"First, congratulations to all of you for being able to co here."
Null
clapped his hands lightly, smiling with calm authority as he looked over the group before him.
"Being able to join Vespera will be the most fortunate mont in your lives."
Clap, clap, clap…
Among the seven gathered figures, only three joined in the applause without hesitation — Pegasus, Sirius and Echo.
The others remained motionless. Earth (Crocodile) stood with his arms folded and sneered, Tide observed in silence, Serpent watched coldly, and Sky appeared lost in thought.
It was clear that not every mber of Shirogai's secret organization was entirely convinced by him.
Pegasus, Gan Fall, the forr ruler of Skypiea — imdiately took note of this. His sharp intuition as a forr "God" made him an excellent judge of n and motives.
He sensed it at once. Though each person here respected Shirogai, that respect did not yet equal unity.
So that's why he invited , Gan Fall thought quietly. He wants
to observe, to keep watch over these people for him.
His gaze drifted toward Echo, standing a few platforms away. That one seems particularly loyal.
---
"Wuwuwu, my lord! The most fortunate thing in my life was eting you back in Little Garden!"
Echo — forrly Mr. 3, real na Galdino — was nearly trembling with emotion. His eyes shone with admiration as he looked toward Shirogai standing on the crimson platform at the center.
Perhaps one day, my na will be known across the seas… even the Four Emperors will take notice of !
Galdino, once a self-proclaid artist and tactician with grand ambitions, had always viewed himself as a man of refined taste and intellect. But his life had changed completely after eting Shirogai.
On Little Garden, Shirogai had given him a final order before their separation:
> "Mr. 3, find an ordinary island. Live as an ordinary person. Learn how the world truly works. Only then will you break free from your arrogance and self-deception."
At first, Galdino hadn't understood. But after witnessing Shirogai's mastery in manipulating the power of the Wax-Wax Fruit, he had beco completely devoted to him.
Even after leaving Shirogai's influence, Galdino obeyed that final command. He found a small fishing island with barely a thousand inhabitants and began to live as one of them.
There, he abandoned the use of his Devil Fruit abilities entirely. He relied only on his frail human strength, joining the fishern every day. Because of the sea's curse upon Devil Fruit users, he nearly drowned countless tis, only to be pulled from the water by his fellow fishern.
Over ti, the man who once looked down on "commoners" began to change. The sll of salt and fish that once disgusted him beca a scent of honest labor.
He watched n and won rise before dawn, risk storms and uncertain waters, and toil endlessly — just to earn enough Berries to feed their families.
Galdino also witnessed how most of those Berries were taken as tax by the local mayor, tribute to the Celestial Dragons — the so-called "Heavenly Gold."
For the first ti, he began to understand.
These people endure more suffering than any pirate or noble ever could… yet they never stop working.
Without his Devil Fruit powers, he joined them in their struggles — casting nets, wrestling fish, enduring wind and rain, and fighting exhaustion every single day.
In the sleepless nights that followed, he began to question everything he once believed:
Was my candle art truly art? Were my sches ever real? Or were they just hollow tricks — beautiful illusions built on arrogance and fantasy?
He finally understood what Shirogai had ant.
The art he once boasted about was aningless vanity. His sches, once so proud and flamboyant, had no true substance.
True cunning, he realized, didn't need to shine. It was like survival itself — instinctive, quiet, and practical.
Just like those fishern who appeared honest and humble — yet when pirates ca to raid them, they would lure the intruders into reefs they knew like the back of their hands.
Sches and strategy existed everywhere in life.
To use them well, one doesn't flaunt them. One breathes them.
Watching those fishern collect treasure from a shattered pirate ship, Galdino smiled faintly.
Arrogance only brings downfall. Even a Devil Fruit user can die to unard n who simply know the sea better.
This revelation transford the way he used his Wax-Wax Fruit. His attacks beca simpler, colder, deadlier — not ant for show, but for results.
The Wax-Wax Fruit, when developed with precision, was terrifying. Galdino had once nearly defeated Luffy and Zoro on Little Garden with it. But back then, his obsession with style made him weak.
Now, under Shirogai's unseen guidance, he finally understood subtlety — and power born from restraint.
His Devil Fruit had evolved from flashy theatrics to silent assassination.
---
"Mr.3 seems very pleased to see ," Shirogai murmured, half-smiling. "I didn't expect to have my own fanatic."
His voice echoed through the mindscape. Here, in this spiritual domain, no thought could escape his perception.
"Your change truly surprised ," he added, smiling faintly.
The mont Galdino heard his words, he nearly trembled with joy. His admiration for Shirogai only deepened.
In truth, Shirogai hadn't intended to bring Galdino into Vespera. The man's strength wasn't extraordinary, and his influence was limited. But there was sothing different about him now — sothing genuine.
Within a single month, Galdino had undergone a complete transformation. Gone was the refined, conceited Mr. 3. His hair was a ss, his body reeked of salt and fish, and yet his eyes held a quiet resolve.
Through the Whisper-Whisper Fruit, Shirogai had even learned that Galdino had secretly protected that fishing village from pirate raids — destroying several small crews entirely on his own.
It was that act that changed everything.
Beneath the filth and simplicity, Shirogai saw the spark of sothing rare — the rebirth of a man who had faced his weakness and conquered it.
He now possessed what Shirogai valued: clarity, loyalty, and understanding.
Shirogai smiled to himself. Perhaps he truly deserves a chance.
A chance to rise again.
A chance to beco known throughout the seas as a strategist equal to Sengoku of the Marines.
From this day forward, the Sky Islands would have their own military genius — the first Air Force Marshal of Skypiea, known as:
"Puppet Strategist Galdino."
Master of the Wax-Wax Fruit, wielder of countless
puppet clones. No one could ever be certain if they were speaking to the real Galdino… or rely his wax double.
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