Chapter 126: Retirement Semi-Employment Plan

Golden Lion was still unaware of what he had missed when Saint Saint Saiwen's group arrived at Jia Ba's secluded residence.

Along the way,

Mihawk had been eagerly waiting for the banquet to end so he could challenge Jia Ba immediately and witness just how powerful the Strongest Man truly was.

The fact that Saint Saint Saiwen's assessment of Jia Ba was even higher than Roger's was somewhat unexpected, but Mihawk believed Saint Saint Saiwen would not lie.

There must be something unknown here.

Perhaps Jia Ba was hiding his strength?

Just like the undercover trio described Fatty Teach of the Whitebeard Pirates?

And when the twenty-meter-tall female giant Lipri, with her protruding belly, called Jia Ba "husband"—

Mihawk, Kuma, and Jin Ni were instantly petrified, their chins unable to close, and even the Electric Duck froze in place, stunned.

A towering wave surged within their hearts.

Moments later, the three humans and the duck mirrored each other's expressions and actions, turning to look at Jia Ba, then tilting their heads up to gaze at the female giant Lipri.

It's impossible to imagine, right?!

Not only do the tops not match, the bottoms don't match, and the middles don't match either; the couple's height and physique are completely disproportionate in every way!

So the question arises: how is it done?

How does one, with a human body, conquer a female giant ten times taller and larger, and even make her pregnant?

The three humans and the duck fell silent for a long time, feeling only that their heads were terribly itchy, as if something was about to grow out of them.

At this moment.

Mihawk had long forgotten about challenging Jia Ba; his entire focus was on one question: Was Saint Saint Saiwen, under the guise of bringing back crew members, specifically coming to Elbaf to find answers?

And the Strongest Man, Jia Ba, was indeed terrifyingly so; no wonder even someone as confident as Saint Saint Saiwen held Jia Ba in such high esteem.

The title of Strongest Man is well-deserved.

Lipri covered her belly, laughing uncontrollably; the reactions of Mihawk and the other two were almost identical to those of Lei Li and Xia Qi back then.

"Little Saint Saint Saiwen, Xia Qi told me you cook exceptionally well. I've been looking forward to this for a long time."

Saint Saint Saiwen tilted his head up, his eyes filled with a vast expanse of snow-white, and those surging, billowing waves were perhaps the most beautiful scenery in the world.

Do not look at what is improper; do not look at what is improper!

"Sister, I will go cook right now."

Lipri, at fifty-nine years old, equated to just over nineteen in human years; calling her "Sister" was both reasonable and very polite for Saint Saint Saiwen.

Women, especially beautiful women, can always be called "Sister" regardless of their age.

Under normal circumstances, Uncle Jia Ba would very likely have bid farewell to this world early, during Lipri's life, which was less than a third of his own.

After all, giants can live three to four hundred years, which is three times the human lifespan.

Realizing this issue, Saint Saint Saiwen, while preparing ingredients, pondered the feasibility of Vice-Captain Lei Li and Uncle Jia Ba's "Retirement Semi-Employment Plan."

Sabaody Archipelago... Elbaf...

The Straw Hat Pirates' outpost in the Sabaody Archipelago, and the outpost in the Giant Kingdom of Elbaf?

This has great potential!

Rather than letting the Wings of the King retire peacefully, it would be better to keep grinding; being in one's fifties is the age in life most worth striving for.

Even if it is just for the sake of family, one must strive and fight hard.

【Uncle Jia Ba, you surely wouldn't want Sister Lipri to live alone and lonely in the future, right?】

【Vice-Captain Lei Li, don't you wish for Xia Yi to remain forever youthful? Hmm? Then I'll go tell Xia Yi.】

【Hehe... Everyone, come work for me.】

After all, they are the Wings of the King; even if they cannot stay on the ship permanently, they can serve as a reserve force.

Of course, the premise of all this is that Saint Saint Saiwen can find Pure Gold, and that the quantity is sufficient to allocate to so many people; if he cannot find it, it would be nothing but empty joy.

It shouldn't be that unlucky, right?

