A day later...
Arlong's beloved flagship, the Shark Superb...
Well, perhaps it should now be called the Fairy Tail.
At this moment, the Fairy Tail, under the skilled navigation of Nami—the guild's first "navigator" and "helmsman"—was calmly sailing through peaceful waters.
As for Eden, the ship's captain, he was still battling seasickness.
"Sigh…"
Seeing Eden in his miserable state, Nami let out a helpless sigh.
Internally, she couldn't help but complain about how unreliable Eden was as a captain.
Unfortunately, having already boarded this pirate ship, she seemed to have lost any chance of turning back.
"Caw caw~"
Just as Nami stood idly steering the ship, she suddenly heard the familiar cry of a bird overhead.
Looking up, she spotted a familiar-looking newspaper bird heading their way.
Without hesitation, Nami fished out a coin from her pocket and flicked it into the sky.
"Caw caw~"
The bird caught the coin expertly and promptly tossed down a newspaper.
"Let's see what major events have happened in East Blue recently..."
Flipping through the newspaper, Nami was suddenly drawn to a wanted poster tucked within its pages.
When she clearly saw the photo and name on the poster, her expression changed dramatically. "Eden! Eden, come quick! This is huge! You've been wanted by the Navy!"
"One, ten, hundred, thousand, ten thousand, hundred thousand, million, ten million!"
"Eden! You're being offered a bounty of thirty million berries for your first time?! Isn't that way too exaggerated?!"
Nami's eyes widened in shock at the sight of the massive bounty.
Truthfully, seeing such an enormous bounty—issued by Navy headquarters—tempted Nami with an urge to steer their ship directly to the nearest Navy branch and cash in Eden for the reward.
"Haha…"
"It's just thirty million!"
"Nami, you're overreacting."
"Honestly, I'm more surprised you actually paid the news bird."
Wiping his mouth, Eden chuckled while looking at Nami.
The moment he saw the thirty-million-berry bounty poster, Eden knew his efforts had paid off.
Indeed, Colonel Nezumi had delivered, bringing Eden immense satisfaction.
Yes, Arlong had provided Eden's initial gear, and Colonel Nezumi had contributed significantly to Eden's growing fame.
Arlong's reputation was still rising!
"Hmph! If that news bird dares to raise the price again, I'll stop buying!"
Nami angrily shouted at the departing bird.
"Caw caw!!"
The news bird shivered awkwardly, sweating nervously. In all its years at sea, it had never been threatened like this.
"A thirty-million-berry bounty is already top-tier for East Blue! My lost companions should notice me soon enough," Eden mused, turning to Nami. "By the way, my dear Nami, where exactly are we now? Is this still East Blue?"
"Of course it's East Blue."
Nami thought briefly before answering, "Because we set sail in such a hurry, I didn't even get to retrieve the money I had hidden in the village. So, I planned to first rob the cruise ship I'd been eyeing and then figure out our next move."
"So…"
"Nami, the reason you left your money behind in the village wasn't to donate it to the villagers, but because you simply didn't have time to get it?" Eden couldn't resist teasing.
He then added earnestly, "And Nami, robbing people isn't good."
"You idiot, Eden! We're pirates!" Nami retorted, rolling her eyes. "Robbing cruise ships is literally our job."
"Uh…" Eden fell silent, momentarily convinced by her logic.
Suddenly—
"Whoosh!"
"Boom!!"
"Oh no, pirates!"
"Hahaha! Don't let these rich sheep escape!"
"Yes, Lady Alvida!"
As Nami lectured Eden, the explosions of cannonballs, the terrified screams of tourists, and the cheers of pirates filled the air.
"Damn it, someone else got there first?" Nami muttered irritably. "I should've boarded that ship yesterday. It's all Eden's fault for delaying me. Judging by their pirate flag, that should be 'Iron Mace' Alvida, with a bounty of several million berries. She's a tough one; perhaps we should retreat…"
Nami suddenly paused, habitually thinking like a thief and placing herself as the weaker party. But then she glanced at Eden, still struggling with seasickness beside her, and suddenly realized, "Wait! Eden's with me! He dealt easily with Arlong, who had a bounty of twenty million. Surely, Alvida's five million is nothing?"
Nami smiled confidently, "Thirty million versus five million—the advantage is mine!"
Meanwhile, on the other side…
"Lady Alvida, we've secured all passengers!"
"Excellent! You've done well today, lads! You'll be rewarded heavily!" Alvida laughed, praising her crew. With passengers secured, the pirates eagerly anticipated dividing their spoils.
"Lady Alvida! A ship is rapidly approaching!"
As Alvida prepared for the next step, a vigilant pirate spotted the Fairy Tail rapidly approaching.
"What's that ship?!" Alvida's eyes narrowed in shock upon clearly seeing the Shark Supreme. "Impossible! That's Arlong's ship! Why would the Fishman Pirates be here?!"
Alvida, a well-known East Blue pirate, was fully aware of stronger pirate groups, especially those with bounties exceeding ten million berries.
However, unaware of recent events, she still believed Arlong was alive.
"What? That's Arlong's ship—the most notorious pirate in East Blue, with a bounty of over twenty million berries?"
Alvida's crew immediately panicked, revering and fearing such a notorious pirate.
"What are you afraid of? It's just a pirate with a bounty over ten million berries! Do you think I can't handle him? If I had sailed a few years earlier, I'd have a bounty that high too!"
Despite cold sweat trickling down her forehead and a fluttering heart, Alvida forced herself to remain composed.
"Bring the ship closer! Who do you think I am?"