It had been over half a day since Rosen officially entered the Cloud Path, and everything was proceeding smoothly. Daz Bones, Mr. 5, Valentine, and Angus were stationed at the four corners of the ship, defending against attacks from marine creatures below the Sky Path. In just half a day, they had already encountered over ten assaults from ferocious Sky Sharks and other creatures. Some were even powerful enough to rival pirates with bounties exceeding a hundred million berries, but Daz Bones and the others could handle them now.
"Your Majesty, are you still training?" Natalie and Liya arrived at the training area, where they saw Hathaway swinging her sword diligently, drenched in sweat. They had come to invite her to tonight's barbecue party.
"Just call me by my name from now on." For the first time, Hathaway felt unaccustomed to the title "Your Majesty." Perhaps it was because she was no longer surrounded by her people. Continuing to use it now felt somewhat distant.
"Understood, Your Majesty! Sister Robin sent us to call you for dinner. Tonight, we're having a barbecue on the deck! There's so much food prepared, including that giant octopus and shark that just attacked us..." Natalie's mouth watered as she spoke. Sky fish—I wonder if they taste different from sea fish.
"I'll be right there." Hathaway wore a mask, one she had donned even before boarding the ship. Sweat trickled down the edges of the mask to her chin, dripping onto her chest.
Rosen had just finished his own training session. His focus had been on studying particle collisions with his Devil Fruit abilities and high-temperature control. The birth of "Instant Annihilation" stemmed from the high-frequency friction of gold-sand-copper particles within the sand and his withering desiccation ability. However, based on his battle in Lantis, the technique wasn't yet perfected. After multiple uses, it tended to become unstable and prone to explosion. To ensure better control in future fights, Rosen repeatedly practiced to stabilize it.
Hearing the two girls calling for dinner, Rosen stopped and headed to the training area's shower room. Seeing Hathaway still wearing her mask, he suggested, "You don't need to wear the mask on the ship. No one will cause you trouble here."
This wasn't an empty reassurance. During their days on Flower Basket Island and their interactions with the Lantisians, the crew of the Dawn had come to understand just how powerful—even terrifying—Hathaway was. As a result, aside from Rosen and Robin, she hadn't spoken to anyone else on board.
"Got it." Hathaway paused for a moment before nodding.
The shower room had multiple stalls. Hearing the sound of running water from a nearby stall, Rosen couldn't help but recall Hathaway's unmasked face from the hot springs.
Liya had been right—few could forget Hathaway's face once they saw it. But for Rosen, that was all. This world was full of fascinating things, and he was already overwhelmed by them.
However, when Hathaway emerged from the shower without her mask, dressed in light, casual clothes, Rosen was momentarily stunned.
Then again, it wasn't that big of a deal. Nami walked around in a bikini all the time—compared to her, Hathaway was downright conservative. It was just that her figure was so alluring, paired with that breathtakingly exquisite face, that the impact was instant.
But would the crew be able to handle it? Maybe keeping the mask on would be better.
Then again, wearing a mask was inevitably restrictive, especially during training. Trapped sweat and humid air wouldn't be comfortable.
"What's wrong?"
"Nothing. Maybe I underestimated things. But since we're all on the same ship, they'll find out sooner or later. Let's just hope the crew can restrain themselves. If they can't, try not to go too hard on them—it's a natural reaction..." Rosen gave a heads-up, hoping no unlucky crew member would try flirting and end up getting sliced in half. That'd be too tragic.
"I'll try." Hathaway turned and walked out of the training area.
"Boss, there's a fork ahead. Do we go straight or take the branch?" As Rosen stepped out of the training area, a cool breeze brushed his face. The view ahead was an endless expanse of white.
At first, it had been interesting, but after staring at it for so long, it couldn't compare to the vibrant colors of the world below.
"You decide."
"I think the main path leads to the nearest Sky Island. The branch might go somewhere else—maybe even an incomplete route."
"Then proceed straight. But night's coming soon. Let's dock here for tonight. Anchor the ship to the guardrails along the edge. This is the Endless Sky Path." Rosen glanced at the darkening sky.
"Got it. Oh, and Boss, tonight's the barbecue. Anything special you want arranged?"
"No, just some grilled meat will do."
As the ship moved to dock, before it could properly settle, Daz Bones' voice rang out: "Boss, enemy ship spotted on the port side!"
His voice carried across the ship. Crew members who had been busy carrying food, grills, drinks, and charcoal immediately dropped everything, drawing swords and guns as they rushed to the port side.
"All positions, stay alert!" Rosen used Soru to flash to the ship's edge, where he spotted a vessel floating on a white cloud outside the Sky Path.
The ship looked relatively new, flying a pirate flag. Robin examined it and said, "It doesn't seem to be sailing. It wasn't here earlier—it must have drifted from afar. If we leave it alone, it shouldn't be a problem. There's no path from there to here."
"I'll check." Still uneasy, Rosen frowned and used Geppo to reach the pirate ship.
But when he landed on the deck, he found only corpses—emaciated, skeletal figures that looked like they had starved to death. There were also signs of past fights.
"An exiled pirate ship? Did it come from a Sky Island?" After a thorough inspection, Rosen confirmed there were no survivors—not even any treasure. It seemed the ship had been looted before being left adrift on the clouds to die.
After a quick look, Rosen lost interest. Still, this suggested they weren't too far from a Sky Island and were on the right path.
Returning to the Dawn, he briefed the crew and urged caution. Since he wasn't familiar with this Sky Path, anything could happen.
"All clear, but stay sharp on watch." Robin reminded them.
Natalie cheered excitedly—this task was perfect for her innate Observation Haki, and she loved it.
Soon, rows of grills were set up. Though there were chefs and helpers, grilling was more fun when done yourself.
Rosen skewered a giant Sky Octopus leg—prepared by the ship's chef—and sat by the grill, patiently roasting it. Watching Natalie struggle with three or four small fish at once, he sighed. "Weren't you supposed to be on watch?"
"It's the same thing! If anyone boards, I'll know right away!" Natalie was too busy juggling her skewers—one side of a fish was already charred.
"These are your subordinates?" Hathaway approached, drawing the gaze of every crew member, male and female.
She was used to such attention. Whether it was dozens or tens of thousands, it made no difference to her.
"What do you think? Not bad, right?" Rosen gestured to Daz Bones and Mr. 5 on watch, and Valentine and Miggs busy grilling.
"Decent potential, but their combat experience and reflexes are lacking. They waste too much of their solid foundation." Hathaway sat beside Rosen, picking up another octopus skewer as she spoke matter-of-factly.
(Chapter end)
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