But that was all for later.
Iceberg had only been building ships for the World Government for a little over two years, and he had no idea if the train tracks to other islands had been laid yet.
He remembered that two years later, although the sea train could travel to other tourist islands in the vicinity, such as the culinary capital "Buchiye," the capital of the Spring Queen "Saint Blaym," and the carnival town "Saint Falch," there was still only one train, the Rocket Man, and no additions had been made.
He wondered if the World Government didn't want to build more, or for what reason?
These were all related to the sea train, but even if Iceberg brought the shipbuilding industry into the World Government and specifically built ships for them, it wouldn't stop the World Government, nor the CP organization, from obtaining the blueprints for Pluton.
Although the World Government no longer troubled Water 7 after Tom's death, in order to obtain the Pluton blueprints, they had long ago dispatched a team of CP9 members to infiltrate Iceberg's Galley-La Company.
Furthermore, because these CP9 members were far superior to ordinary people, they had quickly risen to high positions within Galley-La Company.
One of them was even Iceberg's secretary.
Fortunately, Iceberg was smart. He knew that as the public figure, the World Government would not give up and would definitely keep an eye on him. Therefore, even after allying with the World Government, he was not at ease. So, he had long ago handed over the blueprints to Franky, who was hidden in the shadows, working as a thug in Water 7.
Otherwise, with the professionalism of CP9, how could they not have found them after so many years!
These guys had been searching for so long, and they hadn't changed their target or thought about anything else.
With their intelligence, they couldn't possibly not know that Franky was Iceberg's junior, Cutty Flam, right?
Well...
It was also possible that they truly didn't know, because Franky hadn't appeared since his injury until four years after the Tom incident, when Franky met his senior Iceberg in cyborg form.
It was at this time that Iceberg handed the Pluton blueprints to Franky.
And because Franky loved Water 7, he didn't heed his senior Iceberg's advice to leave Water 7. Instead, he abandoned his original name, used the name "Franky," and in the back alleys, he took in many starving vagrants, establishing the "Franky Family," whose profession was ship dismantling and whose side job was bounty hunting. By fighting pirates, he atoned for his sins and protected the Water 7 that Tom loved.
Of course, most of the time, the people on the island treated them as thugs and were very afraid of them.
After all, the guy had a fierce appearance, usually only wore a pair of shorts when he went out, and always did perverted things.
In a short while, the Freedom met the Rocket Man and adjusted its course, following the Rocket Man towards Water 7.
There were many people on the train.
Through the window, one could see that the carriages were filled with people, with no empty seats at all.
These people were likely going to Water 7 from other islands for business!
After all, if you wanted to travel, you could go to other islands around here, and those islands were all tourist islands!
"It seems Iceberg's efforts over the years have paid off."
Looking at the people in various styles of clothing inside the train carriage, Kouta's lips curled upwards, forming a smile.
Although new sea trains hadn't been built, at least the World Government had allowed the opening of multiple routes, which brought a large number of orders and prosperity to Water 7.
Of course, the sea train traveling to and from surrounding islands would also bring more tourists to those islands. In general, with convenient transportation, business naturally improved.
As the islands prospered, the living standards of the people naturally increased, and their sense of happiness also grew.
It had to be said that Tom truly deserved the title of "great."
With the sea train, ordinary people could also travel safely by sea at any time to other islands.
Before the sea train, undertaking long-distance voyages was very risky, requiring sturdy ships and skilled navigators.
Because this sea was nothing like the Four Seas; it was constantly devouring ships sailing upon it.
And at the bottom of the deep sea, over countless years, the sunken ships would probably be enough to circle the planet several times.
So, every voyage was actually a test of life and death. Without strength, returning alive depended on luck for ninety percent of the proportion.
The safety of the sea train, however, was incomparable to that of ordinary ships. This steel behemoth sailed on the sea, and even when encountering storms or huge waves, it could easily cross and break through them.
As long as there were train tracks laid between islands, the islands would no longer be isolated islands in the sea.
"Mhm!"
Suddenly, there was a commotion in the train carriage, which interrupted Kouta's wandering thoughts and drew his attention.
Seeing Kouta looking at them again, the carriage became even more chaotic.
Clearly, many of them had recognized Kouta and his group, who had once again become famous across the sea a day ago.
"Haha!!"
Finding these people amusing, Kouta couldn't help but grin at the carriage, revealing his pearly white teeth, and burst into laughter.
His laughter only caused greater chaos and screams.
"Kouta."
"Mhm!"
Kouta stopped laughing and turned his head, leaning out from between the windmill blades, his gaze falling on Aruo, who stood at the bow of the ship, and asked curiously, "What is it?"
"There seems to be a lighthouse ahead."
Aruo lowered his telescope and smiled at Kouta, "It looks like it's a transfer station for this train."
"Oh!"
Kouta stroked his chin in thought, then his eyes lit up.
Ahead should be Water 7's "Shift Station." He remembered that the scene of the sea train's first appearance in the original work was here.
He thought they had missed it, but it turned out they were behind Shift Station.
He remembered that the stationmaster here was also a mermaid, a mermaid grandmother who looked like a monster but was very kind.
As for her name, it should be "Cocolo."
She also seemed to have a granddaughter.
As for her granddaughter's name, he had forgotten.
Mhm!
There was also a cat, which was actually a rabbit, that made "meow meow~" sounds. The fence of the train station had been opened for a considerable distance.
There was no one on the platform, so the train did not stop, and with a whistle, it passed directly through the archway in the middle of the station and drove into the distance.
The train didn't stop, and neither did the Freedom.
Although Cocolo was an interesting person, there was no need for them to stop specifically for her.
After all, they didn't need to get any information from Cocolo, nor did they need her to introduce them to Iceberg.
They were going to Water 7 because their Log Pose was pointing there.
Next, they would rest and play in Water 7 for seven days.
If he remembered correctly, it would take seven days to fully charge the magnetic force of Water 7.
Seven days was more than enough time for the World Government to mobilize its forces again and round them up. He wondered if they dared.
"Haha!!"
And the pirates in this sea area would often go to Water 7 to repair their ships. He wondered if they dared to come and trouble them.
He assumed they would!
After all, there was no shortage of people who didn't know their limits on this sea.
And as long as they showed themselves and their whereabouts were known, they would face the challenges of countless people.
...