Pave the way!

"The Roger Pirates have done it!"

"Pirate Roger has finally achieved the unprecedented feat of circumnavigating the world!"

"The ruler of the seas has finally been born!"

"Roger."

With the undulating sea as a backdrop, Nicholas sat cross-legged at the bow of the Moby Dick, reading the latest newspaper.

The newspaper devoted an entire page to reporting on Roger's achievement, and in addition to the news of Roger becoming the Pirate King, there was also a wanted poster for Roger: "Gold Roger, bounty 5,564,800,000 Berry, dead or alive!"

In a certain port village, a large ship predominantly red in color was quietly docked. If anyone were there, they would immediately recognize it as the flagship of the newly crowned Pirate King, Gold Roger.

"Rayleigh, you guys go resupply. I need to talk to Shanks alone," said Roger with a determined look, holding the straw hat he had given Shanks.

When Roger and Shanks appeared again, though it was unclear what they had discussed, Shanks clearly had shed a few tears.

"Fame, wealth, power—this man has it all! Gold Roger, the Pirate King!" recited Rayleigh with a smile as he read the newspaper.

Roger couldn't help but scoff, "They even omitted the 'D' in my name? Seems like they fear the 'D' clan more than anything. Afraid that revealing my full name would attract all the remaining 'D' clan members to my side?"

He then chuckled and pinched his beard, "But 'Pirate King' isn't a bad title either! Wahahaha!"

Beside him, Buggy also laughed, "I never thought becoming the Pirate King would cause the World Government to withhold even his name. But now we know why. It seems our captain has quite the remarkable background."

"Hahaha, they know nothing. But with this name, everyone in the world will be coming after us, Roger."

"Indeed!"

...

"Kill Roger, seize the treasure!"

"Find Roger and claim the greatest treasure in the world!"

"I'll take down the Pirate King's head!"

Almost as soon as the news of Roger becoming the Pirate King spread throughout the world, pirates everywhere, thinking highly of themselves, began their actions. Some countries even secretly funded pirate crews to search for Roger's whereabouts.

"Roger really did it."

Beside Nicholas, Whitebeard couldn't help but sigh. However, he felt no jealousy towards Roger for becoming the Pirate King. He knew that achieving the feat of circumnavigating the world was Roger's dream. Now that Roger had fulfilled it, Whitebeard couldn't be happier for him.

Whitebeard looked at Marco, Jozu, Thach, and the others discussing Roger's achievement on the deck and smiled. In a sense, he had also fulfilled his dream.

"Yeah, after this, Roger will probably disband his crew," Nicholas said without lifting his head.

Whitebeard was momentarily stunned by Nicholas's statement. He knew that for people like them, the crew members were not just comrades, but friends and family after their long journey together. Disbanding the crew was akin to betrayal.

…

"Roger, why do you suddenly want to disband the crew?" asked Whitebeard.

"Hahaha, I thought you'd ask me during the day," Roger chuckled.

"You first."

"It's simple. Now that we've reached Raftel and learned everything, we're destined to become the World Government's number one target. And according to the information left by Joy Boy, you should also know that we're no match for the World Government as we are now. So laying low for a while is the best option."

Roger said solemnly.

"Yeah, we...came too early, didn't we? I wonder who will find the unique treasure now?"

"Probably my son. After all, I'm the Pirate King. Surely my son can surpass me, right?"

Roger said confidently.

"Where did you get a son from?"

"Just go have one, hahaha!"

"Why does Shanks seem different after talking to you? And what about you and Shanks?"

"Rayleigh, you're like a woman sometimes. Some things are secrets between men."

"After the crew disbands, where will you go?"

"Probably to see Nicholas. I have a feeling that he knows things that may be even more than us. And judging by his actions, he seems to be preparing for something."

"Are you joking? That guy hasn't even been to Raftel. How could he know all that?"

Rayleigh was amazed. He and his crew had been to Raftel and seen the remnants left behind, learning everything. He found it surprising that Roger believed Nicholas could know as much as they did, if not more.

"Why did Nicholas want Whitebeard to hand over the Poneglyph, and why did he have to go to Wano during the time of the full moon? Remember, on Raftel, there may be little information about Wano, but undoubtedly, Toki's family and Kozuki were among Joy Boy's closest companions over eight hundred years ago."

…

As Nicholas lay on the hammock on the Moby Dick's deck, gazing at the starry sky, he murmured to himself.

Most of Nicholas's understanding of Roger came from memories. The man sitting on the execution platform, facing two executioners' blades with a smile. Looking down at the countless dreamers below, he shouted the words that ignited an era.

"Do you want my treasure? I'll give it all to you! Go find it! I left everything at that place!"

Simple words, spoken with a carefree smile.

He had ignited the era of pirates, leading more people to choose to set sail on the vast sea.

"Did you do everything to prepare for the next era, Roger?"

Nicholas muttered to himself. Having arrived too early, he couldn't obtain the great treasure himself, so did he choose to pave the way for future generations with his own life?

[AN- For anyone wondering, they nicholas and whitebeard went away before bigmom and kaido could arrive, and on the second paragraph, whitebeard took a small boat and went to meet roger himself instead of his whole group and requested Nicholas to look after his crew]