Rocks's view of Ripley's role wasn't quite accurate.
Rocks thought Ripley was a fighter, but in Magnus's eyes, her ability leaned more toward logistics and management.
Ripley clearly realized this as well.
Since her progress in Haki and martial arts was slow, she gradually shifted to developing her Devil Fruit powers instead.
There was nothing wrong with that.
Everyone had their own strengths—some excelled at fighting, others at crafting, some at cooking, and some at healing.
Magnus once thought that if he hadn't become a captain, he might have been an excellent navigator.
After all, even Admiral-level powerhouses couldn't always guarantee their ships' safety when sailing through the unpredictable weather of the New World.
Ripley was the same.
At first, Magnus assumed that Ripley's Mini Mini no Mi could only change her own size, which limited its strategic value.
But once Ripley could shrink other objects and even people…
The fruit's meaning completely changed.
So much so that when Ripley's ability grew powerful enough, Magnus finally realized his plan—
By relocating all of Sphinx's residents into the belly of a massive anglerfish, they could completely avoid Marine and World Government sieges.
Now, Sphinx was divided into two parts: the Outer Island and the Inner Island.
The Outer Island was a trading hub.
It housed mostly outsiders of questionable background. Though Magnus placed some people there, they were minor forces at best, like the black-market merchant Duke and other groups that depended on the White Wolf Pirates.
The Inner Island, however, was the true core of Sphinx.
That's where the core members of the White Wolf Pirates resided.
Of course, there were downsides.
"Staying in here… we won't grow old, but we also won't age at all?"
At first, Roya and Aide thought Magnus was joking.
But once they learned that living inside the anglerfish meant being constantly exposed to Pure Gold, they were dumbfounded.
They were long past the age of growth, left only with the pain of aging. Now Magnus told them that living here meant virtual immortality?
"I think there will be countless rich people in this world who would pay to buy even a patch of land inside this fish's belly," Roya muttered.
"Even one the size of a palm."
Thanks to Ripley's power, even palm-sized land could hold a luxurious villa. Unless someone possessed strong Haki, once they were shrunk, they might never return to normal for the rest of their lives.
"You two can retire here."
"Haha, I can't think of a better place for retirement."
"But it'd be nice to go outside occasionally," Aide added. As Sphinx's swordsmanship instructor, he understood the pros and cons.
No growth, no aging.
It sounded wonderful, but it also meant no chance of getting stronger.
"Of course. Stagnation isn't an option."
If Magnus only wanted to create a paradise, he could stop here. But his ambition went far beyond that.
"Besides, this is temporary. I don't want Ripley to be burdened with managing this forever. Once the day comes when we no longer need to hide, I'll give you all a better place to live."
"Haha, I can't wait to see that day. After all, there's no sky in here!"
Inside the anglerfish, the only light came from its glowing bulb.
There was no difference between day and night.
Magnus wondered how anyone could live in such a place for over a century without going mad.
During the relocation plan, Magnus encountered two stubborn holdouts from over a hundred years ago.
That's right.
A father and daughter had been living inside the anglerfish's belly for over a hundred years, completely unaware of each other's survival.
When they learned Magnus planned to use the Pure Gold inside the anglerfish to build his kingdom, they made a big fuss.
The result?
Magnus, of course, crushed them into submission.
The daughter was sent to Kureha for treatment, while the father was incorporated into Sphinx's community.
Whatever he did, Magnus wasn't going to let him just sit there eating for free.
After freeing the slaves of Mary Geoise, Sphinx's population suddenly swelled by fifty thousand. Not all stayed, but they had to earn money for their journey home somehow.
That's right.
Magnus freed a massive number of slaves, but he wasn't going to pay to send them all home.
Even Rona's Marines couldn't help with that.
The sheer number of people was overwhelming.
Helping tens of thousands return to their homelands would bankrupt even the wealthy White Wolf Pirates.
That scientist who had lived inside the anglerfish for over a hundred years knew how to extract Pure Gold. Even if that was his only talent, it already proved he was a brilliant scientist.
And that was exactly what Magnus lacked—technical experts.
Magnus even thought of another person. If he could bring him to Sphinx, it might solve all his problems at once.
But before that, Magnus had to go to Wano.
He had promised to go two years ago but kept putting it off.
Even with his thick skin, Magnus felt guilty.
"There's no need to apologize."
Toki still carried herself like a Yamato Nadeshiko.
"You're ready to take me to Wano now, aren't you?"
She smiled as she straightened Magnus's collar.
By now, she had let go of her initial obsession with Wano. After all, time stood still in the anglerfish's belly, and the prophecy was still decades away.
Why rush?
Or maybe…
"Magnus-san, are you trying to get rid of me?" she asked, her expression turning sad.
"After all, I'm just an ordinary woman. I don't have Lily's strength, nor Ripley's abilities to help you."
The Toki Toki no Mi could send people through time, but in battle it was useless. And Toki's combat talent was mediocre.
"Haha, unless you decide to leave like that bastard Rocks, I've never thrown a crewmate off my ship."
"C-crew!?"
