"Wow, what a big tree."
The most striking feature of Ohara was the Tree of Omniscience, whose enormous canopy practically covered half the island.
Even from where they had just docked, the giant tree was clearly visible. For the people of Ohara, sweeping up fallen leaves every day was a strenuous task.
"Let's go. That tree is our destination."
The size difference between islands was vast. Ohara, compared to Firefly Island, was even smaller than one of Firefly Island's districts. It didn't take long for Oran to lead Lyliana to the base of the Tree of Omniscience.
The tree trunk had a very peculiar shape, covered in traces of human activity.
On this island, only the island itself was older than this tree. Having endured thousands of years, the Tree of Omniscience had witnessed the passage of time and even formed a unique symbiotic relationship with the residents of Ohara.
Some windows could be seen on the trunk, and many people lived inside. Clover was waiting at the entrance for Oran.
"Dr. Sidilier, long time no see. I heard you're a king now?"
"Just an empty title, not important. I apologize for bothering you this time.
Dr. Clover, I'd like to borrow some books from the Tree of Omniscience's library to look up some historical documents."
"What bother? The Tree of Omniscience's library is open to the world. Knowledge should not be hidden. If you wish to borrow, you can go anytime. And there's an old friend of yours here too."
Although Oran and Clover didn't have a close relationship now, they were acquaintances and occasionally corresponded. After all, they both represented the pinnacle of archaeology and medicine.
They would sometimes attend exchange meetings organized by other scholars.
"An old friend?"
"You'll know when you see him. It's quite a coincidence."
Clover led Oran and his group into the Tree of Omniscience. What met their eyes were almost entirely books. Various documents piled up on the surrounding shelves, even forming walls of books.
And beneath the bookshelves, Oran saw a familiar large head.
"Dr. Vegapunk? What are you doing here?"
"Oran? What a coincidence! I came to find some data. I didn't expect to run into you here."
Clover's old acquaintance was none other than Dr. Vegapunk. As the director of the research institute, Dr. Vegapunk wasn't under house arrest; it was his freedom to go wherever he pleased.
However, being pressed for time, he rarely went out. While research could be conducted on a ship, the environment was far inferior to Punk Hazard.
"Coincidence. I'm here for data too. How's life as the director of the research institute?"
"Not bad, I suppose. At least the World Government's funding is ample. I recently made a new discovery: if Sea Stone is embedded in the bottom of a ship, it can allow the ship to pass through the Calm Belt more safely.
Aren't you in close communication with the Marine? Perhaps you can use this to make a new deal with them."
Oran's appearance largely altered Dr. Vegapunk's research progress. Although Oran didn't directly disclose the matter of Sea Stone warships to Dr. Vegapunk, Dr. Vegapunk still discovered it many years in advance.
When MADS disbanded, Oran concealed most of his research results, even leading the outside world to believe that many studies were Dr. Vegapunk's work. Therefore, Dr. Vegapunk wanted to use these results to help Oran exchange for some research funds from the Marine.
This was his small help as a friend.
"No need. You find a suitable time to disclose it to the Marine yourself. I have my own arrangements."
"Alright... This must be Lyley? She's grown so much, it's truly unbelievable."
"Hello, Uncle Dr. Vegapunk. Your head has gotten bigger too. Isn't it heavy?"
Dr. Vegapunk's head was several sizes larger than it was a few years ago, and even the tongue sticking out of his mouth had grown longer. From his appearance, he looked even more like a wack than Frankenstein.
"It's alright. This is the solid weight of knowledge."
Dr. Vegapunk didn't feel much, which was also an effect of the Brain-Brain Fruit. The more he memorized, the larger his head would become.
"Alright, Lyley, you and Kate go play for a while, or find some books you like. Dad has something to do."
"Okay~"
Lyliana said nothing, simply following Kate to the side. Absalom, meanwhile, silently followed behind them as if on mute.
By now, he knew Oran was a king and had already taken on the role of a retainer. In Absalom's understanding, becoming a king's trusted aide would be a remarkable achievement.
Afterward, Oran and Dr. Vegapunk searched for something together in the library. However, Oran was simply running his hand over the books; each time he touched a book, one more book would be added to his Book World collection.
Having a rare meeting with an old friend, Dr. Vegapunk seemed to forget his original purpose and discussed some research difficulties with Oran.
