Nereus didn't know how the Marines had relayed the message to Zephyr. He had only casually found a Marine and asked him to pass along Zephyr's wife's words.
But even after half a day, no Marine had come to take away Zephyr's family.
"Marines these days… their efficiency is getting worse and worse. Looks like the overall strength of the garrison at the Sabaody Archipelago has declined again."
"I mean, Dad, even if the garrison's overall strength has declined, isn't that because of you?"
"I've never attacked the Marine base here, and Marine manpower isn't exactly stretched thin right now. Logically, this shouldn't be happening. Maybe it's because Zephyr is still working on the front lines."
Looking at the Marines in the original timeline, nearly every well-known Marine officer came out of Zephyr's training camp. Not just the three Admirals and a large number of Vice Admirals, but also countless lower-ranking officers.
While these lower-ranking officers couldn't turn the tide of battle on their own, they were indispensable components in building the Marines into a massive war machine.
What was lost in the Summit War was precisely this group of Marines. That loss ultimately led to a severe decline in the Marines' overall strength, and the rapid recruitment during the World Military Draft resulted in uneven quality among new soldiers.
Although it didn't shake their position, recovery still took time.
Right now, with Zephyr still serving on the front lines as a Marine Admiral, the Marines truly lacked a chief instructor like him.
Yerick was still young, and his mother's current physical condition wasn't good. She didn't notice what Nereus said, otherwise, she might have fainted on the spot.
After all, Nereus was far more terrifying than those unknown pirates.
"Front lines? Why does it sound like you're expecting Zephyr to retire? He's only… in his early forties, right?"
In her view, someone in their forties was still in their prime on the seas. With Admiral-level strength, Nanamo felt retirement had nothing to do with him.
After all, even in their seventies or eighties, these powerful figures could still fight on the front lines. Though weaker than in their prime, they were still forces not to be underestimated.
"That's right, but now it's not so certain."
The main reason Zephyr retired to the rear lines was because his family had been killed by pirates. Now that his wife and child were still alive, what the outcome would be was no longer certain.
"He has himself rushed over. Youth really is something. Did he just 'run' all the way here?"
Nereus looked toward the sea. A figure was rapidly approaching through the air, leaving behind a string of sonic booms.
The trails left in midair were like footprints in soil, revealing the owner's anxiety.
Boom!
"Nereus! What exactly are you trying to do?!"
With a loud explosion, Zephyr landed on GR 33. The tangled roots of the mangrove trees formed an extremely tough surface, so hard that even with shovels and pickaxes, it was difficult to leave marks, usually only scraping away the loose soil on top.
But with Zephyr's furious shout, the roots at GR 33 were forcibly snapped by his brute strength. The oozing resin, under the pressure of the wind, turned into countless bubbles that drifted into the sky, obscuring both sides' vision.
In Zephyr's mind, Nereus was someone who didn't care about hostages. After all, the last time, Nereus had used an entire ship of soldiers' lives to force him to listen.
Although later investigations convinced Zephyr that Nereus had been telling the truth, the memory still lingered vividly.
When the bubbles finally dispersed in the wind, Zephyr could clearly see what was happening before him.
His wife lay to one side, being tended to by someone dressed like a doctor. His son held a piece of cotton candy, faint tear marks still on his face, and was now…
Hiding behind Nereus in fear, cautiously watching Zephyr's direction, clearly frightened by the commotion just now.
"Dad! Uncle, that's my dad. He is a Marine Admiral, an incredibly amazing hero!"
"Hm, I've heard of him long ago. To be precise, we've known each other for quite a while. Zephyr, your entrance just now was quite imposing. I'm curious, what exactly did that Marine who passed along the message say?"
"..."
At this moment, Zephyr was extremely embarrassed, standing there motionless as if controlled by some unknown force.
If he could, Zephyr would drag that Marine who made the call over right now and have a proper discussion about how the Marines' internal regulations required orders to be conveyed.
Not long ago, aboard a warship, Zephyr had been directing soldiers to patrol the surrounding seas, as usual carrying out the mission of escorting the kings back.
Even before being promoted to Admiral, he had already handled such tasks, so it was second nature to him.
It was at that moment that an urgent communication reached him, saying that his wife and child were now in Nereus's hands, and that Nereus had contacted the Marines at the Sabaody Archipelago to notify him.
"Halt!"
After giving that order, Zephyr immediately had the Vice Admirals from nearby warships come over, docking temporarily at a nearby Marine base to rest.
As for himself, he used Geppo and Soru to rush frantically toward the Sabaody Archipelago, only to end up in this awkward situation.
"I'd also like to know what you told the messenger."
"Your wife and child were attacked by pirates. They're fine for now. Inform your Admiral Zephyr and have him come here immediately."
Zephyr carefully thought over Nereus's words and found that, on the surface, there didn't seem to be any problem with them either.
"Your soldiers didn't dare come closer, and it wouldn't be appropriate to leave a mother and child here alone. Now that you've come back, you can handle it yourself.
Oh right, Hermes, give him the person."
"Yes, Lord Nereus."
Hermes tossed out a pirate from within its body. In its Swamp Clouds form, its body was essentially a mobile swamp. Anyone swallowed inside would usually suffocate.
However, due to his physique, the pirate hadn't died from suffocation yet.
"A pirate who intended to take revenge on you. What to do with him is up to you."
Looking at the pirate's face, Zephyr's expression darkened to the extreme. But in the end, he didn't deliver the killing blow, seemingly intending to send him to Impel Down.
Attacking a Marine Admiral's family. Such a crime would at the very least result in life imprisonment in Impel Down.
In the original timeline, even after his wife and child were killed, Zephyr, despite his grief, still upheld his principle of "not killing," sending those pirates to prison instead. Now, it was no different.
"Thank you…"
"That's rare. The last Marine who thanked me… seemed to be that brat Dragon."
For some reason, Zephyr felt there was a deeper meaning behind Nereus's words, but he had no evidence.
Nereus didn't continue the conversation, and Zephyr didn't know what to say either. At that moment, someone else broke the silence for him.
"Dad, that big sister said earlier that you delayed her from watching her concert, and that you have to compensate her for the ticket."
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