"What, Toki-san, don't you want to be a member of the White Wolf Pirates? We need someone to manage the accounts. Sadly, most of my crew are illiterate. At best they can write their names. Math is impossible for them. What if we get swindled in trades—"
"I can!"
Her outburst surprised Magnus. Realizing she had spoken too loudly, Toki blushed and added, "If Magnus-san trusts me, I can manage the accounts for you."
"Haha, how could I not trust you? We share a life-and-death bond!"
Back in Elbaf, without Toki, Magnus wouldn't have escaped so easily, and the Marines wouldn't have held back.
If Elbaf hadn't been protected, there would have been no recent slave liberation, and the White Wolf Pirates wouldn't have grown so strong.
Though Magnus didn't plan on recruiting too many core crewmates, the freed slaves from Sabaody and Mary Geoise all needed places.
For now, they were organized into Sphinx's garrison force.
Yes—Sphinx, with only 300,000 permanent residents, had a garrison of 50,000: 30,000 freed slaves, 5,000 native recruits, and 15,000 former pirates.
Of the 50,000 freed slaves who returned to Sphinx, over ninety percent stayed because they had nowhere else to go.
In truth, only a few thousand wanted to leave.
For them, Magnus didn't stop them, but instead offered well-paying jobs. It was the least he could do.
And the ones enslaved by the Celestial Dragons? Aside from women and children, most were young and strong, with solid foundations.
After only a few months of training, Magnus now commanded 30,000 troops equal to the Marines' elite forces.
Among them were many powerful individuals—
Even some from "extinct" races like the Buccaneers and the Lunarians.
The Buccaneers had giant blood, giving them physical strength a thousand times greater than fishmen.
The Lunarians could generate flames, boosting their defense when burning, and speed when extinguished.
But these two groups concealed themselves carefully, blending into the departing crowd.
Magnus didn't care.
He had once left Shiki on Fishman Island and nearly forgot to pick him up. Why would he bother chasing two rare races?
Even with special racial talents, true strength still depended on the individual.
What Magnus lacked was top-level powerhouses.
A handful of rare-race stragglers wouldn't change that.
If they stayed, fine.
If not, he wouldn't force them.
"By the way, how's that kid I found on Fishman Island?"
Aide immediately knew who Magnus meant.
"You mean Shiki? He's got great potential, skilled in swordsmanship, and he's a Devil Fruit user too."
"You noticed?"
"Haha, only Shiki himself thinks he's hiding it well."
The veteran cadres of the White Wolf Pirates all mastered Haki. No rookie's tricks could fool them.
"He's quiet for now, but he's not the obedient type. If he grows strong, he might betray us."
"Only if he's capable!"
Magnus and Aide exchanged a glance and burst into laughter.
They were willing to nurture newcomers, but they weren't fools.
Different personalities required different approaches.
Someone like Rocks couldn't have his ambition suppressed. He was wild grass—he would grow no matter what. Putting him in a greenhouse might even blunt his edge.
Magnus gave him the foundation, then let him grow freely. When Rocks reached his peak, Magnus would defeat him.
Only then would Rocks willingly serve him.
As a true conqueror, Rocks had his pride.
By granting him the right to a fair challenge, Magnus ensured that Rocks, no matter the result, would accept it.
"What about others besides Shiki?"
Among the rookies Aide was training, the ones Magnus cared about most were naturally Shiki, who would one day rival Roger and Newgate, though his luck was poor.
"There's also a girl named Tsuru. In just a few months, she's already learned Moonwalk, one of the Six Powers. And another kid named Zephyr—he's mastered both Iron Body and Finger Pistol."
"Zephyr!?"
Magnus cut him off, stunned.
"He was one of the slaves we rescued from Sabaody?"
"No."
Aide gave him a puzzled look.
"He wasn't a slave, just a ship's helper. Overslept and missed his merchant ship, so he ended up on Sphinx."
"Then why join the garrison?"
"He got swindled while shopping and almost sold into slavery. To escape the pirates hunting him, he joined us."
Though Sphinx strictly regulated the black market, they only banned slave trading within the island. For anyone without ID, the underground was still dangerous.
"Haha, this is amusing."
First Tsuru, and now even Zephyr?
Magnus knew what the Marines were up to.
If Tsuru was an accident, then Zephyr definitely wasn't.
Aide didn't see it, but Magnus did.
If Tsuru was just a future Marine strategist with the potential to become an Admiral, then Zephyr was flat-out a future Admiral.
And the Marines had just sent him here?
Magnus almost laughed his mouth crooked.
Even if the Marines wanted to plant spies in the White Wolf Pirates, so what?
His crew had nothing to hide.
The ones who should worry were the Marines!
Without the bond of Marine training, once their sense of justice clashed with their actions, would Tsuru and Zephyr really side with the Marines?
"Aide, call Shiki, Tsuru, and Zephyr. From today, they're official interns of the White Wolf Pirates!"
With a wave of his hand, Magnus made his decision.
Now that Sphinx had its fallback secured, Magnus had no reason to stay any longer.
The sea was his true home!
(End of Chapter)
[Check Out My P@treon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!][[email protected]/euridome]
[Thank You For Your Support!]