"Arthur is indeed my biological son, and I was indeed a pirate ten years ago. To be precise, he was a pirate who went to sea as a botanist..."

Old man Simon raised his head and said categorically.

Although the Great Pirate Age has only been around for more than three years, the profession of pirates has a very long history - not to mention botanists, Luo and the others have also heard of people who went to sea as pirates with even stranger identities.

So they didn't show much surprise, and old man Simon also paused and continued:

"The child has had a bad temper since he was a child. He doesn't like quiet plants like me at all. When he was still in the town, he often stole and got into fights. People avoided him. In this way, about fifteen years ago, he proposed to go to sea.

I didn't agree with becoming a pirate at first, but later I couldn't help but hold on to a glimmer of hope. Maybe he would change his mind when he got to the sea, just like an ugly seedling in childhood turned into a beautiful flower after growing up. I originally thought

I thought that if he went to a wider world and accumulated more experience, he might be able to become an upright person... But it didn't take long for me to realize that I was wrong. I also joined his pirate group at that time

I went to sea, firstly because I wanted to supervise him, and secondly, I also have a dream of seeing the most bizarre plants on the sea with my own eyes."

Having said this, old man Simon took a lonely sip of the black tea that Xia Qi poured for him.

"Actually, Arthur's brat didn't get better at all. Instead, he went further and further into the cruel world of pirates. He began to think that it was natural to hurt others and rob property, and he used the law of the jungle to educate me in return.

, and as he got to know more crooked guys later on, his ferocious character became out of control."

"The guy who is neither good nor bad, are you talking about the group of sumo wrestlers around him?"

"That's right. Because these unscrupulous guys joined in, the strength of Arthur and his pirate group has greatly increased, and the bounty amount set by the World Government for him has also become higher and higher. He even boasts that he has the ability to challenge

The power of the Grand Line... Then, Arthur himself became more and more distorted. He had also passed by Happy Island on his voyage before, attacking towns and robbing property. It was then that the old man quit their group. Since then,

I have been living here alone, acting as an information dealer, and taking care of the plants I like."

After hearing these words, Luo finally understood and couldn't help but ask: "That's why you donated a huge amount of the money you earned as an intelligence dealer to the orphanage in the town... Are you doing this?

Can you atone for your sins in your own way?"

Old Simon did not answer Luo's question, but his silence was enough to prove that Luo was right.

"Patrol Ladd said before that this town was almost destroyed by fire ten years ago. Does that refer to the attack by Arthur?"

"...Yes, but in the end I was still helpless. I fought alone to stop Arthur, but in the end I lost. Many people died in the chaos. Although I later used the property in my hands to find a way to rebuild the town, I died.

The people cannot be resurrected... I have no right to accept the gratitude of the people in the town, nor do I have the right to think that my sins have been atoned for."

call--

After saying these words that had been buried in his heart for a long time, old man Simon let out a heavy breath.

Although he had only dealt with old man Simon a few times before, Luo, who was also like him, was very fond of him because of his cold outside and warm personality. But now this old man who was his friend was made to feel so uncomfortable by this bastard Arthur.

Luo felt very angry.

The face of Arthur who laughed loudly and attacked the town flashed in Luo's mind. He thought for a moment and quickly made up his mind.

"Old man."

"……What's up?"

"Come with us and fight that Arthur!"

Luo stared at the old man Simon and blurted out - Colonel Malvern once told him that the fastest way to cheer up a person is not to encourage him with words, but to actually help him solve the problem.

"You are my friend, and my teacher asked me to set Arthur as my goal and complete my own experience...and I also hate his appearance! So let's beat him away together!"

As soon as Luo finished speaking, before Old Simon could react, Bebo and the others spoke impatiently:

"I will do whatever Brother Luo wants to do!"

"Although Xia Qi and I are street children, we have received a lot of help from everyone on this island, so we have to fight too!"

"Pegkin is right!"

"……snort!"

Old man Simon was silent for a few seconds, then snorted coldly from his nose, and then the corners of his mouth slightly upwards and curved.

"Stop talking nonsense! It's just a bunch of brats and a stupid bear who have grown a little taller, yet they dare to say that they want to beat up pirates... Well, thanks to you, I have made up my mind.

.I believe in you and entrust my life to you friends!"

Bebo said in a rare tough tone: "Old man, it's a polar bear, not a stupid bear!"

"Ha ha ha ha……"

Suddenly, everyone laughed and the room was filled with a happy atmosphere.

