Starting with two Kamui, they raised the flag of rebellion in One Piece.

Soon, with Karina's help, Nami was able to move her luggage onto the deck one by one.

It must be said that two people can work much faster than one person.

Once both of them had a moment to catch their breath, Nami turned to Karina and asked what was going on with Li Mingyuan.

"Over there? Ignore it."

"This morning, when the shop owner was moving goods, he was seen by other villagers nearby. Not only did he buy a lot of supplies, but he was also buying more and more. So now the villagers are all gathered around him, trying to sell him all sorts of random products."

Karina curled her lip and said, "Normally speaking, let alone cargo ships or merchant ships, even sightseeing ships, I've never seen many that are so extravagant and willing to spend money. Only the ships of nobles and royalty are so comfortable and luxurious. People who know that this ship is going to the Grand Line would think that the owner is planning to go on vacation."

"Hey? Isn't this great?"

Nami couldn't help but laugh when she heard this. "It's a good thing that the captain is willing to spend money on the ship, and we can enjoy it too."

"Kalina, you too, it's definitely better to ride a comfortable boat than a dilapidated one."

Nami and Karina leaned against the ship's edge, gazing at the boundless sea before them, and said with a look of reminiscence, "I remember when we used to team up occasionally, we would often encounter those pirate ships. On board, we would fight over even a sip of water, not to mention the food. We often had to eat moldy food. If the accommodations were decent, it would be alright, but in reality, we would basically find a corner to lie down in a filthy and smelly little cabin. The only exceptions were the captains, first officers, and other important personnel, who were indeed treated better. It was quite infuriating to see them like that."

"But I just followed the porters and saw that the various things being transported to the ship right now probably aren't just for the captain, right? Our captain seems really generous; all the furniture being transported is in every available room. There are plenty of empty crew quarters on this ship, so each of us can probably have our own room."

"In terms of treatment, it's practically the same as those sightseeing boats."

With a relaxed and expectant atmosphere, Nami looked at the workers who were still carrying things, her expression also very relaxed.

Seeing Nami's appearance, Karina's expression became even more utterly hopeless.

She's only been on board for a short time, and she's already acting like a crew member? She's even looking forward to the upcoming voyage... The thing is, Nami is the navigator of this ship, but she's not!

Forget about enjoying the crew's benefits. As a prisoner, it wouldn't be surprising if she were locked in the kind of filthy, dilapidated room Nami just recalled, and experienced what moldy food tasted like again. No matter how nice the ship looked, it had nothing to do with her.

Why do you look so miserable?

Just as Karina and Nami were enjoying the sea breeze, Li Mingyuan, having escaped the villagers' sales pitches, returned to the deck. He glanced to the side and saw Karina standing not far away with a sour face.

Li Mingyuan said to Karina, "I asked you to supervise the porters and see if they're getting handsy. Why are you just standing there on the deck? The crew cabins will be decorated later, so hurry up and go."

"It's me again??"

Upon hearing Li Mingyuan's voice, Karina immediately turned around.

She pointed to herself incredulously, her mouth agape, and said, "I just arrived this morning, and first you made me clean up, then you made me tidy up the kitchen. I just helped Nami put her luggage on the deck, and after standing here for a while to rest, you want to order me around again? Don't I have any human rights?"

"Otherwise what?"

"You're not one of my crew members, I'm already being kind by not hitting or scolding you all the time."

Li Mingyuan raised an eyebrow and continued, "Hurry up and get to work. When you come back, I'll take you and Nami to choose a room together."

"You bastard! I gave you so much money on the cargo ship, and you just..."

Karina's eyes widened in anger upon hearing Li Mingyuan's words, and she almost instinctively wanted to retort.

But just as the words were about to be spoken...

Suddenly, she felt that something was not quite right.

"—Wait, can I choose a room too?"

Karina, realizing what was happening, was immediately filled with surprise and delight.

"If you insist on sleeping in those dirty and dilapidated cabins on the lowest level, I have no objection."

Li Mingyuan replied calmly.

"Wait, wait! Did I say I don't want it anymore?!"

"Don't you dare slander me! I'm not only hardworking, but I love working. I'm going to supervise right now, and nobody can stop me!"

Karina said fiercely.

After saying that, without waiting for Nami and Li Mingyuan to reply, she ran into the cabin.

It seems he genuinely intends to act as a supervisor to prevent the movers from engaging in petty theft.

Although Karina may seem a bit unreliable compared to Nami, as a professional thief, Karina should be able to spot most thefts.

Occasionally, we need to give cattle and horses some incentive.

Li Mingyuan watched Karina's retreating figure, her energetic work ethic filling him with a satisfied nod.

Seeing this, Nami sighed helplessly.

"...Don't bully Karina too much. I've never seen that smiling vixen before, who's always grinning all the time, act so timidly. If she keeps acting like this, she might really run away."

"I think it's precisely because she's afraid to try to escape from me that she's afraid of me."

Upon hearing this, Li Mingyuan turned to look at Nami, "However, it doesn't really matter."

"If nothing unexpected happens, we'll pass through at most two islands, and then things between her and me will be settled."

"More importantly, welcome aboard, Nami."

Li Mingyuan smiled and said softly, "Seeing that you look good, it seems I'm satisfied with my arrangements for this ship?"

"Of course! Any normal person would be upset seeing the configuration of this ship."

Nami chuckled and said, "I never expected you to be willing to spend so much on this ship. After all, this ship used to be a pirate ship. Even if someone hijacks another ship, they shouldn't think about putting in the effort to modify it, since you never know when they'll get another ship."

