Just as Blake was thinking about Robin, Robin herself was secretly observing him from not far away.
"So this is one of the legendary Celestial Dragons? He doesn't seem as terrifying as the books say..."
"But Professor Clover looks really nervous."
Blake's Observation Haki already covered the entire island, so of course he noticed Robin watching him in secret. He turned his head and met a pair of dark eyes tinged with a faint violet sheen.
She wore a light cotton short-sleeved shirt over a pale blue blouse, its cuffs rolled up and stained with faint traces of ink and pencil marks.
A charcoal pencil and a leather notebook were tucked into her dark brown overalls, and on her feet were the woven sandals commonly worn by Ohara's scholars.
Her long black hair flowed down like a waterfall, the naturally curled ends tied with a red ribbon into a bow, with a few ginkgo-leaf bookmarks from Ohara's library pinned in her hair.
She looked nothing like the Robin who would later be hunted with a bounty on her head.
The moment she realized she had been noticed, Robin was visibly startled and grew tense.
Having grown up around the Tree of Knowledge, she naturally understood what a Celestial Dragon meant.
Professor Clover, who had been doing his best to explain the library, saw Blake's gaze shift. Following it, he spotted Robin standing there awkwardly, and his heart immediately dropped.
Looking directly at a Celestial Dragon was not exactly a major crime, but neither was it a small one.
It was not major because the severity of the punishment depended entirely on that Celestial Dragon's mood.
It was not minor because most Celestial Dragons were violent by nature and could take a life on a whim.
Back in the Taya Kingdom, aside from Aramaki, all those fools had been executed by the guards around Blake.
Not daring to think too much, Professor Clover immediately stepped in front of Robin.
"Honored Saint Blake, we failed to clear the library in time. Whatever fault there is, let this old man bear it. Please forgive her disrespect."
With that, he dropped to his knees on the spot.
Blake let out a faint scoff.
It seemed that before things were pushed to the point of no return, Professor Clover was still quite capable of reading the situation.
But Blake had come here for Robin in the first place. What use was there in punishing an old man?
Ignoring Clover, Blake slowly walked over to Robin and placed a hand on her head.
He could clearly feel her body tremble, yet she did not dodge.
"What's your name?"
"N-Nico Robin."
Robin's voice trembled, her words coming out haltingly. She was obviously frightened.
Blake, however, behaved as though he did not notice at all and continued asking,
"The scholars should have known I was coming today. Why are you here?"
"I... I..."
The Robin of now was not yet the weathered woman from the original story. Even though Blake's expression looked perfectly mild, the pressure he gave off was overwhelming, and for a moment she could not think of any suitable excuse.
In truth, she had simply wanted to put her learning to use.
She had read so many books describing the Celestial Dragons, and the ancient script the scholars had been studying in secret was also tied to them in one way or another. That only made her more curious.
Originally, Robin had assumed she could rely on the Flower-Flower Fruit to come and go without anyone noticing, never realizing that a power called Observation Haki existed in this world and could expose her instantly.
"Saint Blake..."
Professor Clover's voice came again, clearly intending to plead for Robin once more.
Only then did Blake shift his gaze back to Clover and say flatly,
"I am not a cruel man. I would not kill someone just because she looked at me."
Clover had barely had time to relax when Blake spoke again.
"But rules are rules. Anyone who looks directly at the descendants of the gods must pay a price."
"Aramaki. Tell him what happened to you."
Aramaki immediately stepped forward, looking down at Professor Clover as he recounted what had happened in the Taya Kingdom.
Professor Clover hesitated.
The reputation of Celestial Dragons was known to everyone, and Robin was still only a child.
Even if this was merely the position of a retainer, if anything happened to her, he would have no way to face Olvia.
Olvia and her husband had already lost so much in the pursuit of the ancient script. If something happened to their only daughter as well, Clover felt he would be ashamed enough to kill himself.
Yet before he could make up his mind, Robin—who had already regained her composure somewhat—spoke first.
"Your Highness, I am willing to become your retainer. I hope you will forgive my offense."
Blake laughed inwardly.
This is the power of knowledge.
Even in the world of pirates, the broken-window effect still worked just fine.
If Blake had proposed from the start that Robin become his retainer, neither Robin nor Professor Clover would ever have agreed.
But now, by seizing on a not-too-big, not-too-small mistake, and with Aramaki standing there as a living example, both of them were far less resistant to the idea.
Blake nodded with deliberate dignity.
"In that case, from now on, you are one of my retainers."
"Yes, Saint Blake."
Perona muttered under her breath,
"Hmph. What a poser."
Her voice was not loud, but since Blake was still carrying her, he naturally heard every word.
He shot Perona a hard glare and rubbed her pink hair into a complete mess.
"Ugh! You jerk!"
Perona hurriedly fixed her hair and did not dare provoke him again.
Seeing this, a trace of surprise flashed through Robin's eyes.
Looks like I don't need to worry about being in danger after all... though...
When she thought of her mother, whom she had not seen for a long time and whose face had already begun to blur in her memory, Robin felt a little downcast again.
Now that his purpose in coming to Ohara had been achieved, Blake did not rush to leave. Instead, he brought Stella, Perona, Robin, his bodyguard Aramaki, and two CP agents around the island to sightsee.
Less than a year remained before the Buster Call. Olvia's archaeological expedition would likely begin drawing the World Government's suspicion within the next few months. Once they left this time, Ohara itself would soon cease to exist. Since they were here, it was worth taking a look around while they still could.
"This is my treehouse. Whenever something upsets me, I come here and stay for a while."
Following the direction of Robin's finger, everyone looked over and saw that behind a small tree hollow was a surprisingly spacious little space.
It had the feeling of squeezing through a narrow opening only to suddenly emerge somewhere unexpectedly open.
Robin had stored some books and tools inside, and the place was spotless.
Obviously, the tree hollow was either used very often, or else she had far too many unhappy moments.
And so Robin became their guide through Ohara.
The little girl's natural warmth was obviously several times stronger than that of old Professor Clover. Even Blake found her oddly amusing when she put on that serious, grown-up air.
After that, Robin also took Blake to the beach where she picked up seashells, the forest where she had discovered a Devil Fruit, and more.
It almost felt as if she already knew she would never really be able to come back after leaving this time. Rather than guiding Blake and the others, it was more like she was leaving memories behind for herself.
Toward evening, Robin went to say goodbye to her uncle's family.
Like someone else forced to live with relatives, Robin's life there was in some ways even worse than Harry Potter's, but it was still the household that had raised her, so Blake did not stop her.
About half an hour later, Robin returned looking somewhat dejected.
Blake did not ask any questions. It was easy enough to imagine that the farewell had not gone very well.
"Since you're back, get on the ship. We're getting ready to depart for the next stop."
The moment they returned to the ship, a guard hurried over, holding a Transponder Snail in both hands.