[I have a grudge against the Navy and the Celestial Dragons, so becoming a pirate and forming a pirate crew is already a set course.]
[If I hadn't known that someone as talented as Uta existed in this world, inviting Karina to be my crew's songstress wouldn't have been a bad idea.]
[Hmm... Even if Karina doesn't take the role of the songstress, she could always be a thief.]
[At that time, I could have her use her skills to steal treasures from other places for my crew.]
[But first, this infamous thief has to be willing to join me.]
[Inviting Karina is risky. If I'm not careful, she might just steal my ship the same way she took off with Tesoro's entertainment cruiser.]
"This is serious... he's really becoming a pirate?" Nami frowned prettily.
"But if he's thinking about inviting Karina to join him, then he probably doesn't plan to hurt her, right?"
"Karina... stole the Golden Emperor's ship? That's something from the future, isn't it?"
Nami glanced again at the image labeled "Karina performing" and found herself increasingly curious about Karina's future.
And even more curious about Rosen — the man who somehow knows that future.
"Rosen, do you know my future too?"
"Will I ever get the chance to redeem Cocoyasi Village?"
Nami whispered, lips pressed tightly together.
After Karina finished her song, Rosen had already cleared the deck of the pirate corpses.
He unfurled the sails, letting the wind carry the pirate ship forward.
"Not bad, Karina. That was a beautiful performance."
"If you're satisfied, then I'm happy," Karina replied.
"More than satisfied. You've made me seriously consider keeping you around as my songstress, haha."
"If you can guarantee my safety, I'd be willing to become your songstress," she said.
"Really?"
"Really!"
"Even if I'm going to form a pirate crew?"
"You saved my life. If you're going to become a pirate, then I'll join you."
"Heh, I'm touched. Since you're saying that, then let me name you my very first crewmate — though I haven't even designed our Jolly Roger yet."
"If you don't mind, I could help design it," Karina offered.
"No need — drawing is my specialty. I'll handle the flag myself."
"All right then, Captain."
Karina smiled brightly at him.
Among the treasures hoarded by the Giant Tiger Pirates were many that Karina had originally stolen, only for them to be seized.
Now that Rosen had taken down the Giant Tiger Pirates, those treasures were his.
Karina hadn't forgotten those treasures.
If Rosen wanted her as a songstress, then she might be able to use that role to "take back" what was once hers.
Captain, huh. It had a nice ring to it.
"But Karina," Rosen said, "in my mind, I already have someone else in mind for the role of songstress."
"What? Are you saying my singing isn't good enough?"
"Not at all. You're very talented. It's just... the person I have in mind is perfect for the role."
"Oh... Can you tell me who she is?"
"Her name is Uta."
"Uta? Never heard of her. Is she someone you know?"
"In a way, yes," Rosen smiled.
That Karina hadn't heard of Uta didn't surprise Rosen.
After all, Uta wouldn't become truly famous until two years later.
So it made sense that Karina didn't know her name yet.
As for why Rosen wanted Uta as his crew's songstress, it wasn't just because of her talent —
It was because of the Uta Uta no Mi (Song-Song Fruit).
"I'd really love to meet this Uta," Karina said with a hint of curiosity.
"By the way, I don't even know your name, Captain. Since we're going to be crewmates now, can you tell me?"
Karina lifted her hand playfully to her lips, putting on a cute expression.
"My name? You can just call me Rosen."
Rosen replied with a grin.
"Rosen, huh... Wait— Rosen?!"
Karina's eyes widened in shock as she stared at Rosen.
Without a word, she summoned her copy of the diary and began flipping through it.
Her expression quickly changed — a complex mixture of surprise and unease.
"What's wrong, Karina?"
"Is there something strange about my name?"
Rosen asked, puzzled by her reaction.
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