Chapter 72: The Mink Tribe, The Will of Freedom
"Luna... Wolf Mink or Dog Mink?"
In terms of fur color, Luna had a mix of white and gray, with long white hair. Although she was treated as an auction item, the slave merchants had actually groomed her hair well, after all, it was to fetch a high price.
Since both were canines, Nereus couldn't quite determine her specific type.
"It's Wolf! Not those Dog Minks!"
"Understood. The location of Zou isn't fixed. do you have a Vivre Card to return to Zou?"
The homeland of the Mink Tribe was called the Mokomo Dukedom, a country located on the back of a giant elephant. Zou and Zunesha were both names for that giant elephant.
Because it was a living creature, the Log Pose couldn't capture its location. Additionally, this living island moved all over the waters of the New World, making it even more difficult to find its location.
Even for the Mink Tribe who had lived on the elephant's back for generations, finding it required relying on a Vivre Card.
Only by carrying the Vivre Card of a relative or friend could a Mink who went out find their way home.
"About that... I sneaked out, so I forgot to bring a Vivre Card..."
"Then you'll have to wait a while longer. I'll take you along when we operate in the New World in the future."
Vivre Cards for Zou were hard to come by. Fish-man Island at least had a population of several million, but Zou was essentially a small city on an elephant's back with a population of only tens of thousands. They rarely went out, so Vivre Cards basically didn't circulate externally.
Logically speaking, in terms of racial rarity, the Mink Tribe should be much more expensive than the Merfolk Tribe. It seemed that on this sea, "furries" were still not the mainstream demographic.
"Um... aren't you recruiting? We Minks are born warriors! I'm very good at fighting!"
"I am recruiting, but what's the reason?"
"I left Zou because I wanted to see what the outside world was like. But I got caught by those hairless 'Monkey Minks' who said they were going to sell me.
This outside world is more dangerous than I thought. I want to find some reliable partners. I think you guys seem pretty reliable, and you're good people."
Luna spoke to herself and nodded. Her mentality fit that of a normal 8-year-old child; she didn't think too much.
Nanamo grew up on a pirate island and received a different education.
Kuma and Ginny became slaves at a very young age and had different experiences. Amphelite had a special life of fugitives. Different experiences shaped different personalities.
Luna, at least, had a normal childhood. going out was mostly due to curiosity, so she didn't have much scheming in her.
As for the "hairless Monkey Minks" she mentioned, she was referring to humans. In their eyes, humans were just a subspecies of the Mink Tribe.
"If you want to stay, then stay. But at your age, you should just follow along and learn for two years first. From now on, you can count as an apprentice on my ship."
Nereus recalled the mural he saw in Elbaf. It was said to be drawn on a tree by a Giant child during the Void Century. With the passage of time, it eventually became fossilized and served as a witness to history.
On that mural, many races were once united, launching a battle against something resembling a demon.
Looking at the current situation, he had almost gathered the races from the mural: Buccaneer, Lunarian, Mink, Merfolk, and even the soul of a Davy...
If archeology made new discoveries later and they dug up some Ancient Robot technology, it would be a perfect reproduction.
Given the degree of Imu's fear and the long duration of the Great War, Joy Boy might have simply been outlasted by time. At least from this point of view, Nereus didn't have to worry about anything.
Several hours later, the ship successfully returned to Fish-man Island. Compared to when they entered Fish-man Island last time, today's Fish-man Island seemed even livelier. The reason for all this wasn't complicated.
Pirates who used to cause trouble on the island were now completely suppressed, unable to stir up even a ripple.
Although Nereus himself left the island to do other things, Babel and Sunbell stayed on Fish-man Island. While their combat power was indeed a tier lower than those Emperor-level monsters, they were capable of being top executives in an Emperor's crew.
With these two, plus hundreds of combatants tempered in the New World for years, and the advantage of the underwater environment, they could already guard the peace of a region.
Even trash like Hody Jones, who relied on drugs (Energy Steroids) to boost combat power, could make Fish-man Island a desperate situation for many pirates. In the New World, no new emerging pirates had been seen for months, and even the Marines couldn't figure out what happened.
With such a group of people in charge, this result was only natural.
"How have things been during this time?"
"Basically no problems. Pirates with ulterior motives were all eliminated. Just half a month ago, Roger's crew passed through Fish-man Island. After entering the New World, the World Government seemed to have a fight with them, purpose unknown."
Sunbell briefly summarized what happened before. The external situation of Fish-man Island remained the same. Those with strength knew Nereus's situation, so even if they passed through Fish-man Island, they wouldn't cause trouble.
As for the rest who might be attracted by profit, Sunbell and the others had sufficient ability to handle them.
...
Back at Coral Hill, Nereus booked quite a few rooms here to settle the people who arrived at Fish-man Island with him.
Due to the number of rooms, it was mostly several people sharing a suite.
"Yohohoho, Captain Yorki, everyone, do you see this? This is the scenery of Fish-man Island..."
In the hotel lobby, Brook leaned against the window. He could even see some Merfolk playing in the water—the dreamlike scenery his former partners used to discuss.
However, soon, Brook withdrew his gaze. He had a strange feeling now.
For some reason, ever since Nereus brought the people onto the ship, that little Mink girl had been staring at him.
"Don't misunderstand, I'm a Wolf Mink, not those Dog Minks. I don't want to chew on bones..."
"Didn't you just say your inner thoughts out loud! Actually, if you want, it's not like I can't let you take a bite..."
"Really?"
"Of course it's false! If you want, you should bite this instead. After all, I'm all bones and have no meat at all."
Saying this, Brook took out a huge piece of meat on the bone from the side. He had just brought it back from the hotel's dining room. Seeing Luna drooling and unconsciously smiling, Brook suddenly felt very gratified.
The Rumbar Pirates were a pirate crew that could bring laughter to children. Wherever they went in the past, they got along very well with the local children. This even included a figure approaching legendary status—Patrick Redfield.
Brook was also very good at coaxing children, and seeing this situation, he was quite satisfied.
Not far away, Kuma also watched the people eating and playing quietly with a gentle smile.
"Kuma-chi, aren't you eating? The barbecue on Fish-man Island tastes very unique."
"You eat first, Ginny. I'm not hungry yet. Bringing freedom to people, bringing laughter to people... I feel now that Mr. Nereus... might represent the legendary Nika."
Nika. Rather than calling it a Devil Fruit ability, it was more like a will. And across the world, among different races, the interpretation of Nika varied.
Everyone had a different Nika in their hearts.
The Giants believed Nika would laugh while destroying everything; in Loki's eyes, Rocks was Nika.
King (Alber) believed Kaido's strength was enough to change the world, so Kaido was the Joy Boy in his heart.
And in the eyes of the current Kuma, Nereus represented the new freedom...
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