Nearly another month passed.
Blake had been back in Mary Geoise for almost half a year this time.
A few days ago, Aramaki bid him farewell again, heading out to sea to complete his main mission.
The Devil Fruit Blake drew this month was yet another minor pirate.
This time, he planned to use the ability card on Mandy.
After this period of interaction, Mandy's face had gradually brightened with smiles, and she occasionally helped others with tasks.
She was clearly integrating into the group.
Although she still didn't talk much, everyone could feel Mandy's change.
Koala could now fully control her strength, and Blake didn't plan to give her another card for the time being.
For a five-year-old Koala, having the physical prowess of an adult pirate was already sufficient.
Next, she needed to learn martial arts and combat techniques.
Blake remembered that Koala had decent martial arts talent in the original story.
She was one of the few humans who had systematically studied Fishman martial arts and successfully learned Fish-Man Karate.
But the upper limit of Fish-Man Karate was just that.
It was better to learn from Garp and Aokiji, focusing on refining the power and technique of punches, as well as Armament Haki.
Robin's progress could only be described as decent; she should be slightly stronger than her counterpart at the same period in the original story, at least she already had the resolve to fight.
In the early stages of being wanted in the original story, Robin had almost no combat awareness, only mastering the art of escape.
Ever since their conversation that day, Robin couldn't bear to be apart from Olvia, watching her closely.
She didn't want the Mama she had just managed to get back to leave her again.
Robin had almost completely integrated into Blake Manor life.
Here, there was Perona, who liked to play pranks but always ended up frustrated; Stella, the gentle older sister who often looked after her; Mandy, who always kept a straight face but was meticulous; and Koala, who was very strong, timid, and kind.
And there was Blake, the Celestial Dragon with a terrible personality but who indulged them greatly.
Robin couldn't imagine how she would interact with the others in the manor if Blake killed Olvia.
Olvia was quite helpless about Robin's thoughts.
Her mind wasn't on the poneglyph right now.
Compared to the poneglyph, Olvia wanted to know more about the archaeology team and Ohara.
However, ever since that day, Blake had treated her like a transparent person.
He neither restricted her freedom in the manor nor assigned her any work.
Olvia could only stand by the training ground every day, watching Blake train the girls...
As the impact of Kong's defeat gradually lessened, and the situation on the seas became more stable, the Celestial Dragons' ban was finally lifted.
A group of restless Celestial Dragons began to travel together to Sabaody Archipelago.
Although Blake was also a member of the 'waste party,' he didn't intend to associate with these guys.
Their thought processes were different, and conversation would be very troublesome.
However, he had indeed instructed his guards to prepare his sanctuary.
After being idle for so long, it was time to travel around the seas...
Mary Geoise, Red Port.
The dock's surface was so clean it reflected people's images, and the guards knelt in two rows with their heads bowed.
Blake arrived at the port on his eight-meter Slave, followed by Stella and others.
Olvia was mixed in with the maids at the back, not standing out.
Perona quietly tugged on Robin's sleeve:
"He looks so scary right now."
"Shh! Don't talk."
Robin warned, then lowered her head and continued forward.
Being relatively more mature, she knew very well that no matter how indulgent Blake was to them in private, in public, the dignity of a Celestial Dragon must still be maintained.
The officer of Red Port was still Oswede, whom Aramaki had mentioned earlier.
He was now kneeling in front of the sanctuary, awaiting Blake's arrival.
As the Slave stopped in front of Oswede, he pressed his forehead to the ground:
"Saint Black! Your loyal servant Oswede, along with all my colleagues at Red Port, humbly welcome your arrival!"
"Heh!"
Blake chuckled lightly, not making things difficult for him:
"Get up."
"Aramaki told me about you. Not bad, you're very sensible."
Oswede was overjoyed:
"Thank you for your praise, Your Highness. I merely did what I could."
Blake nodded, no longer paying him any mind.
For a Celestial Dragon, a single compliment like that was more than enough.
Blake turned and called to Stella:
"Tell the Slaves to quickly move the things onto the ship, we're departing."
He also glared at Perona, who was looking around, scaring her into shrinking her neck.
Stella hurried to tell the Slaves to get to work.
Seeing this, Oswede immediately called over twenty soldiers to help with the moving.
Blake didn't stop the fellow from currying favor.
To set up a dormant piece, one must first make the piece believe he is your man.
Oswede must be very happy now, thinking he had established a connection with a Celestial Dragon.
Logically, an officer guarding Red Port should have seen many Celestial Dragons and wouldn't be so eager to please.
But not many Celestial Dragons frequently left Mary Geoise.
Even if there were, they were just the cruel Celestial Dragons who enjoyed going to the lower world for amusement, and Oswede wouldn't dare approach them.
But Blake had shown some goodwill through Aramaki, and the fellow immediately took the bait.
Arriving on the ship first, dismissing his mount Slave, Blake reclined in a lounge chair, leisurely.
With Blake's actions, the oppressive aura that seemed to weigh down on everyone instantly dissipated.
Perona cautiously approached Blake, extending a small hand to poke him.
She wasn't afraid even when Blake glared at her, but instead mumbled:
"Strange, why don't I feel that way anymore? Did he switch places?"
Perona stared intently at Blake's face, seemingly wanting to reach out and pinch it.
But Blake grabbed her and lifted her, sneering:
"If you cause any more trouble, I'll stuff you into a cannon and fire you out!"
Saying that, he flung Perona towards the others.
Mandy expressionlessly reached out and caught Perona, gently placing her on the ground.
Perona made a face at Blake:
"Remember to find me a golden cannon!"
He ignored the mischievous little girl.
Blake was busy planning his upcoming itinerary.
This trip to sea had serious business to attend to.
Blake intended to retrieve some Devil Fruits that no one had eaten yet in the original story.
Aramaki's current mission was already troublesome enough; he couldn't be made to scour all four blues for Devil Fruits.
Furthermore, Blake also planned to seek out the new generation of powerhouses from the original story and send them to Aramaki.
With just Aramaki alone, the speed of building a force was still too slow.
Oh, and finally, he had to make a trip to the Wobkandin Kingdom in the South Blue, to have Mandy liaise with Aramaki and establish it as their main base.
Thinking of this, Blake sighed inwardly:
"Still not enough people..."
Still not enough people...