"I take it back. You're still not like Liju."

Mei'er smiled perfectly and slapped Bahar's cheek with the flat of her saber, as if to say, "Hey, kneel down and kowtow to me." Bahar, on the other hand, showed a tired expression.

Tigne cried out, "Really, sister!" and grabbed her hand, intervening to stop her. Mei, embarrassed by her embrace, reluctantly sheathed her saber.

Even so, despite the complexities, Bahar and Meir's relationship remains relatively peaceful. Perhaps because of Tigné's presence, it seems unlikely they'll engage in a violent conflict.

And because Bahar expressed his fatherly love through actions, the parent-child relationship between Tigne and Bahar gradually improved.

Meredi looked at them with a smile, while Bahar scratched his head awkwardly.

"Ah~ um, thank you so much for taking care of me."

"Really? We borrowed money from the casino and didn't pay it back, and we're the ones who attacked us."

"The fact that you saved the people of Antika alone is enough to wipe out that matter. Besides that, you even helped to secure the supplies needed to build the island. I owe you a huge debt."

Bahar shrugged, his impression softening. The man who had previously struggled to maintain his dominance through sheer force seemed to have changed somewhat after losing his kingdom.

"It's a favor. If you want to repay a favor, this time, love Tigne in a way she can understand. This is the agreement you made with Mi-chan!"

"So, your great kindness isn't something that can just be said—No, alright, alright. From now on, it won't just be Tigne. I'll also protect the weak."

Someone poked at him from behind with a saber, a soft laugh echoing. Bahar raised his hands again and changed his tone. Tigné, in turn, said, "Father, you're wonderful!" and hugged Bahar's side. It felt like Bahar had become a doting father.

Bahar coughed, then said with a serious expression:

"If you see Ace... no, you said he was an apostle, right? If you see that guy, please give him my regards. If possible, I want you to beat him up as well as us."

Based on what Nizu witnessed, Ace was probably already dead, replaced by the "Apostle of God".

There was no way Natsu could mistake that vivid silver light.

As for the motives behind the "Apostles of God" breaking the seal, everyone unanimously concluded that it was "God's game." The apostles existed solely to place pieces on the chessboard of the world, to appease God's boredom.

"Leave it to us. Whether it's the apostles, the church, or even the gods, one day I, the beautiful and gifted magician Meredith, will bring along my cheerful companions and crush them all!"

"Oh, please, we probably won't be targeted anymore. Although we've lost our role as a source of funds, we still have the function of being this world's garbage dump."

"Indeed, there's no need for the Church to travel to the end of the ocean just to annihilate you."

In fact, apart from being a gathering place for heretics, there was no reason for the church to expend effort on Funajima.

The reason for this is that the Melkine Pirates intend to leave Ship Island. Of course, the same goes for Tigne. While they plan to visit Ship Island occasionally, bringing Tigne back for family visits and delivering supplies, the Melkine Pirates generally intend to move aimlessly.

This was to prevent the church from finding their whereabouts. It was the only way to allow Mel and Tigne to live a peaceful life, and also to prevent any danger from reaching Funashima.

"That's right. That's why we'll manage it well. When you fail and have nowhere else to go, escape here. Until then, we'll make Funajima even more prosperous."

"Oh~ Is it okay for us to escape here?"

"Even if the island is gone, this is still a free city. We welcome everyone who comes, and we won't chase anyone who leaves. The only exception is those related to the church."

"Ahahaha, thank you, I'll remember that!"

Seeing that Miredy thanked him with a sincere smile on her face, Bahar scratched his head embarrassedly, shrugged his shoulders, said "Goodbye, don't die easily", and then turned and left.

Tigne then said, "Ms. Meredith, thank you so much for helping us." She hugged Meredith tightly and then left after Bahar.

Before leaving, Tigne glanced at Mei and smiled. She was probably creating a chance for them to be alone.

At this time, Oscar and Niz, who had said goodbye to Chris and other pirate members and island residents, had already boarded the ship for their return and called out to Miledy.

It seemed that the time to leave the port had arrived, and people who wanted to return to the mainland together, led by Qiyala, also boarded the ship.

Finally, when Meredith was left alone, she smiled and said to Mel:

"Then I'm leaving, Sister Mei."

"...Okay, Mi-chan."

Mei'er also showed her usual gentle smile.

"Although a lot of things happened, I was very happy during this period."

"Yes, I'm happy too. And...thank you. Words alone are simply not enough to express my gratitude to you."

"Hehehe, what's wrong? Sister Mei, you're being particularly frank today."

Meredith smiled and made fun of Mei'er with an annoying expression.

However, Mel did not fight back as usual, but hugged Milady tightly.

"Mei, Mei'er sister?"

"..."

Mei'er said nothing, but hugged Reddy tightly, even to the point that she could hardly breathe.

Meredith let Mel hold her in her arms, as if to imprint her existence on her body. Meredith closed her eyes and hugged Mel tightly. This went on for a long time.

Finally, the two separated.

"...If Oscar's artifact can't heal his brothers and sisters, come back to me. I will definitely find a way to heal them then."

