The essence of being a pirate lies in one word—freedom.
But complete freedom also means being unrestrained.
And when human nature is unbound, it inevitably gives rise to countless pirates who resort to plunder, arson, and murder.
Gaya's understanding of pirates stemmed largely from those who sought to loot and pillage Monmon Island.
Because of this, she couldn't grasp that freedom is the most precious treasure a pirate possesses.
With freedom, a pirate can choose to do good or commit evil.
Therefore, no one has the right to dictate what a pirate can or cannot do.
As a seasoned old pirate now long retired, Gaban understood these matters deeply.
Even so, he had never tried to instill these notions in Gaya.
In his view, without a proper opportunity, Gaya would likely spend her entire life guarding the ancient ruins of Monmon Island that had been preserved through the sands of time.
Since she had such a relatively stable future, Gaban saw no reason to act like Sol, endlessly boasting about his past glories to the younger generation.
The content in the newspaper, however, struck a chord in Gaya, and she inadvertently crumpled its pages in her hands.
"Gaya, the newspaper..."
Sunny's gentle voice called her back to reality.
"Ah, sorry."
Gaya squinted her eyes slightly as she handed the nearly wrinkled newspaper back to Sunny, offering an apologetic smile.
"No need to apologize for something so trivial."
Sunny accepted the newspaper, glancing curiously at Gaya.
Something felt... off about her.
Gaya smiled but remained silent.
Sunny didn't dwell on it and smoothed out the newspaper, her eyes lingering once more on a particular photo of Maude.
The more she looked, the more a smile crept onto her face.
Koala looped her arm around Sunny's shoulder, teasing, "I counted—there's only one photo, and you've stared at it nine times."
Sunny didn't mind Koala's teasing.
Her habit had always been to pore over every detail of a newspaper, reading it cover to cover multiple times.
Seeing Sunny remain unfazed, Koala dropped her playful tone and moved on to the matter at hand.
"Sunny, have you decided?"
"Yes, I'm ready to leave anytime."
Sunny nodded slowly, folding the newspaper neatly.
With Sol settled in Monmon Island, enjoying his retirement alongside Gaban, she no longer had any lingering worries.
Now that Maude had been out at sea for some time, it was her turn to join the Revolutionary Army quickly.
Only by doing so could she establish a cooperative relationship with him as soon as possible.
Koala smiled, "Perfect timing, then. We just need to..."
Her sentence trailed off as her eyes flickered toward Gaya, and she tactfully stopped.
Though Sunny wasn't privy to the unfinished part of Koala's words, she could guess it related to some mission.
Sabo, standing nearby, remained silent, his gaze suddenly shifting toward a distant hillside.
At the hill's summit, the silhouettes of Sol and Gaban came into view.
The arrival of the Revolutionary Army had not escaped the eyes of the two elderly men.
"So, the Revolutionary Army is here," Gaban murmured, taking a puff from his pipe before glancing at Sol.
The Revolutionary Army's presence signaled it was time for Sunny to depart.
Sol, however, showed no reaction.
His expression remained neutral, his weathered face betraying no signs of reluctance or sentimentality.
Gaban smirked, thinking to himself that the old dwarf was merely putting up a front.
The two old friends walked side by side toward the group.
"Hand me the newspaper," Sol said, immediately noticing the folded paper in Sunny's hands.
Sunny passed it to him.
Sol unfolded the paper and began to read.
"Oh?"
Upon seeing Maude's photo and the accompanying report, a knowing smile spread across Sol's face.
Gaban leaned in to read alongside him, his eyes scanning the headlines.
In a relatively isolated place like Monmon Island, newspapers were their only source of information about the outside world.
Reading about the chaos Maude had stirred up in less than a month, Gaban remarked, "That boy sure knows how to raise hell... but I like it."
Hearing this, Gaya's gaze lingered subtly on Gaban.
Gaban, oblivious to her glance, remained focused on the article.
"Daring to attack royalty from a World Government allied nation? That's bound to provoke retaliation sooner or later."
"So what? As long as he's fast enough, they'll never catch him," Sol replied, closing the newspaper with a sneer.
Gaban fell silent. On this point, he couldn't argue with Sol.
After all, no one could explain how Sol's short legs had eventually earned him the nickname "Speed Demon."
Sol returned the newspaper to Sunny, his mind preoccupied with Maude's exploits.
"Once, I thought living a brilliant life was enough. But now... I just want to live a little longer."
"Idiot. Who doesn't want to live longer?"
Gaban's retort came as a matter of course.
Sol raised his cane and swung it at Gaban in mock protest.
Watching the two old men bicker once again, Sunny and Gaya could only sigh helplessly.
"Sol, I'll be leaving with Koala and the others soon," Sunny said, pocketing the newspaper as she brought up her departure.
Sol stopped mid-swing, his back to Sunny, and replied casually, "Go on, then."
"Mm."
Sunny nodded.
Half an hour later.
The Revolutionary Army's ship slowly sailed away from Monmon Island.
On the beach, Sol, Gaban, and Gaya watched the vessel disappear into the horizon.
When it finally shrank into a tiny black dot on the sea's edge, Sol let out a low sigh, his weathered face etched with reluctance.
Gaban glanced at Sol's expression and shook his head.
Gaya looked up at the sky and said softly, "Time to head back."
"Oh? What's for dinner tonight?"
Sol's mood shifted in an instant as he eagerly looked at Gaya.
"…"
Gaban and Gaya were speechless.
On their way back to the circular valley dwelling:
Gaban suddenly said, "Gaya, the world out there is truly spectacular."
The abrupt comment caught Gaya off guard, and she froze for a moment.
"Speaking of spectacular, I can't help but mention my memoirs. Gaya, tonight at dinner, you can listen to as much of it as you'd like!"
Sol leaned in enthusiastically, his animated expression betraying no trace of the sorrow he felt bidding farewell to Sunny.
Gaban glanced at Sol's nonchalant demeanor, knowing full well that Sol was simply burying his emotions deep inside.
"Heh."
Gaya smiled faintly but said nothing more.
Under the orange-red hues of the setting sun, the trio walked toward the circular valley dwelling.
In a Tavern, somewhere in the East Blue.
The tavern was bustling with business, with nearly ninety percent of its tables occupied.
Behind the bar, a rectangular wooden board hung on the wall, adorned with over a dozen pirate bounty posters.
Among them, the lowest bounty was only 3 million, while the highest reached 17 million.
At that moment, a bearded man entered the tavern through the back door, carrying a freshly printed bounty poster. He handed it to the bartender.
"Put this one up."
The man, the tavern owner, gestured for the bartender to add the latest bounty to the board.
The bartender followed orders without a second thought, expertly pinning the poster in place before pausing to glance at the bounty.
"10.2 million, huh? Pretty high."
Muttering to himself, the bartender felt something odd. Known for his keen sense for numbers, he took a closer look.
At the same time, several men sitting at the bar noticed the newly posted bounty poster.
"Looks like someone's making a name for themselves," one of them remarked, first scrutinizing the poster's image of a dashing young man before focusing on the bounty amount.
Then, he froze.
A few seconds later, his companions followed suit, their reactions mirroring his.
"Hundred… One hundred million!?"
The bartender's eyes nearly popped out of their sockets as he exclaimed the bounty amount in shock.
He had handled countless bounty posters from the East Blue, but this was the first time he had ever seen such an astronomical figure.
"Bacardi Maude… Where did this big shot come from?"
The men at the bar stared blankly at the poster, the bounty of 100 million berries towering over the nearby posters, which ranged from 3 million to 17 million.
It was as if...
A father was standing among a group of sons.
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