Chapter 293: The Pirate Nobleman and the Shichibukai Islands

At the same time.

Outside the Shichibukai Islands, Forest No. 17.

On a lavishly decorated ship, Cavendish sat elegantly on the deck.

He flipped through magazines collected by his subordinates, his expression gradually stiffening, then twisting with envy.

"The most promising pirate supernova knight, Gao Wen! The pirate knight with the greatest idol aura in the Grand Line!"

"Knight Gao Wen has appeared on the Grand Line and may pass through the Shichibukai Islands to Enter the New World—likely causing a massive upheaval to the Four Emperors' dominance!"

"Queen Elisia has publicly stated that if Gao Wen is interested, she would gladly spend a night with him!"

"He may well be the one who slew the Jin Shizi… Knight Gao Wen!"

One magazine after another with explosive headlines slipped from Cavendish's hands, only to be torn apart in rage.

The reason was simple: every single one of these magazines had made Gao Wen the front-page headline, while Cavendish was ignored, receiving only minimal coverage.

Gao Wen was like a blazing star in the sky, blotting out the light of all other pirates of his generation—unfortunately, Cavendish was one of those dimmed supernovas.

"Damn! Damn! Damn!"

"All this popularity, all this attention, all these fiery gazes were meant to be mine!"

Cavendish let out several frustrated shouts.

He still remembered.

Just half a month ago, when he arrived at the Shichibukai Islands, every front page still carried news of the Pirate Nobleman, the Gorgeous Supernova.

But now all of it had been stolen by Gao Wen—how could he accept this?!

"I'll kill that guy!"

"Absolutely!"

His first mate, hearing this, broke into a cold sweat:

"Captain, that guy is a Warlord of the Sea—opposing him will bring endless trouble."

"Besides, I heard a rumor that it wasn't the Marines who killed the Jin Shizi in Water Seven—it was Knight Gao Wen."

"If that rumor is true, even you might not be his match!"

"Nonsense!"

Cavendish shook his head.

A few months ago.

He had seen the Jin Shizi's ship from afar on the Grand Line—and had seen that man strike.

The power that could overturn heaven and earth had transcended human limits, rivaling the gods.

He refused to believe—and could not accept—that a man his own age possessed the strength to defeat the Jin Shizi.

Not to mention one who left the Jin Shizi no chance to flee, killing him on the spot.

"In this era, someone might defeat the Jin Shizi—but no one could prevent him from escaping!"

"Not even Knight Gao Wen!"

Shhh—!

A sharp sound.

Cavendish drew his longsword, his eyes brimming with icy killing intent:

"Only by killing that man can I reclaim the world's attention!"

"I am the most gorgeous, the most brilliant supernova!"

His first mate opened his mouth to speak, then closed it, swallowing hard and saying nothing more.

He had followed Cavendish for years and knew his temperament well.

Cavendish possessed the handsome appearance of a nobleman from legend, matched by an equally arrogant and capricious personality.

In some ways, he could be seen as a gender-swapped version of Empress Boa Hancock.

Such a person was spoiled, reckless, and deeply rebellious—once resolved, not even ten horses could pull him back.

Yet Cavendish himself possessed immense power—his nearly 300-million-Berry bounty was proof enough.

But his most dangerous trait was his hidden second personality: the White Horse of Lümeier's Scythe Weasel City.

Its ghostly speed was undetectable even by ordinary Kenbunshoku, and combined with his supreme swordsmanship, it was nearly unstoppable.

Along the way, countless strong foes had fallen before him; his crew's trust in his strength had grown near-blind.

"Even a Warlord of the Sea might not be the Captain's match!"

"After all, most Warlords' bounties were lower than the Captain's—and Knight Gao Wen's is only 248 million!"

"The Captain's bounty is nearly 300 million Berries!"

Amidst these praises, Cavendish's lips curled upward, his killing intent burning hotter than ever:

"The Shichibukai Islands are the only passage into the New World—that man must pass through here."

"Then I'll wait here for him to bring his own head to me!"

With that said.

Cavendish opened the magazine in his hand, staring at Gao Wen's equally handsome face—and felt nothing but revulsion.

He raised his hand and swept it aside.

