After nearly two hours of Leno's careful comfort, Robin's mood had finally settled.
Seeing her flushed cheeks and breathless state, he knew his method of "comforting" had been remarkably effective.
If he'd known it would be this easy, he wouldn't have bothered racking his brain so hard—he'd nearly sent himself into overdrive for nothing.
Good thing he'd snapped out of it in time. If he'd really gone at it with Imu… winning would be fine, but if he lost and something unexpected happened…
Nope. Not thinking about that.
Looking at the now-sleeping Robin, Leno sighed. Better to enjoy these golden years peacefully.
He rolled out of bed, glanced once more at Robin resting beneath the covers, and then slipped quietly out of the room.
Sigh… his stamina was getting better and better. What a troublesome kind of blessing.
But why did he feel like he was forgetting something? What was it?
Muttering to himself, Leno walked back to the lounge chair beneath the parasol and lay down again.
Just then, Mikita approached slowly with a pot of black tea and several plates of pastries.
"Captain, here is your tea and dessert. Also, I've already cleaned the room below!"
Click—
A bolt of lightning seemed to flash through Leno's mind. He finally remembered what he'd forgotten.
He'd butchered Wapol and was preparing to extract the Devil Fruit… but Robin's arrival had interrupted him.
At the thought, he immediately sat up and hurriedly opened his spatial inventory, his heartbeat quickening on instinct.
The moment his consciousness entered the backpack, it drifted straight toward the pile of fruit—and sure enough, there was a strangely shaped one among them.
The Swallow-Swallow Fruit. No question. The backpack really could keep extracting Devil Fruits!
Leno felt like he could ascend on the spot. From now on, any ability user he took an interest in… would be in trouble.
"Mikita, you really helped me a ton!"
Seeing the girl still standing timidly beside him, Leno cupped her small face and kissed her.
"Mm—!"
The sudden kiss froze Mikita where she stood. Her eyes went wide, and she nearly forgot to breathe.
Luckily, Leno didn't make it last too long. Even so, once their lips parted, she was left gasping.
Her cheeks were burning red, and she couldn't meet his eyes. Leno couldn't help smiling—she really was still a young adult.
He reached out, ruffled her hair gently, and spoke softly:
"You don't need to be so cautious on this ship. Try getting along with everyone. From now on, this is your home too."
Mikita's head snapped up. Tears glimmered in her eyes, as if she couldn't believe what she'd heard.
She had been on the ship for a while now, but she'd never forgotten one thing—she was a captive.
Even though no one on board mistreated her—if anything, they'd been polite and kind—
She still tiptoed through every moment, carefully observing everyone, terrified she might offend someone by accident.
She envied their laughter, their casual teasing… but she had buried all her feelings deep down.
Back in Baroque Works, the hierarchy among agents had been strict. Higher-ranked agents could decide the fate of those beneath them.
That was where she had learned to read the room, to survive by sensing moods and intentions.
On this ship, every single person outranked her—every one of them could decide her life or death.
So she constantly reminded herself: be careful. Be more and more careful...
But now, that monstrously strong captain had kissed her… and told her this could be her home.
Was she… accepted?
Years of suppressed emotion burst free. Tears poured down like a broken dam.
"Th-thank you… thank you, Captain! Uuuuu—"
"There, there. Cry it all out. After this, you have to stay happy, okay?"
Leno patted her shoulder gently, sighing inwardly. The girl had taken caution to an extreme.
He had figured that with enough time, she would eventually blend in.
But somehow, she had only become more restrained, as if terrified of making even a single mistake.
He remembered Mikita having a very cute smile—but he hadn't seen her give a genuine one in a long time.
Seeing her crying so hard her makeup was ruined, Leno had no choice but to patiently wipe her tears away.
What he didn't expect was that she would take the chance to leap directly into his arms.
He'd been careful not to hug her suddenly, afraid he might scare her—but she was the one who threw herself at him.
Maybe she had held it in too long. She cried her heart out, wailing so intensely it shook the air.
It took Leno a tremendous effort to finally calm her down.
His chest was soaked, and when he looked at her—good grief—her eyes were swollen from all the crying.
Chuckling helplessly, he gently urged her back to her room to rest.
If any of the other women saw this, they'd definitely call him worse than a beast.
Finally alone again, Leno pulled out the Devil Fruit to examine it.
The famed Swallow-Swallow Fruit. At last, it was his.
Holding it in his hand, his thoughts drifted.
Now that he had a spatial backpack capable of automatically extracting Devil Fruits, he needed to make plans for powerful ones ahead of time.
First on the list was that little black fatty's Dark-Dark Fruit—by far the most sought-after.
And his future crew also had several excellent fruits…
Leno wondered if he should fatten him up first before taking action. Of course, the Tremor-Tremor Fruit would not be given to him. If something went wrong later, that would be a pain.
The Operation-Operation Fruit was also worth planning for. Once he used its powers on himself, he could enjoy a taste of eternal life.
Even though he had Pure Gold as insurance, something still felt uneasy deep inside.
After thinking for a while, Leno concluded this was not something to rush. It required careful, long-term planning.
He needed to study the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia when he had the time.
Once he returned to Skypiea, he had to pick a group of loyal, talented members and lay a foundation for them.
Then he would match each person with a Devil Fruit suited to their abilities, ensuring they became a true "God's Guard."
Aileen's divine squad wasn't bad either. If she found promising recruits, he would train them as well.
With Pure Gold giving them all the time they needed, his future army—armed with diverse, terrifying abilities—would no doubt leave everyone's jaws hanging.