"It's no use..."
The night was dim and serene.
Seeing Nef, Stussy, and Lillian—all flushed with determination, each unwilling to admit defeat and vying to stand out—El folded his arms, rock-solid and steady. With a slight smirk, he closed his eyes and allowed his powerful aura to rise, ready to test their strength. "Very well, let me evaluate your training progress. If your skills fall short, don't expect me to go easy on you."
When it came to assessing his subordinates, El was always strict. He would offer no leniency.
"Yes, sir!"
The three women exchanged wary glances, immediately bracing themselves for the trial, each resolved to give their best effort.
"Who will go first?" After a moment, El opened his eyes, his expression turning serious as he scrutinized the trio before him. The air around him grew sharper, laden with an intensity that bordered on menacing.
"I've hit a bit of a bottleneck lately, unable to break through to the next level…" Stussy, ever confident, looked up at El with an almost teasing smile. She lifted her chin and laughed, "I'd hoped for just this sort of encouragement from you, El-sama!"
"This whole scheme was your idea, wasn't it?" El regarded her with a knowing smile, noticing her playful gaze. "Very well then, let's see if you've actually improved your skills in the Six Powers... Finger Pistol!"
Without hesitation, he unleashed a rapid, piercing attack. Though he wasn't angry, he couldn't let her off the hook for being so bold.
"Iron Body!"
Stussy's expression turned serious as she braced herself to block the attack. Despite her efforts, she could barely withstand the blow. A sharp gasp escaped her as the strike pierced her defenses, leaving a thin line of blood where El's finger had made contact. Yet, she had trained extensively and held her ground, pressing on even in the face of the initial setback, pushing herself beyond her limits.
El's smile grew. He didn't alter his approach, simply intensifying his strikes.
"Finger Pistol: Gatling!"
"Aaah! Paper Art: Flash!"
Though she tried to evade, Stussy found herself caught in the onslaught. She was buffeted, nearly overwhelmed, but her sheer determination kept her in the fight. Like a small boat in a storm, she clung to her will, pressing forward with gritted teeth.
"El-sama, it's my turn! Medicinal Fist: Iron Body!"
Seeing Stussy faltering, Nef stepped up without hesitation, launching her own unique style that combined medicine and martial arts. Though her strikes were fierce, she too struggled, battered back by El's unrelenting assault.
Blood was drawn as Nef let out a sharp cry, but she pressed on, refusing to give up.
"Is that all you've got?" El scoffed, flicking the blood from his shoulder as he shook his head, his tone dripping with disappointment. "Pathetic."
"Stussy, Nef..." Lillian's face turned pale, but she steadied herself. El's words ignited her determination, and she charged forward with a defiant shout, "Don't underestimate us, El-sama!"
"Very well."
With a glint of resolve, El raised his massive axe. His observation haki locked onto Lillian's every move, predicting her steps and anticipating her evasions. His strike came down in a swift, clean arc—so precise it seemed effortless.
The axe shot through the air with terrifying force.
"Aaah!"
Blood scattered. Lillian's face fell as she realized she was fully in his sights. Despite pushing herself to the limit, she couldn't match his strength. Her devil fruit abilities allowed her to read minds, but El's skills far surpassed her own, rendering her abilities almost useless. Each of her attacks was effortlessly countered as he stayed one step ahead.
"Pathetic. The three of you—attack together if you want a real chance."
For a moment, a silence settled. Then, as one, they steeled themselves, rising to the challenge. In their eyes burned the fierce determination not only to pass El's test but to meet him at his level, no matter what it took.
In the end, seeing that Lillian, with her Three-Eye Tribe resilience, was doing her best but simply wasn't quite strong enough, El finally decided to go easier on her. He smoothly withdrew his menacing dragon-headed battle axe, shaking off some lingering blood. With a hint of a smile, he looked down at the exhausted trio and said, "For now, I'll limit myself to a level close to your strength—no more, no less."
"Ugh…how infuriating, El-sama!"
"Don't underestimate us like that! We're not as weak as you think!"
Despite having been pushed to their limits and sweating profusely, the three women couldn't hide their frustration at El's relaxed attitude. Each gave a determined nod, and together, they launched one final coordinated attack.
'Clang… Clang…'
Despite their recent progress and breaking their own barriers, Nef, Stussy, and Lillian were ultimately still no match for El. The intense sparring session didn't last long, and soon enough, the three found themselves lying on the ground, completely out of breath and out of strength.
"This level of skill isn't enough," El said, glancing over them with a tone that was both stern and amused. "Don't think there won't be consequences. From now on, make sure you're serious about your training. No more slacking."
The three nodded in exhausted agreement, acknowledging the challenge ahead.
(They make a sex scene a fighting scene)
...
Morning came with the sunrise.
As dawn broke, Linlin slowly woke up, stretching her arms with a satisfied sigh. She'd had the most wonderful dream: in it, after the formation of Totto Land Kingdom, her beloved "El-oniichan" had become king. When she finally reached adulthood, they had an incredibly grand wedding, and she became the queen of Totto Land. Gerd had been her maid of honor, and her bridesmaids were young, beautiful women like Tsuru, Lily, Sally, Nef, Baka, Rena, Luna, Stussy, and Lillian. Moss, Rock, Barry, Uthan, Tain, Witt, Hajrudin, and the others served as El's "brotherhood."
In the dream, Linlin and El had many children together. Her first birth had been twins. But then, each year afterward, she seemed to give birth to even more children: triplets, quadruplets, even quintuplets. They were all adorable and incredibly well-behaved, with El ultimately letting her pick their names based on her favorite dishes.
She stretched again, laughing with joy as she remembered, "What a wonderful dream… all of El-oniichan's children were so cute…"
However, she couldn't help but wonder why each birth had so many babies. Puzzled, she scratched her head, cheeks growing red as she thought about it. "There's no way I'd ever let Gerd know about this dream—she'd never let me hear the end of it!"
Nearby, Gerd was waking up too.
She, too, felt rejuvenated and was even humming a tune, clearly in high spirits. Remembering her own dream, she couldn't help but blush. She recalled that in her dream, the Fallen Angel Pirates had established Totto Land—a nation that welcomed all races, abolished slavery, and brought all people together as equals. She, Linlin, and El had a grand wedding together. She remembered becoming a royal consort and giving birth to a son and daughter for El: a son who grew to be a tall, powerful leader of the giants and a daughter who grew up to be a beautiful, talented warrior.
Yet Gerd was perplexed—somehow, Linlin had seemed to have even more children than she did in the dream. Try as she might, she couldn't remember exactly how many children Linlin had, but she was nonetheless irritated. "What?! I'm a giant—I should be the one with more children, shouldn't I?"
Setting aside her usual competitiveness, she could only chuckle at herself as she thought about the silly dream, deciding that it wasn't worth dwelling on.
…
As night faded into day, the mysterious "Blue Fairy" that Nef had shared had spread its effects throughout the crew. It seemed each person was granted their own dream of peace and happiness. For the Fallen Angel Pirates, it was the perfect opportunity to revel and strengthen bonds. And for El, it was a well-earned reminder of the loyal, diverse crew he had by his side—each unique, each fierce in their own way.