The royal palace of Alubarna.
Kairo sat leisurely inside a pavilion, sipping fruit juice.
Out in the courtyard, Perona and Princess Vivi were having the time of their lives. Every now and then, the two little girls would run over to Robin, who was quietly reading, just to tease her before running off laughing.
Watching Vivi play so energetically, Igaram kept calling out for her to be careful, doting on her even more than most fathers doted on their own daughters.
Nearby stood Pell, dressed in his white robe and headscarf, standing motionless beside Kairo.
Although Kairo had now been accepted by Princess Vivi as her teacher, Pell, as vice-captain of the Royal Guard, couldn't afford to lower his guard. Deep down, he still harbored a trace of caution toward Kairo.
That was only natural.
After all, Kairo had appeared far too suddenly.
More importantly, he had somehow spirited Princess Vivi out of the palace without anyone noticing.
If Pell trusted him completely under those circumstances, he would hardly be worthy of his position.
Kairo naturally understood that Pell, Igaram, and even Cobra didn't truly trust him despite their polite appearances.
He understood why.
If he were the king of this country and someone dared kidnap his precious daughter, he wouldn't care who it was.
He'd cut them down first and ask questions later.
Still...
Whether Pell, Igaram, or Cobra trusted him didn't matter in the slightest.
Princess Vivi was already his student.
All he had left to do was explain the eighty-one chapters of the Tao Te Ching to her.
The real problem was...
His head was starting to hurt.
When he'd arrived at the palace today intending to teach Vivi the Tao Te Ching, she had immediately dragged him into another marathon of rock-paper-scissors.
To get her back on topic, Kairo had deliberately thrown a few rounds.
That had turned out to be a terrible mistake.
After tasting victory, Vivi only became more excited and demanded that Kairo teach her even more fun games.
Fortunately, Perona had appeared just in time and whisked Vivi away to play.
Looking at the two little girls laughing happily around the courtyard, Kairo rubbed his forehead.
At this rate...
Teaching Vivi all eighty-one chapters anytime soon seemed impossible.
"Mr. Kairo."
Just then, the silent Pell suddenly spoke, breaking the quiet atmosphere of the pavilion.
"May I ask you something?"
"What is it?"
Kairo turned toward him.
Seeing Pell hesitate, he continued,
"If you've got something to ask, just ask."
"We're both men."
"Don't hem and haw like a woman."
"...Ha."
Pell froze for a moment after being teased.
Then he smiled seriously.
"It seems you're a very straightforward person, Mr. Kairo."
"In that case, I'll be direct."
"I'm very curious about you."
"I heard from Vice Admiral Momousagi that you once declined a position as a Marine advisor?"
"A Marine advisor?"
Kairo blinked in surprise before shaking his head.
"No."
"It was Marine Inspector for the East Blue."
"Don't listen to them."
"Those Marines are crafty."
"They're always trying to trick me into joining them."
"I'm used to living freely as a traveler."
"Joining the Marines would just make life harder for myself."
"Marine Inspector of the East Blue..."
Pell's eyes narrowed.
"That's a position with authority above every commanding officer in the East Blue."
"It's an empty title."
Kairo waved dismissively.
"It sounds impressive, but you're restricted everywhere."
"Oh, right."
"I heard you're a Bird-Bird Fruit, Falcon Model user."
"One of the very few Devil Fruit users in the world capable of flight."
"How about we play a game?"
Before Pell could react, Kairo stood up and faced him directly.
"If you lose..."
"...take me on a flight around Alabasta."
"How about it?"
The moment he heard the words play a game, cold sweat instantly broke out across Pell's forehead.
"N-No."
"If Mr. Kairo wants to play rock-paper-scissors..."
"...Princess Vivi can accompany you."
During last night's banquet, Pell had personally witnessed Kairo's obsession with games.
Especially rock-paper-scissors.
Their king had nearly drunk himself unconscious and almost wagered the entire Kingdom of Alabasta.
Had everyone not stopped him in time...
The kingdom might already have changed rulers.
Seeing Pell react so dramatically, Kairo looked puzzled.
"Is the game not fun?"
"Or..."
"No, no!"
"You misunderstand."
"Rock-paper-scissors is very fun."
"It's just..."
"...I'm not very good at it."
"Once I've thoroughly studied it in the future..."
"...I'll gladly challenge you."
With that, Pell didn't dare linger another second.
He immediately turned around and hurried away.
The moment Pell left, Vivi ran over to Kairo with an aggrieved expression.
"Teacher..."
"Perona's bullying me..."
"Hahaha."
"How did she bully you?"
"She taught me the Three Character Classic..."
"Then made me recite it."
"When I couldn't..."
"...she flicked my forehead!"
"Hehehe..."
Perona ran over and jumped straight into Kairo's lap, grinning mischievously at Vivi.
"Dummy."
"It's such an easy Three Character Classic, and you still can't memorize it."
"I..."
Vivi looked so wronged that tears welled up in her eyes.
She looked at Kairo pitifully.
"Teacher..."
"Will you teach me the Three Character Classic instead?"
"No matter how Perona teaches me..."
"...I just can't remember it."
"Forget the Three Character Classic."
Kairo narrowed his eyes with a smile.
"I'll teach you something completely new."
"Then you two can compete with that instead."
"Okay!"
Vivi's eyes immediately lit up.
Perona also became excited.
"I want to learn too!"
"I want to learn too!"
"Fine."
"You'll both learn together."
"Then we'll see who can recite it first."
"Whoever finishes first..."
"...wins."
"I won't lose again!"
Vivi clenched her tiny fists and glared defiantly at Perona.
"Hehehe."
"You're definitely going to lose."
Perona shot back without hesitation.
"Hahaha."
"It looks like both of you are full of fighting spirit."
Looking at the two little girls glaring at one another, Kairo laughed happily.
He had been wondering how to begin teaching Vivi the Tao Te Ching.
Now the opportunity had practically fallen into his lap.
"Then let's begin."
"Today..."
"I'm going to teach you the first chapter of the Tao Te Ching."
"It's much harder than the Three Character Classic."
"So listen carefully."
"Okay!"
Perona and Vivi answered together before obediently sitting down opposite Kairo.
"The Tao Te Ching, Chapter One."
Seeing both girls sitting quietly, Kairo nodded with satisfaction.
"The Tao that can be spoken is not the eternal Tao."
"The name that can be named is not the eternal name."
"The nameless is the beginning of Heaven and Earth."
"The named is the mother of all things..."
"...Profound and yet more profound—the gateway to all wonders."
"So what does this chapter mean?"
"It means that if the Tao can be expressed in words, then it is not the eternal Tao."
"If a name can be fully defined by language, then it is not the eternal name."
"'Nameless' describes the state before Heaven and Earth existed."
"'Named' refers to the origin from which all things in the universe came into being."
"Therefore..."
"...the Tao is the gateway through which all mysteries and transformations may be understood."
"..."
After listening to Kairo's explanation, Perona blinked blankly.
Then she quietly stood up, copied Kairo's respectful gesture toward Vivi, and solemnly cupped her hands.
"My apologies."
"I'll be taking my leave."
Having said that, she floated straight out of the courtyard.
Unlike Perona, who surrendered immediately...
Vivi remained completely captivated.
She looked at Kairo with a serious little face.
"Teacher..."
"I didn't understand any of it..."
"But it felt really interesting."
"Could you explain it one more time?"
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