The pages fluttered down, swirling in the air, swallowed by the waves.

……

……

……

"Did the Captain become the most popular pirate in this issue?!"

Lionheart Knight.

More than a month had passed since Gao Wen and his crew set out.

Nami and Miss Kalifa lay side by side on the deck, flipping through the magazine just delivered by the messenger bird.

The front-page headline featured a photo of Gao Wen.

He had golden hair, wore a sleek black armor, held a gleaming silver longsword, and stood calmly amid the battlefield, his gaze commanding like a lion devouring the world.

He possessed the domineering majesty of top-tier powerhouses like Jin Shizi and Kaido, yet also had a handsome face none of them possessed.

After carefully studying it, Nami nodded:

"To be fair, our captain's looks alone—even if he weren't a pirate—the ladies of the New World would go crazy for him. Now that I think about it… I kinda want to watch a movie."

"I think your skin's itching again~!"

Miss Kalifa shot Nami an irritated glance.

She reached out, took the magazine from Nami's hands, traced her fingers over Gao Wen's photo, and caressed her warm cheeks:

"To be fair, the editors of these fashion magazines really have good taste—too bad our captain still hasn't gotten his copyright fees."

After admiring it thoroughly, she returned the magazine to Nami and turned to discuss intelligence about the Shichibukai Islands:

"By the way."

"The Shichibukai Islands are a city built atop a forest sea."

"Though close to the Marine Headquarters, its internal power structures are deeply entangled and widely connected—so even the Marines act with extreme caution when operating there."

"This has fostered a thriving gray industry; Forests 1 through 29 are directly called the Lawless Zones."

"Illegal trades like human auctions and arms dealing face no restrictions."

"Our long-desired Devil Fruit might even be auctioned there."

Nami's eyes lit up; she calculated her savings, confirmed sufficient funds, and immediately grew eager:

"The ship's coating will take time—why don't we go take a look?!"

"Mm!"

Miss Kalifa nodded.

She wanted power sufficient to earn Gao Wen's approval—the Devil Fruit was the best path. As for its usual price of hundreds of millions…

She could just ask Spandam for more funding a few more times.

Using government money to upgrade herself—just thinking about it was thrilling~.

While Nami and Miss Kalifa discussed their plans, Gao Wen and Xiang Keluo also deliberated their next moves in the captain's cabin.

Tap!

Xiang Keluo set down his teacup, studied the map provided by Nami, paused briefly, then spoke:

"The safest route is still to complete the coating on the Shichibukai Islands, then enter the New World via Fish-Man Island—but Fish-Man Island…"

Due to his experience in Cocoyasi Village, Xiang Keluo held no favorable opinion of fish-men.

"No issue."

Gao Wen shook his head:

"Arlong and his crew are an absolute outlier among fish-men."

"Contrary to your impression, the vast majority of fish-men fear humans—not despise them like Arlong."

"Fish-men's situation in the New World is far from good; under normal circumstances, they won't provoke trouble."

"Besides, with our strength, unless Whitebeard himself shows up, even the Sea King Shirahoshi alone couldn't stir up anything."

Xiang Keluo exhaled, turned to gaze out the window, his eyes falling on Nami—his expression momentarily complex:

"I just wonder how Nami will feel about it…"

Gao Wen froze:

"She looks fragile, but she's stronger than most on this ship, and has a kinder heart."

"She knows clearly what's right and what's wrong, and won't easily blame the innocent for her own hatred."

"But we'll decide when the time comes."

"For now, our goal is still to reach the Shichibukai Islands…"

Hum—!

As Gao Wen spoke, the Guanshi Zhengzong at his waist emitted a piercing hum.

An invisible battle aura was rising, as if conveying something to Gao Wen!

Xiang Keluo frowned slightly:

"What's happening?!"

"Someone is waiting for me there."

Gao Wen instantly understood—yet his eyes held no fear, only absolute confidence in his own strength.

He was no longer the helpless man who had first arrived in this world; he now had the confidence to face any enemy this world could offer!

Whoosh—!

Outside the porthole, the pirate flag with its round shield flapped in the wind.

On the lookout tower, Fan Fan Aoka looked up and saw a vast forest sea stretching to the horizon slowly emerging.

