The Athena slowly sailed away from Ferro Island. From the deck, Arthur looked back one last time. Loran still stood alone at the old harbor. The elderly man simply raised one hand in farewell. Arthur did the same. Neither of them spoke another word. The distance between them grew farther and farther until the gray island gradually disappeared into the horizon.
Robin slowly walked toward Arthur before resting both of her hands upon the wooden railing. The breeze carried strands of her black hair across her face as she quietly observed the shrinking silhouette of Ferro Island.
Robin: "Who do you think he really was?"
Arthur did not answer immediately. His eyes never left the disappearing island. Several seconds passed before he finally exhaled.
Arthur: "I don't know."
Robin tilted her head slightly before smiling. The smile wasn't one of amusement. It was the expression of someone who knew Arthur well enough to recognize when he deliberately avoided giving a complete answer.
Robin: "I don't believe that."
Arthur: "Someone who could preserve the history of an entire kingdom for more than a hundred years... isn't an ordinary old miner." Arthur let out a quiet chuckle.
Monet: "My intelligence network has never recorded anyone named Loran." Monet folded her arms.
Hancock: "Maybe he never wanted his name to be remembered." Hancock looked toward the distant sea.
No one continued the conversation. Whether Loran was truly the last miner...Or merely the final guardian entrusted with Ferro's greatest secret... No one knew. Perhaps... The kingdom itself had chosen to keep that answer buried forever. Arthur lowered his gaze toward the Devil Fruit resting inside the wooden chest before him.
The Metal-Metal Fruit.
Arthur: "Sugar." Arthur picked up the gray metallic fruit before walking toward her.
Sugar: "Captain?" She immediately stood up.
Arthur: "This belongs to you. Follow me to my Lab." Arthur handed the Devil Fruit to her.
Sugar: "Me... again?" Sugar stared at the fruit in surprise.
Arthur led Sugar into the laboratory beneath the Athena. The room was quiet as always, illuminated only by the pale blue light of several machines lining the walls. In the center stood the same operating table that Hancock had once used. Sugar stared at the silver-gray Devil Fruit in her hands. Its metallic spiral patterns reflected the light like polished steel.
Arthur: "Once you eat it... there will be no turning back."
Sugar: "I'm ready." Sugar nodded without hesitation.
Sugar lowered her eyes toward the strange metallic fruit resting inside both of her hands. Its cold surface almost resembled forged steel rather than ordinary flesh. Intricate spiral patterns covered every inch of the fruit, shimmering beneath the laboratory lights like polished silver.
She tightened her grip. This would be her third Devil Fruit. Something no one in history should have been capable of surviving. Her heartbeat gradually quickened. She looked at Arthur one final time.
Without another word, she took a bite. The familiar bitterness instantly spread through her mouth, making her face stiffen for a brief moment. Even so, she forced herself to swallow every last piece of the Metal-Metal Fruit. Arthur stepped forward immediately.
Arthur: "[Heavenly Art]." His right hand gently rested on Sugar's chest.
A soft white light enveloped both of them. Arthur's Art-Art Fruit began rewriting Sugar's DNA, forcibly creating a stable balance between the powers of the Gryphon, the More-More Fruit, and the newly acquired Metal-Metal Fruit. Unlike ordinary Devil Fruit users, a third source of power was now being integrated into a single body.
CRAAACK!!
Sugar's entire body suddenly arched. Her muscles tightened violently. Blue veins spread across her neck and arms as if something inside her body was tearing itself apart before being rebuilt. She bit her lip so hard that blood trickled down her chin. Not a single scream escaped her mouth. Her hands clenched so tightly that her nails dug into her palms. The pain was overwhelming, far beyond any wound she had ever experienced.
Arthur remained completely focused. Drops of sweat rolled down his forehead as he carefully maintained the stability of every strand of Sugar's DNA. Even the slightest mistake could destroy the balance between the three Devil Fruits. The laboratory fell completely silent. Only Sugar's trembling breaths and the faint hum of Arthur's ability echoed through the room. A few moments later—
WHOOSSHH...
The pressure filling the laboratory vanished instantly. The white light slowly faded. Sugar's breathing gradually steadied. She slowly opened her eyes. For a brief instant, her irises shimmered with a metallic silver glow before returning to normal.
Arthur: "It's finished." Arthur finally let out a long breath.
Sugar slowly raised both of her hands. The air around her palms began to distort. A thin layer of liquid metal flowed across her fingers before hardening into polished steel. Moments later, the metal dissolved back into her body as though it had never existed. Sugar looked at Arthur.
Sugar: "I can feel it..."
Arthur: "From this day onward... you're the first member of the Art Pirates to wield three Devil Fruits." Arthur nodded.
Sugar lowered her gaze to her hands once more. She could clearly sense the three different powers coexisting within her body. Mythical Zoan The Bird-Bird Fruit, Model: Gryphon plus Paramecia The More-More Fruit. And now... The Logia, Metal-Metal Fruit.
Arthur: "Don't rush to combine them. Three Devil Fruits don't simply triple your strength. They also make mastering your own abilities far more difficult. If you fail to control even one of them... The other two will become dead weight."
Sugar: "Then I'll master all three." Sugar smiled confidently.
Arthur: "That's exactly what I wanted to hear." A faint smile appeared on Arthur's face.
Sugar: "I won't disappoint you."
Arthur: "I know." Arthur smiled faintly.
The compass in Arthur's hand began spinning once again. After a few seconds... The needle slowly came to a stop. Arthur unfolded the map while Monet stepped closer. Three islands remained marked. Three possible locations. Three remaining Devil Fruits.
Arthur: "Our journey isn't over yet." Arthur tapped the nearest island with his finger.
Monet: "We'll reach the next island in less than two days."
Monet nodded.
The Athena gradually accelerated. Its sails caught the wind as it headed deeper into the New World. Somewhere beyond the endless sea... Three more Devil Fruits were still waiting. And Arthur intended to find every single one of them.