At the very least, he could activate Observation Haki and search along the Alola Sea in the New World, area by area; he would eventually find clues about the Lantern Fish.

Even if he cannot find it in a short time, it doesn't matter; with the guaranteed safety net of the Straw Hat Kid, finding Pure Gold is merely a matter of time.

Thinking of this, Saint Saint Saiwen hummed a small tune from his memory while preparing ingredients.

"Hmm~ Hmm~ Hmm~ Hmm~"

Not far away, Jia Ba's eyelids twitched; especially upon hearing Saint Saint Saiwen hum that familiar tune again, he unconsciously muttered a sentence.

"Saint Saint Saiwen must be thinking up another bad scheme."

Mihawk, Kuma, and Jin Ni all nodded in agreement.

Whenever the Captain happily hums a small tune unconsciously, it is destined that someone will suffer misfortune next; the last person so unlucky was Saint Elaine.

So who will it be this time?

Is someone worth the Captain's such concern?

Because they were in Elbaf, with ingredients exclusive to the giant race, Saint Saint Saiwen did not waste much time cooking; shortly after, a group gathered in the courtyard.

"Cheers!"

"Cheers!"

The aroma of Dandelion Wine filled the air, whetting everyone's appetite; even Lipri could not help but take a few shallow sips from her bowls.

"Saint Saint Saiwen, this wine is excellent." Jia Ba savored the aroma: "Remember to leave me a few dozen jars."

"Uncle, at most ten jars."

Even the landlord has no surplus grain; although Saint Saint Saiwen possessed over a hundred thousand points, unlocking the second Devil Fruit required two hundred thousand points.

Moreover, on the way to Elbaf, Shangcheng had refreshed several items related to outposts.

The banquet lasted until late at night; after eating and drinking their fill, Jia Ba accompanied Lipri for a walk.

Saint Saint Saiwen, taking advantage of the night's cover, raced toward the Elbaf Wang Gong, his face flushed with excitement.

Lightning Squirrel, big brother's here for you!

Yang Realm, Elbaf Wang Gong.

Inside the vast, spacious palace, the dome rose so high it vanished from sight; every stroke on the palace walls was carved with the glory of the giant ancestors—

warriors wielding colossal axes to split tidal waves, sages presiding over sacrificial rites, scenes of feasting and merriment around bonfires.

After receiving the scout's secret message, King Harald rubbed his brow in distress.

Many years ago, Elbaf had a terrible reputation; the giant race was synonymous in the world's eyes with violence and barbarism.

Harald loved peace and spent his reign striving to reverse Elbaf's negative image, forging friendly ties with nations across the world.

After the God's Valley incident,

upon hearing of his brother Locks' death, Harald personally journeyed to Marineford, severed his own horns as atonement, and offered himself as a servant.

He was then dispatched by the Jiezhengfu Sect—to serve as the Navy's right hand in suppressing pirates.

After the Great Pirate Era began,

Harald signed the Shallow Sea Pact with Im, master of the Empty Wang Zuo, becoming a Divine Thicket Blade, and received a formal promise from the Five Elders: once he ascended to Divine Knight, Elbaf could join the Jiezhengfu Sect.

Harald believed—

precisely because of the kingdom's efforts over the past decade, Elbaf was now heading toward a bright future, and he would never tolerate anyone destroying it.

Yet,

the advancing Giant Ship brought back by Dori might very well anger the world's noble Celestial Dragons.

Thus, Harald had temporarily imprisoned the Giant Soldier Pirate Crew members in West Village, feeding them well and treating them kindly, hoping only that they wouldn't cause trouble.

But he never expected Barzab Saint Saint Saiwen to arrive!

It wasn't fear of Barzab Saint Saint Saiwen and his men—back then, even his brother Locks, mighty as he was, had only fought him to a draw—but he refused to let Elbaf's hard-won peace be shattered by Barzab Saint Saint Saiwen and his crew.

Fighting at his own doorstep was the worst strategy; these pirates truly filled him with sorrow.

Harald suddenly felt a sensation, turning toward a certain direction within the palace; three seconds later, a figure wreathed in fine sparks of electricity slowly materialized.

"Hello there, Giant Mr. Harald."