"Olga! Waaaah! My dear Olga!!"
The man dressed in a ridiculous dinosaur costume burst into tears as he hugged the blonde little girl tightly.
He rubbed his tear-streaked, snot-covered face against hers, crying out, "My sweet daughter! You're alive! Daddy missed you so much! Thank goodness, you're still alive!"
The girl's face was quickly smeared with tears and snot too, and she grew furious as she tried desperately to push his face away.
"You stupid old man! You're still alive?!"
"Huh?"
Yamato blinked. "They… don't seem to have a very good relationship."
Law smirked faintly. "Probably because they haven't seen each other in a long time. They were trapped in two separate stomachs of the Giant Footballfish. Ever since they were swallowed, they probably haven't met again—until now."
Ian, who already knew everything, understood that Law was right… but not entirely.
Olga, huh?
Honestly, that name alone sounds a little terrifying.
Good thing this world doesn't have black luxury cars yet.
Olga and her father had been swallowed by the Giant Footballfish nearly two hundred years ago.
Ever since then, the two had been separated and hadn't seen each other again until today.
Olga had survived all this time thanks to a small fragment of Pure Gold embedded in the ring on her finger.
Her father, on the other hand, lived only because the light of that Pure Gold shone through the Giant Footballfish's body and bathed him.
But the girl's hatred toward her father wasn't just because of their long separation.
Two hundred years ago, when Olga was only six, she had been struck by an incurable illness.
To extend her life, her father began experimenting with extracting Pure Gold.
However, during that process, Olga's mother died.
From that moment on, the little girl began to hate her father, believing that if he hadn't pursued his research, her mother would still be alive.
Even after two hundred years, she hadn't forgiven that wretched man!
What she didn't know, however, was that every bit of his research had been for her—to cure her fatal disease.
"Wait a second! Who are you people?!"
Though she looked only six, the girl—already two hundred years old and considered elderly even among giants—finally noticed Ian and the others.
"Hm?"
The middle-aged man, who had been smothering his daughter with affection, suddenly came back to his senses.
"Wait, are you the ones who saved us?"
"That's right," Ian replied calmly, nodding with confidence—because it was, after all, the truth.
"Oh! Thank you so much!"
The middle-aged man's joy overflowed, his face lighting up as he bowed repeatedly to Ian — he looked as if he might even drop to his knees any second.
But then, his gaze caught something else — the massive mountain of gold piled to the side.
"Th-That is—"
His eyes widened in disbelief, his entire body trembling uncontrollably. "Pure gold? Is… all of this pure gold?"
So much pure gold?!
Two hundred years ago, he had only managed to extract a single tiny nugget of it — and even that had drawn the wrath of Giant Footballfish!
But now… there was an entire mountain of it here!
Giant Footballfish—
Oh, right!
He looked down at the ground beneath his feet.
Giant Footballfish was lying beneath the sea at this very moment!
Could it be that this man had stolen all the pure gold that Giant Footballfish had gathered over countless years?
Unbelievable!
"So, you really do have the ability to extract pure gold, huh?"
Law glanced at the man, immediately recognizing the substance before him, and asked with genuine curiosity.
The man froze, staring blankly at Law.
How did this man know he could extract pure gold?
Not long after he first extracted it, their island had been attacked by Giant Footballfish. Half the island had been swallowed whole by that giant fish!
How could an outsider possibly know that?
Even though the man didn't respond, Law nodded slightly. "Impressive. To think you could create something this extraordinary."
"Haha, it's nothing, really…"
The man scratched the back of his head shyly, embarrassed by the praise.
But then, his body went stiff.
Not good — this wasn't good at all.
Now that they knew about his ability to extract pure gold… what would they do to him next?
Unease began to rise in his heart.
"There's nothing impressive about that!"
The little girl, who had overheard Law's words, puffed up angrily and shouted, "If he hadn't been obsessed with studying that stupid thing, Mom wouldn't have died! It's all Dad's fault!"
The man's eyes dimmed at his beloved daughter's words.
