Chapter Thirty-Seven: Journey to the Island of Magical Beasts!

The sky was a brilliant blue, as was the vast ocean beneath it. The man was strikingly handsome, the woman equally beautiful, and together they painted a stunning tableau upon the endless sea. Yet a closer look would reveal a far less idyllic scene.

Camille sat there, cigarette in hand. This ship required no manual steering; by simply inputting electrical energy and setting a direction, it would sail on its own. He glanced over at Bingfeng, who was basking in the sun on the ship's rail not far away. Her eyes were a little unfocused, her cheeks flushed, and the sight made Camille want to laugh. She drank so fiercely—if she couldn't handle liquor, why insist on drinking? Now the alcohol had taken hold.

Bingfeng felt dizzy and wanted nothing more than to sleep, but she couldn't fathom why her head spun so. If she understood what was happening, she would have purged the alcohol from her system with her inner energy, and she certainly wouldn't be in this state. It was a sign of her innocence—now, paired with Camille, this rascal, who could predict what might happen in the future...

Camille gazed at the sun overhead, the distant roars of sea kings echoing across the waves. Yet none dared approach their vessel; some sense of formidable threat lingered about the small ship, deterring even the bravest of creatures.

A gentle breeze suddenly swept across the open water, not particularly strong, but enough to give Camille a faint sense of foreboding.

A loud splash interrupted his thoughts. Camille turned, startled, toward the source of the sound.

“That idiot—she actually fell in,” he said with a wry smile. Of course, he wasn't worried for her safety.

Sure enough, moments later, the water broke and the ship gave a slight shudder as a lithe figure appeared before him. Camille found himself momentarily stunned as Bingfeng stood before him, completely drenched. Her long, silvery hair clung wetly to her form, and her pure white dress was soaked through, revealing the flawless curves of her body.

Stunning! That was the only word for it. In that instant, Bingfeng exuded a fragile beauty that left Camille momentarily speechless.

Bingfeng, however, felt the complete opposite. The cool water had cleared her head, leaving her only with the shame of her embarrassment. To let that scoundrel witness her tumble into the sea—it was mortifying! After all, she had trained for thousands of years, yet here she was, dizzy and clumsy. How could this happen? And to have her perfect figure displayed so brazenly before Camille—she had no idea what to make of it.

“Go inside and change,” Camille said, snapping out of his daze. “Or are you deliberately showing off?” His composure quickly returned; after all, his self-control was formidable. Still, she was being rather bold—standing there soaked, making no move to dry herself, as though she wanted to be admired.

Bingfeng had no experience with romance; she had always trained alone, occasionally fighting but never engaging in such matters. Now, standing before Camille, she felt only mortification. How could someone as powerful as she fall into the sea? And why was her perfect form now on display? She had no idea what had come over her.

At his words, Bingfeng looked up at Camille. Feeling his scrutinizing gaze, her cheeks flushed even deeper. Gathering her energy, she instantly evaporated the moisture from her clothes, which were now completely dry.

Camille sighed softly and glanced away. Why had he even bothered to remind her? She'd seemed so oblivious—perhaps he should have just let her be. Still, what a figure!

“Hmph. Have you stared enough? Or do you want another look?” Bingfeng perched on the rail, addressing Camille with a faint blush on her face, though her words were sharp.

“Hey, Bingfeng, can’t you be a bit more ladylike? Otherwise, no man will ever like you,” Camille said, frowning sternly. He was starting to feel exasperated; a lively girl was fine, but too much was too much. He found her behavior a bit off-putting.

Bingfeng blinked in surprise, sensing a lecture coming on.

“Hmph, mind your own business. What I do is none of your concern. All right, all right, I get it!” she said, a little annoyed, her delicate brows furrowing. But when she saw the hint of anger on Camille’s face, she quickly changed her tone, not quite sure why she suddenly didn’t want him to be upset with her. Could this be the legendary feeling called love?

Her face flushed as red as a ripe apple, and she quickly turned away, gazing out to sea.

Camille, though not fond of Bingfeng’s temperament, knew it was not easy for her to change. He let her be; perhaps it was for the best. Robin was gentle, Bingfeng was fiery, and Hancock was somewhere in between—he shook his head, wondering why his thoughts had wandered in that direction. Lighting another cigarette, he let the sea breeze carry his musings away.

