At night, Garp went home first, and Hera took Kuina's hand, asking her to stay on the argo.
Kuina submissively let Hera lead her by the hand into the Captain's cabin of the argo.
The black stripes of the City of Devouring Time wrapped around Hera's body, replacing her clothes. The black stripes against Hera's snow-white skin made her look exceptionally charming.
Hera, now taller than Kuina, pinned her into a corner. With one hand against the wall and the other tilting Kuina's head up, she said, "Heh heh, now it's my turn."
A flush appeared on Kuina's face. The taller Hera gave her a sense of novelty. She looked directly up into Hera's eyes and said, "Is that so? I don't think so."
Hera's expression changed. The 'Fifth Shot' that had activated automatically seemed to give her a bad premonition; she seemed to see a scene of herself begging for mercy again.
Kuina reached around and hugged Hera's waist, pressing her body close. She said, "I'm looking forward to your performance tonight. Besides, using energy for something like this... naughty children must be punished."
Only then did Hera realize something was wrong. Her combat-specialized form had greatly enhanced her perception, yet she couldn't use Armament Haki for defense, and she had even voluntarily shed her spirit dress.
While she was extremely sensitive now, her body was unprotected. Everywhere Kuina touched gently turned red.
Today's victory was once again a total win for Kuina. It seemed it would be a long time before Hera could sound the horn for a counterattack.
The next day, Hera couldn't even leave her room. The City of Devouring Time seemed somewhat dissatisfied that Hera had used it for such purposes. Hera could only have Kuina assemble the crew and set sail for Amazon Lily.
On the other side in the Amazon Lily Kingdom, Empress Hancock's walls were covered with photos of Hera. Hancock lay weakly on her bed, complaining, "That girl Hera... she hasn't forgotten about me, has she?"
Then she made up her mind: "No, I'm going to find her. Get the ship ready; I'm going to Marineford."
Flame Flower nearby quickly tried to stop her: "You can't! Although you're one of the Shichibukai now and technically part of the World Government, we can't go there on our own without the Marine's permission."
Hancock's two sisters were very worried about her current state. Hancock was suffering from lovesickness, and the two sisters feared that her health would suffer if she continued like this.
Just then, a subordinate came to report: "Lady Empress Hancock, there is a Marine warship approaching us. There are many carcasses of Sea Kings on the deck."
Flame Flower quickly asked, "What are the characteristics of the warship? Can you tell who is coming?"
The subordinate said, "The flag has two clock faces on it. Judging by the characteristics, it should be the Marine's youngest Vice Admiral, Hera."
Hearing that it might be Hera's warship, Empress Hancock's eyes lit up, and her physical condition was instantly refreshed. With a loud 'boom', the floor of Kuja City cracked under her foot as she dashed out.
Flame Flower sighed, "Sigh, falling in love with a Marine... I don't know if it's a blessing or a curse." Having said that, she looked at the crystal ball in her hand, but there was no image inside.
Just as Hera put away the argo and was about to explain to the soldiers at the harbor, a massive impact rushed toward her.
Kuina instinctively went to draw her sword, only to see Hera being scooped up by the newcomer.
At 190cm tall, Hancock was a full 40cm taller than Hera. After picking Hera up, she rubbed her face against Hera's: "Lord Hera, I knew you still had me in your heart."
Feeling the gazes around them, Hera quickly pushed Hancock away and escaped her embrace. "Wait, there are so many people here! Where is your dignity as the Empress?"
Only then did Hancock regain her composure. She coughed twice, her eyes glancing toward the surrounding Kuja soldiers from the corner of her eye.
The Amazon soldiers stifled their laughter and turned their heads, pretending they hadn't seen a thing.
After Hera helped Hancock remove the mark symbolizing her humiliation, the Empress no longer needed to use a mask to cover her past. Although she remained arrogant, she got along much more harmoniously with her people.
Hancock asked, "Vice Admiral Hera, what brings you here, and how long will you be staying?"
Hera replied, "I should be staying for a while. There will be some other matters to attend to in between, but after handling everything, I'll probably stay for at least a year. I wonder if that's convenient?"
Hancock said hurriedly, "It's no trouble at all. My country is your country; you can stay as long as you like."
She continued, "In that case, come to my Kuja City first, and let me arrange accommodations for you."
Hera nodded and said, "Thank you for your help." Then, pointing to the Sea Kings unloaded from the argo, she added, "Please take care of these; they are Sea Kings from the journey here."
The Kuja soldiers watching the spectacle nodded and transported the Sea Kings into the city.
Hera and her group followed Hancock toward the palace as she introduced the Amazon Lily Kingdom.
Perona asked curiously, "Is everyone here female? Where are the men?"
Hancock said, "This place is also called Maiden Island. It is a forbidden zone for men; any man who enters will be executed."
Then, Hancock's two sisters approached: Boa Sandersonia, with green hair and a head twice the size of her body, and Boa Marigold, with orange hair and a somewhat stout figure.
Their common feature was their massive size, with heights approaching five meters.
Nami looked up at the two calling Hancock'Sister' and marveled, "Are they really one family? Their sizes are so different."
Hancock's expression turned sad: "It's the influence of Devil Fruits. The Celestial Dragons forced them to eat the Hebi Hebi no Mi, Model: Anaconda and Hebi Hebi no Mi, Model: King Cobra, which is why they became like this."
The two sisters, in turn, comforted their older sister: "It's alright. The Devil Fruits also brought us great strength, allowing us to better protect you and this country."
Hera said, "I can extract the Devil Fruit abilities to restore them, and I also have other Devil Fruits that won't affect their appearance."
A light appeared in the eyes of Hancock's two sisters, but then they lowered their heads and said, "No need. We've grown accustomed to our Devil Fruit abilities. Besides, Amazon Lily needs us."
Hera thought about the Devil Fruits in her storage; there really weren't any very good ones. She said, "Don't worry, I'll find two better Devil Fruits for you. Besides, doesn't the Amazon Kingdom have me?"
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