The next morning.
9:30 AM.
A three-masted, four-deck ship, about two hundred meters long, sailed out of the port, leaving Casra Town behind.
On the third deck, in a ten-square-meter cabin near the stern, Merlin and the other two settled in.
The cabin space wasn't large.
Actually, it was small.
There was only a low bed that could just fit three people, and an integrated bathroom and toilet in a partitioned corner near the door.
But fortunately, the hygiene in the cabin was fairly clean, and the sheets and bedding smelled of disinfectant and sunshine.
Those 300,000 Berries weren't spent too wastefully.
This passenger ship did have better living environments, but... you had to pay extra.
Even more expensive than the ticket itself.
Therefore, at Yol's suggestion, they didn't spend that unnecessary money.
Standing by the window next to the cabin door at this moment, Merlin could see the land receding into the distance through the one-meter-diameter porthole.
Just then, Lami squeezed in front of Merlin, her hands resting on the windowsill.
Standing slightly on tiptoe, a small head with soft, milk-tea-colored short hair poked out of the window to look outside.
Lami's soft, light voice rang out:
"Merlin-niichan, how many days will it take for us to get to Petrel Island this time?"
Merlin rubbed Lami's small head in front of his abdomen and chuckled: "Three days if fast, four if slow."
"That's a bit long." Lami complained in a whisper: "I thought we could get there in just one or two days!"
Yol finished organizing the bed and came over to stand beside Merlin, looking at the increasingly distant land together.
"We finally left that land to welcome our new life."
With a touch of emotion, she turned her head to look at Merlin, her smile gentle:
"Thank you, Merlin."
Merlin tilted his head in confusion. The corners of Yol's lips turned up slightly, her full lip line appearing playful at this moment:
"What? Shouldn't I thank you? Without you, I would have died there..."
"Stop." Merlin laughed: "With such a beautiful mouth, don't say words like 'death' so casually.
"Careful you don't be a bad influence on Lami!"
"That's right, Merlin-niichan is right."
Lami poked her head out at this time and nodded heavily at Yol with a serious face: "I don't like hearing Sister Yol talk about her own death.
"Sister Yol is such a good person; she will definitely live to be a hundred years old, no, a thousand years old!"
The corners of Merlin's mouth rose. "A thousand years old? Wouldn't that make her a turtle? Good going, Lami, you actually dare to call Yol a turtle!"
Saying this, he grabbed Lami under her armpits with both hands, lifted her up instantly, and spun her around, saying cheerfully:
"Apologize quickly, or I'll pin you on the bed and spank your butt."
Lami giggled: "Brother, I was wrong! It tickles, hahahaha!"
Watching Merlin and Lami play, a moving smile appeared in Yol's eyes:
"Only at times like this can I see the liveliness belonging to a fourteen-year-old boy in you! Usually, you act like an adult."
"What are you saying, Yol?"
Putting Lami down on the bed, Merlin sat sideways on the edge of the bed, pinching her nose with his right hand and shaking it left and right playfully. Hearing her words, he turned back and asked Yol with a smile.
Under him, Lami puffed up her cheeks in protest, saying angrily: "Merlin-niichan, stop pinching my nose. Careful you don't flatten it; a flat nose is ugly."
Yol shook her head with a smile and came over to rescue Lami from Merlin's hands, rolling her eyes at Merlin coquettishly:
"You can't be so rough with girls."
Sitting on the bed, Merlin lay back and laughed:
"Regardless of gender, I treat everyone equally."
Yol put her hands on her hips and said helplessly: "If you act like this, no girl will like you in the future!
"Do you want to die alone?"
Listening to her helpless words, Merlin had an indifferent expression:
"Even relying on looks alone, there will definitely be plenty of beauties throwing themselves at me in the future. You don't need to worry about this, Yol.
"Mother Nun."
The corner of Yol's mouth twitched instantly. With a dark face, she couldn't help but look at Merlin's face again. She had to admit, this guy indeed had a very good-looking appearance.
His features were just right. Even though he was still young, those sharp eyebrows, straight nose bridge, thin lips, and dark, bright eyes hiding a fierce edge.
And these features all indicated that what Merlin said was possible.
Involuntarily, an inexplicable irritability arose in her heart, a feeling like her heart was being scorched by flames.
At this time, Lami sat up, propped her left hand on Merlin's chest, blinked her eyes to examine Merlin's face, and grinned:
"Then if no one wants Merlin-niichan in the future, I, Lami, will reluctantly take you in!
"Although my brother used to tell me not to play with you, Lami doesn't want to listen to him in her heart.
"Because Lami feels that Brother was just throwing a tantrum with you. Lami once saw Brother badmouthing you behind your back too!"
Merlin reached out and poked Lami's forehead, his gaze becoming subtle:
"Law? That kid even badmouthed me? Is he that vindictive? Isn't it just because when I went to your house to see a doctor before, seeing his arrogant face, I gave him a kick in the butt?
"I apologized afterward too.
