Sin was woken up by a very excited Hiyori in the morning, and when they gathered downstairs, he saw everyone, including Wolf, wearing very childlike smiles on their faces.
Surprisingly, they all refused to eat breakfast, urging him to take them to Pucci, the Gourmet City, and Desire had already purchased tickets for all of them through the hotel.
He sighed in his heart and told them that he would meet them at the station, and though they were curious why he was not coming with them, they obediently nodded to him and left.
"Don't be late!"
He chucked at Hiyori's reminder, finding it a little funny, and then he started walking towards Iceburg's Mansion.
The blue-haired man was already up and having his breakfast when Sin was led into the room.
And he knew that the job was done as soon as Iceburg smiled at him.
"Good morning."
"Good morning. I was going to come to you after breakfast." The mayor told him and then sent the maid out of the room after she poured some juice for the guest.
"Do you have them?" He straightforwardly asked, and the man nodded before he reached inside his jacket's inner pocket and took out a Blueprint Tube.
"Don't destroy them, please." He requested, and Sin nodded to him before he safely put the tube inside his jacket.
"I will take care of them." He promised and then picked up the juice, finishing it in one go. "My apologies, but I have a train to catch. Thank you for everything."
"You are welcome. Also, Paulie came to ask my permission to join your crew." The blue-haired man smiled.
"And?"
"I will train him for you."
"Thanks again, Iceburg. I will see you in a while." He said and then stood up to leave. "Oh, and don't let them get a whiff that you are aware of their truth. Just play along."
"I know." The Mayor laughed then nodded to him assuredly, and as he watched Sin leave, he felt like a weight that had been pressing on his shoulders ever since Tom's death had been lifted.
The Blueprints were now in the safest hands possible, and just like Den, he had decided to put his trust in Sin.
There were still a few minutes in the train, and after leaving the mansion, Sin arrived at Dock 1, where both Paulie and Kaku were already working.
"I talked to Iceburg." He said to them, catching their attention. "He has no objections. Do you have your answer yet?"
Kaku hesitantly shook his head.
"I still need time to think."
"It's okay. You have four years." Sin smiled. "Follow your heart's desire, and if you seek an adventure unlike any that anyone has ever seen, join me. I won't promise you a long life, but I will promise you a fun and fulfilling life." He chucked before he nodded to Paulie. "See you." He said and then disappeared in a bolt of lightning.
"Hey, lend me some money before you go!" Paulie yelled and sighed when he received no repose. His reaction made Kaku chuckle, which irritated him. "What are you laughing at?"
"You." He smiled. "Come on, don't waste time now. We have to meet Den in two hours."
Paulie glared at him but kept quiet as he returned to his work too.
"Why did you agree so fast?" The rectangular-nosed boy curiously asked, and Paulie stopped and grinned at him.
"I don't know." He truthfully said, making the boy curious. "I just felt like if I refused, I would regret it for the rest of my life."
"You would become a Pirate just like that?"
"Anything for a life fulfilled." The blonde man smirked before taking out a cigar and lighting it up. "And he's a Captain I would never mind following."
"Why?"
"Because I have seen how he treats people around him. Everyone respects him, and people can't help but admire him. Tom once told us that Sin had the qualities of a King unlike any he had seen before and that he would even surpass the likes of Roger and the people who now rule the Seas." He smiled.
"The qualities of a King?"
"I don't really know what he meant by that. He never went into details about it." He honestly said. "But I trust his words."
"They knew each other?" Kaku curiously asked.
"Not really. They only met once." He smiled. "But that meeting was enough to leave a lasting impression on Tom."
"I see."
"What do you desire in life?" Paulie curiously asked.
A light smile crept on Kaku's face at the question.
"I don't know."
"Why not accept his offer then?"
"I might." He nodded, and Paulie grinned at him.
"To the voyages that await us!" He said, drawing his fist forward, and Kaku bumped his fist with him.
"To the voyages that await us." He smiled.
Far away from them, at the Blue Station, a smile crossed on Sin's face as he heard the conversation that was taking place inside Dock 1, and then heard the excited call of Hiyori, telling him that it was time to go.
The Puffing Tom, the Pride of Water 7, was truly a sight to behold. And the loud horn, together with the sound of running Stream Engines, truly made your blood pulse in excitement.
Once inside, the girls were amazed at its lavish wooden interior, and though their seats were in the VIP Compartment, they chose to walk through all of the train to arrive at their seats.
Their excitement did abate a little when they saw nothing but an endless blue sea outside the windows, and when Sin heard Yamato's remark, he could not help his chuckles.
