Chapter 162

Sanji widened his eyes and said, "Wait! This lovely young lady, you couldn't possibly be..."

"The Merry?!" Usopp cried out in shock.

"Really? You are the Merry?" Nami was also stunned.

The others reacted much the same, their eyes wide as they looked at the Merry, then at Sima Di.

What is going on here?

Won't you explain?

"Everyone, I am the Merry... aren't you happy to see me?"

The Merry seemed to misunderstand the Straw Hat Pirates' shock.

Nami, who was closest, didn't hesitate and immediately hugged the Merry in her arms.

Touching and feeling, she confirmed there was indeed a physical body.

She immediately cried out happily, "Great! The Merry has become human too; from now on, we can fight side by side!"

Nami meant fighting side by side on the Grand Line; that was her battlefield as a navigator.

If that's the case,

it seems only Nami on the ship was the Merry's "comrade."

"Mm! Big Sister Nami, rest assured, I can perfectly control everything on the ship and guarantee I'll fulfill your requests without being clumsy!" the Merry promised.

This hurt Usopp and the others' feelings.

Usually, they were the ones being ordered by Nami to operate the Going Merry; wasn't this saying they were clumsy?

But seeing as the Merry was the one who had become human, they didn't say much.

"Hahaha—" Luffy laughed loudly, "Merry! Our ship spirit is our comrade too! Yay! Let's have a party together!"

Luffy reached out to grab the Merry, but Nami swatted him away with a raised hand.

"What are you doing? The Merry is a girl; don't be touching her," Nami glared.

Luffy clearly had no concept of gender differences and scratched his head awkwardly.

But then...

"A girl?" the Merry asked strangely, "But... I seem to be neither a boy nor a girl..."

Everyone:? っQ?;)っ

The Straw Hat Pirates looked at Sima Di; what was going on?

Sima Di also looked completely baffled.

"Ah, this... you are so exquisite, yet you're not a girl?" Sima Di was also shocked.

How is that possible?

Wait!

What the Merry said seems to be...

Neither a girl nor a boy?

Then what is it?

Androgynous?

"Is gender important?" the Merry asked in confusion, "When I was first born, I had no gender; I was simply created to carry everyone as far as possible."

"Hey, hey, Di, didn't you turn the Merry into a human? Why don't you know her gender?" Usopp asked strangely.

Sima Di indicated...

He was only responsible for activating the Rat Talisman; how would he know about forming life?

No choice now; he could only choose...

"I'm not entirely clear either," Sima Di shrugged, "I found this in a lab on the Sky Island last time. I thought it was just a useless little stone, but later research showed it had uses, so I tried it on the Merry."

Undecided When Facing Matters, the Great Kingdom.

Anyway, no one could find the Great Kingdom to confront him; a perfect scapegoat.

Hearing this, the Straw Hat Pirates could only nod.

"Whether male or female, you are one of our comrades!" Nami comforted the Merry.

The Merry tilted her head back, very pleased.

Some people shook their heads regretfully.

Such a lovely Merry, yet not a girl?

"Yosh!" Luffy raised his arm and shouted, "To celebrate the Merry's birth, this party will last three days and three nights!"

Well,

finding another excuse to eat and drink for free.

But everyone was happy, so no one objected.

The crowd didn't disperse; they gathered around the Merry nearby, chatting freely and leisurely.

Sima Di smiled, watching the harmony before him, feeling quite satisfied in his heart.

After transmigrating into the One Piece world, he actually had no real goal.

Joining the Straw Hat Pirates was more because the system required him to sign in at famous scenes; traveling with the Straw Hat Pirates was simply more convenient.

Along the way, he could also see this world, view the scenery he never saw in his past life, and experience the adventures he never experienced before.

But now...

He suddenly had a goal.

"The Straw Hat Pirates... and adventuring with this group of interesting comrades until we reach Laugh Tale, then writing the stories along the way into a book; that would surely be wonderful!"

Sima Di only murmured, but Crocus heard it.

"Oh? That's a nice thought," Crocus recalled. "Back then... I was in a rush to find the Rumbar Pirates, then in a rush to return to Twin Cape, and with a sickly Luo Jie needing life support, I couldn't settle down to properly enjoy the scenery along the way. What a pity."

"Huh? The Pirate King was sickly?" Nami smelled gossip.

This time, Crocus didn't beat around the bush.

Instead, he sighed, "When Luo Jie crossed Reverse Mountain back then, he was already near death. I used my family's Medical Arts to forcibly extend his life and activate all his potential... but the price was only three years of life left, and he had to undergo my treatment every week."

"Originally, I only boarded the ship at his earnest request because he had such a dream, and the Rumbar Pirates had gone silent."

"I never expected that kid to actually become the Pirate King?"

"What a pity..."

"His life was too short. In the end, he chose to surrender, to open the Great Pirate Era for that vague..."

Vague what?

Sima Di glanced sideways at Crocus. If you're going to say it, say it all!

Skipping key intelligence, isn't that just teasing people?

The rest of the Straw Hat Pirates also had strong complaints: You can't do this!

"Are you sure you want to hear it?" Crocus sighed. "It's not that I won't say it, but... this concerns what the One Piece truly is. We once swore to that kid Luo Jie that we would never reveal it to anyone in our lives... Even if you knew, it would be useless; you still lack a key."

If that's the case...

It is understandable.

"Then Uncle Crocus, you'd better not say it," Luffy said confidently. "I will uncover the One Piece myself! I will definitely become the Pirate King!"

"Yo, very motivated," Zeff teased.

"We will definitely create our own era!" Zoro declared with conviction.

"With Brother Di here, I believe we can," Franky agreed.

"Hey, hey, hey, I'm the captain!" Luffy complained.

But...

"I also think Junior Di can lead us to Laugh Tale," Nami said with a smile.

"Agreed."

"Yes."

"Acknowledged."

A string of +1s, +1s, +1s, deliberately not mentioning Luffy.

Making Luffy scream in anger!

"Di! A duel!" Luffy shouted. "I lost to you last time; this time I will definitely defeat you!"

Sima Di looked speechlessly at the onlookers. Why am I paying for the trouble you started?