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Chapter 85 - Chapter 85: The Strange Sandstorm

"I'm sorry, but regarding this matter... I must refuse."

Bell-mère didn't even hesitate before rejecting Michael's proposal.

"Sohan-san saved my life and the lives of my two daughters back then, and she's offering me quite a generous salary."

Bell-mère held no resentment whatsoever toward the Navy.

Her decision came purely from considerations of gratitude and practical benefits.

After all, she had two daughters to raise. Just thinking about the salary she used to get as a Marine filled her with a deep weariness.

It was absolutely not enough to support two children.

"Uh, what was your rank back then?"

"Lieutenant Commander at a Marine branch," Bell-mère replied. "From the East Blue, too."

Michael wasn't surprised by that answer.

The East Blue had the lowest military spending among all regions of the Navy.

And the salary of a branch Lieutenant Commander wasn't much to begin with.

Combined, it was more than enough for one person to live on, just barely enough for two.

Definitely not enough to raise two daughters.

"But the Alabasta branch... it's completely different from the East Blue."

Michael walked up beside the three women and said,

"Even though it's a branch, our benefits are aligned with Marine Headquarters. Plus, the Alabasta royal family grants a sponsorship fund to the branch every year… If you were to return at your previous rank, your salary would be about five times higher."

"And that's just the base. If the Alabasta branch captures or eliminates wanted pirates, the entire branch receives a bounty bonus."

As Michael continued explaining, Bell-mère's eyes gradually turned into two giant "$" signs.

Michael wiped the cold sweat from his temple.

So being greedy ran in the family, huh!

"N-No, I can't!"

But soon, Bell-mère shook her head vigorously, her gaze becoming clear again, as if the one who'd just looked so money-hungry wasn't her at all.

"After all, Sohan-san saved my life. I can't..."

"Hey! Bell-mère! What nonsense are you spouting now!"

A familiar voice rang out from behind them.

Bell-mère turned around to see Sohan-san stepping out from the cabin.

"Sohan..."

"I just finished sorting the cargo and heard you talking nonsense out here!"

Sohan walked up to Bell-mère, looked at the young woman before her, and sighed.

"Yes, I did save your life back then. But in these past two years, how many times have you saved mine in return?"

"If we're talking about life debts, it's more like I owe you two lives."

"So stop hesitating. As long as the pay's good, the Navy is certainly a better place to be than some merchant ship."

Bell-mère stood frozen on the spot.

It would be a lie to say she wasn't tempted by the benefits Michael had described.

After all, she hadn't joined the Navy for money back then—she joined to stand up against injustice and unfairness.

Otherwise, she wouldn't have boldly declared that if the Golden Lion dared show up in the East Blue, she'd beat him down.

She wouldn't have stood in front of the villagers when Arlong invaded Cocoyashi Village.

Even though she'd deliberately kept herself away from the Navy for over a year, she had to admit...

She was a Marine at heart.

"And most importantly, you have two children to raise."

Sohan stepped forward and gently brushed Bell-mère's hair. The strong merchant woman, for once, showed a rare hint of tenderness.

"But a cramped merchant ship isn't the best place for kids to grow up healthy, you know."

With that, she walked over to Michael and extended her hand for a firm handshake.

"Michael-san, I'll be counting on you to take care of her."

...

"So on this mission, you brought back a former Navy branch Lieutenant Commander?"

"Mm-hmm."

"And this former Lieutenant Commander has two kids?"

"Yep."

"Do you think I'm going to believe that?"

"Shouldn't you believe it?"

Michael and Stella sat across from each other, eyes locked.

After a long moment, Stella let out a sigh.

Then she muttered under her breath:

"...Sometimes I really wonder if you're actually that dense, or just pretending."

"Ahem, I can hear you, you know."

"So what if you can!"

Stella stuck out her tongue at Michael, then her expression gradually turned serious.

"I've looked into Bell-mère's service record."

She began reading from the file sent from the East Blue branch.

"Bell-mère, joined the Navy at the East Blue branch in the Sea Circle Calendar year 1499, at the age of fifteen."

"Outstanding performance during her service, repeatedly commended in anti-pirate operations. Quickly promoted to Lieutenant Commander of the branch."

"Later went missing on the battlefield of the Oykot Kingdom in the East Blue."

"Seems like she's a Marine with both experience and talent."

Stella said this with a nod.

Michael also nodded. Her record was indeed impressive.

If she hadn't left the Navy for the sake of Nojiko and Nami, she likely would've already made it into Marine Headquarters.

"Judging by her résumé, and from what you just told me about her performance on the merchant ship," Stella continued, "she'd be a great fit for Alabasta right now."

"After all, in the entire SWORD Secret Special Force, you're the only one who's ever actually led soldiers on the ground... You can't possibly handle everything yourself, can you?"

"True. After all, you're all part of a Secret Special Force..."

Michael nodded. He never expected his subordinates to develop leadership skills.

Their main goal was to strengthen individual combat power—to become pillars of the Navy in the future.

"Then it's decided. The Alabasta branch still has several vacant officer positions matching Headquarters ranks... As for Bell-mère, let's just remove the word 'branch' from her Lieutenant Commander title."

"Oh, and when assigning her housing, make sure to give her a bigger place—with a yard, if possible. She does have two kids, after all."

"...It's this kind of unintentional gentleness that makes people misunderstand you!"

"Huh?"

Michael flicked her forehead lightly.

"What kind of weird things are you thinking about all the time... Anyway, during internal training, bring Bell-mère along too."

"Got it."

Stella understood what Michael meant.

"We'll start by teaching her Rokushiki."

After finalizing Bell-mère's assignment, Michael was about to leave the communication room with Stella, when she suddenly called him back.

"There's one more thing..."

"What is it?"

"Recently, near Rainbase, there've been strange sandstorms popping up."

"Sandstorms in the desert? Isn't that perfectly normal?"

"But these sandstorms... they have nothing to do with the weather. It's like... they're alive."

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