Chapter 61 – Changes
In Sea Circle Calendar 1486, the tides of the Grand Line surged ceaselessly, with great events erupting one after another.
At the forefront was Fleet Admiral Kong of the Navy, who personally led a massive force into the New World.
In just half a year, the Navy advanced nearly a tenth of the territory, their momentum unstoppable—virtually invincible.
Yet the once-feuding great pirates gradually set aside their rivalries.
From a chaos of factions vying for supremacy, they came together to form a united front against this onslaught.
The battles between them and the Navy dragged into a bloody stalemate, turning the outer reaches of the New World into a colossal meat grinder.
That same year, in early 1486, former Vice Admirals Sengoku and Zephyr were formally promoted to Admiral.
Zephyr even held his wedding the very day of his promotion—widely celebrated as the most romantic event of the year.
"Navy Romance! Promoted to Admiral—and then I'll marry you!"
"Thirty years of waiting, twenty years of worry, ten years of companionship, four years of courting—and a single instant of romance!"
"If you love her, give her a bottle of Sherry!"
Meanwhile, reports by the World Economic News declared this year to have the highest number of new female recruits in Navy history.
Many sailors seized the chance to find love, and spirits across the fleet soared.
That same month, Sherry wine sold out multiple times over, surpassing even malt ale as the most popular spirit on the seas.
People hailed it as the "bitter wine of love."
"Remnants of the Old Era? No! Rulers of the New World!"
"The Spear of Elbaf—'Big Mom' Charlotte Linlin pierces the sky!"
"Seaquake—'Whitebeard' Newgate topples the ocean!"
"Lion's Might Shatters Valley—'Golden Lion' Shiki slices through land, sea, and air, acclaimed as the 'Grand Admiral of Pirates!'"
In May, the Navy and the pirate legions clashed in a decisive battle in the New World—a world-shaking naval engagement with over a million combatants.
Risking being "erased" for reporting the truth, Morgans boldly broadcast every detail of this cataclysm to the world:
The Navy suffered a crushing defeat, sending shockwaves through all four seas.
All except the Roger Pirates.
Led by Shiki, Newgate, and Charlotte Linlin, the legendary great pirates fought the Navy's elite head-on.
Even Kong himself, though he held off Newgate and the fearsome duo of Wang Zhi and Silver Axe alone, could not turn the tide.
In the end, disaster was inevitable.
Whether it was the Golden Lion or Whitebeard, each was a terrifying weapon of war on the grand battlefield.
And Big Mom's Spear of Elbaf—even though its reach was shorter than the others—instantly killed any officer below Vice Admiral if they so much as touched it.
The complete alliance of the legendary pirates achieved an overwhelming victory.
The world finally understood what the word legend truly meant:
That even the full might of the Navy could be crushed before it.
This battle completely drained the Navy of the resources it had painstakingly accumulated over the years.
Half of the Navy's top leadership was wiped out, and one-third of its rank-and-file soldiers were lost.
The Navy's ability to advance further into the New World was shattered beyond repair.
Fortunately, their residual prestige still held sway.
The situation across the Four Seas remained relatively stable, and with no fresh waves of pirates coming in from two of those seas, the New World could not erupt into further chaos—at least for the time being.
That same month—
A secret World Government laboratory was rocked by a massive explosion.
The dangerous criminal Kaido of the Beasts and his accomplice Abel Rue escaped into the New World and went into hiding.
Kaido's bounty officially broke past the one billion Berries mark.
"Miracle of the Sea—Sky Island 'Nasdaq' Officially Opens!"
"'The Thunder-God Colossus!'—Nasdaq Ross's Terrifying Might!"
"Three Hundred Orphanages United—'Father of the East Blue' Ross: A Heart of Compassion or a Hidden Agenda?"
As the construction of Sky Island progressed rapidly—and with the funding Ator brought back home during the New Year—Ross decided to open the island to the public ahead of schedule, drawing in tourists and merchants to settle there.
