This was something the Thousand-Year Dragon leader had promised earlier. They received new power from Arceus and a stable living base from the Hundred Beasts, and the adult Thousand-Year Dragons had their own tasks.
Considering the innate characteristics of the Great Bird of the Beginning, Arceus did not intend for them to engage in frontal combat, but rather to handle reconnaissance and surprise attacks.
The number of Thousand-Year Dragons hasn't changed much; the dragon eggs brought back at that time have not yet hatched, and the hatching time for Thousand-Year Dragon eggs takes decades.
Moreover, the young Thousand-Year Dragons have not grown up yet. Including the leader, there are fifteen adult Thousand-Year Dragons, with each dragon capable of carrying four people on its back.
There are a total of fifty-eight slots available, with two of those already pre-assigned. According to discussions between Arceus and Kaidou, this Air Cavalry unit will be handed over to Olga in the future, becoming her own special unit.
Since only Arceus and Elizabeth can communicate with the Thousand-Year Dragons, and Arceus cannot be the scout himself, communicative Elizabeth becomes indispensable. Given her special bond with Olga, this squad naturally falls under her command.
Olga was very happy initially. Flying is one of humanity's dreams, and leading such a team is quite nice. However, correspondingly, her subjects of study increased by one, involving air combat, with the training programs compiled by other cadres of the Hundred Beasts.
Kaidou, Queen, King, and Shaina all have flying capabilities. King and Shaina could fly since childhood, so they know what to pay attention to in air combat.
Arceus supplemented them with a lot of details, being the only one who knows what large-scale air combat scenes look like. After all, the pirate technology is very skewed. Even though they invented laser emitters, even though maneuvering devices could allow ships to take off, there are no flying vehicles like airplanes.
First, internal recruitment was conducted in the team to see who wanted to join the Air Cavalry, followed by a filtering process.
The content of the first round of screening is quite simple: no fear of heights. The flight level of the Thousand-Year Dragons is not low, so those afraid of heights cannot be Air Cavalry.
People here mainly make a living at sea, so fear of seasickness is rare, but a lot of people afraid of heights were indeed filtered out, followed by screening for height and weight.
Large-bodied individuals are excellent in ground combat but are redundant in aerial combat. Air Cavalry does not require close-quarters combat, so weight becomes a burden. Instead, they need to be lean and agile so as to add more weapons on the backs of the Thousand-Year Dragons.
After a general screening, the number greatly reduced, and not all were members of the Hundred Beasts; there were also residents from the island.
The Hundred Beasts had recruited from the island residents, as Kaidou required even grunts to be strong warriors—weak cannon fodder is not what he needs. However, those willing to join the Pirate Crew are ultimately a minority.
It wasn't until there was a change in the island's lifestyle during this period that more people were willing to join the Hundred Beasts and become a pirate, with quite a few local villagers signing up for the Air Cavalry this time.
After all, there is a certain difference between Air Cavalry and ordinary pirates, but the likelihood of ordinary people being filtered out is higher, as those engaged in agriculture or business lack warrior skills.
After preliminary screening, the final decision was left to the Thousand-Year Dragons themselves. After all, these people would be on their backs in the future; if the dragons dislike them, and there's no coordination between the Air Cavalry's two parts, even mere reconnaissance will be twice as ineffective.
As an air force unit, Arceus and Kaidou did not expect this Air Cavalry to be ready for battle in a short time, so besides more rigorous training for the selected individuals, the rest of the tasks involved building a good relationship with the Thousand-Year Dragons.
If the Thousand-Year Dragons disdain them, naturally they cannot stay here.
Olga and the Thousand-Year Dragons get along well, mainly because Elizabeth can act as a translator, and she had met them when a young dragon was injured. Upon close observation, it can be seen that most of the Air Cavalry members are those who participated in the treasure hunt incident back then.
Since they left a fighting-together impression on the ship with the Thousand-Year Dragons, they get along more harmoniously.
...
Time passed by unknowingly, and three years had swiftly gone by. The Hundred Beasts Pirate Crew is no longer a newcomer in the New World; in these three years, they have proved their strength with one battle after another.
The pirate career is short. Within a year, a pirate can grow from a so-called rookie into a seasoned pirate, and now the Hundred Beasts can be regarded as an old powerhouse in the New World.
The Hundred Beasts Fruit business developed well, penetrating the high-end market in the first year thanks to Du Feld and Stussy's channels, establishing a reputation among the nobles and kings of various nations, and gradually occupying the high-end market.
In terms of advertising and marketing, no one could match Arceus. Having experienced many advertisements, he knew exactly how to make a product hot. Even avocados could become a market sensation under various banners, so delicious berries naturally had no reason not to succeed.
The Pirate World also uses celebrities, both black and white. On the official front, through Morgans' connections, they successfully contacted one of the popular stars and spent a large sum to make them a spokesperson.
On Stussy's end, the World Government viewed this as an opportunity for her to deepen ties with the pirates, making it easier to gather various intelligence, so not only did they not stop her, but they also helped Stussy by providing her with a lot of channels and resources.
As for the world of pirates, the name Charlotte Linlin had a very good effect.
Health, deliciousness, wellness—all conceivable banners were added, and the berry sales occupied the high-end market of the New World momentarily, gradually flowing to the first half of the Grand Line and the Four Seas.
Fruits with flavors comparable to berries could be found here.
But despite having good flavors, they must break into the market to sell; otherwise, no matter how delicious the fruit, it would only rot in the ground as compost.
The Hundred Beasts Fruit, although not a legitimate company, is a part of the gray industry.
Moreover, over the three years, the variety of berries increased, each with different uses, like juicing, making spices, and therapeutic uses, among others.
Relying on these berries, Hundred Beasts Fruit vaguely became known as the "Fruit King" and the seventh king of the Underworld, monopolizing part of the high-end market.
With their brand image established, they could sell an identical product for a higher price and make more consumers believe in them.
Hundred Beasts Fruit also facilitated the fencing of Captain John's treasure, having their own 'white gloves,' eliminating the need for middlemen to make a cut, and allowing their business to flourish.
Moreover, the past incident is yet to be exposed, although some had found traces, those evidences disappeared quickly, all thanks to Spandine's tight lips.
To reduce his own liability, he kept insisting that it was all Purilite's fault.
Moreover, whenever Olga went out to purchase, she would inevitably impersonate the image of Purilite, which is also part of the reason.
The World Government is still searching for Purilite's whereabouts, but Purilite remains like a ghost, always untraceable, gradually earning him the name of Ghost Captain.
During this time, Arceus also found the sixth plate, the Grass Attribute Meadow Plate, which further advanced his farming endeavors.