"The Shichibukai Islands… we've arrived!"

Soon after.

The Lionheart Knight docked at Forest 012.

As usual, Jin, Fan Fan Aoka, and several others remained to guard the ship.

Franky also stayed behind to inspect the Lionheart Knight; he was deeply interested in the Shichibukai Islands' ship-coating technology and intended to study it thoroughly during this stop.

Nami and Miss Kalifa planned to attend the auction and see if they could acquire the Devil Fruits they desired.

Sanji followed them under the pretense of procuring food, but in truth he was nothing more than an oversized sycophant.

Gao Wen, along with Xiang Keluo and Law, headed toward the Knocking-Off Bar.

Although there were many shipwrights on the Shichibukai Islands capable of coating pirate ships, when it came to skill, Lei Li was clearly more trustworthy.

……

At the same time.

Shortly after returning to Fish-Man Island, Hachio froze in place, just as he was about to deliver his improved takoyaki recipe to Xia Qi for tasting.

He stared at the familiar pirate flag on the distant sea, and felt a chill run from his head to his toes.

"Has Gao Wen's crew come to avenge the Fish-Men?!"

Hachio opened his mouth, his heart filled with alarm and anger, but mostly with speechless helplessness.

In his mind flashed the bloody scene he had secretly witnessed after Gao Wen's crew left—the Fish-Man Paradise.

His former comrades Crocodile and Chou had been killed by humans; Arlong had been flayed alive.

His companions had been murdered—he should have been furious—but after leaving Arlong's crew, he had fled alone for a long time, encountering many humans along the way.

Those who saw him as livestock, sought to sell him as a slave, or even wondered what difference there was between tasting Fish-Man and fish.

There were.

Those who feared the power and brutality of Fish-Men, and kept their distance from him.

There were.

And those who were kind enough to offer him help, give him fresh water and food, and point him in the right direction.

There were.

He gradually realized that the relationship between Fish-Men and humans was not as Arlong had claimed.

We are the same.

When he understood this and looked back upon what Arlong's crew had done to Cocoyasi Village and nearby human settlements, he finally realized the truth.

Arlong and the humans who came to Fish-Man Island to poach were no different.

But he had no chance to regret it.

"No!"

"I cannot let Gao Wen's crew harm the Fish-Men here. This is our fault—we must pay for it ourselves."

Thinking this,

Hachio took a deep breath and prepared to rush out and take full responsibility, to give Gao Wen's crew some kind of accounting.

But recalling Arlong's horrific fate, he felt his limbs turn icy, his feet rooted to the ground, and his body trembling uncontrollably.

All he felt was an unspeakable fear.

"I…"

"Wait!"

"Big Brother Jinbe, he could help me—at least…"

"I can't let what happened in Cocoyasi repeat itself on Fish-Man Island."

With this thought, Hachio leapt into the sea and vanished within a few breaths.

……

Half an hour later.

Inside the Knocking-Off Bar.

The Hawk-Eye, who had been drinking with Lei Li, set down his cup and glanced out the window, as if sensing something.

Behind him, the black blade Yoru, which had grown increasingly restless, now surged violently, its low hum drawing glances from nearby patrons.

Yet no one dared speak.

Some, overcome by unease, rose abruptly and hurriedly fled.

Lei Li's eyes flickered with anticipation:

"Has he come?!"

"Yes."

The Hawk-Eye's gaze was sharp as blades, ready to cut through everything before him.

As his voice faded, the wooden door of the bar opened, and three figures slowly entered.

The room fell silent—but only for a few breaths—before being shattered by a cry of shock.

"Knight Gao Wen!"

"The man who, alongside the Hawk-Eye, is one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, the closest to becoming a Four Emperor!"

The patrons who had barely managed to stay seated scattered in panic, fleeing out the back door or even climbing over the walls.

Two Warlords meet.

Whatever happens next, none of them can interfere.

No!

On this sea, no one ever meddles in affairs between Warlords—especially when both are among the elite.

Tap!

Gao Wen pressed his hand against the restless Guanshi Zhengzong at his waist and lifted his gaze to meet the Hawk-Eye's:

"I wondered why this blade grew so agitated since we docked—it's because you were waiting for me here."

(End of Chapter)