His wife's death was, without a doubt, the greatest pain of his life.
A group of pirates had learned — somehow — about his pure gold research. Thinking there was treasure hidden on the island, they attacked.
His wife had died in that raid.
"Now, now, don't talk about your father like that, young lady,"
Ian smiled and said, "He only sought out Pure Gold to cure your illness."
"Illness?"
The little girl—no, the ancient human—was stunned. She instinctively turned to her father. "What do you mean by that?"
The man froze.
He hadn't expected Ian to even know about this.
It made no sense to him at all.
After hesitating for a moment, he finally spoke with a pained expression.
"Olga, I'm sorry about your mother… but there's something I've never told you. The truth is, you were born with an incurable disease. In order to save your life, I thought of using Pure Gold to extend it."
"But as the price… you could never grow up again."
"H-how could this be…? How could something like this happen?"
The girl stared in disbelief, her voice trembling. "So that bastard father… was actually doing it all for me?"
"Of course, Olga!"
The man pulled his daughter into a tight embrace, tears streaming down his face. "No one in this world wants you to live happily more than I do!"
"Waaah!!"
Though she had lived for nearly two hundred years, she had never truly interacted with the outside world. Her heart and mind had never matured. Deep down, she was still just a little girl.
All the fear and loneliness she had bottled up through two centuries of isolation finally broke free in her father's arms.
Holding onto him tightly, Olga burst into uncontrollable sobs.
"There, there, Olga, it's alright now!"
Her father wept as well, patting her gently on the back. "Everything's fine now!"
"So… what exactly was the disease?"
As a doctor, Law couldn't help but ask curiously.
What kind of illness could stump even a genius scientist capable of extracting Pure Gold? It had to be something extraordinary.
He began recalling all the rare and deadly diseases he'd encountered on the seas, wondering which one could possibly be that severe.
Then the middle-aged man said gravely, "It was the South Blue Emperor Fever. Once infected, there's absolutely no chance of survival!"
"Eh?"
Law blinked, momentarily speechless.
Had he heard that right?
After a few seconds of awkward silence, he finally asked uncertainly, "Did you just say… South Blue Emperor Fever?"
"Yes."
The man looked at him, puzzled.
"Did I… not make myself clear enough?"
"I see…"
Law's lips twitched slightly before he quickly understood what was going on.
"You're right," he said. "After all, you've been trapped inside this fish's belly for two hundred years. It's only natural that you know nothing about the changes outside."
Two hundred years?
The man's heart trembled.
We've been inside Giant Footballfish's stomach for two hundred years?
But… how did they even know when we were swallowed?
"South Blue Emperor Fever," Law said with a faint smile, "was indeed a disease that troubled the medical world a lot two hundred years ago."
"But," he continued, "that illness was conquered decades ago."
"Eh?"
The man froze.
"Nowadays," Law raised a finger and said casually, "a single injection should be enough."
"Eh??"
The man was stunned again.
A few seconds later, realization hit him, and his face lit up with overwhelming joy. "That means… Olga can be saved, right?"
"Of course."
Law smiled and nodded. "A vaccine for South Blue Emperor Fever isn't worth much these days."
"That's wonderful! Olga! That's wonderful!"
The man hugged his daughter tightly, trembling with excitement. "You're saved! You can finally grow up!"
Grow up?
Held in her father's arms, the little girl with golden hair blinked in confusion.
Can I really… grow up now?
"In that case," Ian said with a friendly smile, "why don't you come back with us, sir? Law, there should be medicine on the island, right?"
"Of course."
Law nodded confidently. "Even if my pharmacy isn't the most complete in the world, it's definitely among the best."
With the support of the Beasts Pirates, there was no medicine he couldn't get.
"This…"
The man suddenly fell into deep hesitation.
He knew very well why the handsome man before him had invited him.
Since they knew about Pure Gold, and that he could extract it, their goal was naturally that miraculous metal said to grant eternal life.
Even after having so much pure gold, you're still not satisfied? And now you want to know how to extract it?
What a greedy young man.
