Loguetown's eastern streets.
Luo Ya walked down the middle of the street, drawing the attention of quite a few residents. Strangely, however, there was no reverence in their gazes. Some even looked at him with disgust.
This was the territory of Loguetown's largest gang, the Bartolomeo Club—a lawless zone even the Marines could not easily enter.
Compared to the incompetent Marines, the people here were more willing to trust the Bartolomeo Club. Though they had to pay protection fees, the Bartolomeo Club protected them as well.
"Yo, that's an unfamiliar face!"
Two flamboyantly dressed young punks blocked Luo Ya's path, glaring and smacking their lips with thug-like expressions as they tried to make themselves look more intimidating.
"Marine, you're not welcome here!"
"..."
Luo Ya sized the two up.
They were very young, no older than sixteen or seventeen.
Tattoos, permed hair, nose rings, and clothes cut into a complete mess—the unmistakable retro Shamate style filled him with a nostalgic sense that times had changed.
According to the branch's intelligence, the Bartolomeo Club's members were mostly Shamate punks like these, and generally under twenty years old.
In the Underworld, where seniority mattered greatly, it was quite rare for such a young group to grow this large and powerful.
Luo Ya raised the food gift box in his hand and explained with a smile, "Sorry for coming uninvited, but I mean no harm. I'm here to visit Mochi Granny. Could you show me the way?"
According to the intelligence gathered by the branch, several core members of the Bartolomeo Club, including Bartolomeo himself, had once been orphans.
Mochi Granny had taken them in and raised them. To every member of the Bartolomeo Club, Granny's words were scripture that had to be obeyed.
"Visiting Mochi Granny?"
The two young hoodlums looked at