When the young man carrying a great sword stood before him,
Austin had to admit
that he was somewhat interested.
Although he had heard that Mihawk, like Zoro in his younger days, loved challenging master swordsmen from all walks of life in pursuit of his dream of becoming the World's Greatest Swordsman,
he had not expected this guy to come knocking so quickly.
Let us rewind three days.
When the kid first arrived and learned that Austin was not there, he had wandered around outside the Red-Light District, lying in wait for three days and three nights.
In the end, some staff members could not stand it anymore and stepped forward to ask why.
Only then did they learn that he had come to challenge Lord Austin.
When Sammy learned of this, she did not take it seriously either.
After all, Lord Austin's reputation resounded across the seas. If every stray cat and dog who came to challenge him had to be taken seriously,
he would be annoyed to death in a single day.
Thus, the future World's Greatest Swordsman, Shichibukai, and Imperial Father—Dracule Mihawk—
could only squat at the entrance to the Red-Light District like a door guardian,
his sharp, hawk-like eyes sweeping over every passerby, more vigilant than a security guard checking delivery workers,
afraid that one moment of carelessness would let his target slip past him.
Little did he know...
A figure that had crossed space had quietly appeared at the bathhouse in the Red-Light District at some unknown time.
After several days of developing his Devil Fruit ability and living on a deserted island, Austin was now covered in dust from travel.
Under the shocked and nervous reception of the bathhouse manager, he took off his clothes, entered the hot spring, and began one of his