Good times always passed far too quickly.
In the blink of an eye, three days had already gone by.
On this day, just like usual, the four of them were resting in the café—drinking coffee, chatting idly, and enjoying a relaxed lunch.
Suddenly, the light in the room dimmed.
Through the wide window, they saw the sea and sky outside slowly change—from a clear blue horizon into a world swallowed by clouds and fog.
It had been nearly a year since the four entered the Grand Line.
Foggy weather wasn't rare.
On the contrary, they woke up to mist almost every morning.
But this fog was different.
The thin morning mist and ordinary foggy days couldn't compare to what they were seeing now.
Since setting sail, this was the first time they had witnessed the sky turn pitch-black in the middle of the day—
As if night had descended without warning.
That alone showed how terrifyingly dense this fog was—
So thick that it completely blocked all sunlight.
"This weather…"
Carina looked out the window, sighing softly.
"Have we entered the Florian Triangle?"
"As expected of the Pegasus," she added with admiration.
"This speed is really something."
"Nii-san," Nami said, turning her head.
She was lying beside El, who was stretched out comfortably with his head resting on Kuina's lap, looking half-asleep.
"Are you really planning to rob one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea?" she asked curiously.
"What exactly does he have that's worth robbing?"
"…Hm?"
El slowly opened his eyes, meeting Kuina's clear gaze—and began lying without blinking.
"When we were hunting pirate crews near Water 7," he said lazily,
"one of them had escaped—purely by luck—from the Florian Triangle."
"They were curious about this sea area. By chance, they broke into a dilapidated ship as large as an island."
"In the central castle of that ship, in one particular room, they saw a famous sword."
"Unfortunately," El continued,
"before they could take it, they were captured by Gecko Moria and lost consciousness."
"When they woke up, they found themselves back on their own ship for reasons they couldn't explain."
"And that sword…"
El's eyes narrowed slightly.
"If I'm not mistaken, it should be Shusui—one of the 21 Great Grade Swords."
"Shusui?"
Kuina froze for a moment.
Then, as if recalling an old memory, a complicated expression surfaced on her face.
"I think… I've heard my father mention that sword before," she said softly.
"He said it was the **national treasure of the Land of Wano Country."
"And when he talked about it… his expression was very complicated."
Of course it was complicated.
El thought silently.
That was the ancestral blade of the Shimotsuki clan.
As Kuina's descendant bloodline, how could Koushirounot want that sword returned?
When El someday took Shusui from Moria and brought it back to the East Blue to challenge Koushirou—
The other man's expression would be priceless.
I took your daughter.
I took your ancestor's sword.
This son-in-law is truly… devoted.
Thinking that far ahead, a wicked smile crept onto El's face.
Kuina tilted her head slightly, confused by his sudden grin.
"So that's it," Carina said in realization.
"The national treasure of Wano—and one of the 21 Great Grade Swords."
"This is what you're after, Nii-san!"
"I thought it would be a Devil Fruit," Nami added.
"But honestly, if it's just a Devil Fruit, it wouldn't be nearly as tempting to you as a famous sword."
Both girls nodded in understanding.
As the darkness outside deepened, the four took the elevator up to the deck and prepared to take the helm.
El released his Observation Haki to its fullest extent.
After confirming their direction, he gently patted Nami on the shoulder and pointed forward.
"Nami—keep sailing straight in this direction."
"Got it."
Nami nodded, turned the rudder, and guided the Pegasus steadily through the fog.
Along the way, they encountered two ghost ships drifting aimlessly within the Florian Triangle.
However, their number was clearly far fewer than what would exist in Year 1520.
After all—
Gecko Moria had only moved his base into the Florian Triangle less than a year ago.
Even if he had already begun his zombie project, the number of pirates whose shadows he had captured was still far below what it would later become.
At this point in time—
Brook had not yet accidentally wandered into the Florian Triangle.
His shadow had not been taken.
And it certainly hadn't been implanted into the body of Shimotsuki Ryuma.
That meant—
Ryuma's corpse was still sealed within Thriller Bark.
And Shusui was stored somewhere else by Moria.
If El wanted that sword, he would need to read Moria's memories—
Or those of his three top subordinates.
To read their memories, he would have to defeat them.
Which meant—
This battle was inevitable.
If Kuina hadn't become a Logia user, El would have waited another year or two before attempting this.
He was confident he could remain undefeated against the current, decadent Gecko Moria—
But within Thriller Bark, there existed a far more dangerous opponent.
Someone El was deeply wary of.
That enemy was the user of the Horo Horo no Mi—
The rule-type Devil Fruit that could ignore level gaps and instantly defeat most opponents.
The "Ghost Princess"
Perona.
At El's speed, he might be able to avoid her Negative Hollows.
But the three girls couldn't.
Not before.
But now—
After mastering Three Heads and Six Arms, the combined strength of Carina, Nami, and Kuina had already surpassed El himself.
He no longer needed to worry about them.
Even if Gecko Moria was stronger than in the original timeline, and even if El couldn't defeat him alone—
He could fuse with Carina and Kuina, access the Goro Goro no Mi, and temporarily raise his combat power to an entirely different level.
The Pegasus sailed onward, swallowed by fog.
And in the darkness of the Florian Triangle,
The curtain slowly rose on the Thriller Bark arc.
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