"You're awake." A deep, rugged voice rang out from the doorway, and a remarkably well-groomed middle-aged man appeared before Baichuan's eyes.
"Daddy!" Seeing the newcomer, the little girl cried out joyfully and raced toward him, immediately scooped up into the man's arms.
"My little princess."
The man gazed down at the girl in his arms with doting affection, nuzzling her forehead with his nose.
"Were you a good girl while Daddy wasn't home?"
His voice had become incredibly gentle, a night-and-day difference from the tone he had just used to interrogate Baichuan. Talk about a double standard.
"Baby was really good! If you don't believe me, ask that big brother. Baby didn't cause any trouble at all."
The little girl said this with a slightly wronged pout, then pointed her finger at Baichuan, apparently wanting him to vouch for her.
"I know, I know. How could Daddy ever doubt his own baby?"
The man then carried the little girl over to where Baichuan was, his voice turning cold and gruff once more.
"Kid, since you're awake, hurry up and leave this place. You don't belong here."
"I know." Meeting the man's gaze, Baichuan could tell that this person was well aware of his identity.
"But Daddy, Big Brother is still hurt so badly. How can he leave?"
The little girl asked her father, clearly unwilling to see him go.
"But your Big Brother here is a dangerous man. If he stays, he might bring danger to the villagers."
"Daddy, you're lying! Big Brother is so handsome. How could he be a dangerous person?"
It was obvious the little girl didn't believe a word her father said.
"But Daddy is telling the truth. When has Daddy ever lied to baby?"
Hearing this, the little girl fell into a conflicted silence. Before long, she turned her gaze back toward Baichuan, her eyes carrying a pleading look.
It seemed she wanted Baichuan to personally say that he wasn't a dangerous person.
Her father, however, was eyeing Baichuan with equal intensity, his gaze laced with wariness—a silent warning not to lie.
"I'm sorry. Your big brother really is a dangerous person. I'm a wanted man of the Marines. I've let you down."
"Hmph!" Upon hearing those words, the little girl immediately jumped down from her father's arms.
She trotted over to Baichuan's side, smacked him hard, called him an "idiot," and then ran off. But as she turned away, Baichuan still caught the tears at the corners of her eyes.
"Sorry for the trouble."
Baichuan said this with genuine guilt. His arrival seemed to have driven a wedge between the father and daughter.
"Hmph, as long as you know. Now hurry up and get out of here."
"My companions should already be on their way to pick me up. I'm sure it won't be long before they arrive."
"Good."
With that, the little girl's father also walked out the door, presumably to go comfort her.
Baichuan remembered telling Riddle that he kept the crew's Vivre Cards in his house. He had no idea whether they'd be able to find them, but in such an obvious spot, it should be easy enough.
What Baichuan didn't know was that Riddle had completely forgotten about it. If Moore hadn't stumbled upon them by pure chance, they probably would have all assumed Baichuan was already dead.
After resting in bed a while longer, Baichuan felt he could move freely again and stepped out of the house.
Instantly, a rich, delicate fragrance washed over him. It was floral, yet unlike anything he had ever smelled before—likely a species unique to this island.
"Perfume made from this flower would probably smell incredible."
"You're up, young man?" One of the nearby villagers called out to him.
"Sorry for making everyone worry."
"No worries, glad you're okay. Honestly, when I first saw you, I got quite a scare myself."
The neighbor who spoke scratched his head somewhat sheepishly. After all, that wasn't exactly a pleasant thing to say.
After that, Baichuan walked down to the shore and spotted the father and daughter sitting together on the reef.
He didn't go over to bother them. Perhaps it was best to let them sort things out on their own.
By evening, Baichuan returned to the man's house. The father and daughter had already finished cooking dinner and were waiting for him.
"Where did you go?" The moment he stepped inside, the man questioned him. After all, having such a dangerous figure wandering freely around the island made him deeply uneasy.
"Just took a stroll along the beach."
Baichuan understood the man's wariness, so he didn't say much more, nor did he cop an attitude about it.
"Oh."
The man gave a flat acknowledgment of Baichuan's answer.
The little girl had also grown rather quiet, not talking to Baichuan as much as before. It seemed her father had said something to her.
And so, Baichuan spent another two days in this household. At noon on the third day, he finally sensed that his companions were drawing near.
Perhaps because his crew had become part of his clan, even without deliberately using Observation Haki, they could sense each other's presence within a certain range.
"Justine, do you have this strange feeling? It's like the Captain is on that island over there."
Aboard the Silver Pirates' ship, Jola suddenly spoke up to Justine.
"Yeah, I'm getting that too. Looks like all the crew members are sensing it."
Justine noticed that every single crew member wore the same bewildered expression.
And while the Silver Pirates had discovered the island, the island's residents had naturally spotted them as well.
As the ship drew closer to shore, they saw every villager standing armed and ready, staring them down without so much as a flicker of fear.
"Pirates aren't welcome here. Leave."
One of the villagers shouted at the Silver Pirates.
"Looks like your companions have come to pick you up."
From behind the villagers, the man stood with the little girl in his arms and addressed Baichuan.
"Yeah. It's about time I head out."
Hearing this, the little girl in his arms couldn't hide the reluctance in her eyes.
"I'm sorry, everyone. I've never told you the truth. I'm actually a pirate."
Baichuan stepped forward and addressed the villagers.
"What? You're a pirate?"
Most of the villagers refused to believe it. Over the past two days, Baichuan had helped them with a great deal, so they simply couldn't accept that he was a pirate.
"It's true. The pirate crew you see out there is mine. They've come to pick me up. I'm sorry for deceiving you all for two days."
"Then leave our island at once."
The villagers' attitudes shifted immediately—neither as hostile as they would be toward other pirates, nor as warm as they had been toward Baichuan before.
"Will you come back to visit me?"
The little girl seemed to have summoned an enormous amount of courage to ask.
"Of course I will, Taeyeon." That's right—the little girl's name was Taeyeon, a name that sounded every bit as bright and cheerful as she was.
Upon hearing Baichuan's answer, a happy smile immediately blossomed across Taeyeon's face, as if she were using that smile to mask the tears welling at the corners of her eyes.
Then they watched as Baichuan leaped onto the pirate ship, watching it sail further and further away until it disappeared from sight entirely.
/-\
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