Soon, as the ship docked, the townspeople gathered around.
The crowd sang and danced in jubilation.
"Welcome to Whisky Peak!"
"Welcome to the Grand Line!"
Both banks of the harbor's river were packed with people, cheering enthusiastically toward the ship.
Ace looked around curiously: "Huh? Are they welcoming us?"
"More accurately, they're welcoming those rookie Pirates who are smug about successfully entering the Grand Line."
Law coldly observed the crowd onshore: "A pointless trick. Only fools would fall for this."
"Heh, seems we've been targeted."
Robin chuckled softly: "What's the plan, Captain...?"
"Though I'd like to give you some experience, these third-rate thugs would probably only manage to scare Nami."
"Hey hey, what do you mean 'only scare me'?"
Seeing Caesar's regretful expression, Nami's face darkened: "I've gotten stronger too, you know?"
Over the past days, she hadn't missed a single training session on board. While her training volume couldn't compare to monsters like Ace, she could now bench press 500 pounds—a quantum leap from before. Yet in Caesar's eyes, she was still at the "scared by third-rate thugs" level?
You looked down on me before I trained, and you still look down on me after I trained?
Then what was the point of all that training?
"Surely I'm not the only weak one on this ship now?"
Nami's gaze swept past Wolf, the elderly scientist, and landed on Bepo: "Bepo's weak too, right? He can't even handle half my training load."
Bepo lowered his head: "Sumimasen..."
"Don't bully Bepo. He's a polar bear."
Law's expression darkened: "Besides, Bepo's proficient in over a dozen martial arts—he's not weaker than you."
Caesar nodded with amusement: "Exactly. Also, Minks can control electricity in battle and transform into Sulong Form under a full moon. At your current level, you're definitely no match for Bepo."
"Nani?"
Nami looked shocked. She'd assumed Bepo was as weak as her—his adorable appearance hardly projected any sense of threat.
"Since we're not flying a Jolly Roger yet they're putting on this enthusiastic welcome, they've clearly set their sights on our ship."
"Of course, I doubt they'll have the nerve to try anything after seeing me. So to save time..."
Caesar slightly raised his eyes, releasing an invisible pressure.
On both banks, the previously exuberant crowd all simultaneously collapsed, unconscious.
In the blink of an eye, the only person left standing was a tall, bearded man—not because he had strong willpower, but because he appeared to be their leader, so Caesar had deliberately spared him.
"Oi! What the hell is this?"
The man stared in horror at this phenomenon beyond his comprehension.
Only when the ship approached the dock and he clearly saw the figures on the forecastle did he realize who had arrived.
"Vampire... Caesar?!"
Trembling, the man staggered back before collapsing onto his rear.
Why would someone like this appear here?!
"I'm really fed up with this title..."
Caesar stood at the bow of the ship, looking down at the other party: "How long until the Log Pose charges for the next island?"
"L-less than a day!"
The man immediately prostrated himself: "Our deepest apologies! We're just bounty hunters scraping by catching small-fry Pirates! We truly didn't know this was your ship, please spare our lives!"
"Fine..."
Caesar snorted with amusement: "Quite clever."
Had this guy dared to claim they weren't targeting them, Caesar would have sent him to meet his ancestors without hesitation.
"But this guy reminded me—shouldn't we create an organization emblem too?"
Caesar turned back to the crew: "Any good ideas?"
"Ooh! Ooh!"
Yamato raised her hand: "The Caesar Pirate Crew!"
"I keep telling you we're not Pirates..."
Caesar rolled his eyes—this little white-haired troublemaker never gave up!
"Currently our identities are adventurers, explorers. Let's brainstorm around that core."
Ace said seriously: "In that case... Flame Adventure Crew!"
Deuce spread his hands: "Are you an idiot? The name should center around the captain's characteristics!"
"That works too—Caesar has flames!" Yamato nodded in agreement.
Ace looked at Caesar in shock: "Nani? You've been hiding that trick?"
Caesar smiled without answering, making Ace scratch his head in frustration.
Bepo raised his fluffy paw dopily: "Heart Adventure Crew!"
"That's supposed to center around this ship's captain, but you make it sound like Law recruited me."
