Stella and Tesoro ended up living together, and for now they're staying at Stella's rented house.
Once Tesoro regains his strength, he plans to find work… and, at the same time, start what he calls his "money-making scheme."
I didn't press him for details—mostly because he hasn't settled on anything yet. He's still weighing options, thinking through the risks and the current situation.
Either way, I trust they'll be fine. So I moved on to the next thing on my list:
Getting Hancock and the others back to Amazon Lily—and using the trip as my excuse to finally visit that legendary island myself.
Amazon Lily lies in the Calm Belt, a windless stretch of sea crawling with enormous Sea Kings.
To reach it, there were only two realistic options: use a Seastone-lined ship like the Marines do to slip past Sea Kings unnoticed, or brute-force your way through with overwhelming strength.
Unfortunately, I wasn't at that level yet.
I could probably deal with one or two Sea Kings. A whole swarm in open water? Absolutely not.
And gathering enough Seastone to line a ship wasn't exactly easy, either. That stuff is precious. It costs a fortune.
I always wonder how the Marines get so much—chains, cuffs, Seastone bullets, everything. I guess when you've got the World Government's taxes and subsidies behind you, miracles happen.
So how were we supposed to get there?
The answer came almost too easily.
Rayleigh agreed to escort us.
My confidence shot through the roof. Honestly, with him on board, it felt like nothing in the world could scare me.
So we set sail on my ship—wind or no wind, I could propel it with my ability—with a cramped crew of six: me, Rayleigh, Hancock, Sandersonia, Marigold, and Elder Nyon.
Tight quarters, but we'd manage.
We sailed straight off the Grand Line and into the Calm Belt. Every Sea King that tried to attack got swatted down by Rayleigh, and we moved through those waters like we belonged there. Elder Nyon handled navigation.
We never ran short on food. We had a device that could make fresh water from seawater, and Rayleigh kept us stocked by taking down Sea Kings whenever we needed supplies.
Really, we only cut what we could eat and let the rest go, day after day.
After several smooth days, Amazon Lily finally came into view.
The watchwomen on the shore raised their bows and shouted, "Who are you?!" but Elder Nyon stepped forward at once and began negotiating.
A few recognized her immediately.
"Gloriosa-sama?!"
"That can't be—she's supposed to be dead!"
"Is it a fake?!"
"Confirm it with the Captain!"
A brief uproar followed, and we were told to wait.
Not long after, a young woman appeared—the current Empress of Amazon Lily, and the captain of the Kuja Pirates.
One look at Elder Nyon was enough. She confirmed it was truly Gloriosa and ordered us escorted inside.
But just as we'd heard, Amazon Lily forbade outsiders.
So while Elder Nyon and Hancock's group were allowed through, it looked like Rayleigh and I would be left outside—
"…Huh? Could it be… Sue?!"
"Eeeeh?!"
One of the older Kuja warriors blurted it out, and a ripple of shock spread through the crowd.
The faces that lit up, the ones who reacted first… wow. That hit me right in the nostalgia.
"Um… Suzuna-san! Natane-san! Iris-san! Oh—and Anzu-san and Viola-san too! Long time no see!"
"You… so it really is you! How many years has it been?!"
"Let's see… we last met when I was about twelve, and now I'm twenty-one… so nine, maybe ten years?"
"That long already? Hahaha! No wonder you've grown so much!"
The moment they recognized me, they rushed over, all familiar smiles and voices.
They were the ones who'd taken care of me back when I was aboard a Kuja ship—people who'd visited me often after I'd settled on Kuja territory.
"W-what about me? Do you remember me?"
"Wait… Rindou? You used to come into town all the time when I lived there, right?"
There was also a girl about my age with a huge bazooka-like weapon strapped to her back.
She'd joined the Kuja ship as an apprentice after I left. Since we were close in age, they'd bring her into town to play with me, and sometimes we'd train together.
Of course I remembered her.
This was… unreal. It didn't even feel like I'd wandered into enemy territory.
"You've really grown up… I mean, I knew from the newspapers and all, but seeing you in person…"
"Mhm. Mhm. I heard you were kidnapped by pirates and sold off. I was worried sick. I'm so glad you're safe!"
"Ahaha… sorry for making you worry. I'm happy to see you all doing well too."
"Don't talk like a stranger! Come on, come on—get inside!"
"Eh?! But I'm still technically an outsider…"
"Don't be stiff! If you were a man, maybe—but Sue's practically family by now, so it's fine. Still, I should get the Captain's permission. Wait here—I'll be right back!"
"While we're waiting, tell me everything about the outside world!"
"No—first, tell us about your books! They're all so good!"
"Wait, you've actually been reading them?"
"Of course! You've got tons of fans here! You'd be welcomed with open arms. Honestly, you might even get invited to join the Kuja right now!"
"Thanks to Sue, more people on Amazon Lily started reading books, and once they got used to that, they started reading the newspapers too. Even the younger generation who've never met you in person adore you—the Pirate Literary Master!"
"Oh? So Suzuna and Natane are reading the papers properly now?"
"H-hey! Since when are you talking about?!"
We all burst out laughing, trading old memories like they'd never stopped being part of my life.
The younger warriors watched with open curiosity, and Rayleigh looked on with that warm, indulgent smile he gets when something genuinely sweet is happening in front of him.
---
Permission came quickly, and I was allowed into the village on Amazon Lily's mainland.
But only me.
Rayleigh, being a man, was denied entry without discussion.
He was allowed to remain near the island's outer edges, though, and he just waved me off with a grin. "Don't worry about me. Go. Enjoy yourself."
