"Yo, Luffy."
Not long after treating and bandaging the injured Usopp and the butler named Merry, then sending Kaya and the others back to the mansion, Luffy's group of three returned as well.
"What took you so long? I thought you'd finish them off quickly."
"Don't even mention it."
Nami sighed helplessly, clutching her forehead.
"Some idiot captain got hypnotized, and I ended up getting slashed."
Nami, whose shoulder was stained with blood, sighed again.
"Some idiot swordsman let his guard down and had two of his swords stolen, and I ended up getting kicked."
"Uh..."
For a moment, Roman did not know what to say. By his estimation, without Captain Kuro, the Black Cat Pirates should not have been difficult opponents. How had they ended up in such a sorry state?
"Sorry, it was my fault." X2
Faced with Nami's complaints, a certain captain and a certain swordsman had no choice but to bow their heads and apologize.
If the two of them had not been careless, the Black Cat Pirates truly would not have stood a chance against them. But once they let their guard down...
It counted as a lesson for them, teaching them just how treacherous people could be.
"Forget it. I'm not blaming you."
Nami waved her hand.
"Roman, help me treat this wound."
"No problem, but with my current ability, I can only deal with ordinary external injuries."
Roman nodded. To achieve the expected effect of a Mobile Fountain, he would at least need to learn that technique... But doing so as a pirate would not be easy...
"Hahahaha, no, no! There was never any kidnapping~~~"
Usopp, wrapped in bandages beneath his clothes, stood at the mansion gates and grinned smugly at the townspeople holding pitchforks and kitchen knives.
"You were all fooled by me. I was only playing a little joke on everyone."
"What?!"
"You bastard—"
"Today, we're definitely going to teach you a lesson..."
"Everyone," Kaya, the frail girl wrapped in a coat, stood beside Usopp and bowed her head to the agitated townspeople.
"I'm sorry. Actually..."
"I already said it was just one of my lies!"
"It's only that Klahadore resigned and went back to his hometown. I couldn't help playing a little 'farewell joke' on him."
With Usopp's words, the townspeople's attention was immediately diverted.
"What..."
"Mr. Klahadore resigned?"
"How could that be? He was such a good man..."
Faced with the people reminiscing about the bespectacled butler, Kaya lowered her head sadly, mist gathering in her eyes again. But then:
A rough hand took hold of her fair palm. The girl turned her head and saw Usopp's bright smile.
"That Klahadore guy just went back to his hometown."
So please, do not be sad.
"Hey, something that big is just going to be treated as if it never happened?"
"You don't want that, Merry?"
"No."
The butler, covered in bandages and sporting sheep-like hair, shook his head.
"It was Usopp's idea, wasn't it?"
"That boy said it for the sake of the town... I understand. I'll take care of what remains."
"Merry, there's one more thing I need to ask of you."
"Please, go ahead..."
People truly had different constitutions.
This world had frail "delicate young ladies" like Miss Kaya, but also freaks like Luffy, who could eat one meal of meat and not even leave a scar behind.
So, just one day later, Butler Merry, who had been cut down by Captain Kuro, was already energetically running around handling the aftermath. When Roman learned of it, he could not help sighing—if Butler Merry were willing to go out to sea and train, he could at least reach the level of a ten-million-berry bounty...
In Kaya's dining room, Roman, Luffy, Zoro, and Nami had just finished a hearty meal and were now:
Crunch.
Luffy pulled half a fish bone out of his throat, still shaken.
"I actually got it stuck. Looks like I need to train my throat."
"Normally, when you finish eating, shouldn't there be a bone like this left?" Nami pointed at the intact fish skeleton on her plate, then looked at:
The spotless plate before Zoro, and the one before Roman...
"Are you two even human?!"
They really ate meat without spitting out the bones...
"Don't misunderstand. Luffy ate my fish—"
Roman speared a piece of bread with his fork.
"The reason he got it stuck was probably because he ate too fast, right?"
Faced with Roman's completely serious analysis, Nami could not even find the words to complain.
What exactly did bones count as to you people?
Calcium tablets?
Apologize to your digestive tracts already!!
"Everyone."
Kaya entered the dining room.
"Was the food to your liking? Should I have the chef prepare some more—"
"No need, I'm stuffed~~"
Luffy patted his belly and greeted her with a smile. "Thanks, Kaya!"