To maximize publicity, Ross personally reached out to Morgans, whose World Economic News had grown into a powerhouse in just a few years.
In exchange for the coverage, Ross agreed to an exclusive interview and authorized Morgans to use special footage.
Among the materials Morgans released was a scene he had captured nearly a year prior by sheer chance in the New World:
A long-range shot of Ross appearing and instantly defeating Kaido in one devastating strike.
But that wasn't the only thing made public—
Several carefully calculated projects were exposed as well.
For example, the headline-grabbing claim about three hundred orphanages was an exaggeration.
In reality, Ross had simply built residential quarters on Sky Island and funded orphanages in a few surrounding island nations and villages.
This was part of Ross's vision to nurture future generations for the family.
Though the investment was enormous, with Ator starting to bring in vast profits of his own, they were just about managing to sustain it.
The only thing that truly irritated Ross was Morgans's complete lack of scruples.
He wrote headlines so sensational they were guaranteed to raise suspicion.
Ross never deluded himself about human nature—he knew full well that opportunists would always find ways to twist his actions into controversy.
"Father of the East Blue? Morgans really is a genius—
Certified: a genius at stirring up headlines."
"Super Bodyguard Mercenary Clan 'Nasdaq'—
You can question the capabilities of Ross's children,
but never underestimate the strength of their bodyguards!"
"'Blood-Gold Devil' Ator and 'Wicked Dragon' Roel—
'Phantom Princess' Mona and 'Ghost Knight' Bullet—
Who will the next formidable duo be?"
Thanks to Ator's cooperation, Morgans was finally able to photograph Bullet in training.
The front-page spread showed nine-year-old Bullet brawling a mid-sized Sea King:
At first, he was utterly overpowered, but by the end, he fought it to a standstill in a terrifying "ghost-like" state.
The coverage spared no detail.
Because of his connection to Ross's third daughter, Mona, Morgans slapped two flashy new epithets on them both.
And what's the most sensational fairy tale on the seas?
The romance of a princess and her knight—undeniably a top-five seller.
Naturally, Mona—thanks to her Ghost-Ghost Fruit powers and a background more formidable than many royal families—was glorified with the title Phantom Princess.
And Bullet, the taciturn prodigy whose ferocity in battle was unmatched, earned the name Ghost Knight—since after each fight, he emerged steeped in eerie ghostly aura.
This story sold so well that even after three months, it was still a bestseller.
Perhaps the only one who found no joy in those papers was a certain quietly heartsick father.
"Worth it.
Just think—Bullet's bound to be part of the family sooner or later, and little Mona does like him.
Just…
…Fine. I'm a little annoyed.
Next time they train, I'll bump up the difficulty a notch."
"Another Wave of Nasdaq Clan Members Enlist—
Will the Navy Soon Change Its Surname?"
"Fleet Admiral Kong Publicly Condemns This Newspaper—
Yet Here We Are, Bringing You Even More Dirt on Kong! Guaranteed Authentic!"
Some things were inevitable.
With the Navy reeling from its losses, the first batch of enlisted Nasdaq family members was rapidly promoted.
Soon after, mid- and lower-ranking officers began to dwindle in number.
Taking advantage of the situation, many more family members joined the Navy at their relatives' urging, leaving the Nasdaq estate quiet and still—
—save for the laughter of children echoing by day.
In total, 56 clan members enlisted.
Twenty-three, with no combat training, were assigned to logistics.
The remaining thirty-three were commissioned directly as junior officers, filling vacancies across the Four Seas' naval branches.
That same month, no one knew exactly where Morgans had dredged up all his "black material," but endless rumors flooded every corner of the seas:
It was said that Fleet Admiral Kong now bellowed in fury at least three times a week—
—his voice thundering through the entire headquarters building.
"Child-Kong—A Skeleton Held Together by Sheer Will!"
"Secret Rendezvous on Pleasure Street—The Private Life of the Fleet Admiral…"