49 Raising Felynes Is for Fun!

Gotta say, Odelia really is quite the all-rounder. Aside from cooking—which Sanji Meow would never give up—she pretty much handles all the ship work by herself.

Besides the daily duties, Odelia even helpful when it comes to sailing. And when Sherwin trains, she can help take care of Klee Meow...

Well, that is, unless Klee Meow is working on her "toys." In that case, Sherwin has to step in—otherwise, he could completely play the hands-off boss.

On top of that, Odelia knows a lot about the islands in the West Blue. That means Sherwin and the others won't go in totally blind before they arrive somewhere.

Take the first destination after the Explorer No. 1 set sail, for example…

"There aren't really any towns on the Bone-Crushing Archipelago, because it not a place people can live," Odelia explained to Sherwin and the others.

"It called the 'Bone-Crushing Archipelago' because of all the hidden currents and reefs between the islands. There are also fierce fish and sea beasts that attack ships. The 'Bone-Crushing' part actually refers to shattering a ship keel."

Sherwin couldn't help but feel a chill after hearing Odelia description.

Good thing they knew what to expect beforehand. With a little ship like the Explorer No. 1, and their barely adequate sailing skills—just him and Sanji Meow—even with Klee Meow good luck, they would've been doomed for sure.

"But since we know what we're dealing with now, it much easier," Sherwin said with a shrug.

"Worst case, we park the ship at the edge and just swim in… Right, didn't you say there are sea beasts too? We could just tame one to guide us through—that not a bad idea either."

According to One Piece lore, Sea Kings and sea beasts aren't the same. Sea Kings only listen to the Sea King command, but sea beasts can be tamed—like the bull-headed sea beast the Arlong Pirates had, or the horse-like pair raised by the Franky Family.

Odelia couldn't quite wrap her head around it…

"There no one there. Why are you even going?" she asked.

There was once a pirate crew that claimed it as a base, taking advantage of the terrain. But later, they found that resupplying there was a nightmare, so they abandoned it.

That means there probably no treasure either. The only thing of any value would be the fish and sea beasts—considered rare ingredients at best.

"You know we're called the 'Felyne Exploration Squad,' right?" Sherwin explained patiently.

"But more accurately, we're really more of an 'Expedition Team' or 'Search Party.' Our mission is to find Felynes scattered around the world. The place might not be livable for humans, but that doesn't mean it not suitable for Felynes."

This excuse was something Sherwin had come up with long ago, but it wasn't exactly a lie either. After all, the more they traveled, the more Felynes they could gather.

And exploring this world wasn't just about summoning more Felynes…

As mentioned before, Sherwin didn't really care about the One Piece or becoming Pirate King.

As for overthrowing the Celestial Dragons—if he had the chance and the power, he'd help out.

But he didn't see it as some personal ambition or life goal. That said, now that he was in such a fantastical world, claiming he didn't want to explore it would've been a flat-out lie.

Even without his current cheat abilities, Sherwin would've traveled all over the Four Blues and eventually made his way to the Grand Line once he had the strength.

The Felynes just gave him another reason to do it.

Odelia looked at the two little cats beside Sherwin, opened her mouth like she wanted to say something, then gave up and sighed softly. "I get it. They really are worth it."

Sherwin felt like Odelia mood was a little strange, but he didn't think much of it. He gently scratched Klee Meow under the chin and teased,

"You heard her. Once we get to Bone-Crushing Archipelago, we'll have to swim to shore. Klee, you can't swim, right? How about staying behind to watch the ship?"

"No way, meow!" The little ragdoll, who had been enjoying Sherwin massage, immediately puffed up.

"Klee wants to go explore the island too! Sanji-nii is the chef cat—he should be the one to stay and watch the ship, meow!"

When faced with her second favorite thing, Klee Meow didn't hesitate to sell out Sanji Meow.

Mm-hmm. Klee Meow number one favorite thing, of course, was tinkering with all kinds of explosives.