I felt a little guilty, being the only one welcomed inside.
Around the same time, word came that Elder Nyon's negotiations had concluded without issue.
Elder Nyon and the three Hancock sisters would be accepted back into the Kuja. Thank goodness the current Empress was generous enough to allow it.
I stayed the night on Amazon Lily. That evening, they held a grand banquet to celebrate the sisters' return and my visit, and I was treated to an absurd amount of delicious food.
There were performances, too.
They even did the "Sword Dance" Hancock and I had performed back in Mary Geoise, and then several traditional dances unique to Amazon Lily—some of them not involving swords in the slightest.
At one point, as an outsider, a writer, and someone who'd once sailed with a Kuja ship, I was asked to say a few words…
But the thing that truly blindsided me was the play.
They performed an adaptation of one of my novels.
Cross Angel—a story I'd written a long time ago.
A girl is cast down into a despised class and exiled from her homeland. Even as she curses the absurdity of the world, she's forced to keep fighting monsters in a place that feels like the end of the world—a refuge for girls trapped in the same desperate situation.
At first she's angry and terrified and weak, but through struggle—and the bonds she builds with the girls fighting beside her—she grows stronger, body and heart. Eventually they uncover the mastermind behind their twisted world. They reconcile with the "monsters" they once fought, and together they challenge the true evil behind it all.
The protagonist begins naive, even frustrating, but she becomes an unbreakable warrior who risks her life alongside her comrades. That growth, apparently, is what resonated most.
The stage version was heavily simplified, but it was still wildly popular here.
There was only one small change…
They'd cut the romantic subplot entirely—the part where she and her boyfriend grow closer in the middle of the fighting and eventually get together.
Apparently, time constraints and the fact that most people on Amazon Lily had never even seen a man made it hard for the audience to connect, so they removed it.
Fair enough. If they enjoyed it, that's what matters.
After the performance, they asked me, the original author, what I thought.
I told them honestly, "It was incredibly entertaining, and I'm genuinely happy."
And I meant it.
Seeing something I wrote brought to life—no matter the form—fills me with a kind of satisfaction that's hard to put into words.
I'm glad I became a writer.
---
The next day—
"Sue… we truly owe you our deepest gratitude. Without you, we would never have returned home safely."
Hancock and her sisters came to see us off, and each of them thanked me in turn.
They'd changed from the makeshift clothes of the day before into the fierce, familiar Kuja style. It suited them so well it almost hurt.
Elder Nyon stood a little behind them, quietly watching over everything.
She planned to remain on the island and serve as an advisor to the Empress, drawing on the experience she'd accumulated over a lifetime.
"No. I'm just glad you made it home. That's all."
"We can't forget a debt like this," Hancock said. "Sue, if you ever need anything, say the word. We'll help you however we can."
"…Okay. I'm counting on you. Thank you. By the way… you're still going to be Kuja warriors… pirates, right?"
"Yes," Marigold answered. "We need to train and make up for lost time."
"As fellow pirates, maybe we'll cross paths again someday. Ah—but Sue doesn't really think of herself as a pirate, does she?"
"Ahahaha… yeah. I'd rather focus on my writing. After last night, I realized how much Amazon Lily is enjoying my books."
"Then we'll look forward to your future works, Nyo!" Elder Nyon said brightly, encouraging my writing and—somehow—my "pirate" life in the same breath. "Your stories are so fresh and thrilling. They make our hearts race!"
"And Sue—this is for you," Hancock said, offering me a slip of paper.
Wait. Could it be—
"A Vivre Card?"
"Yes. Mine. I asked Rayleigh to make it before we came here. I wanted to give it to you."
"I see… thank you. Come to think of it, I've never made one myself. Sorry—I'll give you one next time."
There'd never really been anyone to give one to, either. Not someone who'd go out of their way to seek me out.
Rayleigh and Shakky always stayed on Sabaody, so I was usually the one visiting them. Morgans and Eddie were easy enough to reach with a Den Den Mushi.
But Stella and Tesoro…
Maybe I really should make one, just in case.
I'd received Vivre Cards before—Rayleigh's and Shakky's.
As I tucked Hancock's Vivre Card into my body, a thought surfaced.
Even if it was a special kind of paper, it was still paper. And as a Paper Human, I could absorb it and store it inside me.
And there was more.
"You know how to use it, right?" Hancock asked.
"Yeah… though in my case, I don't really need to, do I?"
"…What do you mean?" she asked, puzzled.
So I explained:
For some reason—maybe because my body is literally paper—once I absorb a Vivre Card, I can sense the owner's location and direction immediately.
I don't need to lay it on a flat surface and watch it move. The Vivre Card inside me just… tells me.
Not only where they are, but how they're doing. If someone's life force weakens and the Vivre Card shrinks, I can feel it without ever taking it out.
This ability only manifested recently, after I absorbed Rayleigh's and Shakky's Vivre Cards.
"You really do have remarkably versatile powers," Elder Nyon said with an amused sigh. "Well, then. Come visit whenever you're nearby. I'll welcome you warmly. If I've become Empress of the Kuja by then, even better—the whole island will celebrate."
"Ahaha. Hancock, you'll definitely become Empress someday. …Alright then—take care!"
"Hmph. Farewell."
And with that, I parted ways with Hancock and her companions…
…and left Amazon Lily with Rayleigh.
Alright. All four of the people I pulled out of Mary Geoise are back where they belong.
Whew. That was a lot. But… another good "experience" under my belt this time!
To be continued...