As soon as those words fell, Violet quickly took a shaky step forward and headed into the ship's cabin.
Watching this scene, Hiyori's nose twitched, and she said, "You're too careless. Aren't you worried she might run away suddenly?"
Run away?
Kai's dead fish eyes tilted as he glanced at Hiyori. "She won't run!"
"Because, just like you, she bears the blood feud of her country being seized by pirates, and also carries the heavy responsibility of restoring her nation."
"This is a burden more important than life itself!"
His calm words, like an invisible heavy hammer, directly struck Hiyori's soul deep down.
All along, in her understanding, the big bald head before her was a completely unreliable existence.
But now, he spoke such serious words, truly earnest.
Looking at Kai, still with his dead fish eyes and his casual, unmotivated demeanor,
Hiyori's mind suddenly flashed an absurd thought.
Is this big bald head, with his irritatingly careless and silly personality, really genuine? Or is it just a perfect disguise?
If it's real, then why did he just say such words that totally don't match his usual personality?
Most importantly, Hiyori never expected that Violet was actually sharing the same fate as her.
Seeing her change in expression, Kai also caught it all.
But he was also quite puzzled—perhaps the author of the original story was running out of ideas, forcing out the same old plot.
In Dressrosa, there's always a woman who bears the burden of patience and endurance.
It's no different in Wano.
And previously in Alabasta, Vivi was the same.
This made Kai suspect that the author must have some strange obsession.
"Sorry to keep you waiting," Violet quickly came out from the ship's cabin.
Compared to her previous panic, she now looked much better. After a brief hesitation, she took out a recording pointer and said, "This is the timekeeping needle for East Wano Island."
"When I came here, to track your whereabouts, we found the location of Fire Fist Ace on East Wano Island. I've confirmed it again just now."
"Fire Fist Ace is still lingering on East Wano Island, but it seems he's discovered Blackbeard Teach, and appears to be planning to approach him."
Looking at the recording pointer in Violet's hand, Kai clearly understood—she was a clever woman.
Otherwise, if she were just a decorative vase, Violet wouldn't have survived more than two episodes.
"Well, thank you!" Kai took the recording pointer and said, "I'm an interest-driven hero. I don't like owing favors. Here's the contact Den Den Mushi."
"If you have any difficult problems, you can come to me. I can help you solve them!"
With that, Kai leapt back onto his single-mast sailboat.
He remembered that when he arrived, he had looked at the navigation map and knew that East Wano Island was only half a day's voyage away.
Now, he wanted to rush over—maybe he could join the fun.
Watching Kai leave, Violet finally relaxed and let out a sigh. She instinctively glanced at the Den Den Mushi in her hand.
"Hide it. Maybe it'll come in handy. That guy doesn't play by the rules, but his strength isn't to be underestimated. If you owe him a favor, it might be useful someday," Hiyori suddenly said.
"By the way, let's work hard together. If I manage to restore our country early and overthrow the pirates' oppression, I'll help you too. Sorry about what happened earlier!"
After saying this, Hiyori also leapt away.
She looked like a fragile, powerless woman.
But under the protection and guidance of Kyoushiro, Hiyori still knew some basic combat skills.
Perhaps she couldn't kill very strong enemies, but she knew how to protect herself well.
Violet was stunned, watching the two figures leave, her face full of disbelief and amazement.
This was her secret—no one outside the Donquixote family knew about it.
She had been fighting alone all along, with her greatest dream being to restore the kingdom, and her only hope was to protect Riku and Rebecca's lives.
But just moments ago, Hiyori, who had been mocking her, suddenly said such words.
If she hadn't heard it with her own ears, Violet would never have believed her secret had been leaked to others.
And the person who knew this secret was probably that big bald head, who looked so unreliable.
Meanwhile, inside Dressrosa,
In the grand palace, Doflamingo's face was ashen and gloomy.
A strange oppressive atmosphere filled the scene, as if an invisible hand was squeezing everyone's hearts tightly.
"Young Master, what exactly happened to Gladius?" Trebol, with a noseful of snot, was the first to speak anxiously.
The rest of the crowd turned their eyes sharply, focusing on him.
As a long-established pirate and a Warlord, they had never been challenged like this before.
Moreover, on this vast sea, anyone not a fool knew that behind them, there was still an ally of the Four Emperors.
"It's that guy called Kai—he defeated Gladius," Doflamingo said grimly.
"Now, Violet is probably also in his hands."
"What?"
Trebol snorted, "Lord Doflamingo, you mean Gladius also lost?"
"That big bald freak is really that strong? Or is Violet working some conspiracy behind the scenes?"
"Let me go kill that old guy and that little brat."
With that, Trebol turned and stormed off.
"Trebol, don't act impulsively!" Diamante quickly called out. "Let's wait for the young master's order first!"
Hearing this, even the furious Trebol couldn't help but look toward Doflamingo.
"Alright, stop arguing," Doflamingo said calmly. "I know Violet's character very well."
"She's a smart person. She would never let the old man escape."
"But since the mission failed, she should suffer some punishment and remember the reason for her failure."
"As for dealing with that Kai, just spread rumors that he might be related to Skull Demon and Escanor."
"Let others test his strength first, then we'll take action."
Doflamingo then smashed the chair's armrest and sneered coldly, saying, "I want that guy to understand that some people are not to be ignored just because he wants to."
"This kind of behavior will easily invite death!"
As Doflamingo's order fell, this fabricated message spread rapidly across the entire sea through his channels.
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