After Levanoth left, Nicholas immediately summoned Stussy and the others, instructing them to prepare for departure. Simon and Katie were tasked with resupplying, while Vista led his subordinates to replenish ammunition and essential supplies. As for Stussy, she naturally accompanied Nicholas.
Soon, in the dead of night a day later, a large ship sailed out of Seven Water City, heading towards the vast sea. Once the ship entered a relatively stable sailing environment and had been cruising for a few hours, Nicholas ordered the ship to anchor and the crew members to take shifts resting.
Nicholas convened the ship's officers in the captain's cabin, much to the curiosity of the other pirates onboard. Although they were unaware of the discussions held within the cabin, they noticed intense conflicts erupting inside, with both Stussy, who typically kept herself tightly wrapped, and Vista, who was more responsible than the captain, showing signs of agitation.
Even Katie, usually the captain's favorite, left the cabin in tears. However, these matters were of no concern to the ordinary crew members, who understood that in Nicholas's eyes, true comrades were only the officers called into the captain's cabin, while they were expendable replacements at any moment.
Nonetheless, they had no objections, for compared to other pirate captains, Nicholas had been doing quite well. Their survival chances were relatively high in battle due to the captain's formidable strength, and they were able to retain a large portion of the loot from raids.
Observing the empty captain's cabin, Nicholas sat in his chair and couldn't help but smile bitterly. He knew his decisions were not well-received by others, but what else could he do?
The world ahead would be chaotic, and he couldn't even guarantee his own survival, let alone Stussy and the others.
Standing up, Nicholas intended to change into clean clothes and get a good night's sleep. However, he found his room's door tightly locked. Knocking on the door, it opened just enough for Nicholas to be pushed out along with a bald falcon, some clothes, and a blanket.
Carrying the bald falcon and the belongings, Nicholas made his way to the crow's nest on the deck to spend the night with Simon. Despite saying he was there to help Simon keep watch, Nicholas fell into a deep sleep and was unresponsive when Simon tried to wake him for his shift.
The next morning, Nicholas woke up to Simon's excited shouts about a significant event happening. Confused, Nicholas went to the deck, where Simon handed him a newspaper.
Glancing at the headline, Nicholas's eyes narrowed. The front page boldly declared, "Enies Lobby Breached! Giant Warrior Pirates Return!"
Underneath the headline, there was a large image showing the devastation of Enies Lobby, with three massive figures wielding giant weapons and two giants, Oimo and Kashi, standing tall in the background. It was clear that the three giants were Oars Jr., and the image of Dorry, and Brogy.
"First you, Captain, and now the missing captain of the Giant Warrior Pirates. After two consecutive attacks, the entire Enies Lobby is in ruins. Once the news spreads, it will shock the world. After all, this is a direct blow to the World Government!" exclaimed Simon.
Nicholas, however, seemed unfazed. "It's just Enies Lobby. Its symbolic significance outweighs its practical importance. Although it operates parallel to the Marine Headquarters, it's far weaker, as you witnessed that day. With the delicate relationship between Elbaf and the World Government, this incident will likely be downplayed."
As Nicholas pondered, he couldn't help but marvel at the military power of the world's strongest nations. Just two captains wreaked such havoc, imagine a group of giants wielding colossal weapons forming a line and executing Elbaf's Judgement, the sheer terror of it was unimaginable.