Nightin spent three years proving her abilities and showed exceptional talent in herbology. Even Queen couldn't match her skills in herb preparation.
Now her annual salary has reached 150 million Berry, which exceeds her own bounty, and it can be said that even if she were to sell herself, she couldn't exchange for this amount of money.
Kaido even tried to recruit her, recognizing her talent in this field. However, she kept declining tactfully, despite feeling tempted by the various unique herbs in the Beasts Pirates. She remains firm in her belief that she is only a partner and that her captain is only World.
However, Nightin's situation was somewhat different. Although she still identifies herself as the ship doctor of World Pirates, she has been working for the Beasts Pirates for the past three years. Moreover, Kaido tolerated this, as he believes that World will not be able to escape from Impel Down.
But it also meant that Nightin was only treated as an officer and didn't have the status of officer. She couldn't give orders to anyone in the Beast Pirates, except when it came to researching herbs.
During this period, it was not only Queen and Acier, but even Arceus was conducting research. Utilizing the Meadow Plate, he had successfully cultivated some novel crops.
Not far away, Setsuna was writing her own logbook in her room. Shortly after joining the Beast Pirates, she had developed this habit of recording interesting things every once in a while.
Although she didn't write every day, she maintained a frequency of one entry per week.
[December 16th, Year 1494, Heavy Snowfall
She was elated to have finally mastered the power of Sulong yesterday. Zeraora couldn't say she was weak anymore, and now she could help him out as well.
But even after three years, Zeraora has not grown any taller, while she has caught up to him in height.
He doesn't like it when people call him short, and he even severely beat up a pirate before because of this.
Many people have obtained the power of Lord Sacred Beast, and she also wanted that power, but Zeraora said they had to wait a little longer.
Last time, Mr. Kaido brought back a plate that made the Lord Sacred Beast very happy. It is said that there are many similar plates out there, and if they can find them, it should be enough to please him.
She was feeling a little homesick, but the outside world was also very interesting. After finding a Vivre Card that would lead them back to Zou Island, she wanted to take everyone there to take a look. Oh, Zeraora has never been to Zou Island. I wonder if everyone would like him.
But he still hasn't returned from his mission.]
She had not finished writing in her diary when a knocking sound was heard outside the door.
"Sister Shayna, is something the matter?"
"Come with me, Lord Sacred Beast is looking for us."
I'm coming," She said and leapt out the window, bypassing the door as it was one of her hobbies.
After Shayna led her there, she saw that Zeraora, King, Queen, Mandrell, Babanuki, Olga, Elizabeth and a few others who had also been strengthened by Arceus were all there.
In the past three years, many people had been strengthened, but they were not as lucky as Mandrell. They all happened to draw Devil Fruits which just happened to use up the Beasts Pirates' stock over the last two years.
However, this was reasonable as the ordinary Zoan-type Devil Fruits were acquired for the sole purpose of providing them to suitable subordinates.
Setsuna was the only exception among them. She just learned three skills: Sword Dance, Magnet Rise, and Bide, while the others obtained Pokémon abilities.
She was young and didn't have many opportunities to fight, so learning a few skills was already a special privilege. If it weren't for the fact that she's a Mink and able to use static electricity, it would have been difficult for her to learn Magnet Rise.
If you try to forcibly learn a skill without the necessary aptitude, you'll only end up wasting your energy and the skill may end up being of no use to you.
"What about Scotch? Why isn't he here?"
"Lord Sacred Beast, he had a bit of trouble earlier. He encountered some newcomers who had just entered the New World on his island, and they burned down both of our flags. He is currently dealing with this matter."
Babanuki stepped forward to explain for Scotch, but his answer caught Shayna's attention even more.
"Both?"
"Um, boss, not only did they burn the pirate flag, but they also burned down Arceus-sama' flag," While speaking, Babanuki felt a chill behind his back. Queen, who had been standing next to him, had disappeared at some point and was now at least thirty meters away.
"Boss Queen, are you okay?"
"I'm fine, I'm fine, what could happen to me? I'm just feeling a little hot."
He was already showing signs of post-traumatic stress disorder. Bickering with King was commonplace, but he would never bicker with Shayna. This had become an instinctive reaction for him.
Shayna ignored Queen.
"Never mind that guy. So, what happened then?"
"Scotch has taken care of them, but it took some time, so he couldn't make it here on time."
Burning the flags, especially burning both Arceus and Kaido's flags at the same time. In the eyes of the Beasts Pirates, this was a clear declaration of war. There was no need to ask as Scotch knows what to do with such people.
Only their blood could wash away this humiliation.
"Alright, now that it's been taken care of, that's all that matters. We called you here this time to give you something, and if Scotch isn't around, Babanuki, you can pass it on to him later."
Several energy hands each held out a box in front of them, each containing a somewhat withered bundle of hay.
"Lord Sacred Beast, what is this?"
"It's your New Year's gift - Revival Herb. Don't be fooled by its unassuming appearance, as this is your second chance at life. Of course, that might be a bit of an exaggeration. But if you encounter a situation where you're exhausted or severely injured, eat it. It can greatly restore your energy and give you the ability to fight again. But, it's also extremely bitter and after eating it, all you'll be able to taste is bitterness for the next few days."
The phrase "second chance at life" was not an exaggeration at all. It meant that each of them had been given a chance to perform sit-ups on the battlefield, a special ability usually reserved for "protagonists."
Compared to this ability, the side effects of it were nothing.
There are not many of these Revival Herbs available, and their original effect was meant for use on Pokémon. Even if humans or other animals were to receive this ability, they would not be able to consume the herb directly. Only Zeraora would be able to eat the Revival Herb.
This is also the reason why Arceus was only able to successfully improve the Revival Herb after retrieving the Meadow Plate. Only with the Grass-type plate could Arceus have greater control over plants.
The room fell silent, with even Shayna and King stunned, and Queen was so shocked that he even dropped his glasses.
Due to their different origins, Zeraora was the first to react.
Zeraora knelt down on one knee and spoke with utmost reverence, "We will follow your lead, and even if we have to go through fire and water, we will not hesitate."
After someone took the lead, it was almost like a chain reaction occurred in the room as everyone else followed suit and knelt down. Moreover, the words spoken became increasingly absurd. Arceus felt that if Queen were given a little more time, he may even come up with a rap.
"Alright, get up. This is just to give you a little more protection." Sometimes, he envied Momonga' ability to forcibly remain calm. At least he wouldn't get embarrassed by any actions of his subordinates.
He felt that Queen's flattery just now was enough to trigger the condition of forcibly remaining calm.
However, today's events were far from over. Kaido, who was known for his frequent disappearances, had returned, but this time he wasn't alone. He had come back with two children in his arms.