemstones.
"That's right. All mine."
"W-Wow… the luster on these gems… they're so beautiful."
"Of course. These are all top-tier picks from the Tenryuubito's collections. The cheapest of these goes for tens of millions of Beli. Some are worth over a hundred million."
"Wha—over a hundred million?! Then the one you gave me just now…"
"Sorry. That one was maybe worth a few million at most."
"What?! You have all these jewels, and you gave me the cheapest one?!"
"What, you mad about it? If you are, give it back."
"No way. Once it's in my pocket, it's no longer yours."
Nami took a step back and folded her arms, guarding the necklace like it was a national treasure.
Still, her eyes kept drifting back to the briefcase full of dazzling gems.
"S-So… Genrou… are you showing me all these jewels because… you're going to give them to me?"
"Dream on. These were handpicked from the Tenryuubito's personal vaults—they're premium. I'm saving them for someone special—maybe my future wife."
"Wife…? Then if I became your wife… would I get them?"
"Oho? Nami, should I take that as a confession?"
"Well… it could be. That is, if you're willing to give me all these jewels."
Completely mesmerized by the treasure, Nami had already lost her reasoning. Her voice softened, her gaze sparkled as she leaned toward Genrou.
"Heh."
Genrou let out a chuckle, then swiftly gathered up the gems and Beli, locking the case shut.
Nami snapped back to reality with a jolt, her face turning from hopeful to utterly disappointed.
"Alright, stop drooling over my treasure."
"Hmph! Didn't you bring me here just to show off and flex?"
"Flex? No—showing you the treasure was just a pretext."
"I actually want to talk to you seriously."
"Me? What did I do?"
"Nami, I'll be blunt. You're afraid of me, aren't you?"
"You're scared I might do something to your village, so you don't plan to take us there. In fact, you were probably planning to ditch us along the way—and if possible, steal my treasure too."
…
(End of Chapter)
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