"The Submarine is better."
"It is. Wait until I take you onboard Black Pearl, it will give you a true Sea Faring experience." He nodded. "The Sea Train was built for swift and easy travel, not to have a fun voyage, and it serves its purpose."
And it was not that every one of them was bored.
Wolf was thoroughly enjoying the ride, impressed at all the technology and effort that must have gone into creating the train and the tracks.
Even those who were bored, became excited again once they arrived at the Station at Pucci, and even though the city was nowhere near as stunning as Water 7, the appetising aroma in the air made them salivate.
Right next to the station was a food street, littered with hundreds of people, and Lily, being as gluttonous as she was, got straight to work, ordering food at every stall and shop they passed by.
There were quite a few things she did not like at all, but most of the dishes, especially the meaty ones, were devoured by her in numbers that shocked people.
Thankfully, Sin was still wearing his half-mask, and they could all enjoy their time like normal people, without having odd eyes on them or people feeling nervous at their presence.
For hours, the crew enjoyed all sorts of delicacies on the small Island, and in the afternoon, when Puffing Tom returned to Pucci, they boarded it to head to the Festival Island, San Faldo.
A colourful island, with music on every street, and everyone wearing masks on their faces as they danced and participated in the daily festival intrigued them a lot.
They all danced to the music, and Hiyori thoroughly enjoyed her time dancing with Sin, following his lead and swaying to the music.
Today just happened to be the festival of Lights, and hours later, when the sun started sinking and the music on the streets changed to a very comforting melody, the hanging lanterns were lit up by people.
Before Dinner, they all gathered in the central Plaza, and they watched the fireworks show that the City Management had prepared.
Most of them had never seen fireworks of this scale before, so watching the sky light up in so many different colours, captivated them to their core.
Afterwards, all of them took part in lighting up the Sky Laterns, which elated both Hiyori and Yamato, and they loved the sight of the night sky that was littered with lanterns.
They all had a sumptuous dinner at a restaurant next to the station, and then they boarded the Puffing Tom to head to St. Poplar, a city that finally had a sense of normalcy about it.
The first thing they did after arriving in the Trade City was to find a Hotel to stay the night in, and as soon as they found one, they quickly checked into their rooms and went to sleep.
Only Sin, Yamato, and Desire stayed up, and the three of them headed out for a walk to take a good look at the Night Market, where those precious things were now on display that you could not find in the daytime.
It was at night when the Black Market on St. Poplar was truly active.
"Looking for anything particular?" Seeing Sin carrying the briefcase that contained Berries, Desire could not help but ask, and he smiled at her.
"Just in case anything catches my interest." He said.
The two girls silently followed him, curiously looking around the shops and shady people, who were discussing their business, and both of them frowned when they sensed something and saw Sin enter the shop.
It was a place filled with Seastone, and there were Seastone Cuffs, Chains, Nets, and even sets of Nails and Bullets that were up for sale, and three men in black, wearing hats at night, were sitting behind the counter.
However, both of them looked at Sin in surprise when he proceeded to pick up a Handcuff made out of Seastone and showed no sign of feeling any weakness.
"Show me a set of 100% Pure Seastone Cuffs." He asked, and one man silently stood up before he walked into the backroom and returned, carrying a briefcase.
He opened it, and inside they found a set of four pure Seastone Handcuffs, and after Sin inspected them, he nodded his head.
"Bullets."
"Pistols or Rifles?"
"Both." Sin said and showed the man the pistol he was wearing on his waist.
The two girls watched him handle the Seastone as if it did not bother him at all, and minutes later, when they walked out of the shop after making purchases worth several million Berries, they could not help their curiosity.
"Don't you feel weak?" Desire asked, and he shook his head.
"I trained myself to resist it."
"How?" She frowned.
"By wearing it all day." He grinned, and then curiously looked at the red-haired girl. "I sensed you tense up when we entered the shop. You ate a Devil Fruit."
Desire nodded her head to his words.
"Which one?" He curiously asked, and she smiled a little.
"Nothing as exciting as yours." She replied and then under their eyes, she transformed into an aged woman, and even her clothes were different now. "I ate Genso Genso no Mi."
"You can create Illusions." He smiled. "That's an exciting ability."
"Thanks!" She seemed really happy that he liked her Powers, and Yamato was impressed too as she started insisting her to show more of her powers.
They did not know how far they travelled into the market before they passed by a lumberyard, and Sin stopped and turned to look toward it.
Something had finally caught his interest.