A Letter from the South Blue

"Gion, this is a letter from the South Blue—it's from your father."

"My father sent me a letter?"

From within a dense flowerbed, a figure emerged, the plants parting around him as if making way.

Jon took the letter from Gion's hands in surprise. "That old man is really something. Why send a letter instead of using a transponder snail?"

Although the world of pirates wasn't as technologically advanced as Jon's previous life, it still had transponder snails for telegrams. In the Navy, sending messages via transponder snails was common practice.

On the other hand, sending letters was quite rare. Even when it did happen, the delivery time was long, especially for a letter coming all the way from the South Blue to the Grand Line.

Without any hesitation, Jon tore open the envelope and began reading. However, after just a few sentences, he blurted out in shock:

"Holy shit!"

Gion was startled. "What happened? Did something bad happen to your family?"

Jon let out a bitter laugh. "Oh, something happened, alright—but it's actually good news. I can't believe it—my old man still has it in him! He just gave me a baby sister!"

Gion was stunned for a moment. She looked at Jon and asked, "Just born?"

Jon sighed and nodded. He was nearly 23 years old, and his father was already over 50. His mother was a bit younger but still in her forties.

At their age, they had just had another child. This was truly a case of having a baby late in life.

What were they thinking? Did they feel lonely because he had been away for so long, so they decided to have another kid to raise?

It was so sudden that Jon couldn't even process it.

He was a big brother now?

In his previous life, he had an older sister, but he never had a younger sibling—especially not one more than 20 years younger than him.

For some reason, an image of a tiny baby popped into his mind, making him desperately want to go home and see her.

"Ugh..."

Jon sighed internally. Unfortunately, he was still under house arrest and couldn't leave.

Still, the thought of his parents having another child to keep them company made him happy. At least they wouldn't feel as lonely without him around.

It had been six years since he last returned home, and Jon missed them deeply.

At the same time, he couldn't help but marvel at how strong the people of this world were. A woman in her forties giving birth so easily? In his previous world, there were hardly any women who would dare to have children at that age.

Aside from the big news about his sister, the letter also contained a lot of other things—mostly reminders from his father, telling him to be careful in the Navy headquarters, speak less, observe more, and avoid unnecessary trouble.

At the end of the letter, his father asked when he would have time to return to the South Blue for a visit. His mother missed him a lot.

Jon fell silent as he read the last part.

His parents had no idea that he had been punished and placed under house arrest. As far as they knew, he was doing well in the Navy headquarters. He never told them the truth because he didn't want them to worry.

With his punishment still in effect, returning to the South Blue was impossible for now.

To be honest, when he was first placed under house arrest, Jon had been filled with resentment and frustration. He had been given a second chance at life, and all he wanted was to live freely and without regrets. Being confined like this didn't fit his vision at all.

As time went on, that frustration slowly turned into anger.

At one point, he had even considered leaving the Navy altogether.

With his abilities, he could live well doing almost anything. At the very least, he wouldn't have to be suppressed and controlled like this.

But that thought had only lasted for a fleeting moment. Complaining was one thing, but leaving the Navy was never a real option.

Not because he loved the Navy, but because his entire life was tied to it. He couldn't just leave for his own sake and abandon his responsibilities to his parents and friends.

People often say, "Every man for himself," but that depends on the situation.

Sure, he was under house arrest and couldn't get promoted, but aside from that, the Navy still treated him well. He never had to worry about food, shelter, or training. If he encountered any difficulties in his cultivation, he could always seek guidance from Vice Admiral Tsuru or Zephyr.

If he left the Navy, where else could he find such good conditions?

So aside from the occasional complaint, Jon didn't really hold any deep resentment.

And as time passed, he gradually adapted to this lifestyle. In fact, it helped him become more composed and gave him time to reflect.

It had already been two years.

For the past two years, Jon had truly stayed away from outside affairs, dedicating himself entirely to training.

"Jon, do you need to send a reply to your father?"

Jon raised an eyebrow. "Why do you ask?"

Gion smiled. "In a few days, I'll be heading out to sea with the senior officers. There's a chance we'll pass by the South Blue, so I could deliver a letter for you."

"You're going out to sea?"

Jon was surprised. Aside from their last mission together, Gion had hardly left Marine Headquarters.

This was partly because she was still young, and partly because Vice Admiral Tsuru had been protecting her.

Now, hearing that Gion was about to go on a mission, Jon was a bit shocked.

Gion beamed. "Yeah, I'm a Marine Major now, and Vice Admiral Tsuru said it's time for me to gain experience. Since the senior officers are heading out, I'll be tagging along with them."

Jon knew she was talking about Vice Admiral Tsuru's elite female troops.

They were not to be underestimated. Some of them were among the strongest in the entire Navy.

"I see..."

Jon hesitated for a moment before saying, "Be careful out there. Don't let what happened to us last time repeat itself."

"Why do you keep bringing that up? That was just bad luck. You need to let it go already!"

Gion pouted in frustration. The incident had happened two years ago, but Jon still hadn't moved on.

Jon gave her a wry smile.

How could he just forget about it? Over 800 people had died, and he had been placed under house arrest for three years. It wasn't something he could just brush off.

"Alright, let's not talk about that anymore. Since you're heading to the South Blue, I'd really appreciate it if you could take a few things to my family."

It wasn't easy to send packages from Marine Headquarters to the South Blue.

Knowing he had a baby sister now, Jon was excited. He wanted to prepare a few gifts and have Gion deliver them.

"Also, whatever you do, don't tell my parents about my house arrest."

Gion nodded. "Got it. I won't say a word. I'll just tell them you've been really busy and couldn't find time to visit. I'm sure they'll understand."

"That'd be a big help, Gion."

"It's no trouble at all. It's on the way, anyway. No need to be so formal."

"..."

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