"As long as we're strong enough, no one can control our fate!" Leno clenched his fists, eyes firm.
The girls' hearts trembled. Leno's words shook their worldview. They realized this world wasn't only their peaceful, easy life—there was also endless suffering.
Leno said nothing more. He would let them digest it and adapt to this world in their own time. 'When they've seen enough, they'll understand—sorrow and hardship are the baseline of the world.'
He lay back on the bull's head, quietly feeling the cool sea breeze on his face as his thoughts drifted afar.
"Hey, Leno, look to the right! There's an island. Let's go check it out!" Nami called, binoculars in hand.
Leno glanced up and saw a black speck on the horizon to the right—and his face darkened.
"Hey, hey, Nami, didn't we agree not to enter the Calm Belt?"
"Hehe, this island's on the Calm Belt's outer rim, and we're flying anyway. Besides, I need climate samples from Calm Belt islands. Just this once, pleeease, Leno," Nami pleaded.
"Fine, you win. Everyone stay sharp—we're going into the Calm Belt," Leno said helplessly, standing and banking the ship toward it.
"The Calm Belt's nothing special," Nojiko muttered as she eyed the placid sea below. Leno was about to answer when the water suddenly exploded—a colossal Sea King burst forth, charging straight at their ship.
The creature that surfaced was a thousand meters long, body thick and towering. Before it could approach, a sword aura flashed—its head flew off. Kuina sheathed her blade and stood tall. But before they could relax, the tranquil sea began to boil. Countless Sea Kings surfaced one after another, packed so densely the ocean seemed carpeted with them.
They ranged from "ordinary" thousand-meter beasts to monstrosities five or six kilometers long, crisscrossing the surface in a living maze.
Nojiko's mouth hung open in terror; Nami and Kuina were equally stunned.
Leno casually cleaved a few gigantic Sea Kings that lunged from the waves, but even he felt exasperated—there were simply too many.
"Buzz!" Leno, standing at the bow of the ship, released his Conqueror's Haki. A crimson lightning arc appeared.
"Scram!" His will crashed downward. The Sea Kings below stiffened as one, then fled in a panic, vanishing beneath the surface.
"Phew… my god, there were so many—and so huge!"
"Yeah… I really underestimated the Calm Belt."
Leno said nothing. He knew this place well; he'd been here many times. 'Good chance to broaden their horizons.'
The ship sped toward the island ahead.
As they descended, everyone stared in awe at the enormous landmass.
"This island is massive!"
"Yeah—several times bigger than the last one."
"Mhm. And I'm sensing several strong auras. One each to the east, south, west, and north—and the strongest is in the center.
Kuina, the four sides suit your current level. I'm leaving those to you. The one in the very center we'll save for last; you're not ready for it yet.
Nami, Nojiko—stay behind me. This island is a bit much for you right now," Leno said after sweeping the island with Observation Haki.
"Got it. Leave it to me!" Kuina gripped her sword, excitement shining in her eyes, then headed east.
"We'll be staying here a while. Come on, I'll take you two exploring," Leno said, setting off with Nami and Nojiko hurrying after him.
"Huh? There are traces of human habitation," Nojiko exclaimed, spotting broken walls half-hidden by brambles.
"I see some too. Maybe a human kingdom once lived here," Nami added.
"Almost certainly. Let's keep going," Leno said, scanning around. As they pressed deeper, ruins grew denser, and they even found a broad road buried under earth and vines.
Night fell. Kuina returned, a bit bedraggled, and they sat down to dinner.
"Kuina, are you okay? Any injuries?" they asked, concerned.
"I'm fine. I was careless at first. We picked the perfect place—this island is an ideal training ground. I'll need some time here," Kuina said, still unsated from the battle.
"No problem—we planned to stay awhile anyway," Nami answered.
As days passed, clues from the ruins revealed a hazy truth: a human kingdom had indeed existed here. From scattered traces, they pieced together the outline.
The kingdom had relied on manpower to fend off sea beasts—until one day, two men in suits arrived carrying a case. They proposed a deal: they would provide agents that could gigantify animals so the kingdom could tame them to repel the sea beasts.
The rest was predictable. The giant beasts didn't protect the kingdom; they destroyed it. The country fell beneath the very monsters it created. The group sighed.
"Fate is fickle," Leno murmured.
"Who could've imagined it would end like this," Nojiko said, full of regret.
"Hey, you two, come look how many gold coins we found!" Nami chirped.
Leno and Nojiko were speechless. While they lamented fate, Nami's heart had room for exactly one thing: gold.
After days scouring the outskirts, they had little left to miss—and a tidy haul of coins. On the seventh day, Kuina returned to report she had defeated the emperor crocodile and that they could move on.
By the tenth day, they finally neared the ruins' center.
"Up ahead should be the capital. Our exploration's almost over. Wonder if the royal treasury is still intact… it's gotta be loaded," Nami said, eyes turning into Berries as she rubbed her hands together.
Nojiko shot her a look. "Leno has more money than he can spend, and you're still fixated on treasure?"
"Nojiko, you just don't get it—the best part of adventuring is finding treasure and opening the chest!"
"Nojiko, don't listen to her. When she talks about treasure, her logic goes out the window," Leno said, exposing her flaws. Nojiko couldn't help but laugh out loud.
"Hey, you two, enough!"
"Let's go. There's a big guy waiting for us up ahead," Leno said, taking the lead.
They pushed through the trees and found the ruins of a colossal palace. Atop the shattered roof was a massive nest. A gigantic strange bird stood and spread its wings upon seeing them.
It stood over ten meters tall; its wings spanned more than thirty. Its beak gleamed with an obsidian luster, murderously sharp. Each wing bore a small talon that shone like metal, and its thick legs ended in enormous claws that flashed with a chilling edge.
"This is… an Ancient Giant Bird!?"