Following the direction pointed out by the navigation flower, the Laisherni steadily advanced.
Along the way, it occasionally ran into extreme weather, but thanks to Lind's powerful telekinesis, he managed to get through it each time.
Other than feeling a bit bored, there weren't any major problems.
During this time, Lind's mutation ability had another small breakthrough — a seagull that happened to pass by got mutated and awakened telekinesis as well, with its intelligence significantly boosted.
After realizing what a powerhouse Lind was, the clever little bird didn't hesitate to latch onto his thigh (figuratively, and also literally—it knew how to suck up).
Seeing the rare activation of his mutation fruit, and given how clever (and flattering) the bird was, Lind decided to take it in. He even fed it some Dragon Bananas and Divine Coconuts, officially making it his first underling.
On this day, the sun was shining and the sea was unusually calm.
Linde was lying on the deck sunbathing when the scout—his big kun (giant roc)—suddenly returned from up ahead.
"Boss! There's a ship ahead, and there's a skull on the sail. Looks like the kind of pirate ship you mentioned!"
Using his powerful telekinesis, Lind had developed a limited form of telepathic communication, allowing him to barely converse with highly intelligent creatures like the kun.
"Hahahahaha! Finally, someone! It's been seven days! Any longer and I'd have gone insane!"
"Those anime shows are total lies. The sea's so big—how can anyone run into another ship so easily?"
Hearing the news, Lind laughed with excitement, eyes a little misty. Life alone at sea had been far too mentally draining.
"Now I don't have to rely on pure luck anymore! Even if they're pirates—if I'm strong enough, they won't be able to refuse me when I ask for directions!"
"Laisherni! Fetch my sword!"
As his words fell, a gleaming sword flew out of the cabin.
To create this sword, Lind had mutated an ordinary wooden sword a total of eighty-one times before he was finally satisfied.
As for the ship Laisherni—no, it wasn't a sentient ship; the whole "command" thing was just Lind acting out a one-man show with his telekinesis.
Watching the sword soar out smoothly, Lind was pleased with the effect. Without hesitation, he stepped onto it and flew toward the direction the Kun had indicated.
Seeing the pirate ship in the distance, Lind began preparing his dramatic entrance. When he was about 50 meters away, he began to speak, using telekinesis to amplify his voice with surround sound:
"Riding the waves and the wind, I roam the world free."
"Sheathed, a thousand sails fall still. Unsheathed, a thousand miles go dark."
"One dance shakes the four seas; another, the sun and moon tremble."
"Alone, I stand above all — I am the Sword of the Mortal World."
(Well, the language of the One-Piece world is already chaotic. Using a Chinese-style poem shouldn't be an issue, right? Let's just pretend the MC landed in a dub-world parallel universe.)
Though a bit cringe, it felt so good. Having been alone for so long, Lind had come up with this dramatic poem after binging on knockoff "Drunken Sword Immortal" stories during his time on the island.
Seeing the pirates on deck visibly stunned by his entrance, Lind paused for dramatic effect, then continued:
"Pirates ahead, listen well! I am the Red Dust Sword, Hilt—Lind!"
Just as he was delivering his line, a young man around two meters tall with a long golden mane flowing like a cape stepped out from the cabin.
"HOLY SH*T—THE GOLDEN LION?!"
Without a moment's hesitation, Lind immediately used his telekinesis to whip both himself and his sword around, bolting in the opposite direction at full speed.
Meanwhile, on the other ship, Golden Lion Shiki had been reporting to his boss when he heard an arrogant voice from outside.
Normally, a small fry like this wouldn't be worth their time—but those poetic lines piqued the interest of both Shiki and Rocks D. Xebec, prompting them to come to see for themselves.
The Rocks Pirates needed talents like this.
Seeing Lind suddenly flee; Golden Lion was quite pleased by his reputation — he hadn't even lifted a finger and already made the kid run for his life.
Still, he had a job to do. Without hesitation, he chased after him. After all, the Rocks Pirates did need a guy like this.
Realizing he was being chased, Lind panicked and flew even faster, cursing internally:
"Did I burn through all my luck messing around with mutations on that island?!"
"Why the hell is Golden Lion floating around at sea instead of in the sky where he belongs?!"
If it had been someone like Whitebeard, Lind might've escaped using telekinesis. But against Golden Lion? He was out of luck — the Float-Float Fruit consumed far less energy than Linde's telekinesis.
