"Huh!"
"Aren't you the Pirate King, 'Gol D. Roger', and the ship's doctor?"
At Twin Capes, on the open ground outside the house where Crocus lived and worked under the lighthouse.
Indigo walked with a sputtering sound to Crocus, who was sitting on a stone stool, and looked at him in surprise.
He hadn't paid much attention when they first met, but now that he was closer, he could see clearly.
He hadn't expected to meet an acquaintance here.
"Excuse me, are you...?"
Crocus looked at Indigo, a little confused.
"Me!"
Indigo spun around in front of Crocus, then burst out laughing.
"Kyahahaha!!"
Then he put on a lively performance.
Seeing that Crocus still didn't understand, he became anxious and stamped his feet repeatedly on the spot. Finally, with no other option, he said:
"Me! I'm the ship's doctor for 'Golden Lion', the Golden Lion's crew!"
"I saw you on Roger's ship during the 'Ed War' 25 years ago."
"Oh... you're from the Golden Lion's crew!"
Crocus looked at Indigo, dazed, "How come I didn't see you? Weren't you hiding in the back then!"
Saying that, Crocus nodded.
"Only then can I explain why I didn't see you at the time."
Of course, that wasn't the reason.
Back then, the Golden Lion's fleet had so many ships and so many people, who would bother to pay attention to a doctor!
"Uh... is that so?"
Indigo nodded, then looked at Crocus and asked, "After the Roger Pirates disbanded, you didn't stay here all along, did you!"
"I've always lived here. Following Roger's Pirates was mainly to help Lab search for the Rumbar Pirates."
"Wow~"
"So Grandpa was the ship's doctor on the Pirate King's ship when he was young!"
Just then, Ah Hua, dressed in a chef's uniform, along with A Luo and A Tao, each carrying two large plates of fish.
These fish were caught by Kong Tai idly when they were just taken out of Lab's body.
Since they were on the Grand Line, how could they not enjoy the delicacies of this magical sea!
They planned to set off after lunch and invited Crocus to eat with them.
Ah Hua put down the plates in his hands and stared at Crocus, his face full of curiosity.
"Can you tell us about Roger's adventures, old man?"
"Stop asking. What's the point of knowing these things from an old man? We have our own adventures!"
Kong Tai walked over with a few bottles of wine.
He lightly slapped Ah Hua on the back of the head.
"Roger's adventures, we'll see them for ourselves, won't we?"
He said, and sat down opposite Crocus, placing the wine bottle on the table with a "bang."
"Old man, seeing as you're in such a good mood today, you have to drink with me!"
"Don't worry!"
Crocus glanced at Lab, who was floating near the shore, a smile flashing in his eyes.
After coming out of Lab's body, he immediately told Lab the news that Brook was alive and that his companion had not abandoned him.
This made Lab so happy that he caused quite a commotion in the water.
Then he wanted to set off for the Grand Line immediately, but Kong Tai persuaded him to wait there for Brook to fulfill their promise.
It seemed that Lab would no longer crash into the Red Line.
After all, being abandoned and not being abandoned were two different things.
With hope in his heart, the pain would not be so great.
Crocus then turned his gaze to Kong Tai, his eyes filled with gratitude. kanδん
"Even if I have to sacrifice this old life of mine today, I will drink to my heart's content with you."
"Talking about an old life is unlucky! We are celebrating today, it's a happy occasion!"
"Right, right, right..."
"Hahahaha..."
...
After eating and drinking their fill, Kong Tai leaned against the stone table, picking his teeth with a toothpick.
Crocus, with a flushed face, stared dazedly at the several figures busy on the Freedom.
"Youth is wonderful!"
He had only drunk less than a bottle and was already feeling a bit drowsy.
But these young men were as if nothing had happened.
Especially this guy, who was drinking strong liquor.
He took one sip of wine and was almost choked to death, while Kong Tai drank it as if it were a beverage.
"I'm really old, I can't compare."
He imitated Kong Tai, leaning on the table and shaking his head.
Just then, a cry of surprise came from the ship.
"Ah~ Why is this happening!"
"What's wrong?"
A Luo ignored A Tao and quickly jumped off the ship, walked to Kong Tai's side, and asked loudly.
"Kong Tai, see what's going on! Why isn't the compass working?"
"Compass?"
Kong Tai looked at the compass A Luo handed him and was stunned.
How could he have forgotten this thing!
"Hahahaha!!"
"You guys know nothing and are heading to the Grand Line?"
Kong Tai came to his senses and saw Crocus speaking, so he didn't say anything more.
He had indeed forgotten about this thing. Otherwise, he would have asked Smoker for one in Loguetown. How could he not know that the Grand Line required a special compass!
It must have been too exciting in Loguetown, and he had drunk a bit too much that day, so he forgot in the end.
"Oh! Old man, do you know what's going on?"
A Luo looked at Crocus and quickly asked.
"Due to its special geographical location, the Grand Line's magnetism is completely different from other places. Ordinary compasses, of course, won't work here."
"Ordinary compass."
"So, there are special compasses?"
"Mm!"
Crocus nodded, then took out a special compass-like pointer from his pocket, covered with a transparent spherical glass cover.
"Here, this is the special 'Log Pose' used on the Grand Line to record magnetic information."
Saying that, he handed the Log Pose in his hand to A Luo.
"The Log Pose records the magnetic force attracting one island to another, to guide the direction of the next island. So, every time you reach an island, you have to spend a few hours to months to fill the Log Pose's record before you can set off for the next island."
"Oh..."
A Luo looked at the Log Pose in his hand, his face full of curiosity.
Then he seemed to remember something and looked up at Crocus, asking, "Months? If it takes months to record an island, does that mean we have to stay on this island for months?"
"In principle, that's correct, but..."
"But what?"
"But there is also a special Log Pose that can directly point to a place, the 'Eternal Pose'."
"Eternal."
"Yes, it's eternal. The Eternal Pose can always point to a designated island. The Navy uses such pointers to quickly reach any island on the Grand Line."
"Of course, such pointers are also very expensive and can usually only be found on larger kingdom islands."
"Oh..."
"Alright, A Luo."
Kong Tai stood up and patted A Luo on the shoulder.
"Let's go! The adventure on the Grand Line officially begins."
He was actually a little embarrassed about forgetting such an important thing as the Log Pose.
"Let's go, old man. Don't worry, I will definitely convey Lab's longing to Brook."
Saying that, Kong Tai turned and headed straight for the Freedom.
...
Twin Capes, Lighthouse.
Crocus stared at the distant sea for a long time.
He saw something different in Kong Tai compared to other pirates.
"Could this be the person Roger was waiting for?"
He shook his head.
"Probably not."
Because he didn't see Roger's shadow on Kong Tai.
The person Roger was waiting for would definitely have Roger's shadow.