The man's cough echoed sharply through the courtyard. After a brief moment of surprise, the women by the pool all turned toward the entrance. Monet was the first to notice Lloyd standing there.
The moment she recognized him, Monet's eyes lit up.
"Young Master!"
The others immediately followed her gaze.
In the next second, aside from Saint Shalria, who was still nervously clinging to Shirahoshi's chest, all the women rushed toward Lloyd.
From Lloyd's perspective, it looked like a wave of soft white crashing straight at him before surrounding him completely.
The women of the One Piece world were naturally blessed with exceptional figures, and Monet and the others stood among the finest. Any ordinary man placed in this situation would probably lose his composure instantly.
Lloyd, however, remained completely unfazed.
His expression did not change much.
Monet and the others stopped beside him while Lloyd slowly swept his gaze across the group before finally landing on Olvia, who was half hiding behind Robin.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
Under Lloyd's gaze, Olvia's cheeks quickly turned red. She lowered her head and buried her face against Robin's shoulder before whispering softly,
"Saint Lloyd, you're back..."
Lloyd crossed his arms.
"Yeah. I returned and went straight to the library to look for you. I didn't expect you to be here."
Robin immediately stepped forward to explain on Olvia's behalf.
"Young Master, I was the one who brought Mom here. I didn't mean to delay your matters. I'm truly sorry!"
As she spoke, Robin placed both hands in front of her abdomen and prepared to bow deeply in apology.
Before she could, Lloyd raised a hand and pressed lightly against her shoulder.
"No need to apologize. Your mother is already considered a free person. Visiting her daughter doesn't break any rules."
Olvia suddenly turned around as if planning to flee.
Lloyd instantly appeared in front of her, blocking her path.
"Why are you in such a hurry?"
Olvia lightly bit her lip.
"I... I need to change clothes. These clothes aren't suitable."
"Oh?"
Lloyd glanced at her calmly.
"I think they suit you just fine. No need to change."
His tone carried unquestionable authority.
Olvia naturally did not dare argue with him and could only lower her head obediently.
Monet stepped forward and wrapped an arm around Lloyd's.
"Young Master, would you like to relax for a while? I'll serve you."
A faint smile appeared on Lloyd's face.
The next moment, darkness surged upward from the ground and completely enveloped him, forming a black sphere that blocked everyone's view.
When the darkness faded, Lloyd was only wearing a pair of loose black swim trunks, exposing his tall and muscular upper body.
Aside from Olvia and Pudding, everyone present had long since become accustomed to helping Lloyd change clothes, so none of them found anything strange about the scene.
Monet naturally leaned against Lloyd while he wrapped an arm around her waist and walked toward the pool.
After arriving at the edge, Lloyd sat down comfortably and let the water soak around him. Hancock and Monet occupied his left and right sides, pressing close against him.
Feeling the softness surrounding him, Lloyd slowly closed his eyes, intending to enjoy the rare moment of relaxation.
Then an excited voice suddenly sounded above him.
"Saint Lloyd!"
Lloyd opened his eyes and looked toward Shirahoshi.
Only then did he remember Saint Shalria was still there.
Standing atop Shirahoshi's chest, Saint Shalria waved excitedly toward him.
Shirahoshi looked nervous as she softly reminded her,
"Shalria, please be careful..."
Unfortunately, Shalria was far too excited to listen.
The moment she saw Lloyd acknowledge her, she eagerly stepped forward.
However, Shirahoshi's skin was far too slippery.
The instant Shalria lifted her foot, she lost her balance and let out a startled scream as she slid downward.
Seeing this, Lloyd showed a rare trace of helplessness.
Robin quickly crossed her arms, preparing to use her Devil Fruit ability to catch her.
As Shalria rapidly fell, pale arms bloomed from Shirahoshi's waist and linked together. The hand at the front successfully grabbed Shalria's swimsuit.
Unfortunately, the swimsuit itself was thin and loosely tied.
Under everyone's stunned gaze, Robin accidentally pulled the entire top straight off.
In an instant, Saint Shalria was left wearing only her bikini bottoms.
Lloyd's mouth twitched slightly.
He immediately raised a hand.
A vortex of darkness appeared in his palm.
Buzz!
Powerful gravitational force erupted outward.
Shalria hovered above the water for less than a second before being pulled directly toward Lloyd.
Then came a soft sound.
Lloyd stared silently at the place where his hand had landed and fell into brief contemplation.
Shalria completely froze.
Her blank gaze slowly lowered toward her chest.
In the next second, her entire face turned bright red at a speed visible to the naked eye, faint white steam even rising from her head.
Her eyes rolled back and she fainted on the spot.
Lloyd immediately withdrew his hand.
Shalria collapsed against his chest while Monet and Hancock silently shifted aside to make her more comfortable.
Sugar swam over and retrieved Shalria's swimsuit top before handing it to Monet.
Monet gently spoke beside Shalria's ear.
"Shalria, your clothes are here. Do you want to put them back on?"
Shalria's body trembled slightly.
With her face pressed against Lloyd's chest, she weakly muttered,
"G... give it to me..."
Monet handed over the swimsuit.
Shalria reached out and accepted it weakly, but after taking it, she still showed no intention of moving away from Lloyd.
Seeing this, Lloyd spoke flatly.
"I'll close my eyes. Get up first."
Before he could finish speaking, Shalria suddenly sat upright and hurriedly said,
"Saint Lloyd, please don't. I was the one being reckless..."
With her sudden movement, Lloyd gained a complete view once again.
Yet he made no effort to avoid looking and simply watched openly.
The surrounding women covered their mouths in surprise.
Olvia swallowed nervously and muttered,
"Are all Celestial Dragons this uninhibited...?"
Robin leaned toward Olvia and whispered something into her ear.
A look of realization immediately appeared on Olvia's face.
Meanwhile, with a deeply flushed face, Shalria sat on Lloyd's waist while hurriedly putting her swimsuit back on.
After finally dressing herself properly, she slowly stood up and lowered her head.
"Saint Lloyd... I'll leave first..."
Lloyd casually waved his hand.
"No need to leave yet. Stay and play a little longer. Have dinner here tonight as well. Do I need to notify your father?"
Hearing that, Shalria's eyes widened in disbelief before excitement quickly filled them.
"No need, Saint Lloyd! As long as Father knows I'm here, that's enough!"
It was obvious why.
Saint Rosward would probably celebrate if Shalria managed to stay by Lloyd's side permanently. There was no way he would object to it.