After arranging for the wounded to board the boat, Mole suddenly noticed that one person was still on the shore. Upon closer inspection, he grinned.
"Yo! Loya, why didn't you get on the boat? It's about to leave—do you want to swim back?"
In Mole's eyes, Loya was a Devil Fruit user, and he would be incapacitated as soon as he touched the sea. His maliciousness was evident.
In response to Mole's taunt, Loya retaliated with an ice spear attack while nibbling on a nearly scorched pork chop. He sighed internally, thinking, "Ugh! What a mistake... I know Simon can score over eight layers, but I adjusted the odds too high. My Bailey~~"
Is it surprising that those who engage in betting might also gamble?
Not at all.
And although he wouldn't actually swim back, it wasn't because he was afraid of exposure. He didn't mind if people eventually discovered his situation with seawater and Haki stones.
The real reason was that they were in the Windless Zone!
It was the lair of various Sea Kings!
At any moment, a massive Sea King could appear and swallow him whole—now that would be fatal.
Loya had already tried it; even when he was carried on someone's back, he felt faint and nauseous, and the only way he could manage was by using his own modeling magic to create a mount.
But how much mana would it take to return that way? He wasn't Kuzan, who could ride across the sea on a bicycle without a care.
If people were considered mere transportation, staying in the belly of a Sea King was out of the question.
After all that chaos had been cleaned up, dying like that would be utterly shameful, earning him a spot on the Navy's list of idiots.
Mole easily dodged Loya's ice spear and swiftly moved in with a shaver, hooking Loya by the neck. "Well, well. I'll knock you out after we board the ship. Anyway, the warship is fast; we can reach Marine Buddha by night."
"Haha!"
Loya looked at him with contempt. "Are you sure you can still hit me for long now?"
Even without revealing his dragon scales, simply activating the blue dragon pattern already made Loya's defense and resilience formidable. Aludo had once remarked that Loya's defense in this state surpassed that of most elite battalion members, and his resistance to blows was only slightly weaker than Aludo's own.
Seeing Loya's blatant disregard, Mole furrowed his brow, preparing to teach him a lesson.
Suddenly, a figure appeared behind them, striking them both on the head twice.
The two of them quickly separated, assuming defensive stances, but when they recognized the familiar purple uniform, they immediately straightened up and saluted.
"Teacher Zefa!"
The newcomer was Zefa. Although he was defeated by Luffy in the original story, at that time he was 75 years old and relied on medicine to maintain his combat effectiveness. Despite having lost a hand, Zefa was still on the verge of his peak, easily teaching them as if it were a game.
"What are you doing? The boat will be sailing soon! Get moving and board now!"
Zefa's body radiated a black energy, and his tiger-like eyes were filled with authority. Faced with Zefa's anger, no one dared to misbehave, and the two recruits quickly trotted aboard the warship.
Slap!
As soon as his feet hit the deck, Loya fell to the ground, his stomach churning.
Zefa took a deep breath, ignored Loya, and ordered, "Set sail!"
Woo~
The leading warship acknowledged the command, raising a long siren as it slowly departed from the shore. The warships lined up behind turned their bows and followed suit.
A recruit from another team rushed to Loya's side, poking him and saying in surprise, "Hey! It's true—Loya is really seasick!"
The surrounding recruits perked up, turning to Zefa. "Chief Instructor Zefa! Can the assessment be conducted on board over the next week?"
Loya groaned, "...You guys are doomed!"
Zefa retorted, "...Get out of here!"
With that, Zefa lifted Loya off the ground and sent him flying with a punch. Loya slammed into the cabin with a thud, leaving a clear mark on the hard iron plate, before passing out with a satisfied smile on his face.
The onlookers felt a chill: "Isn't Loya awakening some strange attribute...?"