Three days later, Nair stirred in a hazy sleep as the creaking sound of a door echoed through the cell.
It was the first time the prison door had been opened since he had been locked inside.
He smacked his lips, still half asleep, when a sharp, youthful voice rang out.
“You useless big brother, wake up!”
His body was shaken without restraint.
Nair jolted awake, his mind snapping back into place as reality settled in.
He was no longer on Earth.
Standing before him was a young girl dressed in elegant clothing.
She had long blue hair, delicate lashes, and dark, expressive eyes filled with irritation.
She looked about thirteen or fourteen, her expression suggesting that waking him was an obligation, not something she wanted to do.
As Nair gathered his thoughts, his gaze shifted past her.
Standing nearby were several Marine soldiers, along with Vice Admiral Momonga.
Beside them stood a tall man with a flushed face, wearing a crown and a dark royal robe.
Nefertari Cobra.
Then this girl…
was Nefertari Vivi.
Nair’s heart skipped a beat.
Was he actually a prince of Alabasta?
Cobra inhaled deeply, his expression twisted with shame and anger.
He looked toward Momonga and spoke with restrained fury.
“Vice Admiral Momonga, take this disgrace away and deal with him.”
His disappointment was unmistakable.
“Your Majesty, the boy merely sailed with pirates and has not committed any crimes,” Momonga replied calmly.
“Although he carries a bounty of 1,000 Berries, he is of royal blood.
Fleet Admiral Sengoku has already issued his judgment.
Originally, he was to be imprisoned for five years.
However, considering his age of fifteen and his status, he will instead be returned and confined for three years.”
Cobra fell silent for a moment before letting out a slow breath.
“…I understand.
I am grateful.”
No matter what, Nair was still his son.
Cobra did not truly wish to hand him over to the Marines.
Yet the thought of his son abandoning his duties to chase the life of a pirate filled him with disgust.
He turned sharply toward Nair, his voice hard.
“Return to the palace and reflect on your actions.
You are forbidden from leaving for three years.”
Nair frowned slightly, irritation rising within him.
Damn it…
why would I give up being a prince just to become a pirate?
After being escorted back to the royal palace of Alabasta, Nair gradually organized his thoughts and began adapting to his new identity.
The Alabasta Kingdom was one of the largest nations in the world.
It was often referred to as a superpower due to its vast territory and immense population.
With six hundred thousand standing soldiers and the ability to mobilize over a million in times of war, its military strength was overwhelming.
During the height of the civil war in the original story, the combined forces of the royal army and the rebels had exceeded two million.
Even by the standards of his previous world, such numbers were staggering.
Alabasta was located on Sandy Island in the Grand Line.
However, calling it an island barely did it justice.
It was closer to a continent.
With over twenty cities and several major ones already known, its scale far surpassed smaller nations like Drum Island or the Goa Kingdom, and even rivaled Dressrosa.
Based on its military size alone, Nair estimated the population to be at least two to three hundred million.
Then there was Crocodile.
Just thinking about him made Nair’s head ache.
At Vivi’s current age, Crocodile had likely already begun laying the groundwork for his plans.
In the original timeline, Vivi would infiltrate Baroque Works at fourteen and spend two years gathering intelligence.
By sixteen, she would meet Luffy, and later represent Alabasta at the Reverie.
That meant the situation was already dangerous.
Crocodile could make his move at any time.
Nair exhaled slowly and pulled out his mobile phone, his thoughts shifting to something more immediate.
His Devil Fruit ability.
Every Devil Fruit had its own unique traits.
Even Zoan types granted enhanced recovery.
Pell, for example, survived carrying a massive bomb into the sky, an explosion powerful enough to devastate a five-kilometer radius.
There was no such thing as a useless Devil Fruit.
So what exactly was the true potential of the Phone-Phone Fruit?
Since he could not fully grasp its capabilities yet, Nair decided on the simplest approach.
Practice.
One mobile phone after another appeared in his hands as he continued using his ability.
Time passed as he worked relentlessly, creating device after device.
By the time exhaustion set in, hundreds of phones had piled up around him.
Fortunately, his royal chamber was large enough to hold them all.
Otherwise, he would have run out of space long ago.
“Hm?”
Nair suddenly froze.
A stream of new information surfaced in his mind.
His Devil Fruit ability had evolved.
A new function had awakened.
Primary Network Function.
At the same time, the type of phones he could create had changed.
They were no longer simple black-and-white communication devices.
Now, they had color screens.
Though still primitive, they resembled early non-smartphones.
On their displays flickered something deeply familiar.
A 2G signal.
It was a basic network, capable of transmitting simple images and text.
Nair stared at the screens, his eyes narrowing slightly.
This ability…
might be far more powerful than he initially thought.