The bright sunlight, the azure sea, Morgans News Coo soaring freely in the sky, and the Pirate ship sailing on the water, leaving a trail of white waves.
"A little more pressure! Mm, just like that, perfect." Nero hummed, eyes half-closed, as she lay on a deck chair.
"Big Sister, your shoulders are quite stiff. It seems you've accumulated a lot of fatigue," a beautiful, curvaceous girl said while massaging Nero's shoulders.
"Big Sister! Here's some freshly chilled apple juice." Another equally beautiful girl held a tray with green apple juice on it.
"Mm, thank you for your hard work!"
The apple juice was brought to Nero's lips. She tilted her head, bit down on the straw, and took a big slurp. After half a glass, Nero let out a satisfied sigh: "Mm~ This is heaven!"
"Oh, Big Sister is being too dramatic!" the girls giggled.
The story began a day earlier. Nero had forcefully sent Hathaway away and set sail alone on the most luxurious Pirate ship in the harbor.
Although Nero was quite familiar with all the procedures for sailing, piloting such a large ship by herself was still a chaotic affair.
According to the original plan, Nero should have recruited a new crew here to handle all aspects of sailing, but Roger and his crew were arriving soon, and Nero, having just declared their breakup, didn't want to run into them.
So, despite the bumps and stumbles, Nero hastily set sail alone.
This chaotic situation improved after twenty minutes when Nero completely gave up.
"Mm, there's a gravitational pull between the harbor and the ship. If I do nothing, the magnetic field will naturally carry me to the next island."
Facing the sun, Nero stood at the bow. The unmanned Pirate ship continued to be propelled forward by the wind and waves.
The compass needle wavered, and the course was slightly off, but Nero no longer wanted to bother with that cursed rudder. The sea was so vast that even if they deviated, they would surely reach other islands.
It was only when a slave ship approached from the opposite direction that Nero truly felt what it meant to have destiny on her side. There truly was an indescribable fortune surrounding the Emperor.
"The ship ahead, make way quickly! This is a slave transport ship heading to the Holy Land, to be offered to the Celestial Dragons!" A portly, greasy middle-aged man stood at the bow, shouting through a megaphone.
Such ships, even when encountering great Pirates at sea, were generally not troubled. They were associated with the Celestial Dragons and offered no profit.
The righteous Marine couldn't manage them, and the evil Pirates found them disgusting, at most intimidating them before letting them go.
And people in the New World generally had influence. So-called madmen here would quickly be sunk into the sea or assimilated.
Therefore, the slave ships operating here became a special existence. Although they had their own power, they basically belonged to a special group that no one bothered with.
But today, they had hit a snag. Nero, who had broken up with the Roger Pirates, was among the strongest on the sea, and had chosen to set sail alone, was truly a tyrant of the sea.
How could an unconstrained and incredibly willful Emperor give face to a mere group of rats?
The moment the greasy Fat Man's words fell, a crimson sword energy streaked across, like a sharp line, cutting the ship in two. Not a single person on the bifurcated slave ship was harmed.
Inside the cabins, the girls from various places finally saw the sunlight.
"Mm, it seems I've hit a good jackpot!" Looking at the alluring and diverse beautiful slave girls, a smile finally appeared on Nero's face.
At this point, someone finally recognized Nero's identity: "Th-that person is the Pirate King's top executive, Rose Nero!!!"
"Why would such an important figure appear here at this time?"
"Shouldn't they be using the Pirate King's name to rally forces from all sides right now?"
Sweat pouring down him, the greasy Fat Man rubbed his hands together, his expression fawning, as he took a few steps closer to Nero.
"Nero-sama, I know the rules. You can take all the treasures you want, but these slaves are property of the Celestial Dragons, so please be lenient."
"Mm ha ha ha, Celestial Dragons' slaves? Perfect timing. What I hate most right now are the Celestial Dragons; even that scoundrel Roger comes after them."
Nero casually removed a handcuff from a slave's wrist, then pinched the girl's chin, examining her beautiful face.
"Mm, anyway, you all come aboard my ship first!"
"Nero-sama, aren't you afraid of the Celestial Dragons' wrath? Even if you are a crew member of the Pirate King, by then..."
The greasy Fat Man knew there was no hope upon hearing this. His ship was also sinking, so he had no choice but to walk towards Nero's ship, but his words still contained an unwilling attempt to threaten Nero.
But before he could even finish speaking, Nero kicked him hard in the stomach, sending him flying into the distant sea.
"Dirty things are not allowed to touch my ship!" Nero retracted her foot and roared furiously.
This shout immediately made everyone preparing to board stop in their tracks, staring blankly at Nero, unsure whether to go or stay.
"Mm, you're fine. I only meant those dirty things."
"Uh... okay, ma'am!"
She responded timidly, then, with a resolve to die, the girl leaped onto Nero's ship.
After confirming there were no problems, she breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing this, the others also bravely followed.
A few clever slave ship crew members, seeing this, also put handcuffs on themselves, attempting to sneak through, but Nero threw them into the sea one by one.
"H-how amazing! How did Nero-sama discover these people?" A little girl, less than ten years old, looked at Nero in surprise.
"Mm? Discover what?" Nero turned her head back, confused, after throwing those who weren't attractive enough into the sea.
If there were fewer people, Nero wouldn't be so picky, especially since she was so busy before.
But with hundreds of people in front of her, the grand display for Great Pirate Nero's travels certainly had to be impressive!
This question successfully made the little girl tremble and retreat. Nero didn't pay it any mind.
Having been on a slave ship, it was natural for such a young child to have some lingering trauma; some strange behaviors were perfectly normal.
What followed was much simpler. After unlocking the handcuffs and asking, it turned out there were all kinds of talents among the hundred or so people.
Doctors, nurses, helmsmen, chefs, tailors, courtesans... everything was in place. After hearing Nero's name, nearly half of them decided to follow her.
As for those who had ties and wanted to go home, they would all be dropped off at the next island. In return, they would handle odd jobs on the ship during this time.
"Mm, life is truly effortless~" Nero rolled over, the sun shining on her sun-screened back, and lazily let out this sigh.
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