Chapter 70: The Big Fat Sheep of Loguetown

The night grew deeper.

The flagship sailed out of the drydock, departing from Sherry Island amidst the celebratory champagne cannon fire of the Giant Whale Shipbuilding Company.

"The next stop is Loguetown; it's not far, at most four or five days away. That Mr. Gandolf sent enough food and fresh water for ten days, which is more than sufficient for this voyage."

Sister Sister Guyina studied the nautical chart, bending over to point at various spots on it.

"Loguetown is the town in the entire East Blue closest to the entrance of the Reverse Mountain; it has a Marine branch stationed there, so the security is relatively stable. It can serve as the final stop in the East Blue. Captain, once we replenish our food and fresh water there, we can formally head to the Grand Line!"

Having read extensively since childhood and possessing much knowledge regarding navigation, she had proactively offered to temporarily assume the duties of this position until they found a professional navigator partner.

As for her lack of practical sailing experience, that could be made up for somewhat by consulting Zeff.

"Mm, let's do just that..."

Siano lay limply across the Silver Wolf's figurehead, while nearby, Ah Yin glared unhappily at the figurehead, occasionally baring his teeth at it.

That title of "Captain" from Sister Sister Guyina made his whole body feel comfortable.

Although she had called him that before they had officially set sail.

But now that he truly possessed his own flagship, being addressed that way again felt completely different.

He was becoming more and more satisfied with this ship; the training room's specifications were higher than expected, and the decoration style of the bedrooms and corridors followed a minimalist solid-wood aesthetic, accented with small Bohemian-style decorations that also suited his taste perfectly.

All that was missing was a good name.

The four of them had already gathered to discuss the ship's name, but the names they came up with all lacked something: Silver Wolf, Great Swordsman, Shimotsuki Coconut, Iron Fist...

In the end, the names became increasingly absurd; Siano had nearly considered calling it "The Flying Dutchman," but fortunately, he calmed down, and everyone unanimously decided to postpone the decision and consider it for a few more days.

"Hey, Nojiko."

Yawning, Siano looked up at the mast. "You've been up there for over an hour; hasn't the novelty worn off yet? It's about time you came down to wash up and sleep."

"Eh? How can you say that? Let me look a little longer, Bro~!"

Nojiko acted spoiled just like she did when she was little; this was her first time climbing onto the crow's nest of such a large ship, and everything looked novel to her.

Truly helpless, Siano waved his hand, and Nojiko grinned, lifting the monocular telescope again.

After an unknown amount of time passed, Nojiko suddenly let out a soft exclamation: "Bro, it looks like there's a pirate ship over there? That Jolly Roger looks so familiar..."

She frowned, racking her brains to think. "Could it be the Black Cat Pirates?"

Black Cat?

Kuro of the Hundred Plans?!

More points delivered right to our doorstep?

Siano sat up straight with a swish, issuing his first command as captain: "Then what are we waiting for? Hurry up, steer the ship over there!"

Once the ship really pulled alongside, everyone realized something was wrong.

The Black Cat Pirates' ship consisted only of the front majority; it looked as if something had split it in two from the middle.

The cut surface was smooth and flat, while the remaining rear hull had long since drifted who-knows-where.

Stepping onto the deck, corpses were scattered everywhere, and the stench of blood assaulted the sky.

Under a sun umbrella on a rattan chair, Siano spotted Kuro's upper half; terror still lingered on the man's face, as if he had witnessed something unbelievable before his death.

"What exactly..."

Sister Sister Guyina squatted at the edge of the cut cross-section, her brows tightly furrowed. "There's no mistake; this chilling sensation of being sliced in two is definitely sword energy unleashed by a Swordmaster..."

But there were only three Swordmasters in the East Blue.

Herself, her father Teacher Teacher Gengsilang, and Lord Siano.

Where did this unseen Swordmaster come from?

"Who the hell knows."

Siano chuckled happily; he didn't care who had struck from the shadows. For all he knew, Kuro was just incredibly unlucky and might have bumped into Hawk-Eyes relieving himself at the bow.

While the others went to inspect other areas, he hummed a happy little tune and began skillfully shearing the sheep.