...

“Captain, there’s a ship over there!” a pirate called, glancing toward a small vessel in the distance. It had no sails, no pirate flag, and its design was peculiar, yet it sped swiftly across the waves.

A burly man in his forties got to his feet and stared at the approaching ship. “Do you know who that is? Sailing without a pirate flag, and I’ve never seen a ship like that before,” he said quietly.

“How arrogant! Are they asking for trouble? Captain, let’s go rob them!” grunted a short, rotund crewman.

The captain considered it, only to be struck by a sudden sense that attacking that unassuming little ship would be the gravest mistake of his life. The premonition sent a chill down his spine—best not to court disaster in these chaotic times.

“Forget it. What could a small boat like that be carrying, anyway? Not worth the trouble,” he said, trusting his instincts, which had saved his life more than once in the tumult of the New World.

Camille had also noticed the pirate ship. It was fairly large, about the size of Red’s vessel. Raising an eyebrow, he turned to Bingfeng. “Bingfeng, I’ll be back in a bit.”

“Mm,” Bingfeng replied with a nod, showing no interest in the distant ship. Let him go if he wished—why even bother telling her?

Camille stood and vanished in a flash. Bingfeng frowned as he disappeared. Had she really grown to like him over these past few days? Could it be true? He was human—would he ever return her feelings? Yet with him, the loneliness she once felt was gone; she felt warm, content. Remembering how he’d just now said goodbye, she blushed again, realizing he had fully accepted her presence.

“Captain, why aren’t we raiding that ship?” persisted the short, fat pirate.

“I’ve got a bad feeling about it. If we went after them, I’m not sure any of us would survive,” the captain replied, taking a sip of rum, brows furrowed.

“I must say, not attacking that ship was a very wise decision,” came a voice.

“Who’s there?” the captain barked, grabbing a sword.

“Looking for me? I’m right here.” As the words fell, an overwhelming aura swept over them.

They looked up to see a figure standing in midair—a young man shrouded in violet. The pirates froze in terror when they recognized him.

It was the “Violet Emperor,” the one rumored to be invincible. With the oppressive force of Camille’s presence, how could they not be afraid?

Yet the captain, a man of some courage, quickly composed himself. He had seen great men before—years ago, he had challenged the Whitebeard Pirates, only to be knocked out cold by the legendary captain’s overwhelming presence. Whitebeard hadn’t killed him, but the experience left its mark—the strongest, indeed, was worthy of the name.

Camille landed lightly on the rail. “I need to ask you something.”

“Go ahead. As long as it doesn’t violate pirate honor, I’ll answer,” the captain replied without hesitation. He hadn’t even seen how the man moved—a display of speed like teleportation. Best not to anger such a monster.

Camille wasted no words. “I want to know where Red Shanks is.”

“Red?” gasps of astonishment and fear swept the ship. Clearly, Red had established himself as a terrifying force in the New World.

“Yes. I believe he’s on Monster Island. It’s not far from here—about a month’s voyage,” the captain answered after a moment’s thought. The location was no secret among the powerful pirates, though few would dare seek out such a foe. Did this “Violet Emperor” intend to challenge Red?

“Oh? Do you have a permanent pointer? Preferably for that island.”

“Uh—yes, we happen to have one.” A crewman fetched a spherical pointer labeled “Monster Island.”

Camille accepted it with a nod. “Thanks.” And with that, he vanished from the rail.

“Gods, that was terrifying—his aura nearly suffocated me. The Violet Emperor is a true monster; I couldn’t even muster the will to resist,” the captain said, cold sweat pouring down his back.

...

Camille reappeared on his own small ship. He glanced at the pointer, focused his mind, and the vessel adjusted course, gliding forward.

“Where are we headed?” Bingfeng called, looking up from a book she’d found in the cabin.

“Heh, off to see an old friend. You’ll find out soon enough.”

...

So sleepy—I spent four hours on this chapter and my head is spinning. I hope everyone will support me, cast more votes, and rest assured that there will be no hiatus here.

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