"Waaahhh—" Os burst into tears. "I just suddenly remembered when I was separated from my dad."
"I cried... but because he beat me!"
"He chased me down ten blocks. Even now, just thinking about it, my butt still hurts."
Whitebeard Newgate asked curiously, "Why did your father chase you?"
"He said if I didn't bring home a wife and a grandkid, I shouldn't even think about coming back..." Os's face softened with nostalgia. He wondered if that old man was doing well these days.
"..." Newgate fell silent. "But… you pass out whenever you get near a girl."
"What are you going to do?"
Os felt like a tiny knife had jabbed him right in the heart. "That was in the past! I'm much better now!"
"Really?" Gloriosa put a hand on Os's shoulder.
Toot—
Os instantly looked like a steam train about to blow—steam gushed from the top of his head, and his face turned beet red.
With a loud thud, he collapsed.
"Pff—"
Shakky smiled like an amused auntie, and then glanced at Loki. 'That kid Loki … When he stepped up to call Klein his father earlier, sure, it was partly because of a bet with Linlin…'
'But it felt more like he wanted to protect his father and stop the fighting.'
Back then, she had seen something—like a little tiger mustering all its courage to shield a wounded beast.
She didn't know Loki's full story, but she had a feeling he wasn't as cold as he looked. Probably the cold-outside-warm-inside type.
When Loki returned, Klein jumped up and plopped himself down on the boy's shoulder like it was the most natural thing in the world. "Alright, looks like I've boarded the exclusive Route 11 bus."
He couldn't help but sigh. 'People say "my good boy" as an exaggeration. But mine? No exaggeration needed!'
He was only four years old… and already nearly ten meters tall.
Who else's "good boy" was this tall? This big?
Loki had already wiped away the tears from his face and returned to his usual brooding look—the classic moody kid expression.
Meanwhile, Os had recovered. He looked up in awe, reaching out to poke Loki's massive foot. "So tall… so big… There's not even a toilet on our warship that would fit him."
"..." A vein popped on Klein's forehead. He vanished from Loki's shoulder and delivered a solid Fistbone: Impact to the top of Os's head.
"Aaagh! That hurts! That hurts! I was just thinking about Loki's daily life in the future!" Os cried, squatting and clutching his head.
"Hehe..." Shakky covered her mouth, laughing. "Os has a point. It's not impossible. And the giants are shipbuilding experts. Having them build us a big ship would be perfect."
"Of course, there's another way..." she added.
Newgate looked curious. "What is it?"
"Use Klein-sama's scroll as the toilet." Shakky said with a straight face.
Everyone fell into stunned silence. Klein's face turned dark. "Are you kidding me!? There's no way my scroll is getting used as a toilet!"
"Ridiculous!"
"We'll wait for them to deliver the Treasure Tree Adam materials," he added. "We'll ask them to build us a slightly larger ship."
Just thinking about ships made him recall the famous Water 7… and that ancient Noah's Ark in Fishman Island.
That thing was the size of half the island. Just ridiculous.
Klein returned to Loki's shoulder. "Hey, Loki, give us a smile."
"..." Loki said nothing, keeping his stoic expression.
Their group continued on the path back. Soon, they exited the snowy mountains, though the underworld behind them still glowed with a red light.
The lava would likely continue to flow for a while, eventually forming a massive crater that would either be filled by snow or become a lake.
"Klein, Zeus has been missing for hours now. That guy's so disobedient. I'll have to give him a good scolding later!" Charlotte Linlin huffed, visibly irritated.
Shakky exhaled smoke and comforted her, "We did forget to ask the giants to help look for Zeus earlier. We'll be staying in Elbaf for a while anyway. He'll probably find his way back."
Speak of the devil.
A puff of white cloud came diving down from the sky—it was Zeus, dripping with sweat and struggling hard, his face contorted into a smile worse than crying. "Mama, Mama, I found something amazing! I brought it back!"
On his back… was a massive iron hammer!
That big!
"Huh?" Klein's eyes widened in shock. 'Is that… Is that the great hammer "Ragnir"!?'
'Holy crap! Zeus is actually… kind of a badass!'
'He really managed to steal that thing! I've seriously underestimated this Homie.'
"A hammer!?"
Everyone turned to the gigantic, pitch-black iron hammer strapped to Zeus's back.
"Zeus, where did you get that hammer?" Linlin asked, stunned. She reached out to grab it.
Zzzzzzz—
Golden lightning burst from the hammer, zapping Linlin's hand. It was like Ragnir was trying to stop her from touching it.
"How dare a mere hammer attack me?!" Linlin snapped. Though unharmed, the provocation made her furious.
She reached through the lightning and gripped the massive handle. Her face immediately changed. "So heavy!!"
The hammer's weight far exceeded her expectations—but with her monstrous strength, she still managed to lift Ragnir.
"Even Charlotte thinks it's heavy?" Newgate was shocked.
In terms of pure strength, Linlin was already much stronger than him. He had never heard her complain about weight before.
BOOM—
The ground trembled violently, as if hit by an earthquake.
Linlin slammed the hammer down and pouted, "I don't like this huge thing anyway."
"..." Loki's eyes, though still wrapped in bandages, shimmered with a fiery glow.
"Let me try." Newgate reached out. The moment he touched it, his expression changed. "So heavy. Heavier than a warship!"
His arms bulged with muscle, veins popping, lines of power flexing hard beneath his skin.
"Hrraahhh—!"
Newgate let out a mighty roar, using every ounce of strength he had. The hammer shifted slightly… but he couldn't lift it.
Even with his face red and muscles straining, it was no use. "Too heavy. Even giants couldn't wield something like this!"
It was ridiculously heavy.
At only 14 years old, Newgate's strength already rivaled Hajrudin's, yet he still couldn't lift the giant hammer in front of him.
Shakky smiled sweetly. "This hammer looks even bigger than the ones regular giants use. Probably meant for someone huge and powerful like Harald."
As she said that, she looked toward Loki. "Once Loki grows up, this weapon might suit him well."
"Haha!" Klein burst out laughing. "Zeus, good job! You've earned some praise!"
'If only they could also get their hands on the Devil Fruit guarded by the Elbaf royal family for generations...'
"Lord Klein, why don't you give it a try?" Os suggested.
Klein leapt down from Loki's shoulder, face scrunched. "This thing's absurdly huge!"
Damn!
This isn't just a pony pulling a cart—it's like a shark hauling an aircraft carrier!
The hammer was over ten meters long. Its head alone was the size of a small house.
"I suddenly don't feel like trying..." Klein muttered. "I pass."
It wasn't one of those weapons that could shrink and grow at will.
Even if he could lift it, using a weapon dozens of times bigger than himself just looked ridiculous.