"Hello, nice to meet you!" Renji extended his hand with a warm smile. "My name is Renji, the person in charge of this island."
Homing Saint eagerly grasped Renji's hand with both of his own. "Nice to meet you, Colonel Renji. I am Donquixote Homing Saint."
Compared to the gentle and calm image of a loving father in front of his family, Homing Saint now sounded like an enthusiastic fan.
"I've admired Colonel Renji for a long time, and finally meeting you today feels like a great honor."
Renji waved his hand lightly and chuckled. "You flatter me. I'm more curious about why you chose this island as your new home."
Homing Saint paused for a moment and then smiled. "A place to spend the rest of my life naturally requires careful consideration."
"Through the newspapers, I learned that among the four seas, only the South Sea under Colonel Renji's command gives me peace of mind."
"Haha, I can assure you, the South Sea will remain the safest sea, now and always." Renji confidently expressed his ambition, as his efforts had indeed surpassed those of the navies in other seas.
"I feel ashamed of my former identity as a Celestial Dragon. I couldn't change the mindset of other Celestial Dragons, so I chose to move here instead." Homing Saint sighed, acknowledging how difficult it is to change people's beliefs.
"A Celestial Dragon?" Akainu's eyes widened in disbelief.
Since when did Celestial Dragons become so reasonable? Shouldn't they be pointing guns at people and demanding they become slaves upon meeting them?
Homing Saint chuckled. "Yes, a former Celestial Dragon. Now, I'm just an ordinary human."
"Would you like to come inside? Although it's my first time entering as well."
"Haha, I've never seen the interior of such a grand castle. I'd love to take a look."
"Colonel Renji, and you two young men, let's go in together."
Inside the castle.
Renji couldn't help but marvel at the interior decor. "This is what you call a truly wealthy household."
"This place is so luxurious!" Kuzan and Akainu exclaimed in unison. Having lived in dormitories all their lives, they had never even dreamed of such grandeur.
"It's quite different from where we used to live," Homing Saint murmured.
Renji and the other two rolled their eyes. The Celestial Dragons never disappointed when it came to indulgence.
Mary Geoise amassed the world's greatest wealth. To the Celestial Dragons, gold and treasures were as common as ordinary stones, scattered everywhere. As a result, they couldn't even begin to imagine the lives of ordinary people.
And ordinary people, in turn, couldn't fathom the lives of the nobility.
Homing Saint led the three into the living room and introduced them to his family. "These are my guests. Come and greet them."
"This is my wife and my two sons," Homing Saint said, introducing them to Renji and the others.
"Doflamingo, Rosinante, this is Colonel Renji, whom I've often mentioned to you."
Doflamingo, wearing sunglasses, stared expressionlessly at Renji and the other two, showing no reaction. Rosinante, however, nervously clutched his father's pant leg and hid behind him.
"Sorry, they're not used to meeting strangers," Homing Saint said gently, offering an apologetic smile to Renji and the others.
Renji waved his hand dismissively. "It's fine. It's normal for children to be shy."
"Father, where are the slaves? Tasks like cleaning and tidying should be left to them. Carrying the luggage inside has already worn us out..." Rosinante whispered from behind his father.
Kuzan and Akainu exchanged glances, their expressions shifting.
Everyone present possessed considerable strength, so even though Rosinante spoke softly, his words were clearly heard.
"Sigh..." Homing Saint said softly. "Doflamingo, Rosinante, I need to start teaching you from scratch. From now on, we'll have to do these things ourselves."
"No! These are tasks for slaves!" Doflamingo snapped angrily.
Homing Saint placed his hand on Doflamingo's head and patiently explained, "Doflamingo, we must live as humans now."
"Humans?" Doflamingo looked up.
"Yes, our lives will be richer than they were in Mary Geoise," Homing Saint nodded. "But I'm not talking about material wealth—I mean richness in our hearts."
Doflamingo clenched his teeth, clearly not convinced by his father's words.
"Sorry for the awkwardness," Homing Saint sighed. He knew changing his children's mindset wouldn't happen overnight.
Akainu quickly shook his head. "No, no, it's fine."
Renji gestured to Homing Saint. "Come with me for a moment."
The two then walked out into the courtyard.
"Changing a child's mindset isn't easy, so don't burden yourself too much," Renji reassured him.
"I understand, but Doflamingo's thoughts are quite stubborn. I'm worried..."
Renji stopped in front of a lush tree. "Right now, your primary concern should be your identity."
"My identity?" Homing Saint looked puzzled.
"Since you came from Mary Geoise, let me ask you this: how did you treat slaves in the past?"
"I didn't have much need for slaves. Usually, I just had them clean and organize things."
Renji was genuinely surprised. Was this man before him even a real Celestial Dragon?
"Do you know how other Celestial Dragons behave?"
"Well... I've heard they make slaves fight each other, leaving only the strongest alive..."
"To the common people, Celestial Dragons are butchers. Even though I know you're different, those who have suffered at the hands of Celestial Dragons won't see it that way."
"Once they learn you're a Celestial Dragon, they'll stop at nothing to kill you."
Homing Saint took an involuntary step back, nearly falling to the ground. "Are you saying my wife and children could die because of my decision?"
"But the humanity I envision is noble and great."
Renji shattered his illusion. "Humans are impulsive and irrational. Driven by anger, they can make decisions completely unlike their usual selves."
"Then I..." Homing Saint could no longer hold himself together and collapsed to the ground.
"Would you like to join us? This way, you can protect your family." Renji extended his hand to Homing Saint.
This was Renji's goal: to bring a former Celestial Dragon into his ranks, to show him the true face of the world, and to make him understand that the lives of ordinary people are far from easy.
If a former Celestial Dragon could lead ordinary people in opposing the Celestial Dragons, it would mean there was still hope for this world.
[Task Complete]
[Progress: Target's Favorability - Wholehearted Admiration]
[Rewards have been delivered. Please check, Host.]
...
"Brrr... Brrr..."
"Report! Monkey D. Dragon's warship has entered the port!"
"He's here already?" Renji looked up at Doflamingo in the room. "It seems we can take them to do something interesting..."
...
...