Kuro's ten metal claws, Jango's hypnotic pocket watch...

He didn't spare the two cat-like officers whose faces were familiar but whose names he couldn't recall at the moment, casually stripping them of their weapons as well.

Altogether, he obtained one thousand points.

This was actually slightly more than the Krieg Pirates, bringing his remaining points back above the thirty thousand mark.

"Bro, I've searched the ship; there aren't many treasures, mostly cash, totaling fifty million Berries."

Nojiko popped her head out from the cabin door, counting on her fingers as she reported. "Added to the funds currently on our ship, that makes exactly eighty million Berries."

About to exceed one hundred million?

Siano nodded; previously, the bounty money earned from Branch 77 had all been left for his family, and he had only brought a few tens of millions with him.

Out at sea, opportunities are everywhere; as long as one has strength, why fear not making money?

"There's also quite a bit of food we can take."

Zeff finished inspecting the galley and came to report cheerfully. "Hehe, these pirates seem to have just replenished their food and alcohol and haven't touched much of it yet; it's enough for us to eat for a month."

Points, treasures, food... this windfall delivered to their doorstep was quite comprehensive in variety.

Of course, there was one last thing that couldn't be forgotten.

Siano waved his hand and instructed: "Remember to cut off their heads and take them with us; when we reach Loguetown, we can stop by the Marines there to claim the bounty!"

There was no need to replenish food there anymore.

But regardless, Loguetown was a place he absolutely had to visit.

There, a fat sheep who hadn't been urgently harvested for several years was quietly waiting for him!

Five days later.

The four of them gathered around the long table on the deck, staring at the sea chart with expressions of utter disbelief.

"Didn't they say we could reach Loguetown in four or five days at most..." Siano pinched his chin. "Why is it so desolate nearby? We haven't even seen a single island?"

"..."

Sister Sister Guyina propped herself up against the table; after a long silence, she finally forced out the words with difficulty, "We must have... gone off course. Our current route seems, seems to be leaning more toward the Goa Kingdom..."

"What's going on?"

Nojiko attacked from behind, poking Sister Sister Guyina hard in the waist. "When you were thumping your chest earlier, confidently saying you could handle the navigator's duties, you didn't have this kind of expression!"

"Plans can't keep up with changes..."

Sister Sister Guyina looked aggrieved and had no face to offer further excuses, but she had truly done her best. For the first two days, with Zeff's assistance, their heading had been normal and everything under control.

It was precisely on the third day that a torrential rainstorm fell, obstructing visibility and causing chaotic wind patterns.

By the time this storm, which lasted a day and a night, finally ceased, they discovered their route had deviated significantly from the original plan.

"This isn't your fault, so don't take it to heart. Let's just correct our course and continue toward Loguetown; it won't delay us by many days."

Siano smiled and patted Sister Sister Guyina on the shoulder to comfort her, paying it no mind, yet this incident did indeed serve as a wake-up call for him.

Here in the East Blue, going off course was no big deal.

As long as it was detected early, one could rely on the compass to return to the original route very quickly.

But what would happen once they entered the Grand Line?

There, the magnetic fields were chaotic, and the wind directions and ocean currents were entirely unpredictable; the compass would lose all effectiveness, leaving them reliant solely on the Log Pose for guidance, with risks far exceeding those of the East Blue.

It seemed imperative to prioritize the plan of finding a reliable navigator and move it up the schedule as soon as possible.

"Beep... beep..." Just then, a series of alert sounds suddenly rang out beside his ear. Siano first froze slightly, then realized what it was, his eyes lighting up with delight.

This was...

Had the Devil Fruit Detection Radar finally responded?

Boom!

Almost simultaneously, the ship's hull suddenly shuddered and began to toss violently; the few people on deck stumbled, nearly falling to the ground.

"What's happening?"

Siano closed his inventory panel, turned his head, and shouted loudly.

"It's a whirlpool current, and a massive one at that!!"

Sister Sister Guyina rushed to the helm, frantically turning it back and forth, striving to maintain the ship's balance. "It's pulling us in a certain direction... Damn it! We haven't even entered the Grand Line yet, so why did we have to encounter something like this!!"

(End of Chapter)