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This time, Crocodile actually surprised everyone by speaking up.
"Captain," he said, stepping forward, "I don't really need anything. My Logia abilities don't require much, but if there's—"
Before he could finish, Arthur nodded.
"Good, I like your resolve. Anyway, I didn't prepare anything for you."
"…What?"
Crocodile's face darkened instantly.
You're kidding me, right?
He'd just started to feel a faint respect for this so-called captain—and now it was gone.
With a sharp "hmph," he turned away and lit a cigar, sulking by the railing.
Arthur blinked, confused.
"What's his problem now?"
Ah well, he didn't care enough to find out. The men were handled—time to check on the girl who'd fainted earlier. If she woke up terrified or worse, that'd be a real headache.
As he walked toward her cabin, he couldn't help but think—
Man, I really need a doctor on board. What if someone actually gets sick? Dizziness, headaches, insomnia, kidney fatigue… it'd be a nightmare.
Sailing the seas wasn't nearly as glamorous as anime made it look.
He opened the door quietly and found Carmen still fast asleep, her cheeks flushed a soft pink.
He stepped closer, reaching out to touch her forehead—checking for fever—
when he heard her murmuring in her sleep.
Her brow furrowed… nose twitched…
Cute, actually.
Curious, Arthur leaned in a little closer to hear what she was mumbling.
Then his eyes went wide.
Wait… what the hell kind of dream is this?!
"Don't stop… please… don't… stop…"
Her soft voice and breathy tone hit him like a cannonball.
His throat went dry in an instant.
He'd watched "educational films" before, sure—but hearing that kind of sound right next to his ear?
Never.
Awkward and flustered, he straightened up, ready to bolt—
—but then Carmen suddenly threw her arms around his neck.
"Ah! Save me! Captain, help me!"
Her grip was ironclad, pulling his head straight into her chest.
Arthur froze, face buried in soft warmth.
His entire brain went blank.
Okay okay okay calm down—why is she—wait is she—why does that feel—
Her tossing and turning only made it worse.
He felt his face burning as his self-control started to slip.
Carmen stirred. Slowly, her lashes fluttered open—
and the sight that greeted her made her eyes go huge.
"Ahhhh! You—pervert!"
Wham! Wham! Wham!
Three figures appeared at the door almost instantly.
"Miss Carmen! Are you alright?!"
"Don't be afraid, we'll protect you!"
"Your safety is my duty!"
Arthur's face went completely black.
Protect her? My ass—you're here to watch the show, aren't you?!
"Get out!" he roared.
"Eh—"
Bang!
The door slammed shut.
From outside came Waldo's muffled voice, filled with mischief:
"Boss, next time remember to close the door, yeah? We've told you enough times~"
…
It was a misunderstanding! I swear!
He turned back to find Carmen wrapped in her blanket, cheeks red as cherries.
"Captain… you're always like this…" she said, voice trembling with embarrassment.
"You—I—"
He wanted to argue, but what could he say?
She was the one who had grabbed him!
Women… masters of flipping reality since ancient times.
He coughed, trying to sound serious.
"I was just checking to make sure you were alright. I thought you might've been frightened."
Carmen huffed, rolling her eyes.
Clearly, she didn't remember any of it.
"Then why were you… right there? Listening to my heartbeat?"
Arthur's lips twitched.
"Yeah, sure, let's go with that…"
He sighed.
"Alright. Just get some rest, okay? I'll stop bothering you."
He turned to leave—
"You'd better take responsibility~"
He stumbled so hard he almost faceplanted into the doorframe, then bolted, slamming the door behind him.
"That shameless jerk," Carmen muttered, smiling to herself. "Always getting away with it… hmph."
She lay back down, but her scowl had melted into a dreamy little smile.
Back on deck, Arthur emerged with a storm cloud over his head.
Redfield sat beside Jinlin, calmly watching the map projection.
Waldo busied himself tidying up supplies, pretending not to notice the captain's dark aura.
And Crocodile lounged at the railing, cigar in one hand, drink in the other, looking insufferably smug.
When Arthur's shadow fell over him, Waldo and Redfield could barely suppress their laughter.
They kept their hands busy but their eyes darted over, eager for the show.
"You look awfully relaxed…"
That cold voice behind him made Crocodile jolt so hard his cigar nearly fell into the sea.
He spun around—straight into Arthur's narrowed gaze.
"Captain, I—uh—"
Arthur smiled thinly.
"You've mastered Haki already?"
"N-not yet…"
Wham!
Arthur's kick landed squarely on his back.
"Then why the hell are you smoking here instead of training?"
He paused mid-rant, realizing how that sounded—then coughed and corrected himself.
"I mean—uh—if you've got time to smoke and drink, you've got time to practice your Haki!
This afternoon, you're sparring with me until dinner!"
Waldo burst out laughing.
"Hahaha! Serves you right! That'll teach you to act cool with your cigar!"
Arthur's head turned slowly.
"Oh? You think that's funny? You can join him."
"…Wait, what?"
Crocodile smirked instantly, unable to hold back his laughter now.
"Hahaha! That's what I call a good brother!"
His foul mood evaporated instantly—
after all, nothing brightens your day like seeing someone else get dragged into misery with you.
And so it went.
The two "good brothers" got beaten black and blue all afternoon.
It was less "training" and more "murder practice."
Thankfully, the Golden Scaled was built tough—otherwise, with the way the deck was shaking, they might've smashed straight through the hull.
When it was finally over, both men were bruised, battered, and panting like dogs.
"This isn't training," Waldo groaned.
"He's trying to kill us!"
Crocodile spat out a mouthful of blood and chuckled darkly.
"Yeah. But admit it—at least we suffered together."
"Hahaha! Damn right."
Arthur crossed his arms, smirking from the shade.
"Now that's what I call team bonding."
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