"Wake up, wake up! Get up! The Captain wants you to move closer!"
Potter pecked Mite's nostril with his beak, but Mite only sniffed and rolled over.
"Move closer, what move closer… at a time like this, I should… just hug! Hehehe!"
Mite mumbled, his smile growing wider, a hint of mischievousness adding to his happiness.
"You get up!"
Potter raised his voice, curled his claws, and struck Mite's face.
"Ow!"
Mite let out a scream, jumping directly from the deck chair, instinctively touching his face, only to find his hand covered in blood.
"Damn it! Stupid bird! What's wrong with you?!"
As a Berserker, waking up angry and injured was enough to infuriate him, but Potter clearly had experience; he had already elevated his body the moment Mite screamed, putting himself out of reach.
"What idiotic dream were you having again? The Captain wants you to approach Alabasta but not anchor, and to look for a sheep-headed ship."
"What? Alabasta?"
Mite immediately forgot his anger, took a few big steps forward, and saw that land had indeed appeared near the coastline ahead.
"Have we finally reached Alabasta? That's great! I heard it's a World Government member nation, so there must be prosperous big cities, and there will definitely be bustling Happy Streets and beautiful ladies."
Mite grew more excited with each word, eager to land immediately, while Potter's black-bean-like eyes showed undisguised contempt.
"You idiot! Didn't you hear just now? The Captain said no landing!"
"What?! What did you say?! Why no landing?! Why?!"
Mite could barely control his emotions. If he were talking to a person instead of a bird, he might have already choked them.
"How would I know? Go ask the Captain, why ask me? I'm just relaying the Captain's order."
"Damn it! You stupid bird! All you do all day is sleep and eat, you don't even know this, what use are you?!"
Mite cursed Potter, then hurried through the cabin to the aft deck. By this time, his angry expression had subsided.
"Captain, that's Alabasta ahead. You said we're not going ashore? Don't we need to resupply?"
Luo Yan first nodded, then shook his head.
"It's not quite like that. Didn't you gain the corresponding knowledge when you drank the Sailor potion? Sailors are Beyonders who are close to the sea and dislike dry environments. Alabasta is a desert country, and I'm certainly not going there."
Mite's eyes showed a clear blankness. His lips twitched a few times before he bit down hard.
"I… Captain, I think those are all things that can be overcome! Beyonders should challenge themselves and improve themselves!"
Luo Yan's mouth was slightly agape, his eyes wide, as if he was seeing Mite for the first time.
"You, you can actually say something like that?"
After spending this time together, Luo Yan had a general understanding of the personalities of his three subordinates.
Xia Tali was more careful and introverted, and also gentler. Even when affected by the negative effects of a magical item, she wouldn't casually hit people.
Luo Ta was usually diligent. Whatever he was asked to do, he would do it. He handled most of the physical labor on the ship, but he had a terrible mouth and spoke without thinking.
Mite, on the other hand, was more cunning. Besides steering, he liked to call on Luo Ta and Xia Tali to do everything together; he was definitely not a person of great integrity.
"Captain, you've underestimated me. I've grown quite a bit during this time, haven't I?"
Mite answered with his head held high, showing both dissatisfaction and pride.
Luo Yan had almost believed him, but just then, Luo Ta's slightly simple-minded voice rang out:
"Hehehehe! Mite, I think you can't hold it in anymore, you want to go to Happy Street, right? You say you're no good in that department, so going there would be pointless…"
Bang!
Mite didn't give Luo Ta a chance to finish speaking, punching him directly in the nose. Luo Ta was sent flying backward, blood gushing onto the deck.
"Pfft! You…"
"You bastard! I'll teach you to talk too much, teach you to talk too much!"
One punch wasn't enough for Mite to vent his anger. He went in for several more solid blows, leaving Luo Ta with black eyes, bumps on his head, and blood at the corners of his mouth. He looked so miserable that even Luo Yan couldn't bear to watch.
"Alright, alright, Mite, you, you, you, stop for a moment. Once we find Luffy's ship and finish my business, we'll go ashore for a day."
"Got it!"
Mite shook his blood-stained fist and happily ran into the cockpit to take the helm.
Watching Luo Ta still squirming on the ground, unable to get up for a long time, Luo Yan couldn't help but click his tongue.
"Tsk! I told you, why don't you provoke someone with a better temper? Provoking a Berserker? Aren't you just asking for a beating?"
"But Captain, I wasn't provoking Mite, I was just telling the truth."
"Heh! You really are suited for this path."
Luo Yan didn't know what else to say, so he simply said nothing.
Xia Tali took out a test tube containing a light red liquid from her clothing pocket and handed it to Luo Ta. Luo Ta took it, opened the cork, and poured all the liquid into his mouth in one go. The injuries on his face immediately improved at a visible rate.
"It's alright, thanks to your sacrifice as a test subject, the healing potion I formulated is now 60% more effective than the original."
Xia Tali's eyes held a smile, whether in comfort or sarcasm, Luo Ta, who had recovered somewhat, stood up. He wasn't angry at Xia Tali's words, but instead suddenly fell into thought.
"Xia Tali, I suddenly thought of a question. Can you formulate a potion that enhances my defense?"
"Enhanced defense? But didn't the Captain give you a defensive magical item? Speaking of which, it seems you never use that item whenever you get beaten."
With Xia Tali mentioning it, Luo Yan also became curious.
"That's right, what's wrong with you? Didn't I give you a magical item? Why don't you use it?"
"Captain, you don't understand. Think about it, if I used a magical item when Mite hit me, then Mite might also use a magical item to attack me later. What if I didn't react in time and was directly killed? If I don't actively use a magical item, no matter how angry Mite gets, he'll only hit me with his fists, and those are just superficial wounds. Anyway, with Xia Tali's potion, I'll recover quickly."
"Hiss! Now that you put it that way, it does make some sense. Luo Ta, I really misjudged you. So you're not stupid after all."
Because Luo Ta was often beaten and also appeared simple-minded, he gave people the impression of not being very smart, but it turns out he saw things so clearly.
Luo Ta raised his head, both proud and dissatisfied, saying, "Captain, what kind of talk is that? I was never stupid, I'm very smart."
"Alright, alright, you should go rest and recover."