Momousagi's mission this time was very simple: maintain the safety and smooth operation of the route from Alabasta to the Holy Land.
The Reverie would be held in a few months, and as the Marine responsible for escorting the Alabasta delegation, Momousagi had to ensure the safety of this route. As long as she led a warship back and forth along the route for a while, the pirates operating in the area would inevitably flee at the sight of her. That way, Momousagi could notify the Alabasta delegation in advance and have them begin making preparations!
With the warship escorting him, Kairo D. Arashi once again set foot on Alabasta.
Momousagi, however, did not disembark. Although she was reluctant to part with him, she didn't allow herself to become overly sentimental. She simply watched as Kairo D. Arashi stood on the shore and led the warship away!
"Mr. Kairo D. Arashi!!!"
"Kairo D. Arashi!!!"
The moment Kairo D. Arashi walked into the Alabasta royal palace, Perona and Princess Vivi, who had learned long ago that he was returning and had been waiting at the entrance, immediately pounced on him and hugged him tightly.
"Kairo D. Arashi, I thought you weren't coming back! Wuwuwu…"
After hugging Kairo D. Arashi, Perona immediately began crying aggrievedly, choking back sobs as she said, "If you hadn't come back, I would've gone to Marine Headquarters to find you!"
"Hahaha, I said I'd come back, so of course I would!"
Looking at the aggrieved little girl, Kairo D. Arashi laughed twice before gently patting Perona's little head and saying softly, "All right, stop crying! Your face is a complete mess. You don't look pretty like this."
The moment Kairo D. Arashi finished speaking, Princess Vivi also began crying.
"Wuwuwu, I thought you weren't coming back, Mr. Kairo D. Arashi!"
Looking at the teary-eyed Princess Vivi and the aggrieved little girl, Kairo D. Arashi immediately felt a headache coming on and became somewhat flustered. The thing he feared most in his life was seeing girls cry!
Fortunately, Robin came over at that moment.
With Robin's comforting, the two girls quickly stopped crying and soon began giggling happily! Clearly, after suddenly seeing Kairo D. Arashi return, they weren't genuinely crying. They were simply crying tears of joy!
Because Kairo D. Arashi had returned, Cobra also placed great importance on his arrival and arranged a banquet that very evening to welcome him!
After the banquet ended, Kairo D. Arashi also returned to his room.
Ever since Cobra and his ministers had heard Kairo D. Arashi's lecture on the eighty-one chapters of the Dao De Jing, they had held him in extremely high regard. They even hoped that Kairo D. Arashi would become their country's Imperial Tutor and remain in Alabasta permanently.
Of course, that was merely wishful thinking on their part!
As a Traveler, Kairo D. Arashi certainly wouldn't stay in Alabasta for long!
What they hadn't expected, however, was that this time Kairo D. Arashi hadn't returned to stay. He had come to say goodbye!
"Mr. Kairo D. Arashi?"
Kairo D. Arashi had just returned to his room after the banquet and hadn't even had time to lie down when Robin's voice came from outside the door.
"C-Can I come in?"
"Hm?"
Kairo D. Arashi hadn't expected Robin to still be awake and couldn't help but freeze for a moment. He then said, "Come in."
Robin pushed the door open and walked inside without saying anything. Under Kairo D. Arashi's gaze, she turned around and closed the door, then slowly walked toward him!
Seeing this, Kairo D. Arashi froze again and asked in surprise, "Robin, what… what are you doing?"
"I, uh… drank a little too much today!"
Standing in front of Kairo D. Arashi, Robin's cheeks were flushed as she continued, "Robin is also very happy that Mr. Kairo D. Arashi came back!"
"So you drank a little too much because of that?"
Kairo D. Arashi shook his head with a smile. "You really are just like those two girls, Perona and Vivi!"
Robin stared intently into Kairo D. Arashi's eyes, as though she wanted to engrave his appearance forever into the depths of her heart. After Kairo D. Arashi finished speaking, she suddenly took another step forward, moving closer to him, and said softly, "Mr. Kairo D. Arashi, we're leaving tomorrow to begin our next journey, aren't we?"
"…Yes."
Looking at the unusual Robin, Kairo D. Arashi narrowed his eyes and asked suspiciously, "Robin, is something on your mind?"
"Mr. Kairo D. Arashi…"
Robin had clearly drunk quite a bit. Her eyes were hazy as she looked at Kairo D. Arashi, who was so close to her. After hesitating for a moment, she finally summoned her courage and said, "I… I want to stay in Alabasta!"
Before Kairo D. Arashi could respond, Robin suddenly threw herself into his arms and said in a trembling voice, "Although Mr. Kairo D. Arashi doesn't care about Robin's identity as the Demon of Ohara, and Robin has managed to step out of the shadow of those years because of you, if Robin keeps following you, sooner or later she'll become a burden to you!"
Hearing Robin's words, Kairo D. Arashi fell silent!
Kairo D. Arashi had already noticed that something was wrong with Robin during the banquet! And now that Robin had come to tell him this, it was obvious that she had thought it through carefully!
After a moment of silence, Kairo D. Arashi sighed inwardly. He understood all too well what Robin was thinking! Although Robin had already emerged from the shadow of those years, she was still afraid of becoming a burden to him. This was the knot in Robin's heart. Unless she became powerful enough to crush the entire world beneath her feet, that knot would continue to exist!
The night passed in silence.
Before dawn the next morning, Robin and Kairo D. Arashi both woke up.
Robin rested her head on Kairo D. Arashi's arm, her beautiful eyes staring intently at his face from such a close distance. In a soft voice, she said, "Mr. Kairo D. Arashi, I'm your woman now!"
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