While Blake was thinking about Robin, Robin was also secretly observing him not far away.
"Is this the rumored Celestial Dragons? He doesn't seem as terrifying as the books describe."
"But Dr. Clover looks really nervous."
Blake's Observation Haki could already cover the entire island, so he naturally noticed Robin's secret observation. He turned his head and met a pair of dark eyes glowing with a purple light.
She was wearing a light-colored cotton short-sleeved shirt over a pale blue button-down, with the cuffs rolled up, showing faint ink stains and pencil marks.
Charcoal pencils and a cowhide notebook were tucked into her dark brown overalls, and she wore the straw sandals commonly used by Ohara scholars.
Her long, dark hair cascaded like a waterfall, the naturally curly ends tied into a bow with a red ribbon, and several ginkgo leaf bookmarks from the Ohara library were clipped into her hair.
This was a world of difference from her appearance after being given a bounty.
Seeing that she had been discovered, Robin was clearly startled and seemed nervous.
Having grown up near the tree of knowledge, she naturally understood what Celestial Dragons represented.
Dr. Clover, who was enthusiastically explaining things, saw Blake's gaze shift. Following his line of sight, he saw the uneasy Robin and his heart immediately sank.
Staring directly at a Celestial Dragons was a crime of ambiguous severity.
To say it wasn't severe was because the punishment was entirely up to the individual Celestial Dragons.
To say it was severe was because most Celestial Dragons were cruel and often took lives on a whim.
Back in the Taya Kingdom, all those mediocre individuals, except for Aramaki, had been executed by the guards accompanying Blake.
Without time to think, Dr. Clover immediately stepped in front of Robin:
"Your Excellency Saint Black, it is our fault for failing to clear the library. All the blame should be borne by this old man. Please forgive her rudeness."
Having said that, he immediately knelt down.
Blake let out a sneer.
It seemed Dr. Clover was still pragmatic before reaching the point of no return.
However, he had come specifically for Robin; what good was punishing an old man?
Ignoring Dr. Clover kneeling on the ground, Blake walked slowly up to Robin and placed his hand on her head.
Blake could clearly feel Robin's body tremble, but she did not move away.
"What is your name?"
"Ni... Nico Robin."
Robin's voice trembled, and she spoke haltingly, clearly scared.
Blake, however, acted as if he hadn't noticed and continued to ask:
"The scholars should have known I was coming today. Why are you here?"
"I... I..."
The current Robin was not yet the world-weary older woman from the original work. Although Blake's expression was gentle, he exerted immense pressure on her, making her unable to think of a suitable excuse immediately.
In reality, she had only intended to practice what she had learned.
She had constantly read about Celestial Dragons in books, and the Ancient Script that the scholars secretly researched behind her back was also related to the Celestial Dragons, which made her increasingly curious.
Robin had originally thought that using her Flower-Flower Fruit ability would allow her to remain completely undetected, but she didn't know that the world possessed a power called Observation Haki, which immediately exposed her.
"Your Excellency Saint Black..."
At that moment, Dr. Clover's voice came again, seemingly wanting to plead for Robin.
Blake finally returned his gaze to Dr. Clover and said lightly:
"I am not a cruel man. I won't kill someone just because they looked at me."
Before Dr. Clover could breathe a sigh of relief, Blake's voice rang out again:
"But rules are rules. Anyone who stares directly at a descendant of God must pay the price."
"Aramaki! Tell him about your experience."
Aramaki immediately stepped forward, looked down at Dr. Clover, and recounted what happened in the Taya Kingdom.
"This..."
Dr. Clover hesitated.
After all, the reputation of the Celestial Dragons was known to everyone, and Robin was just a child.
Even though she would be a vassal, if anything happened to her, he wouldn't be able to face Olvia.
Olvia and her husband had already sacrificed one life for the study of the Ancient Script. If their only child met with an accident, Dr. Clover felt he might as well die of shame.
Just as Dr. Clover was still hesitating, Robin, who had regained her composure, spoke first:
"Your Excellency, I am willing to become your vassal. I hope you can forgive my transgression."
"It's done!"
Blake chuckled internally. This was the power of knowledge.
The broken window theory was still effective even in the world of pirates.
If Blake had suggested making Robin his vassal from the start, neither Robin nor Dr. Clover would have agreed.
But now, by seizing a transgression of ambiguous severity and having Aramaki testify, their psychological resistance would be greatly reduced.
Blake nodded with a deliberate posture:
"In that case, you will be my vassal from now on."
"Yes, Your Excellency Saint Black."
Perona muttered softly:
"Hmph! Such posturing!"
Although her voice was soft, she was currently being carried by Blake, so the comment was clearly heard.
He glared fiercely at Perona, reached out, and rubbed her hair, messing up her pink locks.
"Ugh! How hateful!"
Perona fixed her hair, not daring to challenge him again.
Seeing this scene, a trace of surprise flashed in Robin's eyes.
"It seems there's no need to worry about danger, but too bad..."
Thinking of her mother, whom she hadn't seen in a long time and whose image was gradually fading, Robin felt a bit lost.
Since the purpose of coming to Ohara had been achieved, Blake was not in a hurry to leave. Instead, he took Stella, Perona, Robin, his bodyguard Aramaki, and two CP agents sightseeing around the island.
With less than a year remaining until the Buster Call, the World Government should detect the abnormality of Olvia's expedition team within the next few months. After this departure, the island of Ohara would cease to exist, so it was a good idea to look around now.
"This is my treehouse. Whenever something makes me unhappy, I come here to stay for a while."
Following the direction of Robin's finger, everyone looked closely and saw that there was a hidden space behind a small tree hole.
It gave the feeling of "narrow at first, barely allowing passage, but after walking dozens of steps, it opens up into a bright space."
Robin had placed some books and tools inside the tree hole, and the space was spotless.
Clearly, the tree hole was used frequently, or perhaps she often encountered unhappy things.
Just like that, Robin became the group's tour guide in Ohara.
The little girl's approachability was obviously several times better than that old man Dr. Clover's, and Blake found her acting like a little adult amusing.
Afterward, Robin took Blake to the beach where she collected seashells and the woods where she found a Devil Fruit...
She seemed to know it would be difficult to return after this trip. Rather than introducing places to Blake and the others, she was leaving behind cherished memories for herself.
As evening approached, Robin went to her uncle's house to bid farewell.
Although her life with relatives was worse than Harry Potter's, it was, after all, the family that raised her, so Blake did not stop her.
About half an hour later, Robin returned, looking somewhat dejected.
Blake did not ask, assuming the farewell process had not been pleasant.
"Since you're back, let's get on the ship. We are preparing to depart for the next stop."
Just as they returned to the ship, a guard rushed over, holding a transponder snail.