The night of fun ended, and the next morning Rogu boarded the ship with Lester. His modest luggage was not particularly varied: a couple of changes of clothes, personal hygiene items, and tools for maintaining his blade. Besides, he now looked more like a peasant than a swordsman.
But the villagers had prepared a whole mountain of supplies for him. Food and drink were tirelessly loaded onto the ship, while Lester, watching each new box, grew more and more gloomy. He remembered how he himself left the village, but then no one was even close to being so generous.
However, realizing that Rogu had saved these men's lives, Lester decided not to be jealous. Instead, he focused on his main task: how to convince Rogu to join the Marines.
"Well, now you're on board," Lester muttered, rubbing his hands. "Do you really think I'm going to let you get off? We'll be sailing for three or four hours, and I'll be able to talk you into it by then."
He chuckled smugly, but then suddenly realized the wrongness of his words.
"Hmm, said it as if it were a pirate ship... This is a Marine warship, and everything that happens here is for the sake of justice!" he corrected himself. In this world, a pirate ship sounded like a synonym for something illegal, and he, as a Marine Commodore, could not humiliate his status like that.
Rogu stood at the side of the boat, waving to the villagers who remained on the shore. They waved back, their faces reflecting mixed emotions. No one expected that the man they thought ordinary would be so strong.
And just when they were beginning to realize what a powerful ally they had next to them, he was already leaving. But despite this, the residents were sincerely grateful for his help, and their farewell gestures became especially warm.
The elder was shouting something loudly from the shore, but due to the strong wind and the noise of the moving ship it was impossible to understand his words. Most likely, these were parting wishes or reminders.
- If they don't want to let you go, maybe you should join the Marines? - Lester approached Rog. - I'm planning to set up a base in Moonlight Village. I can offer you the chance to become its leader. Of course, it will be impossible at first, since you have no merit. But with your abilities, you will quickly rise through the ranks. Think about it.
"Not interested," Rogu answered shortly, looking away from the village and switching to Lester. "By the way, what are you going to do with this?" He pointed to the mountain of food that the villagers had prepared for him.
Lester blinked in surprise, "You want to give it to me?"
"Sell," Rogu clarified. "There's too much food here. I'll take some with me, but I can't carry the rest. Throwing it away would be wasting their efforts. So I'd rather sell it to you."
"And you don't think that would betray their good intentions?" Lester felt that there was something wrong with Rogu's logic.
Rogu shook his head: "They wanted me to eat and drink well on the road. If I turn their gifts into money, I will be able to buy myself food and drink on the road. Their goal will be achieved. This is not betrayal."
"I don't even know how to argue with you," Lester felt cornered.
"With your intelligence..." Rogu began thoughtfully.
"Enough!" Lester felt his patience was on the edge. He had never met such an irritating person in his life. Besides, that thoughtful look of Rogu's was like a mockery of his intelligence.
When he finally gathered his thoughts to answer, he turned around... Rogu had already disappeared.
"What the hell?!" Lester exclaimed. His face darkened with irritation. He questioned several crew members and learned that the last one had returned to his cabin.
And when Lester, seething with anger, approached Rogu's room, he saw a sign on the door: "Resting. Entry without permission... is punishable by death."
- Damn you! - Lester cried. - Do you even realize whose ship you're on?!
But after a couple of screams, he still didn't dare to rush in. His brief acquaintance with Rogu had made him realize that this man was... strange. And if he was really pissed off, he might well do what was written on the tablet.
After a couple of minutes of impotent rage at the door, Lester, gritting his teeth, turned and left.
It seemed as if the whole world had suddenly fallen silent.
Rogu sat in his cabin, his back straight, and carefully wiped the edge of his blade. This blade had been with him from the very beginning, from the moment he came into this world. Then he had nothing but severe wounds and this blade.
The blade had no name or markings. Its blade and sheath were pitch black. So Rogu named it Kuromaru - Black Circle.
In fact, with his "outstanding" ability to come up with names, he wanted to call the sword simply Blackie. But the village chief couldn't stand it and insisted on a more dignified name.
Rogu didn't object. His character was such that he didn't like to argue about trifles. Let it be Kuromaru, he didn't care.
However, now, polishing the blade, he was thinking not about the blade's name, but about something much more important, even global for him. This was his special obsession, which had not left him for three years.
"The way home," he muttered, flicking his finger along the blade.
The clear and ringing sound echoed off the walls of the cabin. And Rogu continued his thoughts: - In the world of pirates, at least according to the information I have, there is no obvious way to return to my world. But if I, as a person who came here, already exist, then there must be some amazing force in this world that can return me back.
He paused, then added, "And this power is most likely hidden from view, shrouded in mystery. In fact, in this world, many things remain a mystery. For example, the Devil Fruits. Everyone knows that by eating such a fruit, you can gain unusual abilities and a weakness to water. But no one knows where they come from and why they give such powers. People simply use them, develop their potential, but never ask about the root cause.
Rogu carefully returned Kuromaru to its sheath. To seek the hidden, to explore the unknown, is a task full of uncertainty. For if something is hidden, if something is unknown, how can you find it?
But he was no ordinary man. He knew a few curious things that could help him in this search.
"Like those hundred years of emptiness that the World Government is trying so hard to hide," he drawled, stretching. "What happened during those hundred years? What powers were hidden? Will I be able to find the answers? And also... what exactly did Gol D. Roger leave behind on Laugh Tale? Come to think of it, it all seems pretty damn interesting."
He smiled, and his eyes sparkled with a slight excitement.
"So my short-term plan is simple: continue to develop my powers, slowly accumulate knowledge, and gradually explore. And what about the end goal of returning home? Perhaps, with time, that goal will even lose its meaning. It's all about the process, isn't it?" He smirked to himself.