"Okay, we will."

The two stared at each other, then Meredith smiled and turned away.

"--ah."

Mei'er subconsciously stretched out her hand, but immediately retracted it.

Then she silently watched the frail back of her little sister who was about to fight the world.

After Meredith boarded the ship, it was finally time to set sail. All the islanders came out, cheering and waving to them, giving them a grand farewell.

Mel also boarded the Melkine and stood on the deck with the other members of the group to see them off. Everyone waved to Meredith and the others, expressed their gratitude, and looked forward to seeing them again.

As if driven by a farewell, the boat slowly sailed away.

Meredy bounced around in the stern, waving back energetically.

Before she knew it, Mei'er's hands, which were gripping the edge of the boat, had turned white from holding on too tightly.

Her smile collapsed, turning into an unnatural expression that was both twitchy and stiff.

——That’s good, because I can finally live with Tignes.

—The liberators’ position is too dangerous.

——If I become a liberator, Tigne and my family will be in greater danger than they are now.

——So this is fine. Continuing to avoid it is far better than being hostile.

——This is...the best.

Mei'er seemed to be trying to convince herself, and kept telling herself "It's okay like this", but suddenly the image of Miledy's scarred face appeared in her mind.

That child will force himself in the future.

For others, for freedom, for shouting at the unreasonable.

—If this is the last time I see that child...

When she thought of this, she felt a fear as if her heart was being tightly grasped.

At some point, Mel had developed the same strong feelings for Meredith as she had for Tigne.

We've only been together for about two months...

"sister."

"!...What's wrong, Tigne?"

Mei'er smiled and turned to face her beloved sister beside her. Tigne's expression was surprisingly gentle. Her expression was filled with love, and anyone would agree that it was the expression of a saint.

"Just go ahead, sister."

"Eh? You asked me to go, what are you talking about..."

"You want to go to them, right? You want to help them, right?"

Tigne gently took Mei'er's stiff hand.

"It's because of my sister's hard work that I have so many family members."

Looking back, I found that all the members of the pirate group were looking at Mei'er, and each of them looked at Mei'er with an extremely gentle expression on their face.

"I already know that my father loves me, and that's enough. What else can I ask for?"

"Tigne..."

Tignes pointed at Meredith.

"Because I'm with everyone, I can survive. But Miss Meredith definitely needs a sister."

Tigne's expression was completely different from his gentle one, and instead he wore an inexplicably charming and arrogant smile as he continued:

"And I hate the Church. They took away my hometown and were even one of the reasons why I lost my hometown. They also used me. The Church is unforgivable."

"T-Tine?"

"So, sister, please make the church pay the price!"

So that's how it is. Tigne is indeed the princess of the city of criminals, and she has an amazing aura.

Mei'er looked up at the sky. The little sister who had once stretched out her arms, longing for her, crying out "Sister," seemed to have grown strong enough to see her off.

"Just go ahead, Mei'er."

The person who spoke was Chris.

"It's too late."

"What do you mean by too late? Compared to being hostile to the Church..."

"No, I mean, they've already been part of the family for a long time. Family doesn't abandon family, isn't that the rule of the Melkine Pirates?"

Everyone nodded vigorously in affirmation, as if agreeing with Chris's statement.

"If you really want to stay here, that's fine. But we can't stand seeing you with that expression. Brothers, don't you agree?"

"Ahh, come on, it's so unlike you to be so indecisive! Stupid Mei! You're that wild girl's older sister, right? Hurry up and catch up!"

"Yes, Captain. Besides, sailing aimlessly on the sea is terrifying, isn't it? Declaring war on the world would be a thousand times better than that."

"I don't want to cut ties with them just to see Meredith in a maid outfit."

Everyone shouted that they wanted to fight alongside the liberators.

"Just to be on the safe side, it's best to leave a retreat at sea. We'll have made many preparations in advance, so Mei'er, you should keep an eye on them and make sure they don't get killed so easily."

Mei'er slowly covered her eyes with one hand, then as if she had swallowed something large, and as if she had come to her senses, she took a deep breath.

After a beat, when she took her hand away, there was already a proud smile on her face.

"My family really are all idiots."

Suddenly there was thunderous cheers. The pirate group had a new goal - to declare war on the world. The Melkine family shouted.

Meier knelt on one knee and hugged a smiling Tigne.

"Then I'm leaving, Tigne. I'll leave these idiots to you, okay?"

"Okay, sister, I wish you good luck and look forward to seeing you again."

The two nodded to each other, and then Mei'er stood up.

She stood on the edge of the boat.

"Hey, Mei'er."

Chris called her, probably having secretly decided on this beforehand.

After Mei'er turned around, Chris presented her with a farewell gift on behalf of the family.

"The ship and we will be separated from you for a while, so at least take your name with you."

"Haha, yes, I'll take it then."

Mei'er showed her beautiful smile to her beloved family.

"Mel Melkinne, I'm going to fight the world on your behalf!"

As soon as she finished speaking, Mei'er suddenly jumped into the sea.

Behind them came a loud cheer that resounded through the sky.

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