"Everyone ready?"
Karin glanced at the Acier father and daughter beside her.
"The research materials have all been sealed and stored, and the other things we need to take are also with us."
Acier spoke, his face showing an expression of wanting to persuade her again.
"But Captain Karin, you really don't need me to..."
"Ah, I said no means no. You two just live your lives well. Don't get involved in matters on the sea anymore. I'll visit you when I have the chance."
After saying that, she made a gesture to Naomi in the pilot house.
Naomi, receiving the captain's order, immediately turned the ship's bow toward the direction they came from.
According to Acier, there were three ways to leave Master Lantern's body.
The first was to be excreted from the body along with Master Lantern's digestive waste, through the intestines.
But considering the digestive fluids and the narrowness of the intestines, Karin, with a ship and a pair of ordinary father and daughter, could not choose this option.
The second was to directly tear open Master Lantern's belly.
Of course, this method was only suitable for strong individuals. Ordinary people not only lacked the ability to cut through Master Lantern's hide, but even reaching its edge was difficult.
And most crucially, if Master Lantern was currently in the deep sea, then those who tore open its belly would be doomed.
The deep-sea water pressure combined with the sea's suppression of Devil Fruit users meant that unless one was like Naruto, who could manually coat things in bubbles, or someone like Kaido with freakishly strong vitality, there was basically no chance of survival.
The first two methods were not feasible, so they could only choose the third one.
Sail the ship back to the first stomach sac, then stimulate Master Lantern's uvula to induce its urge to vomit.
The stimulated Master Lantern would actively surface and spit them out.
—That was how Olga accidentally escaped back then.
"Boss, those World Government's people..."
Naomi asked with some concern while adjusting the sailing direction.
"Don't worry about it. Leave it to me."
"And, how many times do I have to say it, call me Captain."
Karin directly landed on Naomi's shoulder, then used her beak to groom her feathers.
"Oh... Captain."
That scene made it look like Naomi was the captain.
Naomi watched Karin's very natural movements, feeling there was something she had to say.
Hadn't it only been a short while? The captain she acknowledged seemed to have already gotten used to living in a bird's way.
'If Captain Karin couldn't change back, would she, over time, be completely consumed by the bird's instincts, forgetting her human identity entirely?'
It had to be said, her concern was quite reasonable.
After hesitating for a moment, Naomi still voiced this observation.
"Captain, haven't you noticed you're becoming more and more like a real bird?"
As soon as the words fell, Karin's movements stiffened.
Then she raised her head, met Naomi's gaze, and looked at the father and daughter not far away.
The Acier father and daughter also showed similarly worried expressions on their faces.
"No... no problem! I just wasn't paying attention earlier! It's a small issue. It'll be fine once I change back to human."
Even though she said that, Karin, who had experienced the Impel Down incident, immediately recalled those Jailer Beasts whose consciousnesses were overtaken by the wild instincts of their Devil Fruit abilities.
'Wait, would I end up like that in the end?'
'I don't want that!'
She wailed inwardly, but Karin maintained an outward calm.
At the very least, she couldn't let others panic along with her.
Controlling strong winds to make the Shark Emeralda sail against the current, they soon passed the second island and continued sailing toward the first stomach sac.
…
Above the sea surface.
"We lost them."
"Yep~"
Lucci listened with a cold face as his colleagues Kaku and Kalifa spoke sarcastically beside him.
Seeing Lucci remain silent, Kaku thought about it and still spoke up.
"Waiting like this isn't a solution either, Lucci. After all, the people on the ship..."
"Let them wait."
Lucci's tone was firm, brooking no argument.
But looking at his eyes, there was already a hint of obsession.
He couldn't believe, nor could he accept, that his chance to turn things around was slipping away just like that.
Hearing this, Kaku could only exchange a glance with Kalifa.
They understood that Lucci had now gotten stuck in a dead end and would absolutely not give up without obtaining a result.
Right before their eyes, the big fish that had swallowed the clue to Pure Gold led them on a wild chase before diving down and disappearing in this sea area.
Lucci wanted to chase but was powerless, so they could only circle around this sea area repeatedly.
Because of this, some people on the ship had begun to voice slight complaints.
Yes, you Rob Lucci are strong, but can you sail the ship alone?
Before, everyone were colleagues, selling their lives for the World Government's noble masters, so listening to you was fine.
Now that the World Government had collapsed, and their original departments could not be contacted, these guys from different factions began to have disagreements.
Some felt that rather than scattering to look for their organizations, it was better to stay with this CP0 group for now.
If there really was no chance to sell their services to the noble masters again, at least they could follow that capable agent to make a living.
These people were mostly those on the front lines doing the work, or simply the sailors of this ship.
Since there were such people, naturally there were also those who were originally here for a resume boost, relying on their family connections… slackers.
This group had the biggest complaints.
The World Government had collapsed on the surface, but they didn't believe the factions they belonged to would vanish overnight.
So, after realizing they likely couldn't obtain [Pure Gold], this group incited a batch of not-so-staunch lackeys, trying to use 'majority rules' to 'persuade' Lucci to change his mind.
Of course, the result was quite clear.
Lucci could show no mercy toward his own soldiers, and it was the same for these slackers.
That night, the smell of blood on this sea lingered for a long time without dissipating.
The scent of blood attracted many fierce big fish, but unfortunately, Lucci still didn't see the one he was hoping for.
Naturally, such a bloody method of suppression couldn't be without consequences.
Even if Kaku didn't say it, Lucci understood.
Those originally wavering guys probably also felt some resentment after this purge.
But he didn't care.
If it weren't for needing enough manpower to sail the ship, he wouldn't mind finishing off the remaining people here too.
Unlike those agents, Lucci was actually the one who saw things most clearly.
He understood this time was different from before.
The Celestial Dragons' traditional 'legitimacy of rule' was gone, and the World Government's collapse couldn't be just temporary.
He needed to find a way out for himself.
And [Pure Gold] was a more valuable 'door-opener' than Devil Fruits or other treasures.
Right now, the chance to obtain this divine object was right before his eyes. He simply couldn't accept giving up!
"It's here!"
Suddenly, Kaku heard Lucci beside him say.
He followed the voice and looked to the port side ahead of the ship.
The water there began to churn.
Then, a dazzling golden light that not even the deep sea could conceal bloomed from the water's surface.
The sailors on the ship also saw this scene and rushed onto the deck, their grievances temporarily forgotten.
Splash!
The sea surface was easily parted by a colossal creature.
It was exactly that giant lantern fish that had swallowed the Shark Emerald.
But at this moment, that big fish's belly was emitting a light even more piercing than the lantern in front of its head.
Pure Gold!
It must be Pure Gold!
Not just Lucci, almost everyone who saw that golden light thought the same.
"Get closer! Bring the ship closer!"
Lucci shouted somewhat excitedly at the sailors.
"Lucci, calm down!"
Kalifa pressed her hand on Lucci's shoulder.
"Rushing over recklessly will capsize us."
However, her words didn't seem to carry much weight before Lucci, whose eyes were already starting to turn red.
Lucci just shook off her hand, then continued to press both hands on the ship's railing, staring fixedly at the big fish.
"...Capsizing doesn't matter. This time, I absolutely won't let this fish get away again."