"This ship will be our home in the future. If we don't want our quality of life to be terrible, then of course we'll have to upgrade and replace some things. But you're right, I don't plan to keep sailing this ship like this. If we have the chance to reach the legendary Water Seven on the Grand Line, I'll probably get a new ship."

"After all, constantly using other people's second-hand boats, putting aside the psychological acceptance, the lifespan of the boat itself is a real issue."

In response to Nami's words, Li Mingyuan naturally walked to Nami's side, and the two looked at the same scenery.

At that moment, Li Mingyuan glanced at Nami's luggage out of the corner of his eye.

"Huh?"

Li Mingyuan slightly raised his eyes, somewhat surprised.

Although at first glance it looked like he had a lot of luggage, he thought there would be a lot of stuff since Karina had to help him carry it beforehand. He thought Nami might be like in the original story and planned to move a few orange trees onto the ship in advance.

To my surprise, when I looked again, I couldn't see any trace of the orange tree.

"Speaking of which, there was a slight mishap on the way here."

Before Li Mingyuan could even begin to ponder, he tentatively inquired about the orange tree.

After standing there for a while, Nami suddenly seemed to remember something and turned to Li Mingyuan somewhat embarrassedly, saying again, "If Nojiko contacts you in the days leading up to our departure, try not to talk to her. Last night, after I told her about my decision to go to sea, she seemed a little unconvinced. Even if she talks to you now, it will probably be about trying to stop me from going to sea. Explaining things one by one is too slow, so you might as well just ignore her."

"...Is this alright?"

After a moment of silence, Li Mingyuan hesitated before speaking.

"There's nothing good or bad about it. Anyway, I know what she's thinking. It's just some silly misunderstanding. More important than that, it would be bad if it caused you trouble, Captain."

Nami seemed genuinely unconcerned, replying casually, "Besides, I'm just giving you a heads-up. Whether she'll actually approach you, Captain, is entirely uncertain. Just don't agree to anything she says."

"Okay, I'll remember that."

Li Mingyuan didn't say anything more, he just nodded slightly and chose to end the topic.

Next, Li Mingyuan and Nami stayed on the deck for a while. After Nami had recovered some strength, Li Mingyuan took her to choose a room.

Unlike Karina, Nami brought a lot of personal belongings, which needed to be organized in advance. Also, standing on the deck for a long time was tiring.

Using the excuse of choosing a room, we can show Nami the interior of the ship and let her experience how comfortable the room is.

If there's anything that feels lacking, it can be corrected during this time before departure.

However, in the final moments before leaving the deck, Li Mingyuan still did not ask Nami about the orange tree. It was as if the matter had been forgotten and ignored by Li Mingyuan.

noon.

After seeing off the first batch of porters, Li Mingyuan treated Nami and Karina to a big meal out of his own pocket. This was partly to celebrate the arrival of the new crew member Nami, and partly to reward Karina for her hard work that morning, since there would be new supplies to move in the afternoon, and Karina's supervision would be indispensable.

After enjoying a delicious lunch at a small restaurant in the village, Li Mingyuan, Nami Karina, and the other two returned to the ship.

Taking advantage of the time before the porters arrived in the afternoon, which could barely be considered lunch break, the three of them began to explore various parts of the ship under the guise of taking a walk, looking for any potential hazards or any deficiencies in the room's furnishings.

In such a process.

Karina looked conflicted several times, then took a deep breath, as if preparing for something.

Nami and Li Mingyuan both noticed Karina's unusual behavior. However, Li Mingyuan was merely observing the situation, while Nami, combining what she had seen about Karina earlier that morning, wondered if Karina was feeling unwell or what was wrong, so she secretly kept an eye on her for a while.

Finally, after the group returned to the captain's cabin and confirmed that Karina's condition was not just a physical problem, Nami couldn't help but ask Karina a question.

"Kalina, are you feeling unwell? You look terrible. You were already pale this morning, but now you're sweating profusely..."

Nami said with a worried expression.

At this point, Karina knew that now was the best time to open up.

So she looked at the expressions on the faces of the two people present.

After a long pause, she sighed and said helplessly, "There's nothing I can do. Maybe this is the end for a phantom thief."

Then, to Nami's somewhat confused look, Karina turned her head and looked at Li Mingyuan, who had been silent all along.

"Um, Captain, do you remember what I told you when you captured me? I still have some assets on the last island. I can lead the way to the island and dig up the treasure, which is about 20 million Berries in total."

Karina probed.

"Of course I remember."

In response, Li Mingyuan calmly replied, "According to my plan, our first destination a few days from now is the next island."

"As expected."

Karina said bitterly, "Now, can I take back what I said?"

"Although the island was indeed my hideout for disposing of stolen goods, it wasn't actually my real base. I'm sorry, I lied too. There weren't any 20 million Berries on that island. If you had just continued to go to that island, you probably wouldn't have found the money I mentioned."

"But if it were in my real stronghold, I could take out that money!"

Karina gave Li Mingyuan a desperate look, clenching her teeth and staring at him with unwavering resolve.

Finally, the truth came out.

At this point, Karina had resigned herself to her fate. Nami joining the team meant that her situation had worsened. She clearly realized that she would most likely not be able to gain Li Mingyuan's favor before the ransom was exposed. So, in order to avoid dying on the spot, she could only be flexible and change her mind, even if it meant biting off her words.

She wanted to make one last attempt.

They are now preparing in advance for the possibility that they might not have enough money to get to the island, and are trying to prolong the journey to extend their lifeline, continuing to direct them to other hideouts, hoping to see if there is any chance of a turnaround.

Upon hearing Karina's words, Li Mingyuan and Nami exchanged a glance.

"Your real stronghold?"