Chapter 63: The Past Has Not Vanished, The Future Continues
Hermes's intuition wasn't wrong. As a Homie born from the fusion of a soul and certain substances in the world, Hermes had almost no natural enemies. Even Haki couldn't attack such an elemental life form.
Only corresponding elemental counters could hurt them. For example, water would make Prometheus, who was made of fire, feel a scalding sensation.
And Brook's Yomi Yomi no Mi (Revive-Revive Fruit) had the ability to channel the chill of the Underworld, which could be considered a special attack against such soul creatures.
"No need to make a fuss, Hermes. This skeleton rack just set sail a bit earlier than you.
Am I right, musician of the Rumbar Pirates, 'Humming' Brook?"
Just as Hermes felt Brook's words lacked respect, Nereus also arrived on the ship and directly pointed out Brook's identity.
"May I ask... what year is it now?"
"Year 1504 of the Sea Circle Calendar. It is currently March."
After the God Valley Incident ended, Nereus had been sailing on the sea for quite some time. Calculating by distance, he had traversed more than half of the Grand Line, and time had already moved into a new year.
"1504... almost 15 years have passed? What a long yet fleeting time... Since you know my name, you must have come looking for me specifically. But I don't understand, what about me is worth you coming personally to this sea area?"
"I met a little dolphin who helped me with a small favor. While chatting, it mentioned it had a whale friend.
Its whale friend waits every day at the Twin Capes for a group of pirates to return and see it. And that whale's name... is Laboon."
Some things Nereus was destined never to say, and Laboon was a very good excuse.
As for whether a whale counts as a fish...
In terms of biological classification, indeed not. However, on this sea, the "fish" for Fish-men and Merfolk basically encompassed all marine life except shellfish. Mammals like whales and dolphins could even communicate better with Merfolk.
"Laboon... Yes, we promised him back then that we would meet again after circumnavigating the Grand Line... Thank you for traveling thousands of miles to bring this news here."
"No need to be so polite; I have my own purposes too.
But it won't harm you. Simply put, I need you to become stronger. In the meantime, you can join us as a musician. When the time comes, I will arrange for someone to send you to the Twin Capes."
"I have no reason to refuse."
Brook spread his hands. Trapped in this sea area for over a decade, finally meeting living people and having a chance to leave was rare.
Even if Nereus didn't say that sentence, Brook would have begged him to take him away from this sea area, let alone Nereus bringing news about Laboon.
After the annihilation of the Rumbar Pirates, Laboon could be considered Brook's only remaining bond.
Moreover, after experiencing the cruelty brought by the Grand Line, Brook also knew clearly that relying on himself alone, he probably couldn't return to the Twin Capes smoothly.
When they first entered the Grand Line, the Rumbar Pirates were high-spirited, but they soon suffered cruel blows.
First, they encountered an unknown plague, then enemies who poisoned their weapons. Even though they defeated their opponents, in the end, the whole army was wiped out, leaving only Brook as the sole survivor.
"Please take care of me from now on, Captain. I still have some things to do; please wait for me a moment."
Brook tidied his clothes, bowed solemnly, and then returned to the cabin. Amidst the creaking of the deck, he brought out a chest.
Those were the partial remains of his comrades. He didn't want his comrades to continue drifting in this sea. Burying them in their hometown in the West Blue, or at the Twin Capes... both were options.
"The Grand Line... is as cruel as ever..."
At this moment, Nanamo also learned a bit about Brook's past, but she only sighed. From the moment one chose to break into this route, various disasters were inevitable.
"This is the truth of the Grand Line. It's called the Grand Line, but it's more like a gu-jar (poison jar/survival of the fittest arena) for pirates. Crossing Reverse Mountain is fraught with danger, but that's just the first hurdle.
Once inside the Grand Line, getting out isn't easy."
Reverse Mountain didn't flow backward. Sailing against the current to get out from there was unrealistic. Flying out, abandoning the ship to cross the Red Line, or risking crossing the Calm Belt—these were the few methods to leave the Grand Line.
As long as luck was good, even if one wasn't strong, there would be lucky ones who made it out of the Calm Belt.
After returning to Nereus's ship, Brook kept his eyes on his original ship, watching it gradually drift away and disappear into the mist.
The bonds of the past still existed, but the future had to unfold.
Because Nereus often rescued slaves, the ship always stocked various styles of clothing. After Brook changed into a suit, he also introduced himself again.
"Hmm... your looks seem to fit your bone structure quite well."
Hermes was observing Brook's wanted poster. It felt that even without flesh and blood, this human's appearance hadn't changed much. That afro was even more conspicuous than his face.
On this sea where face blindness was severe (a trope/joke), it was simply identical.
"Where does the food you eat go?"
The ship doctor was even more confused. He increasingly felt his Big Bro was upping the difficulty for him.
First, a Lunarian with absurdly strong antibodies—though Amphelite's situation actually didn't need him to worry, as she could heal most issues herself.
But this skeleton rack... apart from prescribing some calcium tablets, he couldn't think of how to treat him if special situations arose. He couldn't even figure out how the guy's hair stayed on.
However, the one who interacted with Brook first was actually Nanamo. After all, Nereus had said back then that this was the accompanist found for her.
Therefore, after a simple rest, Brook was taken to the music room on the ship. A grand piano inside quickly caught Brook's attention.
"That's a Hamaya C3XP, right? Is the light blue a custom model? I remember this kind of piano sold for 7 million Berries back then..."
"Good eye. Papa said you are a decent musician. Let me see your ability."
Being able to identify the model of the instrument at a glance showed that this person had some foundation. But whether he was just making up the numbers still needed to be tested in practice.
"I won't make it difficult for you. You were a pirate too, right? Just play 'Bink's Sake.'
Papa promised you he would send you to the Twin Capes, but you also know that's the entrance to the Grand Line. It definitely has to wait until we are heading that way.
If your ability satisfies me, I'll ask Papa to arrange a ship for you ahead of schedule. How about it?"
Nanamo trusted Nereus's strength very much; she had witnessed it with her own eyes in her past life.
But she also firmly believed that in terms of music, even her own father wasn't as good as her. This was a matter of professionalism.
Therefore, the musician on the ship still had to be assessed by her personally.
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