"I even treated him to that super-large ice cream costing five hundred Berries!"
Lami opened her mouth slightly, quietly grinding her teeth, dissatisfied:
"He never told me. Stinky brother, eating alone."
Watching the intimacy between Lami and Merlin with gentle eyes, Yol sighed secretly: It seems I have to teach Lami some things between girls.
Meanwhile,
Another port town not far from Casra Town, a bustling seaside town called Spider Miles.
And here, in the southeast corner of the town, there was a garbage disposal plant facing the sea.
This was a hidden stronghold of the Donquixote Family in the North Blue.
There were dozens of huge chimneys here spewing thick smoke and exhaust gas every day.
Household garbage and a large amount of construction waste were everywhere.
At this moment, Law, wearing thin clothes and hugging his legs, sat on the ruins of construction waste, staring blankly at the distant sea.
He had joined the Donquixote Family for ten days.
"Mom, Dad, Lami, I will definitely avenge you, definitely."
"Law? Why did you run here again?" At this time, a girl about eight years old wearing a dark blue dress with a small white apron tied around her waist appeared here.
Black waist-length hair, delicate and cute face, wearing a yellow bow hair accessory on her head.
The girl put her hands on her hips at this time and complained with dissatisfaction: "They finished breakfast. Come eat quickly. You even made me come call you, you big dummy."
Law turned his head suddenly with fierce brows and glared at the girl: "Baby 5, shut up! Who asked you to meddle in my business? Get lost!"
The girl named Baby 5 instantly had tears in her eyes. Frightened and aggrieved, she took a step back, then ran away without looking back:
"I'll never call you to eat again. Better starve to death, you big idiot."
Watching the girl run away wiping tears, Law's fierce expression calmed down. Looking at the white patches on his arms, his gaze became somewhat desolate:
"I won't die. I still have a great vengeance to exact!"
However, at this time, a annoying figure suddenly appeared in his mind, a big jerk who "bullied" his sister every time he came to his house. The corner of his mouth pursed slightly:
"If I can escape, then what about you? Laplace. Hope you can survive. After all, I don't want you to go to heaven and continue bullying my Lami."
Thinking of this, he shook his head hurriedly, a trace of hesitation appearing in his eyes: "He should go to hell, right? That guy doesn't look like a good person.
"Better not, go to heaven!"
Law's mood improved unconsciously. He stood up, patted his butt, and hurried in Baby 5's direction.
He had to get full quickly. He would be taught cultivation by those bastards later.
If he wasn't full, he wouldn't even have the strength to resist then.
Before long, Law passed through piles of ruins and arrived in front of an old towering building surrounded by construction waste.
This was the Donquixote Family's foothold in this port town.
...
The sea was calm.
In the blink of an eye, two days passed.
During the two days, the three spent most of their time in the cabin, but sometimes they would go to the deck for fresh air.
And during these two days, the journey was also very peaceful, without encountering scum of the sea like pirates.
Deck.
Merlin rested his arms on the ship's railing, gazing at the endless fiery red sea in the distance.
It was illuminated by the fiery red sunset of this evening, looking like it was burning with flames.
From time to time, unknown big fish could be seen leaping out of the sea. Blowing in the faint salty sea breeze in the air.
His mood was very good.
The Equipment Slot in front of Merlin faded away.
The Synchro Value of the two [Equipments] had increased by another one percent in the past few days.
Reaching 13% and 8% respectively.
Clenching his fist, he could feel a slight change in his body.
His body became lighter.
To obtain the specialization of the equipped item, how much Synchro Value is needed?
15%? 20%? Or 50%?
The Equipment Slot currently gave no clear information on this aspect.
All this required Merlin to explore by himself.
However.
Recently, the influence of the [Lynx] on me has become more and more "serious."
As long as it was daytime, Merlin would doze off from time to time, and become energetic at night.
Merlin knew this was because the lynx was a nocturnal creature.
So, Merlin spent almost all day sleeping these past two days, and at night he would do physical training in the cabin aisle or exercise his ability through self-harm in the bathroom.
"Yo! Young Merlin. Why are you blowing in the sea breeze here alone? Didn't your sister come with you? Want a smoke?"
A sailor on the ship came to his side and handed Merlin a cigarette, but his eyes were looking around.
As if looking for someone.
Merlin didn't take the cigarette. First, his keen sense of smell made him dislike this recreational item he was accustomed to in his previous life.
Second...
"Impure motives." Merlin glanced at the young man beside him, whose face was somewhat rough and dark from long exposure to the sun and wind but whose clothes were clean, and said lightly:
"Besides, do you think you're better looking than me?"
Hearing this, the young man's face instantly became stiff, and he glared at Merlin with unkind eyes:
"What do you mean by that? Pursuing a beauty isn't just about looks! Is it wrong for me to want to be your brother-in-law? Miss Yol is the most beautiful scenery on the ship right now!
"Gentle smile, good figure, and beautiful. Is it wrong for me to admire her?!
"Miss Yol is a goddess!"