Caesar roughly ruffled Bepo's furry bear face: "You've got it backwards!"
Bepo lowered his head: "Sumimasen..."
"The captain's characteristics..."
Deuce pondered: "Blood? Bats? Darkness? Wow, too many elements! And the aesthetic is so edgy! Though very cool..."
"The aesthetic is a good angle. Currently we have a Vampire, werewolf girl, Devil Child, weapon weirdo on this ship..."
Caesar glanced at the others: "Barto had the nickname 'Cannibal' back in Loguetown, Kuma's a priest who follows a Vampire, Law's bounty title is 'Surgeon of Death', and Deuce's ability is basically a plague source..."
"Bonney's age-changing power is creepy too, Ace is the Pirate King's son—the world sees him as cursed blood. Counting up, only Nami, Issho, Bepo and Dr. Wolf have relatively normal aesthetics."
"Wait..."
Law pointed at Ace, stunned: "Whose son is this guy?"
"Pirate King Gol D. Roger."
Caesar shrugged: "Don't mind the details. Our current problem is naming this team."
Ace's identity shocked the three newcomers, but fortunately they held no prejudice. Law even asked Ace about the meaning of "D", though Ace was equally clueless.
Bonney raised her small hand: "Then let's call it... Monster Expedition Crew?"
Caesar shook his head: "Too dumb..."
Robin considered: "Dark Expedition Crew?"
Caesar still refused: "Kinda weird..."
Barto: "Just call it Caesar Adventure Crew!"
Caesar: "No!"
Kuma: "Terror Expedition Crew."
Caesar: "I refuse!"
Deuce clapped his hands together. "Twilight! How about Twilight? Sounds pretty cool, right?"
Caesar rubbed his head. "Feels a bit shallow..."
"Captain, perhaps you'd like to hear my suggestion?"
Issho gently stroked his Cane Sword, his voice steady and firm. "In my opinion, a name should be like a beacon—it must reflect our essence while also illuminating the path ahead."
"Many years ago, I once closed my eyes, unwilling to witness the evils of this world, and fell into prolonged darkness. But it was the captain who restored light to me."
"As the captain said, if we refuse to tolerate the evils of this world, why not simply eradicate them? Why plunge ourselves into darkness?"
"Indeed, we may be a group with a 'dark and eerie aesthetic,' but we are by no means vile spreaders of fear. Rather, we are those who seek to overthrow the greatest darkness of this world and bring dawn to these seas. If so, why not call ourselves—Daybreak! What do you think?"
Holy Akatsuki!
Caesar fell silent on the spot.
The others, however, nodded in agreement.
"Hey, not bad at all!"
Deuce scribbled in his notebook, nodding as he wrote. "Definitely feels better than my Twilight idea. One's sunset, the other's sunrise. Yeah, Daybreak has more vitality!"
"I think it's quite good too."
Robin pinched her chin. "After the long night comes the dawn, right?"
Kuma nodded repeatedly—darkness, the Sun God, it all aligned with his beliefs. The others also voiced their approval.
"Then Daybreak it is!"
Caesar laughed. What was this, some pirate version of the Akatsuki?
"Now that the name's settled, we should think about the organization's flag. Any ideas?"
"Me, me, me!"
Bonney bounced up and down.
"Isn't that just doodling?"
Caesar flipped his hand and produced a stack of notebooks. "Let's all give it a try."
Everyone took a notebook and gathered in small groups, deep in thought.
Soon, they all submitted their designs.
Caesar first pulled out Ace's sketch—a flag with a skull—and handed it to Robin, who tore it up expressionlessly.
Ace: "..."
Honestly, the psychological trauma he'd endured in his entire life paled in comparison to what he'd experienced in just these few days aboard.
"Let me see see!"
Caesar flipped through everyone's masterpieces. Most shared a common feature—bat wings, or bat-themed elements.
Yamato's drawing depicted two little figures holding hands—one with bat wings, the other with horns. The style was a bit rough, and the content didn't quite fit the theme. Clearly, her thoughts had wandered while drawing.
But Caesar liked it. Smiling faintly, he tucked it away.
Baby5's drawing skills were unexpectedly excellent, though the content was a bit... unconventional—a pink heart with bat wings.
