"Oh yeah!" Liam laughed heartily. "Turns out I really am that amazing!"
The little girl, who had been rubbing her swollen eyes, let out a small giggle. She didn't understand what Big Brother and Big Sister were talking about, but the way they said it was funny.
Robin tapped a finger against Liam's chest. "But will that really work? If you are our guide, you'll have to constantly adjust the ship's course while sailing. Unless…" She glanced at the suit of dark armor. "You let B.I.B. inherit the Magnet-Magnet Fruit instead?"
"Not happening." Liam rejected the idea immediately.
At the same time, his gaze flicked toward the Den Den Mushi hanging lazily from a branch in the woods. A faint hum filled the air.
With a sharp metallic whap, a steel rod suddenly shot from the snail's forehead, detached from its body, and zipped through the air, landing neatly in Liam's waiting hand.
"If I hand over the Magnet-Magnet Fruit to it, then how am I supposed to have my fun?" He slung the metal rod over his shoulder, grinning.
The little girl's mouth fell open in shock. She had no idea what had just happened, but it had looked incredible.
Robin sighed, her expression practically saying, Well, what now?
"This might be tricky…" Liam admitted, rubbing his chin. Then he smirked. "But it's not impossible!"
Liam rested the metal rod against his shoulder and grinned. "For example… like this."
Raising the rod high, he suddenly drove it into the ground, planting it upright before him.
At that moment, an invisible yet overwhelming magnetic force pulsed from Liam's body, surging through the rod as if an enormous, unseen hand had reached into the weak magnetic whirlpool of this small island, stirring it, pulling at its core.
The force grew stronger, churning in the same direction as the island's natural magnetic pull, until eventually, the two merged seamlessly, becoming one.
The Log Pose in Liam's hand quivered violently before snapping toward a new direction over the sea.
Robin and the little girl watched in astonishment.
"Done." Liam pulled the metal rod free and casually tossed it aside.
Nearby, the little green Den Den Mushi suddenly expanded, shifting back into its massive castle form. It opened its gaping maw, swallowed the discarded rod in one gulp, then shrank back down to its smaller state, swaying lazily on the ground.
The little girl stared, stunned, glancing between the enormous snail and Liam. She opened her mouth as if to speak but couldn't find the words.
Robin, unfazed by the spectacle, turned to Liam. "Incredible… So you forced the Log Pose to register the island's magnetic field instantly?"
Liam nodded. By using the Magnet-Magnet Fruit, he had temporarily amplified the island's weak magnetic whirlpool, allowing the Log Pose to complete its process in an instant and immediately point to the next island.
"The effect should last about one to two hours," Liam explained. "It's a shame I can't alter the properties of the whirlpool itself. Dr. Vegapunk's research notes on magnetic fields are a nightmare to understand. If I could figure them out, maybe I'd be able to turn this spring island into a winter island just for fun…"
Robin gave him an incredulous look. If he really could do something like that, it would be nothing short of a miracle.
Liam smirked. "How can you be so sure… that the islands of the Grand Line, this entire intricate magnetic network, weren't created by someone? Maybe a previous Magnet-Magnet Fruit user, or some kind of ancient technology, shaped it all."
Robin fell silent, considering his words. "If that were true… it would be an unprecedented project. And yet, there's no record of such a thing in history. The only explanation would be…"
Her voice trailed off as she connected the pieces.
If the Grand Line's magnetic system had been artificially altered, then the knowledge of it must have been lost along with the Void Century.
"But the Grand Line and the Red Line… These geological formations have existed for thousands of years," Robin reasoned. "That means there are only two possibilities:
One, this complex magnetic network was never recorded because it predates history itself.
Or two, before the Void Century, the Grand Line was just an ordinary ocean, like the Four Blues, with no magnetic routes at all."
She met Liam's gaze, searching for his thoughts.
Liam snapped his fingers. "And if it was artificially created, think about what that means. The moment these swirling magnetic fields appeared, the once-stable Grand Line turned into the most unpredictable, chaotic sea in the world. Dangerous currents, impossible weather, islands cut off from the outside world…" He let out a low chuckle. "Doesn't that sound like something a madman would do to destroy the world?"
Robin's expression darkened.
She recalled Dr. Clover's research, theories of a massive ancient kingdom that existed during the Void Century… Could they have been responsible?
Had they been wiped out because their actions seemed like those of a madman who threatened the world itself? And if that were the case, then…
The World Government would be the heroes who had saved the world.
Yet, if that were true, why did they erase all records of that era?
Was it because, after destroying the ancient kingdom, they realized the truth wasn't as they had thought? That the ones they had defeated weren't the villains history had painted them to be?
Robin remembered the Poneglyph she had read on Kuraig Island.
"It's a possibility," she admitted. "But without evidence, it's just a theory."
Looking up, she noticed Liam had already lost interest in the conversation. He had turned away, busying himself with the stacked logs.
Sighing, Robin followed him. "To build a ship, we'll need tools. Let's head to town and see if we can borrow some."
Most of the people living here were fishermen. They had to have shipbuilding tools.
Liam nodded. He couldn't exactly cut and shape wood with his bare hands, could he? "What do we need?"
Robin recalled some books she had read and cautiously listed a few necessary tools, saws, planers, chisels.
Liam listened carefully, then pressed for more details. "What do those look like?"
Robin's brow furrowed. "…Are you planning not to go to town?"
Liam shot her a grin and gave a thumbs-up. "Bingo."
He held out his hand.
A dark blur zipped through the air as B.I.B. flew toward him, carrying a small, wood-colored Den Den Mushi. The snail had been lazily crawling along a tree trunk but now found itself hovering in front of Liam.
The tiny creature blinked its lollipop-like eyes. "Boo?"
Liam locked eyes with the Den Den Mushi.
"Saw… wood planer…"
A strange sensation filled the air.
The little snail's eyes swirled in confusion as Liam's voice seemed to echo inside its mind.
Deep within the Den Den Mushi's castle, in a chamber filled with stored supplies, the walls and ceiling suddenly shifted. The wood-like surface began to melt, white fluid oozing out and rapidly taking shape, solidifying into the exact tools Liam and Robin needed.
Meanwhile, in the nearby town…
A group of villagers, both young men and older fishermen, had gathered together, their expressions tense.
"Them damn pirates kidnapped Amoline…" an old man muttered, his jaw clenched.
"We can't let them get away with this."
(End of Chapter)
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