Lind could go all-out for maybe a day and a night before getting exhausted, but Shiki could float endlessly.
Not knowing the full extent of Shiki's speed, Lind wasn't about to risk testing whether two-and-a-half years of telekinesis training could outrun one of the world's most infamous pirates.
After much internal struggle, Lind concluded:
"A wise man knows when to yield. Maybe I should just surrender."
"Plenty of novel protagonists have joined the Rocks Pirates — what's one more?"
Besides, all he did was act cool. He hadn't offended anyone. There was a decent chance they'd accept his surrender.
"If I keep running and end up annoying Golden Lion, who knows what could happen?"
"And if I join, maybe I can get a quiet piece of turf to grow my crops in peace."
"Without protection, I'll just keep getting harassed by random lunatics."
With this reasoning, Lind started mentally prepping himself to join the Rocks Pirates.
"I'll surrender first and see what happens. If Golden Lion wants to kill me, I can still try to run then!"
But… should he show off his strength first?
If Golden Lion personally recruited him, that'd save him from having to offer himself up.
Acting on the thought, Linde came to a stop in mid-air, controlling his body with telekinesis while the Kunpeng Sword hovered protectively around him.
"Damn, I should've made two swords—one for posing, one for actual combat," he thought. "Flying without standing on a sword just feels off."
Golden Lion soon caught up and hovered in front of Lind, the two of them facing off mid-air.
"Jiehahaha! Kid, not running anymore?"
"I heard your little speech. Pretty interesting. Want to join the Rocks Pirates?"
"Our boss personally named you — we need talent like you in the Rocks Pirates!"
Linde nearly lost balance from shock. Shiki's Imperial Bureaucrat-speak made him wonder if he'd just bumped into a fellow transmigrator.
He almost blurted out "Imperial Jade Wine" or "Odd Changes Remain the Same" to test for secret codes.
But it was probably just a coincidence. Shaking the thought away, Lind replied:
"Let's fight first!"
Before the words finished, the Kunpeng Sword shot toward Golden Lion.
"Jiehahaha, interesting kid. Let me test your strength!"
Shiki drew his swords: Oto and Kogarashi.
One sword blocked the Kunpeng, while the other launched a flying slash at Lind.
Seeing a flying slash dozens of meters long coming his way, Lind dodged quickly while cursing internally.
"You're supposed to be a swordsman, why are you fighting like a mage?!"
Multitasking, Lind dodged with his body while commanding the Kunpeng Sword to clash with Shiki's blades.
Thanks to his enhanced reflexes from telekinesis, Lind could dodge with supernatural agility, denying Shiki any chance to close the distance.
Though it looked like he was being pressured, Lind was holding his own — not in mortal danger just yet.
His unusual combat style annoyed Shiki.
"Jiehahaha! What's wrong, kid? All you do is dodge and run. You call yourself a swordsman? Fight me head-on like a real one!"
Lind wanted to explain that he wasn't even a swordsman! He couldn't even use sword aura, let alone flying slashes!
The Kunpeng Sword could clash with Shiki's weapons only because of its mutation-enhanced toughness and Lind's brute-force telekinesis.
At this rate, Kunpeng wouldn't last much longer. If Shiki hadn't kept attacking, Lind would've surrendered already.
Seeing that Lind was still fighting in his evasive, "cowardly" style, Shiki decided to end it with a bang.
"Lion: Thousand-Cut Valley!"
Suddenly, Shiki cleaved through the Kunpeng Sword and unleashed dozens of flying slashes toward Lind.
"HOLY SH*T!"
Seeing the wave of attacks coming his way, Lind cursed aloud and quickly maxed out his telekinesis output, forming a barrier to block the attack.
The slashes crashed into the transparent shield, which flickered wildly and shattered almost instantly.
Fortunately, Lind hadn't neglected physical training on the island and had awakened Armament Haki early. Using Haki and his sturdy physique, he barely managed to withstand the blow.
Shiki, now realizing something was off, noticed that Lind didn't know swordsmanship.
Satisfied that he had vented a bit with Thousand-Cut Valley, he stopped his attacks.
"Jiehahaha! Not bad, kid! Want to join me? I'll make you my vice-captain!"
At this stage, Shiki wasn't yet the famous Pirate Admiral he would become — and he didn't have many capable subordinates.
A young man who could take a hit from his ultimate move caught his eye. He saw potential in Linde and genuinely wanted to recruit him.