Sea calendar 1512."
"Thank you!"
Sephiroth couldn't help but exhale a small sigh of relief.
He had left on November 16th. For the people at this time, he'd only been gone for ten days, so neither the Marines nor the Umbrella Corporation should have caused any major chaos.
However, compared to the Marines and the Umbrella Corporation, he should report his safety to his girls first...
With that thought, Sephiroth immediately drew the butcher knife tucked at his waist, opened a spatial door, and stepped inside.
...........
Calm Belt, Nine Snake Island.
On the calm blue sea, an island rose, surrounded by mountains and forests, brimming with a primitive, untamed aura.
In the center of the island, a huge mountain bore the two large characters "Nine Snakes" carved into its side. On its summit, nine artificial carvings depicted giant venomous snakes, fangs bared, tongues flicking.
On top of this mountain, a large fortress-like city had been carved, complete with rivers, fields, and Chinese-style buildings with white walls and red roofs.
Thousands of anti-aircraft guns lined the city walls. Taking advantage of the mountaintop's height, they could cover more than ten kilometers of the sea around the island, providing full-scale firepower coverage.
Coupled with the fact that this island was located in the Calm Belt, where various large Sea Kings appeared from time to time, any force that wanted to capture it would have to pay an extremely heavy price!
This city, armed to the teeth like a military fortress, was called the Amazon Lily Kingdom. All its residents were female, and men were forbidden from entering. Those who did were executed.
The supreme ruler of this country was a powerhouse, one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, known as the Pirate Empress... Boa Hancock!
With her powerful strength and unparalleled charm, she had gained the support of all the citizens of this country and held absolute control over the entire nation!
Amazon Lily Kingdom, Royal Palace.
This was a grand palace built with white walls and red tiles. Female warriors, armed and vigilant, guarded the palace.
In a luxuriously decorated bedroom, on a large white bed, Hancock, wearing a red nightgown, hugged a white pillow and lay on the snow-white sheets, her chest slightly compressed. Her long, fair legs kicked lightly on the bed unconsciously, and a glimpse of what lay beneath her skirt was visible.
"Sigh~! Sephiroth... where on earth did you go? So many days have passed, and you haven't come to see Hancock, and... Why is your vivre card so strange? It's completely still..."
Hancock stared intently at a white vivre card placed on the bed. It lay there quietly, completely still.
If it were ordinary paper, this would be nothing special; being still was the normal state.
However...
This is a vivre card, a very special kind of paper that fears neither water nor fire. Made by mixing someone's fingernails and hair into the material, it can reflect the life state of the vivre card's Master and also track their location.
Therefore, this tool had both great advantages and disadvantages. Of all the girls, Sephiroth had only given his vivre card to Hancock.
Because Sephiroth would spend a day with Hancock at least every three days, and at most every five days.
So, as early as five days ago, Hancock had started to wonder if Sephiroth hadn't come to see her. Perhaps something had delayed him.
For example, being captivated by some unknown little goblin...
So, wanting to act a little spoiled, she called Sephiroth's private den den mushi, hoping to contact him.
However...
The call wouldn't connect at all!
Feeling puzzled, Hancock took out Sephiroth's vivre card to confirm if his life state was normal and if something had happened to him.
But...
Hancock didn't know until she looked, and when she looked, she was startled. The vivre card in her hand showed no signs of burning, yet it had stopped beating!
As a result, she couldn't track or locate Sephiroth's whereabouts at all!
This made Hancock suspect something was wrong with the vivre card in her hand...
Regarding this, she asked people in her country who were more knowledgeable about vivre cards, but none of them understood what was going on.
However, the only thing they could be sure of was that since the vivre card wasn't burning, its Master should be safe and sound.
Ultimately, they could only guess that the Master of this vivre card might have gone to a special area that the vivre card couldn't locate, which was why it couldn't be tracked.
Hancock considered Sephiroth's powerful strength and his spatial movement ability, thinking that no one in this world could easily defeat him. Perhaps he was just delayed by something.
Sephiroth's personal safety and the stability of the Umbrella Corporation were closely linked. Hancock couldn't act rashly and spread uncertain information.
Therefore, she could only temporarily suppress the worry in her heart and prepare to observe for a while longer.
When the situation became truly unavoidable, she would contact Tesoro and ask him to search for Sephiroth's whereabouts...
So, the worried Hancock could only stare at the vivre card every day, hoping it would return to a normal state.
Hiss! Hiss!
As if sensing Hancock's troubled mood, a python with a white body and many pink spots on its skin, coiled by the head of the bed, raised its head, flicked its tongue, and rubbed against her face.
Hancock reached out her right hand, stroked the python's head, and sighed softly:
"Sigh~! Sarome, you are still more obedient and well-behaved...
If only Sephiroth could be like you and stay by my side all day!"
Suddenly!
The vivre card, which had been motionless, suddenly began to beat, moving and leaning towards a certain direction.
Seeing this, the heart Hancock had been holding finally relaxed, and she immediately breathed a sigh of relief. A sweet smile unconsciously bloomed on her face.
After lying on the bed for a while, Hancock propped herself up and prepared to use the den den mushi on the bedside table to call Sephiroth's private den den mushi and ask about his situation.
Swish!
In the void, a red light flashed, bringing with it ripples of space.
Sephiroth, wearing a black suit and holding a butcher knife, walked out of the spatial door.
"Sephiroth!"
Seeing this, Hancock immediately got out of bed with a joyful expression, her pair of snow-white jade feet stepping on the luxurious carpet.
She threw herself into Sephiroth's arms like a swallow returning to its nest, wrapping her arms around his neck.
Hancock pouted slightly and said in a slightly angry tone, "Where have you been all this time? Why haven't you come to see me!?"
Smelling the sweet fragrance emanating from the beauty in his arms, Sephiroth's breathing instantly became rapid, and his eyes were almost spitting fire, like a wild beast ready to devour someone.
He had been traveling through time using the Rainbow Mist, going back and forth for nearly a year, and finally returned to his own time node.
He had been holding it in for so long. If he hadn't used research and cultivation to distract himself, with his usual personality, he would have gone to find other women long ago!
Now, he had finally returned to his own time node and saw the girls he had been thinking about. His mood was simply ecstatic beyond measure!
So, he subconsciously said to Hancock, "This is a long story... so I'll tell you later!"
...Three hours later...
Hancock struggled, ran off the large bed, and opened the bedroom door a crack. She shouted to a female warrior standing guard outside the door, "Alan, quickly go and call Sandersonia and Marigold over, tell them Sephiroth is back..."
Hearing this, the female warrior standing guard outside the door immediately turned to look at the bedroom door from which crying sounds had been coming. She saw only half of Hancock's face showing through the crack in the door.
"Ah! Snake Princess, you..."
"Hurry up! What are you still standing there for!?" Hancock said softly with a red face.
"Oh! Oh! Okay, I'll go now..."
Alan nodded with a red face and quickly ran into the distance...