You Will Surely Become the King of the Pirates

Ross smiled and did not deliberately make things difficult for Stella.

Or rather, it was precisely because Stella looked so pitiful that he wanted to bully her even more.

"Stella!!!"

The sudden shout was exceptionally conspicuous on the quiet street.

"Tesoro?"

Stella cried out, covering her mouth as she watched the green-haired young man running toward her from afar.

Even though she knew Tesoro could not possibly buy her, their three years together had been real. She was still deeply grateful to him.

"Tesoro..."

Gild Tesoro

Overall Rating: E-Class

Ross merely glanced at him and immediately lost interest.

Even if he was a plot character, his rating was unexpectedly low before he had grown stronger. He was not even as good as Stella.

Perhaps only people connected to the main storyline could receive higher evaluations before making a name for themselves.

"Stella, I'm here! I gathered enough money to buy you."

Tesoro waved excitedly. He had no idea what had just happened and was focused solely on buying Stella.

Today, he had finally gathered enough money to buy Stella.

"Stella, I'll go handle the paperwork right now."

Tesoro spoke excitedly. At that moment, buying Stella was the only thing on his mind. He had not noticed Ross at all, nor had he noticed Stella's slightly ugly expression.

"There's no need!"

Stella suddenly said.

"Huh? Stella, what's wrong?"

Only then did Tesoro notice that something was off with Stella. He hurried forward and asked with concern.

"I've already been bought by this lord. You came too late."

Stella looked at Tesoro with utter coldness, as if she were looking at a stranger.

"Why? Didn't we make a promise?"

Tesoro froze completely. He could not believe that Stella, who had always gently encouraged him, would say something like that.

Damn it, was I still too late?

For some reason, a blaze of anger rose in Tesoro's heart.

Looking at Stella's disdainful expression, he wanted nothing more than to strangle her.

He had clearly loved her so much.

Why was she making that face?

"A promise? That was just your wishful thinking."

Stella deliberately turned away in disgust, only to meet Ross's interested and encouraging gaze. Her heart immediately became unsettled.

She was a kind person.

Even after being kidnapped by traffickers and locked in a glass display case as an animal for three years, she had still been willing to believe in the goodness of humanity.

She was sincerely happy that Tesoro could turn over a new leaf.

But that was enough. Staying away from her was the correct and safest choice.

"Stella, are you saying that you've been lying to me all along?"

"Are you saying that you always saw me as a tool to win your freedom?"

"Answer me!"

Tesoro did not understand Stella's feelings. Instead, he questioned her again and again.

In his eyes, the only reason Stella could have changed so drastically was that, after regaining her freedom, he had lost all value to her.

The more excited he had been before, the more devastated he was now.

He had never imagined that Stella was such a scheming person.

"That's right."

There was reluctance in Stella's eyes, but she still placed all the blame on herself.

That way, the Celestial Dragon beside her would not blame Tesoro, right?

"No."

Ross suddenly interrupted Stella and said lazily,

"She said that to save you. Otherwise, you would be leaving here horizontally today."

As he spoke, he reached toward the glass display case where Stella was.

Zany understood at once. With one punch, she shattered the outer wall of the glass display case and pulled Stella out.

Zany had been selected from a young age and received only the finest training. Her strength was on an entirely different level from Guernica's. Shattering the glass display case without hurting Stella was far too easy for her.

Before Stella could steady herself on the ground, Ross reached out and pulled her into his arms.

Suddenly falling into a warm embrace, Stella's face instantly flushed red.

"You're lying!"

A trace of malice flashed through Tesoro's eyes as he glared viciously at the shy Stella.

Seeing Stella held in someone else's arms while wearing such an intimate expression, his heart completely died.

At the same time, the idealized image of Stella he had held in his heart shattered completely.

"Tsk, you're angry already?"

Ross clicked his tongue in boredom, though he had not held high expectations for Tesoro in the first place.

He had originally been a street rat who gambled and stole. What could anyone expect from him before he underwent a transformation?

Besides...

Ross quietly glanced at Zany standing nearby.

The Succubus-Succubus Fruit did not only radiate charm after transforming. If Zany wished, she could turn Tesoro into a simping dog in an instant.

Zany did not even need to do anything. Simply standing beside Stella was enough to shatter Tesoro's idealized image of Stella and awaken the negative emotions in his heart.

"Tesoro, he wasn't lying to you. Leave. From now on, when we meet again, we'll be strangers."

Stella pursed her lips, but she did not dare go against Ross's words.

She did not know why Ross was speaking up for her, but Tesoro's enraged appearance truly frightened her.

Wouldn't it be better for everyone to part on good terms?

"Strangers? Fine, fine, fine! Stella, my Stella, is already dead!!!"

Tesoro roared, suddenly pulling a short self-defense knife from behind his back and stabbing it toward Stella's neck.

The sudden attack completely terrified Stella.

She curled up in Ross's arms, her mind utterly blank. She could not imagine this would happen.

"Smack!"

Zany flashed in front of Stella, grabbed Tesoro's attacking hand, and twisted it viciously.

"Aaaahhh!!!"

Amid his miserable scream, the short knife fell from Tesoro's hand. Zany had twisted his right arm into the shape of a pretzel.

"Attacking a Celestial Dragon is a capital offense!"

Zany spoke coldly and moved to kill Tesoro.

"Stop."

Ross's shout at the critical moment made Zany halt, but she still kicked Tesoro in the stomach, sending him flying. He crashed heavily onto the ground and could not get back up.

"Forget it. Give Stella some face. Since he wasn't trying to kill me, spare him."

Ross glanced at Stella, who had nearly been scared senseless, then reached out and pinched her pale cheek. Only then did she come back to her senses.

But even after recovering, Stella remained silent in Ross's arms and did not look at Tesoro again.

"Let's go. We've had quite a harvest. Back to the Holy Land."

Ross had not intended to kill Tesoro anyway. This was hardly anything.

Tesoro had never posed a threat to the Celestial Dragons until his death, much less done anything to Ross.

Killing him now would only earn an E-Class reward. It would be better to raise him first and kill him later. By then, he would at least be worth an A-Class reward.

Ross was quite looking forward to Tesoro's growth. It would be even better if he could grow stronger faster.

Ignoring Tesoro, who looked like a dead dog, Ross held the kitten-like, obedient Stella and walked step by step out of the market.

To everyone else, it was as if they had not seen him leave.

He was a noble Celestial Dragon. It was already fortunate that he had not killed anyone at random. No one dared stop him.

After Ross left, the person in charge of the slave shop finally came out to clean up the scene. Tesoro was dragged away as well, lest he affect the slave shop's business.

Inside the slave shop, Trebol stood by the window, watching Ross's retreating figure while holding a Den Den Mushi that resembled Doflamingo.

"Young Master, our finest merchandise was taken away by a Celestial Dragon."

"Fufufufu, being taken away by a Celestial Dragon is a good thing. Spread the word that our slaves are good enough to catch a Celestial Dragon's eye."

"Young Master, there's one more matter. The Marines shut down the slave auction house, and that matter is also related to a Celestial Dragon."

"Fufufufu, it was bound to happen sooner or later. A bunch of trash without a Celestial Dragon's backing actually dared make money off Celestial Dragons. Once the slave shop is settled, return to the North Blue first."

"Don't worry about the slave auction house. Let them fight and scramble over it. Once we have the strength to go to the Sabaody Archipelago, the slave auction house will be named Donquixote!"

"Young Master, you will surely become the King of the Pirates!"

If you think this book is good, remember to add it to your bookshelf so you do not lose it next time.