Chapter 63: The Classic of Mountains and Seas?
Chapter 63: The Classic of Mountains and Seas?
The moment the words "Giant Warrior Pirates" were spoken, the air seemed to freeze.
Yelena and Uta had never heard of the Giant Warrior Pirates, so they looked quite confused. But for the giants on the massive ship, the name "Giant Warrior Pirates" symbolized a glorious legend that had lasted for centuries.
The previous generation of the Giant Warrior Pirates, under the leadership of their two legendary captains, Dorry the Blue Ogre and Brogy the Red Ogre, had made a great name for themselves on the sea. And in an even earlier era, two other heroes of the giant race were no less impressive. Therefore, the mere mention of the Giant Warrior Pirates filled every giant with pride and longing.
After a brief daze, the giant Hajrudin shook his head, his expression complicated. "We are not yet qualified to sail the seas under the name of the Giant Warrior Pirates."
"The Giant Warrior Pirates are a legend!" the giant with the horned helmet and a kanabō on his shoulder exclaimed in awe.
"Is that so?" Louis looked calmly at the group of giants, thinking. Beside him, Yelena turned her head to look at Louis's thoughtful expression, a flash of understanding in her eyes. It was a similar look to the one he had when they first met on the plateau two years ago.
Just then, the blonde female giant, Gerd, introduced herself and the others. Then, her eyes filled with a deep curiosity. She pointed at the flag on the warship and asked, "Are you pirates?" She was quite curious as to why Louis and his group would become pirates at such a young age.
"That's right! We are the Archangel Pirates! This is our captain, Louis, and the captain's second-in-command, Yelena!"
"As for me, I am the musician of the Archangel Pirates, Uta!" Uta, in her Siren form, swam around Louis and Yelena, explaining with a laugh. Her bewitching voice carried on the sea breeze to the giants' ears, influencing them like a frog in slowly boiling water.
"The Archangel Pirates..." On the giant ship, the giants subconsciously repeated the name. "Never heard of them..."
"In the future, this name will resound throughout the entire sea!" Uta swam over and sat on Louis's shoulder, leaning against his head and gently wagging her pink fishtail.
"Wait, he's the captain?" Hajrudin's eyes widened. He gradually realized something was wrong. Among pirates, the strongest person on the ship is usually the captain; without strength, it's impossible to command a crew of vicious outlaws who constantly live on the edge. But now, Yelena, who in his perception was extremely dangerous, was not the captain. Instead, it was Louis, who, to his senses, had nothing special about him besides his appearance.
This realization made Hajrudin's scalp tingle. He had rashly approached a powerhouse so strong that he hadn't even noticed him.
"That's right," Louis nodded calmly in acknowledgment. There was no need to hide it.
Louis's calm demeanor helped Hajrudin to calm down. He was now certain that Louis and his group had no ill intentions. At the same time, he was thankful that his group had no ill intentions either. It was true that the giants were brave and skilled in battle, having thrown life and death to the wind, but that didn't mean they were willing to die a worthless and pointless death.
"..."
"Since you haven't been kidnapped, we'll be on our way!" the giant with the horned helmet said with a hearty laugh. "See you again if fate allows!"
...
Soon, the giants maneuvered their massive ship away, gradually disappearing from the sight of Louis and his group.
"You're not going to invite them?" Yelena asked.
Louis shook his head. "I couldn't find a suitable opening. It would be too abrupt to just ask them directly."
A day later, Louis and his group encountered a local pirate crew from the West Blue. The other party warmly hosted the trio and, upon parting, friendly gifted all the treasure on their ship to them, along with a sea chart of the West Blue.
Seven days after meeting the giants, the warship carrying Louis's group arrived near its destination.
...
West Blue - In the waters near the Flower Country.
At night, the light from a burning sailing ship illuminated two other vessels on the dark sea.
On a pirate ship of a style different from others on the sea, a sturdy, bald man with a goatee cupped his hands in respect to Louis and his group on the warship. "My name is Bao. I am the deputy to the commander of the Sanbao Navy."
"Thank you very much for your help. Otherwise, our Sanbao Navy might not have been able to intercept these human traffickers."
"The Sanbao Navy..." Louis was thoughtful. It reminded him of the Happo Navy from the original story. As for Bao's unique style of name, Louis wasn't surprised. There were quite a few people on the sea with names in that style, like Chinjao, Boo, and Sai of the Happo Navy, and even stronger ones like Ochoku, the ruler of Hachinosu.
The bald man's words made a hint of surprise appear on Yelena's face. "Navy? Then why are you flying a pirate flag?"
To this, the bald man gave a straightforward answer. "Our Flower Country has several navies, but we all have inextricable ties to the Flower Country's government and even its citizens."
"..." Yelena didn't understand.
Seeing this, Louis casually explained, "It means they're official pirates."
Yelena was even more confused. It was the first time she had ever heard of the status of an "official pirate."
To this, a hint of embarrassment appeared on Bao's face. He prompted in a low voice, "It's better not to say such things out in the open." He indicated that it was enough to know about it, but it shouldn't be said aloud, as it would make everyone lose face.
Nearby, Uta had a flash of insight. "Oh, I see! So that's why you, as pirates, would go after human traffickers?" At first, she thought they had met pirates like Shanks and his crew.
Bao nodded slowly, looking back at the children who were being led into the cabin one by one. "That's right. Besides earning extra income at sea, we also have the responsibility of protecting the people."
Then, Bao warmly invited Louis and his group. "Everyone, please follow us back to the Sanbao Navy as guests. Boss Jin will give you a warm reception!"
To this, Louis shook his head and refused, saying he had business to attend to in the Flower Country. Seeing their invitation refused, Bao and his men were not disappointed. Instead, they offered to lead the way and escort them to the Flower Country. After some thought, Louis graciously accepted their kind offer.
Along the way, Bao enthusiastically told the trio about the Flower Country.
The Flower Country was a rare, large nation in the world. Its area was comparable to that of Alabasta in the first half of the Grand Line. It had a relatively large population and a standing army of tens of thousands. Due to the kingdom's large size, it was divided into many different regions, each with its own iconic city, four of which were particularly famous. The commanders of the several navies distributed along the coast of the Flower Country were all great pirates with bounties in the hundreds of millions of Berries.
Finally, Bao gave the three a rather serious reminder, advising them to avoid the wilderness as much as possible. The Flower Country was home to many dangerous creatures that were rare even in the Four Seas or the New World. The strongest among them had even mastered Haki, and even some of the navy commanders found them quite troublesome.
...
After a long time, Louis and his group set foot on the soil of the Flower Country. After storing their warship, the group, prepared for survival in the wild, took the map given to them by Bao and began to head deep into the jungle.
Soon, they encountered the dangerous creature Bao had spoken of: a giant wolf over five meters tall. It leaped out from the jungle, lowered its red head, and its eyes, similar to a rat's, were filled with greedy malice.
Louis was taken aback, and subconsciously uttered a word. "A Geju?"
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