Naturally, Sherwin never really intended to leave Klee Meow alone to watch the ship. Never mind her innate treasure-hunting gift—if he really left her by herself, he was worried that by the time he got back, the Explorer No. 1 would be nothing but a pile of shattered wood.

But if a cat owner doesn't tease their cat, is that even really raising a cat?

No matter how much Sherwin spoiled Klee Meow, when it was time to tease her, he had to do it!

"Mm, but I need Sanji to come with me and help pick out ingredients," Sherwin said with well-reasoned seriousness.

"So it makes more sense for you to stay behind and watch the ship, Klee."

When it came to teasing Klee Meow, Sanji Meow was firmly on Sherwin side. Not only did he not speak up for Klee Meow, he even chimed in with a sincere look,

"Sherwin right, meow. Plus, we're landing on an archipelago—there gonna be a lot of swimming around. It safer for you to stay on the ship, little Klee Meow."

"Klee used to be able to swim!" The little ragdoll threw a tantrum, rolling around.

"But Sherwin-nii tricked Klee into eating that gross weird fruit, meow! And now you won't even take Klee along! You're all bullying Klee Meow!"

Odelia, who had been smiling while watching them mess around, blinked in surprise and curiously asked, "Can't swim after eating it… Klee also ate a Devil Fruit?"

"Mhm."

Sherwin casually nodded, answering her question. Then, feeling like he'd teased her enough, he turned back to coax the ragdoll who was now rolling all over the deck.

"Alright, alright. I was just messing with you. You really think I could bear to leave you behind, Klee?"

Sherwin scooped Klee Meow into his arms, rubbing his cheek against her fluffy little head. Even his voice unconsciously softened into a babying tone.

But just then, Sanji Meow—who had just "helped the villain"—turned traitor and threw him under the bus: "You're just worried Klee Meow will blow up the Explorer No. 1, aren't you?"

Why you little loudmouth!

Sherwin shot a fierce glare at the brat.

Thankfully, Klee Meow still loved him. Even though she chomped down hard on his arm, she immediately followed it up by carefully licking the bite marks, worried that she'd actually hurt him.

And so, the little angel Klee Meow forgave Sherwin just like that—much to the disappointment of Sanji Meow, who had been looking forward to more drama.

After a while, Sherwin and the others arrived near the Bone-Crushing Archipelago. Following the original plan, Sherwin dropped anchor at the outer edge.

Then he let Klee Meow wrap her arms around his neck and lie down on his back, and brought Sanji Meow with him to the side of the ship.

"Alright then, I'll leave the ship-watching job to you," Sherwin turned to Odelia and said, "There plenty of fresh water and food on board, and at our speed, we should be back before long."

"You're not afraid I'll take the chance to sail the ship away?" Odelia asked with a complicated expression.

"Oh, right…"

Sherwin scratched his head belatedly.

To be fair, they'd only known each other for less than a week.

There really wasn't any solid reason to place this level of trust in her. Sherwin had simply thought that, since it hard to survive alone at sea, she probably wouldn't do anything foolish—forgetting that this wasn't Earth.

In this world, most people had experience surviving at sea... and also had bodies that didn't keel over so easily.

Still, since she brought it up, she clearly didn't plan on doing it. She was probably just testing how much he trusted her...

So that whole maid story was fake after all, huh?

Honestly, if it weren't for her skin tone being off, Sherwin would've suspected she was Nico Robin. After all, West Blue + CP—it hard not to think of her.

Sherwin looked at Odelia, and sure enough, saw tension and caution in her eyes.

If he said something like "I trust you" at this moment, even if she didn't immediately reveal her true identity, at least she'd lower her guard a little. So Sherwin just shrugged and said—

"Relax. If you really try that, you definitely won't get far."

Just a temporary teammate—Sherwin had no interest in farming favorability points.

But Odelia reaction was a bit strange. She blinked in a daze at first, then suddenly chuckled and said, "I still need your help to avoid the Capone Family pursuit, so of course I wouldn't do something that stupid."

Emmm... for some reason, Odelia now felt a lot more genuine.

So this is the correct way to gain favor with pirates?