Rodin's warship slowly sailed into Mock town, a notorious gathering place for pirates who spent their money recklessly. Despite their wild reputation, these pirates rarely harmed the town's civilians, as they were the ones who provided their services.
As the warship docked, a crowd of pirates gathered at the pier, their weapons drawn. "Strange, why would a Marine ship come here?" one whispered.
"It shouldn't be. There would be more than one ship if they were here to arrest us," another said.
But when they saw the figures on the bow, they realized the crew wasn't wearing Marine uniforms.
"That person looks familiar," a pirate said.
"It's the great pirate Rodin and his crew!" another exclaimed, taking out a bounty poster. "That's them! A pirate crew with a total bounty of 2.5 billion Berry!"
Many of the pirates, whose bounties were only in the tens of millions, backed away. This was a crew that had hijacked a Marine warship, killed a Warlord, and openly challenged all Warlords. No one wanted to cross them. The pirates disappeared, leaving an empty, dusty pier.
Rodin and his crew disembarked and headed toward the bustling town. "I wanted to ask some questions," Rodin said, looking at the empty pier. "I wanted to find someone who knows the local currents and cumulus clouds, but they all ran away."
"Men are so timid," Baki giggled. "Captain, should I catch a few for you?"
"No need to be so reckless," Crocodile said, glancing at her. "The bar is full of people." She then rubbed against Rodin, her breath warm on his ear. "Don't you agree, Rodin?" In the past few days, Crocodile had grown accustomed to Rodin's presence, and an inexplicable pleasure came from being near him.
Just then, Rodin heard the system's voice in his mind.
[You have a chance to randomly draw a female character. Do you want to use it immediately?]
Rodin's eyes lit up. The draw countdown had hit zero. "Extract!" he thought.
[Randomly drawing a female character... Congratulations on drawing the underworld emperor... Sister Donquixote Dove. Do you want to summon her now?]
Rodin swallowed. "Donquixote Doflamingo became Sister Donquixote Dove?" he wondered. The other crew members were also startled but remained silent.
Rodin pulled up Sister Dove's information.
[Underground Emperor]: Sister Donquixote Dove
[Nickname]: "Celestial Dragon"
[Strength]: 3.5 stars (transitioning to 4 stars)
[Age]: 36
[Origin]: Parallel World 13
[Experience]: Donquixote Dove was born a Celestial Dragon. However, her father chose to leave the Holy Land, which caused her family to lose their privileged status. The very people they had once persecuted vented their anger on them, and both of her parents were killed.
Sister Dove, with her younger sister, then formed the Donquixote Family and a pirate crew. She quickly took over Dressrosa and, using her sharp business acumen, established a massive criminal enterprise in the underworld.
She acquired the Golden Fruit, which was accidentally eaten by her younger sister. Through her status as a Warlord, she amassed immense wealth and power, controlling both legitimate and dark channels. She became a super emperor of the underworld, controlling arms, intelligence, and even artificial Devil Fruits. Her power and status were immense, but she was still lacking in pure strength.
She once challenged the Yonko Kaido but was easily defeated. This made her realize that personal strength was just as important as influence, so she dedicated herself to training, strengthening her Haki, and her body.
During her training, her influence in the underworld continued to grow. She controlled the undercurrents and lifelines of the New World. Even the World Government couldn't easily challenge her.
She is the underground emperor, MissDonquixote Dove!
[Do you want to summon right now?]
He immediately responded with a yes.
Sister Donquixote Dove stepped out of the portal. Her pointed red shoes were followed by red and pink cropped trousers. A cool pair of glasses sat on her face, contrasting with her open pink feather coat and short blond hair. A confident smirk played on her lips.
But before she could fully emerge, Rodin stepped forward, pushed her back slightly, and quickly thrust something into her hand. "Put it on and come out," he said, pinching the bridge of his nose in relief that no one else was nearby. This cross-dimensional summoning was proving to be more troublesome than expected.
Crocodile, watching the scene, remarked with a knowing look, "That guy is Dove..."
"It has to be!" Baki chuckled. Thankfully, Dove's clothes were mostly concealing, avoiding any immediate embarrassing situations.
Dove looked at the item in her hand, her ears turning red. Just arriving, and already being given... this?
"Captain, is this necessary?" she asked, her tone a mix of surprise and slight indignation.
"At least when you're outside, it is!" Rodin said firmly. As the only male on the ship, he felt a certain responsibility.
Half an hour later, Sister Dove emerged, biting her lip slightly. If anyone else had asked her to do this, even a Yonko, they would have faced her wrath. "Captain Rodin," she said, taking a deep breath and regaining her composure. She briefly greeted him and then looked around. "Is this... Mock Town?" Despite her inner turmoil, her thirty-six years of experience showed in her composed demeanor.
"You know it?" Rodin raised an eyebrow. "Come on, let's talk in the tavern first." He was pleased to have another powerful ally.
Dove nodded, putting her hands in her pockets, and instinctively walked with her characteristic splayed gait. However, she paused slightly when she saw Crocodile and the others. "Hey, hey, I didn't expect to see a few old acquaintances here," she said, a flicker of recognition in her eyes.
"They're all my crew," Rodin explained as they entered the bustling tavern. The noise level dropped noticeably as they walked in. Rodin ordered drinks at the bar. The owner, Terry, seemed flustered.
Baki, ever energetic, looked around and called out, "Have there been any cumulus clouds here recently?"
"Cumulus? Seems there were some to the southeast," a pirate replied, eager to help the crew of such infamous pirates.
Baki's luck held. They had their lead to Sky Island! However, Rodin was still considering whether to deal with Moria first or head to the floating island. Sky Island was right above them...
Just then, the system chimed in.
[Ding, the famous 'Gaya Island' has been detected. Do you want to sign in?]
"Sign in," Rodin replied.
[Congratulations on getting 'devil fruit-absorbing' nail polish (enough for one person only)]
[Note: After smearing, you will be able to acquire the ability to absorb other people's devil fruits and then transfer them to other carriers (fruits). (Frequency of use: once a month. It will only take effect if used within ten minutes of the death of the person with the fruit ability.)]
Rodin understood the implications. This nail polish could transfer Devil Fruits! It was similar to the Dark-Dark Fruit but with a one-month cooldown and no apparent side effects. "A nice thing indeed," Rodin murmured, taking a sip of his drink. Stealing Enel's Thunder Fruit seemed like a tempting possibility, especially if his Ark Maxim was complete. A lightning-powered flying ship would be incredibly useful.
He took out the small bottle of red nail polish from his storage ring. He certainly didn't need it. Turning to Dover, who was now chatting with Crocodile, Rodin was about to offer it to her.
But then Baki bounced over. "Captain, I've already found out the location of the Cumulus! No need to delay, let's go take a look! Treasure awaits!" She then noticed the nail polish in Rodin's hand. "Hey, what's that? Captain, are you going to paint your nails?" In her mind, it was an unusual but acceptable quirk.
"Me?" Rodin looked at her bright red nose and smiled. "No... this is for you." Originally, he had someone else in mind, but Baki's helpfulness had earned her the prize.
"Captain, why would a woman like me paint her nails with something like that?" Baki wrinkled her nose in distaste and took a step back. "You should keep it for yourself."