After a week, Rowan was in the pirate ship belonging to the Kneel pirates, having safely escaped the land. Since he did not have any suitable knowledge for navigation, he brought the crew along on board.
While sailing for a week, Rowan did not dare to lower his guard. Although he was powerful enough for the pirates to abandon any idea of stabbing his back, however, he remembered from the hub owner's words that devil fruit users cannot swim.
Rowan continued to experiment on his ability, or rather in particular, whether or not he can bounce on the air.
He has failed countless number of times. The main reason for this, as Rowan reasoned, lied on the fact that the air particles had large space around them due to frequent vibration; pushing on them merely caused those particles to shift in position and absorb the force, instead of propelling him up.
Therefore, Rowan has been modifying the bounce ability, by making the expulsion of bounce force much quicker, while preserving the same magnitude. By this split-second force, Rowan was hoping to gain the ability to bounce in the sky; he could do so much more than just floating. He could change direction in mid-air, not just by using his feet, but any part of his body.
Although the precise control of the ability required an arduous work, after a week of practice, Rowan finally managed it. Although the knock up from the bounce is very short, Rowan would no longer be as vulnerable as he was before.
'Also, this ability will only further increase as my controls gets better. Since I am able to do it, as long as I can add more magnitude behind this bounce, flying would no longer be impossible.' Rowan thought with glee.
"Land ho!" A lookout shouted from above. Hearing that, Rowan lifted his eyes and saw an island indeed.
The island was quite small. It contained a single large palm tree in the middle, and all 4 sides were covered by a beach. There were countless ships anchored around, and among them, a huge ship, with something akin to saber tooth tiger's head attached as a figurehead, was the most outstanding.
"Boss, we have arrived." The captain said excitedly, waiting for Rowan's response. "Sohelm island! The island for the lawless, governed by the man of 17 million Beli, the pirate admiral Don Krieg!"
Before setting the course, Rowan has been contemplating as to which location would be the best to hide from the marines. He did not want to stand out, especially after he has heard about the marine hero, Garp.
He had asked the Kneel pirates about any additional places not shown in the maps, and they revealed the base of Don Krieg, who spread the location of his base to the pirates for recruitment. Although the marines will soon hear the news, not only will it take time for them to mobilize and send troops, but Don Krieg is well known for the sheer number of pirates under him.
In the end, Rowan decided that this island is the best destination for him. He would disguise himself as one of the cannon fodders so that he can stay out of Don Krieg's sight. This way, the marines and Mad Treasure will lose the track of him. When he can be certain, he will silently quit Krieg's crew and escape.
"Alright. From here on, if they ask you guys as to who I am, I am just one of your crew members, with no remarkable abilities. If you fail to do this, you know the consequences." Rowan said while holding his fist up, and earned the nod from the captain, who gulped in fear. The Kneel pirates had no problem with Rowan's words since their original intention was to join the Krieg pirates anyway.
As the ship anchored on the island, the Kneel pirates and Rowan saw a bombardment of pirates, drinking and partying loudly.
Getting off the ship, Rowan's group was approached by a man with short, spiky black hair and a grey headband.
"G-Gin, the man demon!!" The captain of Kneel pirates whispered in awe.
Gin, with mace over his shoulder, simply threw a piece of the medal to the captain of Kneel pirates. "27th. Don't lose that plate. It's the indication that you are Krieg pirates."
Gin walked away uncaringly, leaving the group who were still looking at Gin in admiration. Rowan also faked the expression, in order to avoid any suspicion.
"Welcome, fellow pirates!!!" Suddenly, a booming voice was heard. Everyone turned their head, and saw a purple-haired man with a muscular frame, wearing golden armor. His expression was stern and serious, earning the crowd to quieten down, before erupting in excitement.
"The Ruler of the East Blue!!!"
"Pirate Fleet Admiral!!"
"""Don Krieg!!!""" The pirates screamed, earning a haughty smile from Don Krieg.
"I suspect that according to my plan, in a few days, the marines will gather troops and reach here! Therefore, tomorrow, we will be moving out, and sailing around the long way to avoid any encounter with them! At the same time, we will invade their empty branches one by one and rack up the fortunes!!" Don Krieg announced in a charismatic tone, and many pirates revealed their wicked smiles as they heard him.
The marines will never bring out their full force, and hence, that was the reason why they would group up to join forces. However, even with the remaining troops defending the base, it won't be enough to defend the sheer number of Krieg's fleet.
As Rowan reached such a conclusion, he broke into a cold sweat.
'That does sound scary, alright! How will the marines even defend against something like that?!'
"Our ultimate goal is to reach the Grand Line! We will swarm through the ocean, for the brightest treasure in the whole world, one piece!!" As Krieg revealed his ambition, the pirates started to chant his name.
"""Krieg! Krieg! Krieg!""" They believed that with their numbers, such a feat was not impossible.
Although skeptical, Rowan too was shocked by the sheer size of the fleet, causing him to think that Krieg might be able to achieve such a feat. Now, if Krieg was just as strong, won't he be unstoppable??
Thinking about this, Rowan grew uncertain. Don Krieg was just like Arlong, raiding and taking from the weak for his personal ambitions.
'Can I really afford to take advantage of this situation?' Rowan felt conflicted. His original plan no longer seemed appealing to him; he did not wish to become a scum like Arlong.
'What should I do?'