"Orin-sama, is there something making you happy?"
Inside a luxurious room, on a large genuine-leather sofa, a man was lying there enjoying a massage. The young maids wore skimpy maid outfits, their little feet in black stockings and white stockings gently stepping on his back.
For Orin, this strength barely felt like anything.
At his side, there was also some newly arrived princess from some forgotten country, carefully peeling grapes to feed Orin.
Despite the newly launched girl-group dance from the red-light district performing in front of him, Orin's attention seemed completely absent from them. Every now and then, the corner of his mouth simply showed a faint smile.
Hearing the voice, he slowly came back to himself.
"Nothing…"
"Just thought of something interesting."
At that moment, the door to the room slowly opened, and a tall, voluptuous woman in a tight-fitting dress walked in.
When she saw Orin, a faint smile appeared instantly on her face.
"Orin-sama, I hope I'm not disturbing your mood."
Orin didn't have to look to know who walked in. He simply smiled.
"Sammi, we've known each other for over twenty years. No need to be so polite."
Her round, peach-like hips gently sat beside Orin, letting him rest his head on her lap.
Sammi then held her face, speaking with a blissful expression,
"No… ~"
Her temperament was very similar to Kalifa's, but even more seductive and charming—she looked to be in her thirties, the age of peak capability.
Feeling the softness on his face, Orin lay there without denying it, simply resting with closed eyes.
"Go ahead… tell me what's been happening on the sea lately."
"Orin-sama wants the internal matters, or…"
"Tell me about those under my command."
Orin lay there comfortably, his upper body bare. His strong and massive physique radiated a primal masculine presence. A beautiful attendant was gently gathering his long hair.
They looked at Orin's perfect muscles and couldn't help quietly swallowing.
Orin slightly opened his eyes, because he could sense that these maids were not simple.
Sammi continued massaging his temples while speaking,
"First are the major figures of the underground world. Each of their business territories has expanded to some degree. Among them, Doflamingo stands out the most—he has even extended his business into the territories of several Yonko…"
"The red-light district under my jurisdiction mainly handles the Paradise region, while Stussy's Pleasure Town operates primarily in the New World."
"As for the Shichibukai, most of the time they cooperate with us very well, and our relationships are quite harmonious.
Especially the Empress of Amazon Lily—she even agreed to send warriors from Amazon Lily to serve as security in the red-light district of the Sabaody Archipelago."
Orin nodded lightly.
Those women from earlier—who acted as if they'd never seen a man before yet possessed Haki—were likely from Amazon Lily.
This Hancock wasn't as arrogant and domineering as in his memory.
If he had time, he wouldn't mind taking a trip to Amazon Lily.
"But regarding Gran Tesoro, things have been unclear lately."
"Hmm?"
"Tesoro, over the years, aside from paying the expected Belly for your use, has had very little interaction with any of us. To be honest, we're not sure exactly how much wealth Tesoro has accumulated by now. And since he's part of our faction, it's hard for us to plant spies…"
Orin listened quietly, just about to speak, when Sammi continued,
"But after hearing of your return, he did call, saying that if you had time, he welcomes you to Gran Tesoro as a guest."
"Guest?"
Orin's lips curled into a smile.
If, before this point, he was thinking that Tesoro was getting a bit too bold,
then these later words were pure arrogance.
Looks like Tesoro has too much money and has lived too comfortably,
to the point he thinks he's no longer a small figure, but some major big shot.
"Guest… what a nice word."
"Tell him—when I feel like sparing the time to bother with him, I'll naturally visit."
This wasn't the first time Orin had encountered subordinates getting inflated.
Previously, even Doflamingo had begun showing signs of this.
But after being threatened by Kaido, and after Orin personally visited Dressrosa, Doflamingo finally became obedient.
But now, Tesoro was acting up instead.
If not for the fact that Orin had important matters coming up soon, he would have gone to Gran Tesoro immediately.
But for now, the timing would have to be pushed back.
"The richest man in the world," huh???
Interesting…
He had set aside his title of Emperor—he simply no longer controlled the reins of the sea. But that didn't mean he would allow even the major industries of his subordinates to slip away.
Maybe Tesoro had really taken that old line of his—
With money, you can have everything—too seriously. Even though Orin only said it back then to trick him into making money for him.
Still, Tesoro continued paying his dues. That meant he hadn't forgotten who his superior was. A simple reminder would be enough.
...
While Orin enjoyed his life, the stories on the sea continued unfolding. Luffy and his group, unsurprisingly, were allowed to escape by Kuzan, who let them go with the excuse:
They defeated Crocodile—Orin's subordinate—and helped him vent that frustration.
And what happened next was roughly the same as in the impression.
Due to the importance of Enies Lobby, and because the flag of the World Government was shot through, Straw Hat Luffy's name even spread to the Sabaody Archipelago, where Orin heard about it.
Luffy's bounty surged to 300 million Belly, making him the highest among the Supernovas, charging straight toward the Sabaody Archipelago.
But midway, in the region of the Devil's Triangle, they were stalled.
Mihawk was also leisurely rowing his little boat in that direction.
And during this period—
Ace was captured.
Orin felt helpless. He had no idea who Ace inherited his traits from—reckless, weak in awareness, and playful. Definitely not similar to Captain Roger.
Banaro Island.
The Blackbeard Pirates were finally cornered by Ace.
Or rather, they had cornered Ace as well.
Hades looked helplessly at the youth pretending to be cool while crouching on the rooftop.
This unlucky kid.
"Teach, I finally found you."
"Ace! How about joining us!!!"
Just as the battle was about to erupt, Hades raised his hand to stop Van Augur's pointless sniping and stepped forward.
"Captain, someone like Fire Fist Ace—leave him to me."
"Zehahahahaha… rare to see you interested. Then I'll leave it to you, Hades!!!"
Ace stared at the sunglasses-wearing dual-axe fighter before him. He had a strange feeling deep inside, though he couldn't place why—after all, not everyone was Kuzan.
But Hades simply drew his twin axes. Intense Armament Haki flowing like Ryuo wrapped around the blades. Behind the sunglasses, his gaze grew unreadable.
He simply sighed inwardly.
Then let me use Gaban's appearance and fighting style… to give you a little push from your father's generation, Ace.