"I should be the one thanking you. If it weren't for all of you..." The girl lowered her head in a bow. If not for Usopp and these people, no matter how she thought about it, her fate would not have been pleasant.
"Kaya, is it really all right for you to be walking around like this?"
Faced with Nami's concerned question, the frail girl smiled and shook her head.
"My illness came from grieving too much after my parents passed away..."
"But all of you, and Usopp too, have helped me so much. I need to pull myself together as well."
As she spoke, the girl lightly clapped her hands.
"I heard that you need a ship capable of long voyages. Perhaps I can help."
"Whoa, whoa, whoa~~~ So cool!!"
At the shore, a caravel-style sailing ship, with its hull structure and triangular sails all using a stern-mounted central rudder, rested quietly in the water. Its bow was shaped like a sheep's head, making it look very cute. Two flags bearing sheep-head emblems flew above it.
"Sorry to keep you waiting."
The butler named Merry stood on the shore. "The design may be a little old-fashioned, but I designed it all myself."
Yeah, that much was obvious from his sheep-like hair and the ship's figurehead.
"This is a fast sailing ship. I named it the Going Merry..."
"Waaah, the Golden Merry?!"
Luffy happily raised both arms and greeted the sailing ship. "From now on, we're partners! Golden Merry~~"
"Hey? Luffy, that's not—"
Nami was about to remind Luffy that the ship's name was Going Merry, not Golden Merry, but Kaya gently took her hand.
"It's fine. It's your partner now."
So its name should naturally be decided by your captain—
"Golden Merry is a fine name too."
Elsewhere, Usopp, carrying a large pack on his back, faced his three "crew members," the three children from town who played captain games with him.
"Thank you for always playing along with this Great Liar, but:"
"After meeting those people, I decided—I'm going to sea to become a real pirate!"
"You're lying, right?"
"Captain Usopp, don't you love this town..."
"And what about Miss Kaya?"
"I—"
The long-nosed boy suddenly asked:
"What are your dreams?"
"To run a tavern."
"To become a carpenter."
"To be a novelist."
The three children answered without hesitation. Usopp raised his head, refusing to let the tears in his eyes fall.
"Yeah. And my dream... is to become a man who stands tall beneath the heavens, to become a Great Pirate known throughout the world!"
Usopp looked at his three "crew members."
"So we made a promise. We'll all make our dreams come true!"
"So—"
Tears and snot streamed down his cheeks as Usopp shouted toward the sky.
"The Usopp Pirates disband today!!"
"Luffy, are we setting sail?"
"Wait a little longer."
At Luffy's request, Roman nodded and gestured for Nami to start up the merchant ship first. Now that they had a proper Golden Merry, it was time to consider what to do with that merchant ship...
"Huff, huff, huff, huff."
Amid a string of panting breaths, Usopp appeared on the beach too, carrying a large pack.
"Yo... yo... Luffy, Roman, you're setting out to sea too?"
"Of course."
"You... you're still leaving for the sea, Usopp."
Kaya, the frail girl, walked over from the side, making the long-nosed boy look embarrassed.
"I... sorry..."
"You don't need to apologize, Usopp." But the girl merely smiled. "Actually, I had a feeling all along that one day, you would become a man who sailed across the seas."
"Then... when I come back next time, I'll tell you stories about my voyage."
"They'll be a hundred times more exciting than my old 'lies'!"
Faced with Usopp's farewell, Kaya continued smiling and nodded.
"All right. I'll wait for you."
"Then I'll—"
"Get aboard, Usopp."
Standing on the Golden Merry, Roman waved to the long-nosed boy.
"Eh, I..."
"Aren't we already partners?"
Luffy leaned over the railing with a completely matter-of-fact expression. Usopp's face froze, and several seconds later:
"This..."
"Am I the captain?"
"No!" X4
"Miss, you wanted to ask Usopp to stay just now, didn't you?"
"Yes, but—"
Standing on the shore and watching the Golden Merry sail away, Kaya brushed her fingers through her pale golden hair stirred by the wind.
"I cannot extinguish Usopp's dream for my own sake."
"Let's go back."
The mistress and servant turned around.
"Merry, I want to become a doctor."
"Miss... you've set yourself a great goal."
Before you continue