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Early morning.

The sky was clear and bright, with a gentle sea breeze brushing through the air. Fluffy white clouds drifted lazily across the azure expanse above.

After waking up early, Ichiji had spent some invigorating "morning exercise" time with Isabelle and the twin sisters, his three beautiful maids. Feeling refreshed and energized, he made his way to the dining hall.

The infamous photograph of Vinsmoke Judge’s "Great Massacre of Four Nations" hung prominently in the hall—a sight that had long since become unremarkable to him.

On the dining table were several dishes of appetizing breakfast food, their presentation so enticing they made one's mouth water.

"Good morning!"

Lying quietly in a white, form-fitting short skirt, Reiju sat reading a thick book, her demeanor elegant and refined. She set the book aside, stood up with a smile, and revealed her slender, pale legs.

Her eyes sparkled mischievously as she teased Ichiji, who had just walked in: "You're two or three hours later than usual today. Are you still planning to train?"

Her room was close to Ichiji’s, so she naturally knew what this mischievous younger brother had been up to earlier.

"Of course!"

Ichiji took his seat without acknowledging her teasing and began devouring his share of the breakfast laid out before him.

"What an uncute little brother!"

Reiju sighed helplessly, finding it somewhat dull. She rested her cheek on her hand and smiled while watching him eat, observing the younger brother who, despite rarely interacting with others, had more than once—intentionally or not—protected her over the years.

Though he wasn’t wolfing down his food, he also wasn’t overly concerned about table manners.

"What? Is there a flower on my face?" Ichiji picked up a glass of milk and asked with a chuckle.

Unlike Niji and Yonji, Reiju, being three years older, hadn’t been stripped of normal emotions despite being unable to defy Judge’s orders. Though she tended to prioritize self-preservation, she remained a gentle and caring older sister overall—and Ichiji didn’t dislike her for it.

"Heh... I was just thinking how the once silent, taciturn boy who only cared about training has grown up..." Reiju’s beautiful eyes twinkled as she reminisced, resting her chin on her hand and smiling softly.

"Have I really grown up?"

Ichiji chuckled lightly, neither confirming nor denying it, and continued enjoying his meal.

"Oh, right—I forgot to tell you yesterday..." Reiju suddenly remembered something and addressed Ichiji, who had already finished eating and was about to leave for training. "That Trafalgar Law you asked me to look for—we’ve finally found traces of him."

As the dominant force in the North Blue, Germa naturally maintained its own intelligence network. However, having declined for three centuries and only recently regained strength over the past decade, Germa’s capabilities paled in comparison to organizations like the Revolutionary Army or the Four Emperors. And forget about matching Cipher Pol’s omnipresent spy networks under the World Government.

"Where is he?"

Ichiji raised an eyebrow and cut straight to the chase.

He’d tasked Reiju with finding Trafalgar Law some time ago, but due to the sensitive nature of the Ope Ope no Mi’s abilities, he hadn’t dared involve Spandam, fearing unwanted attention from the World Government.

However, Trafalgar Law had spent years hiding to evade the Donquixote Family, wandering unpredictably across the seas. With Germa’s current intelligence resources, locating someone deliberately concealing their whereabouts within the vast North Blue was no easy feat.

"He’s in the Branca Town near the Bastia Sea region. He should still be lingering around there for the next few days."

Though she’d asked multiple times, Reiju couldn’t help but express her confusion yet again: "By the way, is that guy really that important? Why are you so focused on him?"

"Absolutely important. If Germa wants to rise quickly, his abilities could significantly shorten the process of 'accumulation'..."

Without another word, Ichiji strode toward the exit, calling back over his shoulder: "I’ll need to head out personally. Tell Father when you get the chance."

With a solid understanding of Trafalgar Law’s background, Ichiji was confident he could subdue the man—or at least make him useful, even if genuine loyalty wasn’t immediately forthcoming.

Originally, Ichiji had planned to stay at headquarters to witness the unveiling of the first piece of shape memory armor—a groundbreaking technological marvel—but it seemed he’d have to miss it now.

"So utterly uncute..."

Reiju watched Ichiji rush off with a mix of exasperation and puzzlement. She couldn’t quite grasp why someone like Trafalgar Law warranted such attention from Ichiji.

Within ten minutes.

Ichiji’s personal Warship detached itself from the "mainland," leaving many members of Germa scratching their heads. No one knew why Ichiji, who had just returned, suddenly departed headquarters again—it certainly didn’t seem like preparations for battle.

"Shu, shu..."

Niji, slightly out of breath, stared at the retreating Warship as he kicked out slash after slash toward the rippling waves below, each cutting swathes four or five meters wide.

"What’s gotten into him?" Niji muttered, furrowing his brow.

"Huff... Who knows!" Yonji, drenched in sweat, continued pounding wooden posts with Tekkai-enhanced finger strikes, his voice tinged with envy and resentment. "Ever since we were kids, that guy’s always done whatever he wanted, even Father couldn’t control him!"

The massive wooden post bore countless holes from his relentless attacks—a testament to his frustration.

Just because they weren’t as strong as Ichiji didn’t mean they were completely worthless.

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