Immediately, old man Simon seemed to suddenly remember, and asked: "Speaking of which, Luo, is this where you live? It looks very unusual, and you just mentioned your teacher...he just asked you to

Are you someone who buys information from me?"

Luo was stunned for a moment, but soon spoke firmly:

"...It's time to tell you our true identities, Mr. Simon, my teacher's name is Monkey D. Long, he is a revolutionary, and we are all reserve members of the revolutionary army!"

…

As we all know, devil fruits are magical items that not only give those who eat them superhuman strength, but also cause them to undergo a certain degree of personality change, especially the most powerful natural type among all ordinary devil fruits--

For example, Sakaski's temper is as fiery as a volcano, Kuzan's behavior is extremely lazy, and Porusalino loves to bask in the sun...

Well, Porusalino has always liked to bask in the sun, but that doesn't make this theory any less correct.

so--

The location is the North Sea, the North Sea Naval Branch where Porusalino and Sakaski lived when they first joined the Navy.

That night, Colonel Malvern's former correspondent, a navy boy named Eton who had dealt with Porusalino many times, ended his day's work. Just as he was about to return to his dormitory to rest.

At that moment, someone suddenly blocked his way.

"Nick Eton, rank... private first class now, right?"

"……it's me."

The other party was a man with gray-green hair and a burly build. His appearance made Eton frown slightly. Although Eton's military rank was demoted from corporal to private due to the defection of Colonel Malvern, he was still there after all.

Having been in the Beihai Branch for so many years, most of the sailors here are familiar to him. Even the new sailors who have just arrived, he can roughly understand their identities from their gestures, but the man in front of him...

Not only does he look unfamiliar, but he doesn't feel like a sailor at all, but more like an outsider wearing a sailor uniform.

But this is the Beihai Navy branch, one of the safest places in the entire North Sea. It is impossible for an outsider who is not familiar with this place to sneak in and disguise himself as a sailor. Such a thing is impossible.

"Come with me, the colonel wants to see you for something."

After saying this, the man turned around and walked forward without waiting for Aton's response.

(Colonel Newt wants to see me? But, can he be considered leading the way?)

Eden thought about the new Colonel Newt, and finally followed this man.

The man brought Eton to a conference room, which made him a little confused, because this conference room, which was converted from a large utility storage room, was actually not used by anyone inside the Beihai Navy Branch.

(What is Colonel Newt doing? Why is it so mysterious?)

After Eden entered, he found that there were already some people waiting inside, so he temporarily found a seat further back and sat down.

After a while, many more people came here. What surprised Eton was that these people were all, like him, more or less affected by the defection of Colonel Malvern, the former head of the North Sea Naval Branch.

Punishment and impact...

After most of the conference room was occupied, the gray-green-haired man who had led Aton before walked in, and he brought someone with him...

"Colonel Malvern?!"

Not only Aden, but most of the people in the conference room could not help but widen their eyes and looked at the man standing in front of the podium in the conference room with a bewildered expression.

Brand-new naval officer uniform, shiny bald head, rugged appearance, and a height of more than two meters... He is the former commander of the Beihai Naval Branch, Captain Malvern who defected from the navy!

Compared to everyone who had surprised expressions, Colonel Malvern still had the same serious and friendly expression that he had when he was at the North Sea Naval Branch.

He looked around for a week and saw that no one wanted to yell or attack him, so he raised the corners of his mouth with satisfaction, and then said in a very low voice:

"It's been so long, everyone... thank you for taking good care of my uniform after I left."

As he spoke, Colonel Malvern adjusted his collar, shook his cloak of justice, nodded to everyone, and then continued:

"Although I don't know what explanation the headquarters gave, I believe that the reasons for my defection that you know are definitely not true... Otherwise, you will not be implicated by my actions alone, and you will all be affected.

received punishment from superiors.”

The scene was very quiet, with only Colonel Malvern's calm voice echoing in the conference room.

After calming down a little and looking at everyone's reactions, he continued:

"Everything has to go back a few years ago. I received a top-secret mission from the headquarters. The content of the mission was to secretly search for a Devil Fruit for the top leaders of the World Government. It is called the Surgery Fruit and has the power to

The ultimate power that makes people immortal!"

…

For Colonel Malvern, the secrets he holds about the world government are not many, because he is just a small North Sea colonel in the entire naval system.

But quantity does not represent quality——

He told the old subordinates in the audience the process of his defection, the "secret mission of the World Government", the tragedy of the Kingdom of Frevans, the story of Luo, and the measures taken by the World Government to hide their eyes from others.

...Finally, Colonel Malvern's voice stopped.
To be continued...