"Lord Sacred Beast, it seems like it's bait. Someone is intentionally trying to lure pirates to that island."
Shaina examined the contents of the bottle that Miaona and Wolf had brought over. Besides a nautical chart of the island's surroundings, there was also an Eternal Pose tied to the bottle.
"Carnival Island is the only leisure spot on the Grand Line. The island holds carnival parties every day, with abundant hot springs and beauty salons. Beautiful women from all over the world will accompany you at night... Is this bait? A fool fishing with a straight hook?"
Shaina read the note aloud, which mentioned women, treasure, food—everything one could desire seemed to be on that island. Plus, considering the pirate among pirates mentioned earlier, the provocation was quite obvious.
Such things are not uncommon on the Grand Line. Some bounty hunters gather to forge similar carnival islands, luring pirates over, warmly entertaining them, and then making their move when everyone is drunk.
"Miaona, Wolf, where did you find this?"
In Shaina's view, this kind of bait was foolish, yet every year, countless pirates fall for it. Some are naive, while others head to the target islands with the intent to rob, but their final fate depends on personal strength.
"I fished it out of the sea."
"We were originally fishing, but my brother suddenly caught this strange thing."
The siblings described the situation one after another. Although they were only three and a half years old, Fur Race children are not ordinary kids; they can easily knock down an average adult.
Miaona and Wolf were no exception. Though they hadn't acquired powers yet, they inherited part of their parents' strength. Aura power is not easy to develop, but the Power of Thunder is different. The electrical energy they possess is stronger than most adult Fur Race members.
This is also related to their mother's education. As one of the few third-generation Hundred Beasts, they naturally don't worry about food and drink, but some survival skills were still taught to them.
Setsuna's education is still the traditional way of the Fur Race. In their way of living, fishing in eruptive rains is a basic survival skill for the Fur Race.
Thus, the two already had fishing skills, even having a higher success rate than Page One at times. Sometimes, they would directly electrocute the fish.
"Aunt Shaina, can we go to this island? Carnivals sound really fun, you know."
They couldn't read much, but Shaina had read everything to them. They didn't take her sarcasm to heart; instead, they were intrigued by the party aspect.
"Hold on a minute, Carnival Island... Emmalyn! Is this island on the navigation route?"
Shaina shouted to the side. Just because no one was on the deck didn't mean they had disappeared; they were just maintaining a suitable distance. Orders could still be heard.
"No, big sis. The nautical chart doesn't mark this island, and the Eternal Pose doesn't point there either. It should be on another route."
Once you cross the Inverted Mountain from the Four Seas, you enter the Grand Line. However, there isn't just one route to the Shampodi Islands; there are seven.
The magnetic attraction from the islands on these routes is stronger. Simply relying on the Eternal Pose ensures no route-crossing, unless there's a special Eternal Pose involved.
Nautical charts have little significance on the Grand Line because it's hard to find your way without relying on the Eternal Pose. A rainy day could have you lost at sea, but nautical charts are not without merit.
At the very least, they let you know what the next island is. People new to the Grand Line don't have such things, but it's different for the Hundred Beasts. They mark many islands due to their constant searching for things.
"No... Lord Sacred Beast, should we adjust our course? This seems to be an unknown island."
Unrecorded islands are actually of higher priority for the Hundred Beasts, but this was not their planned route. The final decision still rested with Arceus.
"Change course. If these two little guys want to go, we'll have some fun. Let's consider it a vacation for everyone on the ship."
The journey to find Plates doesn't always go smoothly. It's great if they find one; if not, there's nothing to be done but to search for the next target.
The voyage is monotonous, and these pirates' lives need a little variation. An island hosting parties isn't bad. As for being bait, there's no fishing rod that can reel in the Origin.
"Understood, I'll make the arrangements immediately."
Upon receiving the command, the Origin began to change course. It could be a trap, but nobody cared; the ship's combat power had nothing to fear from any scheme during the First Half of the Grand Line.
The Thousand Cosmos Bracelet's mark fluttered in the wind as the Origin sailed toward its new destination.
...
The island wasn't too far. Within a few days, a tropical island appeared in their view. As soon as they landed, Arceus sensed a familiar presence.
It wasn't the presence of a Plate but rather the aura of Pokemon he had created.
At that moment, the space in front of them twisted, and a black hole emerged before them. Darkrai appeared in their presence.
"My Lord, why have you come here?"
"Just passing by. But why are you here? I remember your last communication was in the North Sea, wasn't it? It hasn't been long since then. Did you finish your exploration there already? When I created you, I don't recall adding any strange traits."
"It's a coincidence. I just arrived nearby and sensed a strange aura of the deceased on the island. I thought this place might have something to do with the entrance to that world.
But I hadn't had time to investigate before sensing your arrival, my Lord."
Coincidence meant he also didn't know how he ended up here.
When rushing around, Darkrai often used black holes, but the magnetic fields in this world are very chaotic, causing his frequent positioning errors. However, within the same island, Darkrai's sense of direction was strong.
"That's quite a coincidence indeed. Let's go, then. We'll see what you've detected.
Shaina, take the others to explore the island freely. It's been a long journey, so rest here for two days. Also, keep an eye on those two little ones."
"Understood, feel free. I will take good care of them."
Arceus indicated he hadn't found what he was looking for. Since Arceus had arrangements, she would abide by them.
According to the bottle's map, there should still be other things on this island. Thus, Arceus and Darkrai headed towards the center of the island, while Shaina led the crew from the Origin into the island's rainforest.