If this flag were hoisted on the mast, passersby might mistake them for a floating brothel...
In contrast, Robin's design was much more normal: a pair of large black wings framing a spherical black hole, surrounded by burning flames, with a sharp sword piercing through it from top to bottom.
"Oh? This one's similar to mine!"
Deuce looked surprised. "I also used bat and sword elements."
Kuma nodded. "Same here."
"Haha, true. Those two features are too obvious."
Nami chuckled and pointed at one of the sketches. "This one's mine!"
"Hmm?"
Caesar glanced down at Nami's drawing—a pair of black bat wings with a cute, chibi-style bat in the middle, complete with pointed ears and glowing red eyes.
"So adorable…"
Robin clearly loved the drawing: "But as an organization's emblem, it lacks a bit of seriousness."
Nami's cheeks flushed slightly. Of course it was cute!
When she first met Caesar, his striking red eyes had left a deep impression on her. Though her drawing didn't quite capture his likeness, she had put her heart into the design.
Caesar nodded as well. "It really is cute. We could make some plushies out of it later and sell them as organization merchandise? Though I wonder if anyone would actually buy them."
"Hey-hahaha! Leave that to me!"
The moment Caesar said this, Barto eagerly raised his hand.
Caesar couldn't help but chuckle. In the original story, this guy had been notorious for distributing Straw Hat crew merchandise everywhere—even going so far as to burn Shanks' pirate flag for it.
Flipping through the others' designs, he noticed they were all based on his own features. Even Issho, who had suggested the name "Dawn," was no exception.
This relieved Caesar somewhat. At least no one had come up with a red cloud flag.
Using his features as the emblem wasn't a bad idea. Generally speaking, flags of factions on the sea carried some distinctive trait or meaning.
For example, pirate flags were usually based on the captain's characteristics, the Navy used a seagull as a symbol of peace, and the World Government's five-star cross represented its many member nations.
But looking at it overall, large organizations like the Navy rarely used personal traits for their flags.
After some thought, Caesar made the final decision—he chose Robin's design as their emblem flag.
Though the symbol had nothing to do with "Dawn," his goal was to conquer the world. There was no need to deceive the masses with some hollow throne of "no ruler," like the Celestial Dragons had done in the past.
Caesar wanted to declare it openly to the world:
I came!
I saw!
I conquered!
Whoosh—
The moment the flag was hoisted to the top of the mast, billowing in the wind, Caesar suddenly froze. The long-stagnant main quest progress had finally moved!
[Main Quest Progress: Collect the World]
[Quest Progress: 10%]
Just as he thought!
Caesar's eyes gleamed slightly. This so-called "collecting the world" had to begin with conquering it.
And creating his own faction was the first step toward that.
As for why there had been no reaction before, it was likely because the organization had lacked both a name and an emblem.
"I don't know why, but the moment that flag went up, it felt like something changed!"
Deuce stared blankly at the flag overhead, sketching its design into his travel journal.
"It's like… it gained a soul!"
"The sails need the emblem too. I'll handle the painting."
Caesar called everyone over to take down the sails and paint the emblem onto them.
Back when he had gathered materials for painting and sculpture, he had unlocked the painting skill. Though he hadn't been particularly interested in it, it turned out to be useful now.
Painting his own flag with his own hands gave him an inexplicable sense of accomplishment.
To celebrate the official naming of their organization, they threw another feast on the deck.
Throughout the day, the people onshore would wake up only to be knocked out again by Caesar's Conqueror's Haki. By nightfall, once the Log Pose had fully stored its readings, they finally set sail from Whisky Peak—amidst the tearful, snot-filled farewells of the bearded locals.
"Set sail! Little Garden!"
On the deck, Caesar raised a bottle of rum: "Let's go see the giant warriors!"
"Ooooh!!!"
"Giants!!!"
The young crew members jumped around the grill excitedly. Law, with a dark expression, kept flipping the barbecue while glancing at Baby 5 who was clinging to Caesar coquettishly, then at the meat in his hands and the group of idiots hopping around him.
"This is a grill, not a bonfire, you morons..."
As night fell, blending sea and sky into one, the ship slowly sailed toward Little Garden.