Fate Is Like This (Bonus Chapter)

"Quite lively."

The golden-haired youth who pushed open the door and entered the tavern was the Steel Pipe kid who had just arrived in Mad Hatter Town during the day.

He raised a finger to press down the brim of his hat, a smile playing on his lips.

The tavern was mostly full, and the table where Maud was sitting had two empty seats, making it stand out.

Without any hesitation, Steel Pipe headed straight for Maud's table.

Unfamiliar with the Undertaker profession, he had no qualms about bad luck or disgust.

Arriving at one of the empty seats, Steel Pipe glanced at Maud, who sat silently with a mask on, and sat down without saying a word.

This was a free and easy tavern; if there was a seat, you sat, and if there wasn't, you stood. Regardless of where you sat or stood, you didn't need anyone's permission.

After sitting down, Steel Pipe kept an eye on Maud's reaction out of the corner of his eye, while also waving to the busy waitresses, who were bustling about like ants on a hot pan, to signal that he wanted to order.

Maud observed the youth who had just sat down. His dark sunglasses seemed out of place here and now.

To conceal his gaze, Maud began to eat the appetizers he had ordered a long time ago for the first time.

A few dozen seconds later, a waitress carrying a tray hurried to the table and quietly asked Steel Pipe what he wanted.

Steel Pipe smiled and ordered a mug of draft beer and an appetizer.

"Please wait a moment."

After placing his order, the waitress quickly retreated.

As time went on, places near the Mad Hatter Auction House where one could briefly rest, such as taverns, restaurants, and casinos, were all packed.

This was because most of the potential buyers attending the auction brought large groups of people with them.

The auction house stipulated that each guest could only bring a maximum of two attendants, which meant that other accompanying individuals had to wait outside first, and places like taverns were their destinations.

If Steel Pipe hadn't sat down, someone else would have taken the seat later. If he had encountered a habitually overbearing pirate, Maud would likely have been threatened to give up the table.

In a way, the arrival of the relatively friendly-looking kid occupying one of the seats had inadvertently eliminated some potential trouble for Maud.

After placing his order, Steel Pipe leaned back, but was blocked by a pipe behind him. He then simply took the pipe off and placed it on the table.

Maud glanced at the unpretentious-looking pipe, a flicker of surprise in his eyes.

Using a pipe as a weapon... that's quite unconventional.

"You don't mind, do you?"

Steel Pipe noticed Maud looking at the pipe and smiled slightly.

Maud remained silent.

He acted first and then asked if it was okay.

This guy was clearly the type who was used to getting his way.

Seeing Maud's silence, Steel Pipe took the opportunity to strike up a conversation:

"I saw several people wearing masks like yours on the street today. I heard it's a profession called Undertaker, so are you an Undertaker too?"

While talking to Maud, Steel Pipe was also distracted, listening to the conversations of the pirates around him, trying to sift out any valuable information.

Before the auction officially began, he and Clara had split up, using various methods to gather as much information as possible.

Maud didn't speak, but nodded in response.

His attention was more focused on listening for information.

And so, Steel Pipe chatted aimlessly, while Maud sometimes nodded and sometimes shook his head, but otherwise said nothing.

On the surface, they were doing different things, but in reality, they were both engaged in the same pursuit.

It could only be said that fate was indeed strange, bringing them to the same table.

After a few interactions, Maud and Steel Pipe quickly sensed something unusual.

Whether it was a coincidence or not, they exchanged a tacit glance, then their eyes met and immediately parted, each looking elsewhere.

"This guy..." x2.

Maud narrowed his eyes.

Steel Pipe raised an eyebrow.

"What's his background?" x2.

Maud and Steel Pipe thought to themselves.

The atmosphere at the table immediately cooled to absolute zero.

Creak—

The tavern door was pushed open.

A man with a cane, his skin unnaturally pale, walked in.

It was none other than Lafitte, known in West Blue as the Devil Sheriff.

He was originally a law enforcement officer in a certain area of West Blue, but he became infamous for his excessive use of violence and was eventually exiled.

He eventually fell in with pirates, as was only natural, but kept his old nickname. This just goes to show how infamous he was back then.

Lafitte's gaze swept the room, and he instantly spotted the only empty seat in the tavern.

He immediately walked towards it.

That empty seat, however, was at the table where Maud and Steel Pipe were sitting.

Many pirates chatting and drinking in the tavern turned to look at Lafitte. His recent spree of indiscriminate killing had made them instinctively wary.

Lafitte's arrival, relying solely on his fearsome reputation and wicked deeds, caused the lively atmosphere to falter slightly.

Maud also saw Lafitte. The man's extremely distinctive attire and appearance made him recognize the other's identity at once.

Isn't that one of Blackbeard's crewmates?

What's he doing here?

Maud's eyes flickered slightly.

Although Blackbeard's crewmates didn't appear much in the original story, almost every one of them had a richly drawn personal style.

Therefore, even though Maud didn't know Lafitte well, he could remember them and recognize Lafitte's identity from his style of dress.

Hmm?

Seeing Lafitte walking in his direction, Maud instinctively glanced at the empty seat beside him and felt a pang of annoyance.

Should I just slip away?

With that thought, Maud's gaze shifted slightly, and he subtly glanced at a table of customers about five or six meters away.

That was the target he had chosen after spending a good few minutes here.

The reason was that the person was flaunting their own bounty poster as a badge of honor at the table.

And a prey like this, which practically came with its own guide, how could he let such an opportunity pass? It would be an offense against nature!

He had originally planned to wait for the target to leave and then follow them outside to find an opportunity for a sneak attack.

However, Lafitte's arrival made Maud change his mind.

You don't have to stake out the place itself; you can find a spot outside to wait.

Just as Maud's thoughts were racing, Lafitte had already gracefully taken a seat.

Maud prepared to retreat.

Steel Pipe, on the other hand, showed no reaction, a stark contrast to the surrounding pirates.

Ignoring the many eyes on him, Lafitte was about to call a waiter to order when the tavern door, which had just recently closed, was suddenly violently kicked open.

The loud noise immediately drew everyone's attention, and they instinctively looked towards the entrance.

Two pirates with ferocious expressions charged into the tavern side-by-side.

They didn't utter any threats or introductory remarks. Instead, under the increasingly astonished gaze of the crowd, they raised their pistols.

And the direction their gun muzzles were aimed at was precisely where Lafitte was sitting.

Bang, bang—

In a flash, two gunshots rang out in the tavern.

After the gunshots faded, the scene fell silent.

The two pirates at the door, clearly there for revenge, stood frozen, their bodies stiff.

On their foreheads, two bloodied holes, wisps of white smoke rising from them, had appeared.

The situation took a sharp turn. Many pirates followed the sound of the gunshots with their eyes.

They saw only an Undertaker wearing a mask putting away two handguns.

"Such fast shooting...!"

Someone exclaimed in astonishment.

Steel Pipe, his right hand resting on the pipe, looked at Maud with slight surprise.

Beside him, Lafitte, who had already gripped his cane, looked genuinely taken aback.

Third update.

It feels like ages since the last triple update.

I suddenly feel like I've returned to being eighteen.

Also, your recommendation tickets are truly powerful and valuable. They've helped the book's collection count grow quite quickly. Thank you all for your generous contributions~!!!