"Speaking of which, your previous research helped me a great deal, saving me at least several decades of effort. Unfortunately, what I researched still turned out to be a failure."
"A failure? What did you research?"
"Replicating artificial Devil Fruits through Lineage Factor. The difficulty is not low. I've already decided to suspend research in this area."
"Kaido's Lineage Factor?"
"How did you know?"
"I read newspapers too. I saw the news about Kaido escaping from the research institute a few years ago."
Oran had already guessed what Dr. Vegapunk's so-called failure was: the replicated version of Kaido's Fish-Fish Fruit.
In the original timeline, Dr. Vegapunk spent a full twenty years and countless funds researching it. However, due to Oran's presence, many difficult points in this project were overcome by the two of them in advance, even affecting subsequent research progress.
"I won't waste any more words, Dr. Vegapunk, give me that 'failure.' I'm quite interested in it."
"That's a 'failure.' Why would you want such trash?"
"I know you have severe obsessive-compulsive disorder. You can't fool me with that.
Besides, if failures aren't destroyed, it's a bit strange, isn't it? It just so happens that I need it."
...Alright, but I can't specifically send it to you. Find an opportunity to come to my place. I'll be 'destroying failures' those few days, and you can take it with you then."
Dr. Vegapunk didn't want the World Government to know that he had already deciphered this secret and could successfully create Mythical Zoan Devil Fruits. Ultimately, he wasn't truly aligned with the World Government; they were simply taking what they needed from each other.
Oran understood Dr. Vegapunk's personality and knew that the so-called failure was only different in color. Other than that, it was identical to Kaido's fruit.
"Much obliged."
Oran also had his own research on Lineage Factor, but his application methods were quite different from others. One could only say that each member of MADS had their own areas of expertise.
Although Oran was versatile, he wasn't omniscient. He also had his own specialized fields, and he admitted that he was not as good as Dr. Vegapunk in replicating Devil Fruits.
"By the way, that fruit, you're going to..."
"Do you even need to ask? Of course, it's for Lyley. Speaking of which, where's Stussy? Didn't you bring her out this time?"
A suitable Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit—this was the path Oran had planned for Lyliana. With her physical talent, the enhancements of a Mythical Zoan could maximize her combat power.
Although many Mythical Zoan fruits appeared in the original timeline, most of them were already owned.
Aside from those whose whereabouts were unknown, the combat style of the vampire fruit from Sleepy Hollow Town wasn't particularly suited for Lyliana.
It's better not to get involved with Nika. A fruit that runs away and chooses its own master, and is entangled with a bunch of troubles, is somewhat difficult to handle.
The replicated Azure Dragon was more suitable for Lyliana.
"No, I left her at Punk Hazard to handle some errands for me. Honestly, after you all left, I only had Caesar by my side, and many things became quite troublesome to do."
Recalling the highly unreliable Caesar, Dr. Vegapunk sighed helplessly.
"Actually, he's not entirely without redeeming qualities."
"Hmm? Don't you think his research ability is terrible?"
"It's not that I think so; it's a fact. But when it comes to swindling funds, he's much more professional than you."
Oran spent most of the day in the library, and while chatting with Dr. Vegapunk, he conveniently touched every single book.
These collected books were not even all of them. Scholars from all over the world were still converging here, and new books would be sent over from time to time. After the books were updated in a few years, Oran would probably have to come again.
After finding the information he needed, Dr. Vegapunk entered a state of reading, occasionally letting out exclamations of admiration.
After completing his objective, Oran began his journey back, not lingering there for too long. Since Firefly Island was still a non-Allied Nation, the boat ticket he ultimately secured was for Alabasta.
As a superpower in the Grand Line, there were relatively more ships bound for it.
However, upon reaching Alabasta, they did not immediately return to Firefly Island. Instead, they acquired a new Log Pose in Alabasta's market and purchased a large quantity of strong liquor.
"Dad, this isn't the way home, is it? When we left, the morning sun should have been on the other side."
"Yes, we have some other things to do. This time, I plan to find you a new teacher."
"Am I going to learn some really powerful moves?"
"That's right, a particularly powerful move. If you master it completely, even a monster as large as an island can be pierced with a single blow."
"Yay! That sounds amazing! I'm sure I can learn it!"
Oran released a ship he had prepared long ago from his Book World. This time, there was no fixed route to their destination; they had to be self-reliant, as it was an uninhabited island known to the outside world—the Ancient Island, Small Garden.
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