But… he didn't dare refuse.
Giant Footballfish was lying here quietly, motionless.
If he refused, it wouldn't just be him in danger—Olga would probably get hurt too.
"I understand."
The man took a deep breath and finally nodded lightly.
"That's great."
Ian said happily, "Then from today, you're officially a member of the Beast Pirates. By the way… I don't know your names yet."
"Acier… my name is Myskina Acier."
The man, Acier, introduced himself.
But in his heart, he couldn't help but murmur:
Pirates?
These people… are actually pirates?
From appearances, there's no sign of it at all.
The man was handsome, the woman beautiful—there wasn't a trace of the rough, chaotic air usually surrounding pirates.
"Acier, huh?"
Ian nodded lightly. "Welcome to the crew, Acier."
"So…"
Acier carefully stood up, holding his daughter. "When will my daughter be treated?"
"Right after we get back, she'll be treated immediately."
Ian said to Law.
"Understood."
Law nodded lightly.
"And then…"
Ian turned and walked to the mountain of gold, raising his hand to scrape off a chunk about the size of a human head.
Seeing this, Acier's eyes twitched.
The strength of pure gold was far higher than normal gold—it could last a very long time without wearing down.
And yet… he just scraped off a piece like it was nothing?
"All right, Law, send the rest back."
"Understood."
Law nodded lightly.
Since even the tiniest piece could grant someone immortality, a chunk the size of a human head was already enough for many people.
If every mid-level officer and above in the Beasts Pirates received one, there would still be plenty left over.
All the remaining pieces were practically useless.
Instead of hiding them somewhere himself, it would be better to put them back inside the lantern of the Giant Footballfish.
This living treasure chest was far more convenient than finding a hiding place.
With Shirohoshi around, he could simply order the Giant Footballfish to stay in the waters near Wano, and along the way, more sea kings would naturally protect it.
Law activated his ability again, and in front of the bewildered eyes of Acier and her father, he sent the golden mountain right back.
Then Ian returned directly to Onigashima with the spoils and the father-daughter pair.
Just as Law was sending them off for treatment and preparing to call the officers to distribute the pure gold, the Den Den Mushi suddenly rang.
Ian was somewhat surprised. Not many people in this world had his contact.
Whenever the Den Den Mushi rang, it usually meant something serious.
He picked up the call.
"Lord Ian!"
On the other end came a voice that, even with gravity, could not hide its charm.
"Oh? Stussy?"
Ian chuckled lightly. "What is it? Has the World Government taken action again?"
Six years ago, in that battle, CP0 suffered heavy losses.
The supreme commander and veteran officers had nearly all been wiped out by Ian.
Stussy had taken this opportunity to rise to a high rank within CP0.
Now, six years later, she had truly become one of the top officers in the rebuilt CP0, holding a position of immense influence within the intelligence organization.
Of course, Ian's help had been indispensable.
Over these six years, he had made significant sacrifices to ensure that this government nail behind the Beasts Pirates could play its role.
As a result, the World Government trusted her even more.
"It's not that."
Stussy's voice was exceptionally solemn. "Lord Ian, the Doctor just contacted me through secret means."
"Oh?"
Ian's interest was instantly piqued. After all, there was only one Doctor she could be referring to: Vegapunk.
"What did he say?"
Through Stussy, he knew that Vegapunk had been helping the World Government research new types of energy in recent years.
Ian was pleased to hear this.
After all, he also wanted the kind of energy that could power ancient weapons.
With Stussy's help, once the energy was complete, he could simply intercept it from the World Government.
"The Government has increased its surveillance on the doctor," Stussy said. "The doctor is feeling very uneasy about it."
"He fears that once the research on the new energy is complete, the World Government might discard him like a used tool."
"So he's asking you to save him at that time!"
Ian curled the corner of his lips. "Of course, no problem!"
Not only will I save him, I'll also reward him with a solid gold reward.
If someone like Vegapunk dies, it would truly be a loss for the entire world!
"Thank you so much!"
Look at that, she's even thanking me.
**********
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