Chapter 168(A): Colon's Dream to Set Sail
"Goodbye, Teacher!"
"Goodbye, everyone!"
With cheerful farewells ringing out, over a dozen giant "children" poured from the classroom like freed beasts, brimming with energy.
They walked in twos and threes, chattering excitedly about whether to play at Warriors' Spring or explore the forest.
"Huh? It's Sigvald-san!"
Sharp-eyed children soon spotted Kai's group of small strangers; curiosity instantly ignited. They crowded around in a rush.
"Are you Shanks's crew? I've never seen you before!"
A little boy wearing a horned helmet, messy pink hair covering half his face, stared at Kai with big, round eyes, completely unafraid.
His outfit stood out among the giant children. He was the only one wearing a wooden short sword at his waist like a proper warrior.
"We're enemies, actually. Shanks and we are enemies," Kai said with a smile.
If he wasn't mistaken, this child was Colon, the son of Gaban and the giant woman Ripley.
The fruit of a great love.
"Huh?! Enemies?"
Colon's mouth fell open in surprise, but instead of showing hostility, his curiosity blazed even brighter. He couldn't wait to ask, "So who won?"
Before Kai could answer, Yamato puffed out her chest and declared proudly, "We did, of course!"
"Wow! Amazing!!"
Stars sparkled in Colon's eyes as he looked at Yamato with worship. "Can you take me out to sea? I want to be a pirate too! A pirate as awesome as you!"
"No way!" Yamato said bluntly, without hesitation.
Kai was slightly surprised and nodded to himself. Yamato's grown. She knows not to casually agree to take children on dangerous voyages. She understands boundaries now.
He was about to praise her when she added in a dismissive tone, "You're too weak! You'd just slow us down!"
The corner of Kai's mouth, which had just started to rise, froze. He pressed a hand to his forehead helplessly.
Sure enough, he couldn't hold unrealistic expectations for Yamato's thought process.
He had no doubt that if baby Loki said the same thing right now, she'd agree without a second thought.
"Ugh, darn it."
Told bluntly he was "too weak," Colon deflated like a punctured balloon, pouting. But the little guy clearly wasn't giving up easily.
He tilted his head, thinking, then hope rekindled in his eyes. He pressed on stubbornly, "Then when I get stronger, super super strong, will you take me to sea?"
Compared to Shanks always refusing with "you're too young," Yamato's condition of "getting stronger" sounded far more practical and achievable.
Colon didn't realize that by the time he got strong enough, he wouldn't need anyone to take him anywhere.
"Sure!" Yamato agreed readily this time, sweeping her hand and accepting a reserved little brother with a gesture.
Does this count as stealing from Shanks?
Kai rubbed his chin, a little amused.
Given Colon's father's ties to the Red Hair Pirates, logically, he shouldn't join the Beast Pirates.
Still, on these bold, untamed seas, fate and choice were the least predictable things of all.
With Yamato's clear promise, Colon's face lit up with a brilliant smile. He clenched his small fist and declared loudly, "I'll train really hard!"
"Then you have to eat well and not be picky! Eating lots makes you strong! And train hard without slacking, okay?"
Yamato put her hands on her hips, assuming a big-sister pose as she instructed him seriously.
"Yes! I'll remember!" Colon nodded eagerly like a pecking chick.
Sigvald stood quietly to the side, smiling as he watched, making no move to interfere with Kai's group as they talked to Colon.
In giant culture, setting out to sea as a pirate was perfectly normal, even a rite of passage many giant warriors went through.
In the past, it had been an essential survival method for the giants.
"Colon, why are you thinking about going to sea again? It's so dangerous!"
"Yeah, yeah! What's so great about sailing with these little humans? Staying in Elbaf is way safer and more comfortable!"
Colon's friends chimed in, trying to talk him out of it.
"You don't understand at all! Setting sail on adventures, seeing the vast world, challenging powerful opponents—that's a real man's romance!"
Colon gripped his short sword, eyes shining with a longing completely foreign to his peers.
Though Colon's expression was dead serious, his friends clearly couldn't grasp his dream.
Just then, three giant girls stepped forward and scolded the boys who'd spoken carelessly. "Hey, you can't call them 'little humans.' That's really rude!"
The powerful aura radiating from the three girls instantly overwhelmed the boys, who shrank back and obediently apologized.
"We're sorry."
"It's fine." Kai waved them off with an awkward smile, showing he didn't mind.
Is this a giant cultural thing? A natural fear of women?
Kozuki Hiyori tugged lightly on Kai's sleeve and whispered her confusion. "Kai-sama, these giant children seem very different from what I imagined the descendants of a warrior nation would be like."
Elbaf was famous for its valor and love of battle. But the children here not only feared sailing and combat, their language had become so... polite?
"Because today's Elbaf is different from the past."
A gentle, clear female voice came from nearby.
Everyone turned to see a female giant with a neat ponytail, warrior paint across her face, and a beautiful, spirited appearance walking toward them.
She smiled as she explained, "Harsh words, violence, plunder, war—those barbaric labels were cast aside under King Harald's guidance."
"Teacher Ripley!"
"Mom!"
The children rushed to greet her warmly, and Colon called out happily.
Ripley smiled, patting the children's heads one by one and returning their greetings.
Then she bent down gracefully, studying Kai with unconcealed curiosity. "Hmm. Quite handsome and dashing. You don't look like the vicious pirate Shanks described."
"Shanks? You know him?"
The crew exchanged surprised glances.
Right, the giant boy had mentioned Shanks earlier, too.
Could it be that Red-Haired Shanks had already established deep, strong ties with Elbaf's giants before they arrived?
Ripley seemed to sense their confusion and said frankly, "My husband once sailed on the same ship as Shanks for quite some time."
"The—the same ship?!"
Everyone's eyes went wide with shock.
Shanks had only been on two ships: the Red Force and the Oro Jackson—Gol D. Roger's vessel, the Pirate King's ship!
They could meet a Roger Pirates member here?
"Judging people's character by appearance alone isn't a wise habit," Kai said with a faint smile, completely unbothered by Shanks's "bad review."
"Very composed and confident," Ripley said, surprise flashing in her eyes before she smoothed it away. "I've heard you helped Captains Dorry and Brogy, and the others. So long as you come to Elbaf in good faith and do no harm here, my family won't stand in your way."
"Much appreciated," Kai said with a composed nod.
Ripley said no more, turning her gaze to her son. Her tone became warm but firm. "Colon, if you've really decided to go to sea, then you must train hard, eat well, and study diligently."
Colon had been nodding obediently until he heard the word "study." His face instantly fell, despair written all over it.
"Why do pirates have to study, too?"
When he wasn't a pirate, he had to study. Now that he wanted to be one, he still had to study. Wasn't becoming a pirate pointless then?
"Dummy!"
Ripley flicked her son's forehead, exasperated yet amused. "If you don't study navigation, you'll get lost at sea! If you don't learn about different island cultures, you won't even know when you've offended someone! If you don't study medicine, you won't know how to treat injuries!"
"Think about it. Without all that important knowledge, how will you survive the ocean?"
Motherly love bombarded Colon until he was dazed, able only to nod in confusion.
Kai now understood why giants feared their mothers.
While Ripley and Colon were having their mother-son moment, a figure quietly crept from the classroom's shadows, silently approaching Kai's group.