Charlotte Linlin's offer wasn't bad, but Ortoren had no interest in it.
He didn't hold any grudge against her for abandoning him, but he wasn't about to beco soone's son again—especially if it ant constantly calling her "Mama."
So, without a second thought, Ortoren shook his head and said, "I refuse!"
Before Charlotte Linlin could say a word, he went on, "I didn't co to Whole Cake Island to join the Big Mom Pirates. Katakuri told you might have a way to help with my full moon problem…"
Ortoren's blunt response caught Perospero off guard. He glanced at Katakuri, who could only respond with a helpless look.
Surprisingly, Charlotte Linlin didn't seem angry after hearing the rejection. She just looked a little disappointed and shook her head. "Refused, huh? That's a sha…"
Ortoren expected her to push the issue, but to his surprise, the woman who aspired to beco Queen of the Seas let it go. He said no, and she didn't bring it up again.
After a brief pause, Charlotte Linlin continued, "As for your uncontrollable state during the full moon, I do have a solution…"
Ortoren's expression turned serious. "What is it?"
"In essence, your full moon frenzy is no different from the Mink Tribe's 'Sulong' form. It's a power born from racial bloodline. The reason you can't control it like the others is, first, because you're a hybrid. You don't have much Mink Tribe blood. Just looking at you makes that obvious," she said.
Though Ortoren identified as a Mink Tribe hybrid, the only feature that marked him as such were the two horns on his forehead. In every other aspect, he looked completely human. Anyone unfamiliar might even mistake him for one of Kaidou's "Oni."
At that thought, Charlotte Linlin felt a flash of pride. Her blood had clearly co out stronger—it had dominated the Mink Tribe's.
After a mont, she went on, "The other reason is that my blood flows in your veins. Katakuri told you inherited not only my natural divine strength but also my steel-like body... Among all my children, this combination is unique. Ortoren, do you understand what that ans?"
It sounded like a question, but she didn't wait for an answer. She just smiled and continued, "It ans you've nearly perfectly inherited my gifts. My blood in you is stronger, purer... but because of that, you've also inherited my madness.
Let's call it a 'food craving disorder.' It's sothing I've had since birth… a disease? A trait? Sothing else? It doesn't matter. When it takes hold, I go mad, uncontrollable…
So I suspect your loss of control during the full moon cos from a fusion—your Mink Tribe blood triggers Sulong, and my blood reacts alongside it, dragging you into a state of food craving madness. When those two powers combine, there's no way you can control it on your own."
Ortoren wasn't surprised by this explanation. He'd already co to a similar conclusion himself.
Intermittent psychosis, mania, and Sulong—put them together, and you get full moon rampage.
Thinking of this, Ortoren asked, "You can't even cure your own food cravings. What makes you think you can cure mine?"
"Mamamama..." Charlotte Linlin let out a loud laugh, then looked at him and said, "There was a ti when my food cravings were actually cured, brat."
That completely caught Ortoren off guard. He looked at her in shock. "When? How did it happen?"
During the full moon, his strength would skyrocket due to the frenzy and rage, but if given the choice, who would willingly be insane over being normal? He truly wanted to cure this affliction.
A trace of nostalgia flickered in Charlotte Linlin's eyes, as if she were recalling distant mories. After a long pause, she finally spoke. "It was many years ago, on Rocks' ship. My cravings were cured back then…"
"On Rocks' ship? Was it their ship's doctor?" That was Ortoren's first thought.
"No, it had nothing to do with any doctor." Charlotte Linlin laughed, waving her hand dismissively.
"Then…" Ortoren pondered for a mont, then asked, "Was it science? I heard that the great scientist, Buckingham Stussy, was also part of your—"
Before he could finish, Charlotte Linlin cut in with a disdainful look. "Her? A scientist? She calls herself that, but she was just a useless freeloader!"
Still, maybe because Ortoren brought her up, Charlotte Linlin seed to recall sothing. "But now that you ntion it, thanks to that freeloader, we did et the real genius scientist—Vegapunk. I nearly forgot about that. Vegapunk did ntion that maybe, with biotechnology, my cravings could be cured. Sothing about genes... but I don't understand any of that tech nonsense. I eventually just forgot about it."
"Could Dr. Vegapunk actually have a way to cure it?" Ortoren silently committed that information to mory.
That Lineage Factor stuff sounded powerful… Definitely worth looking into.
Still deep in thought, Ortoren kept a neutral expression and asked again, "So what was it, then? So kind of Devil Fruit ability?"
"No!" Charlotte Linlin's lips curled into a wicked grin. "It was violence!"
"Violence?" Ortoren blinked, clearly puzzled.
"That's right, violence," she said in a low, serious tone. "Violence is a good redy—especially for this kind of illness."
Ortoren studied her in silence, and after a mont, his eyes lit up with sudden realization.
Seeing the change in his expression, Charlotte Linlin smirked. "Looks like you've figured it out?"
"Well... considering you went into a frenzy on Rocks' ship... I imagine that didn't go over too well," Ortoren said with a chuckle.
Charlotte Linlin was a powerhouse with unmatched talent. If she lost control in most parts of the world, no one could stop her. But that didn't include Rocks' ship.
Because even though she was imnsely strong, that ship was packed with monsters.
Imagine it—Charlotte Linlin suddenly going into a food-fueled frenzy, attacking everyone around her indiscriminately. And who were those people? Rocks. Whitebeard. Shiki. Kaidou. Ochoku. Silver Axe. A whole crew of the most fearso thugs on the seas.
What would happen?
Simple—Charlotte Linlin would get the beating of her life.
Can't cure a food craving? Just beat her up. Didn't work? Beat her again next ti she snaps!
Hearing Ortoren's half-teasing tone, Charlotte Linlin let out a disgruntled snort, but still replied, "Those mories aren't exactly pleasant, but I have to admit—during those years, every ti I had an episode, those bastards would stop . After enough tis... I actually started to gain a bit of control over that power."
She paused for a mont, then said regretfully, "If I had just two more years, maybe I could've fully mastered it. But unfortunately, that bastard Rocks…"
She didn't have to finish. It was obvious. Rocks went too far, capsized in God Valley, and the Rocks Pirates fell apart. The 'shareholders' all went their own way. Without that crew to beat the cravings out of her, no one could forcibly 'treat' her anymore. As a result, Charlotte Linlin never fully gained control over that berserk state—and worse, the condition may have even gotten worse due to repeated relapses…
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