"Good. You've got ambition." Ron gave Marly a thumbs-up. His tone was casual in a way that made it hard to tell whether he was serious or joking. "I, Ron, hereby appoint you cannon-fodder vanguard."
Then he lowered his hand and added without changing expression, "Watch out for telecom fraud."
Telecom fraud?
Everyone looked puzzled. They looked at each other, and no one understood what those four words meant.
But Ron had already withdrawn his gaze and stopped looking at them. "Let's go, Zeus."
"Y-yes, Ron-sama." When Zeus heard Ron call its name, it shivered on reflex, then rose higher and flew toward the town.
Linlin: "????"
After the black cloud rose and the flight steadied, Linlin finally could not help turning to the side and asking, "Did you buy Zeus off, Ron?"
"Buy it off? What could I possibly have to buy it with?" Ron sat down cross-legged, his tone flat. "It's just that... we've been through life and death together."
"Life and death?" Linlin raised an eyebrow. "How come I don't know about that?"
"There are plenty of things you don't know." Ron answered casually, then stretched a hand to the side. "Napoleon, come here."
The bicorne hat worn on Linlin's head trembled faintly. After two seconds of silence, it carefully spoke. "Mama... can I go play for a bit?"
Linlin: "?????"
Linlin froze for a moment.
What the hell? After one nap, the Homies she had personally created had gotten close to Ron?
Then Linlin's scrutinizing gaze fell on Ron. "What exactly did you do?"
"I didn't do anything." Ron shrugged with complete honesty. "It's simply the bond between man and Homie."
Linlin stared straight at him for several seconds.
Bond? Did she believe that? Of course not.
But she did not pursue it. Instead, another thought turned in her mind. No matter what the process had been, the result was not bad.
Her relationship with Ron was average. But if her Homies had a good relationship with him, then by approximation, her relationship with him was also good.
The next time she needed his help, it would be easier to ask.
She withdrew her gaze and changed the topic. "Do you have a plan?"
"What kind of plan do you want?"
"Nonsense. A simple one, of course. I can't remember anything too roundabout."
"If you want the simplest one," Ron paused, "I think there's a high chance you won't agree."
"Let's hear it. Maybe I'll adopt it."
Ron looked at her and said seriously, "I drop a Tailed Beast Bomb from the air, blow the island away, and solve every problem at once."
Linlin froze for a second, then cursed, "Are you crazy?! I'm here to rescue people. Don't mess around!"
"I'm joking." Ron waved his hand and smiled.
"Fine. I'll make the plan."
"Don't make it too complicated, or I won't remember either," Ron reminded her.
"Nothing complicated." Linlin raised a finger. "Three steps. First, find clues about my children. Second, rescue them. Third, do whatever you want."
Ron said nothing. He only raised a hand and made an "OK" gesture.
Meanwhile, back on the coast.
Marly chased in the direction where the black cloud had flown away, shouting loudly, "Ron-sama! Through fire and water! Through fire and water!"
"Stop shouting, Marly. He's already flown far away," another man traveling with him said.
Marly stopped where he was. He watched the black cloud shrink into a small dot, and his face gradually darkened. His shoulders sagged too.
Lulu stood behind him, silent for a long while before she softly spoke. "Brother... I think... I wasn't chosen..."
Marly turned and looked at his younger sister. His lips moved before he finally forced out a smile. "It's fine... Maybe this is fate. This might be better."
Lulu nodded lightly and said nothing else.
She lowered her head. After a few seconds, she asked a question she had been thinking about for a very long time. "Uncle, if someone has no strength... is it true they can never come into contact with a legendary Devil Fruit in this life?"
The older man was silent for a while and did not answer.
Inside the town.
Ron had just landed and had not even had time to look around when a group of people knelt in perfect unison.
"Hello, boss!"
Ron froze mid-motion. He swept a glance over the row of kneeling faces in front of him. Every person had reverence written all over their face.
"..."
The corner of Ron's mouth twitched.
Wonderful. Using my identity, that guy is living even better than the real owner.
"Ron-nii!"
A crisp voice came from behind the crowd.
Ron followed the sound and saw a little girl in a pink dress pushing through the people and trotting toward him.
She had purple hair tied into two round buns. They bounced as she ran, like two hopping flowers.
After she came closer, she hopped lightly, spread her arms, and looked up expectantly. "Hug me, Ron-nii!"
Ron froze slightly.
Although he was furious at what that imposter had done, he would not vent that anger on a child.
He bent down, reached out, and naturally caught her.
The little bun-haired girl bounced happily in his arms and giggled. Then she raised her head to look at him. "Ron-nii, didn't you say you had serious work to do? Why did you come out? Were you lying to me?"
The imposter's younger sister?
Heh.
"Look at me. Am I really your brother?" Ron asked with a slight smile, intending to scare her a little.
The bun-haired girl stared at his face, froze faintly, then tilted her head and said naturally, "Didn't you say that before we get married, I have to call you brother?"
Ron's expression stiffened.
Whether she had been scared or not, he did not know. But that sentence scared him.
Ron was silent for two seconds, then asked seriously, "You mean I'm going to marry you?"
"Yes." The little bun-haired girl said it as if it were only natural, her face carrying a bit of pride from being praised. "I'm your thirteenth wife. Don't tell me you're going back on it? Were all the sweet words you said to me fake?"
What kind of beast was this?
Marrying his own sister?
Doing this under my name?
Ron was truly furious. Regardless of whether the child's words were true or false, if you said sweet nothings to a child this young, then you deserved to die.
Immediately, Ron expressionlessly put her down.
"Be good. Go play by yourself for a while."
"Ron-nii won't play with me?" The bun-haired girl's face showed a bit of disappointment, and her fingers tugged at the hem of her dress.
"Your Ron-nii is going to electrocute someone. Once I'm done, I'll come back and buy you candy." Ron looked down at her, and his tone softened a little compared to before.