Hogback was also one of the original characters Blake disliked.
Blake's dislike for him wasn't because he gave up his identity as a Celestial Dragon to become a commoner.
Rather, it was because he didn't make proper preliminary plans or mental preparations, had no solutions for risks, lacked basic judgment of the situation, and had no clear self-awareness... He just got a hot head and left Mary Geoise with his entire family, burning all bridges.
If he could have crawled through the path he chose, Blake might have called him a man.
But after only two years, Hogback couldn't hold on anymore.
He sought help from Mary Geoise, hoping to return to the holy land.
Are you kidding?
Forget about a World Nobles like a Celestial Dragon; even a chat group isn't something you can just leave and then rejoin whenever you feel like it.
In short, Blake's dislike for Hogback stemmed from two points.
First, he courted death and dragged his whole family with him; second, he chose to court death but then regretted it.
Doflamingo's direct decision to shoot and kill Hogback was indeed a bit extreme.
But from his perspective, it was normal to harbor hatred for his father.
Imagine this: your grandfather was originally the richest man in the world, and your father wanted to experience the life of a commoner, so he donated all the family assets, leaving nothing.
Then he took you, your mother, and your younger brother, who were not yet adults, to a construction site to move bricks.
Not only did you have to do endless physical labor, but other workers also beat your family.
Even your mother died because of it.
Thinking about it this way, doesn't it seem perfectly normal for Doflamingo to have thoughts of destroying the world?
After hearing Blake's views on the matter, Doflamingo fell silent.
He was too young at the time and believed it was all his father's fault.
He naively thought that if his father was gone, he and his brother could return to Mary Geoise and their former life.
Blake wasn't there to discourage Doflamingo; he asked about something he was quite curious about:
"I heard you know about the national treasure?"
This sentence instantly pulled Doflamingo out of his past thoughts, and a wicked, charming smile reappeared on his face:
"Fufufufufu... Do you want that thing too?"
Blake shook his head:
"Just a little curious."
"I'm curious about many secrets, like the poneglyph, like Raftel..."
"If I find out, it satisfies my curiosity; if I don't, there's no need to actively seek it."
"You're quite open-minded."
Doflamingo sighed:
"Unfortunately, I can't tell you."
Blake nodded, indicating understanding:
"In that case, never mind."
"I am a contented person."
"Since I can have everything without doing anything, why should I pursue anything?"
Saying that, he stood up and threw a den den mushi to Doflamingo:
"Thank you for your hospitality. If you encounter any trouble in the future, you can contact me."
"Of course, as a Celestial Dragon with little influence, I may not be able to help much."
With that, Blake smiled and left, waving at Doflamingo as he went.
Doflamingo hesitated for a moment, then spoke:
"Why can you still act... like a human... while wearing those clothes?"
Blake paused, turned, smiled, and pointed to his chest without speaking.
After Blake had walked away, Diamante leaned forward and asked Doflamingo, who was examining the den den mushi:
"Young Master, what does he mean by that?"
"Fufufufufu..."
Doflamingo chuckled for a while but offered no further explanation:
"He's really an interesting fellow."
...Leaving the Donquixote Family's base, Blake and his group first returned to the sanctuary.
They were going to delve deep into the island, so there was no need to make a big show of it.
After sending the giant Slaves, used to signify status, back to the ship and taking a few normal-sized Slaves, Blake led the women out.
The reason they brought a few Slaves this time was because they would be staying on the island for a while.
Setting off from the sanctuary again, Perona had regained her vitality:
"There are so many workers here, more than all the ports we've visited before."
Blake glanced in Perona's direction.
Not only were there many workers, but there were also many cargo ships docked at the pier.
After a brief thought, Blake understood and explained:
"This is an important cargo distribution center for the Donquixote Family."
"Apart from Germa 66's share, almost all of North Blue's arms trade departs from here."
"Don't the Marine or the World Government manage such things?"
Robin, who was beside him, was a bit perplexed.
Although Robin was very intelligent and had read many books, she hadn't experienced much hardship yet.
If it were her twenty years later, she would never ask such a question.
"Why should they?"
Blake retorted:
"First of all, these weapons are all used against non-affiliated countries."
"Even if they shut this place down, what then? Will they stop fighting if they don't have weapons?"
"The buyers are there; where there's demand, there's a market. If not Doflamingo, then someone else."
"Besides, as long as it doesn't affect the collection of tenryuubito tribute, what does their fighting to the death have to do with the World Government?"
"Perhaps after a few non-affiliated countries merge, a country capable of paying the tenryuubito tribute will emerge."
"Even if someone wants to crack down, they can only target Doflamingo and his subordinates, not the entire arms market."
"That would affect too many people, including our interests."
Blake patted Robin's head:
"My share will be even larger then. How about I get you a new dress?"
Blake's words made Robin slightly silent.
After this explanation, Robin naturally understood the reasoning.
She looked at the clothes she was wearing, feeling a little lost, but quickly recovered.
This was thanks to the brainwashing Blake had given them back in Mary Geoise.
Otherwise, Robin might now be overflowing with a saintly heart, thinking of saving them.
While Robin was thinking about these things, Perona had already snuck to the other side of the pier.
She took a piece from the live wood being transported, held it in her hand, examined it curiously for a while, then ran back to the group.
"Look, everyone! These woods glow!"
"So pretty!"
"How magical!"
Women usually had no resistance to shiny things; even the ice-faced Mandy couldn't help but take a few extra glances.
"These are fluorescent woods unique to Tracqueilia."
Robin explained:
"The fluorescent property of this wood comes from its symbiotic relationship with luminous algae."
"Architectural carvings made from them change color with the phases of the moon."
"Sister Robin is amazing!"
Koala looked at Robin with an expression of admiration.
This made Robin smile a little awkwardly:
"I just happened to see those carvings when I was in the holy land and learned about them."
The group traveled forward, spending nearly a month exploring the island.
The Colorful Spiderweb Canal, the Golden Scale Cathedral, the Squid Theater... Blake and his companions visited all the unique tourist attractions on the island before preparing to head to their final destination in North Blue.
The White Town — Flevance
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