Invitation

Half an hour later.

Maud leaned against the wall of a secluded alley, tilting his head back as he panted softly.

The battle of offense and defense with Abe had drained too much of his stamina. After leaving the tavern, he had run nonstop for another twenty minutes.

So even though he had been resting here for more than ten minutes, he still hadn't fully recovered.

Especially mentally. Overusing Heartbeat Listening had left him somewhat listless.

But if he hadn't done that, Abe would have turned him into a pincushion long ago.

"I almost didn't get away."

Maud took a deep breath, finally finding the time to pull out his flintlock and load it.

Recalling the dangerous situation in the tavern, Maud knew that without Wolf Rat's assistance at the very end, even if he had thrown the entire vortex into chaos, there was still a very high chance he would have fallen there.

"Thank goodness, thank goodness."

Maud was still shaken.

Fortunately, he had also had Heartbeat Listening to assist him, and his physical condition wasn't poor, allowing him to deal with Abe's sword strikes.

Still, he had finally witnessed firsthand the strength of someone with a bounty of over thirty million.

"Kazt and Abe, huh..."

Maud summoned Hunter's Notebook and recorded the information he had personally experienced just now on its pages.

After finishing, Maud put away the quill and silently stared at the names Abe and Kazt.

"If I fought Abe head-on, I'd probably have to pay a price to kill him. As for Kazt, relying on firearms alone, I'd have no chance at all in a frontal confrontation. Even with a sneak attack, I might not be able to kill him in one shot."

Maud dismissed the notebook and muttered to himself.

Today's incident had given him a profound understanding of a gunner's weaknesses.

Once an enemy closed in and stuck to him, the only thing he could do was try his best to create distance.

As long as he was fast enough, he could kite and frustrate his enemy, or even kill them.

But if his firearm's lethality wasn't enough to pose a threat, then even if he could remain undefeated, it would amount to being unable to accomplish anything.

If he couldn't kill his prey, Hunter's Notebook couldn't display its effects.

Besides, this was only a battle at the thirty-million level.

What would happen in battles involving bounties of over a hundred million? With the level of firearms in the pirate world, how much could a gunner really accomplish?

Thinking it over, the only person Maud could use as a reference was Usopp.

In other words, was the only path left to a gunner that of support?

Even so, he didn't have any teammates. What was there to support?

At that thought, Maud suddenly wanted to go back and ask Saul.

He wanted to ask what methods Saul had used to fight throughout his travels.

When facing powerful enemies alone, what sort of tactics and ideas should he use to deal with them?

"As expected, martial arts and a blade are more reliable."

Maud sighed softly but had no intention of abandoning marksmanship outright. After all, having more skills was never a burden. Besides, with an experienced veteran like Saul to teach him, even if he didn't become formidable later on, it could still become a reliable trump card.

However, he now wanted to master a close-combat method as quickly as possible.

"Let's go home. I didn't find suitable prey to deal with, but at least I got some information that will be useful later."

After recovering most of his stamina, Maud didn't dare continue roaming the streets at this hour.

Moreover, the aftereffects of Heartbeat Listening made him feel quite uncomfortable.

After all, his attainments in this area were only at an introductory level. He had no Nen to lessen the burden, and his body was relatively weak at this stage.

Under all these factors, being able to use the technique completely in that situation had truly been no easy feat.

"Speaking of which, where is this place again?"

Maud looked around at the unfamiliar surroundings.

He had focused only on running and had no idea which district he had ended up in.

After a moment of silence, Maud looked up at the tops of the buildings.

It was still early, and walking along the rooftops seemed a little too conspicuous.

Should I wait here until dark?

Maud pondered.

Just then, hurried footsteps came from the corner ahead.

Maud's gaze sharpened. He immediately drew his pistol, ready to fire at any moment.

The footsteps quickly approached, and a figure emerged from around the corner.

When Maud saw that it was Wolf Rat, a strange glint flashed deep in his eyes.

"Brother Wolf Rat, it's great that you're safe!"

Quietly hiding the pistol behind his back, Maud launched a "heavy punch" before Wolf Rat could speak.

Hearing Maud's words, Wolf Rat—whose appearance was utterly disheveled—restrained the urge to beat Maud to death.

"I got out by sheer luck."

Wolf Rat gave an awkward laugh. His bloody right hand carried a white skunk.

The skunk seemed to be injured. Its lower body hung limply, and its overall disheveled appearance was no less wretched than Wolf Rat's.

Maud glanced at the skunk and explained without changing expression, "Brother Wolf Rat, I'm really sorry about earlier. When I was running away, I suddenly heard you shouting behind me, so I thought the enemy had caught up. I was so frightened that I shuddered, and by the time I came back to my senses, the skunk I had just rescued had somehow flown away."

"..."

The corner of Wolf Rat's mouth twitched faintly.

The skunk lowered its head. The pain had left him listless, and he had no energy to criticize Maud's shamelessness.

Wolf Rat quickly recovered and hurriedly spoke in support of Maud's explanation.

"I understand, I understand. If it had been me, I definitely would have made an even bigger mess."

After saying this, he failed to notice the incredulous emotion appearing in the skunk's eyes.

Is this human an idiot?

The skunk thought silently.

Maud likewise failed to notice anything unusual about the skunk. Looking at Wolf Rat, he shook his head and sighed. "It's fine, it's fine. It's all in the past, and none of us got hurt. That's what matters most."

"Exactly, that's the... Hmm? Haha, yes, that's exactly right."

Wolf Rat felt as if he had swallowed a mouthful of excrement, yet he had to pretend it tasted delicious.

"Oh, right. This is something you left behind. If I hadn't wanted to return him to you, I'd probably already be back treating my wounds."

As he spoke, Wolf Rat lifted the skunk, who looked utterly devoid of hope.

That was the reason and motivation behind his pursuit of Maud.

Although it was somewhat flimsy.

Still, he wanted to press his advantage and breach Maud's wall of friendship.

"Oh, isn't this that pet belonging to someone named Abe?"

Maud instead seriously corrected Wolf Rat's mistake.

Wolf Rat looked enlightened and exclaimed in surprise, "Ah? So this is Abe's pet? I thought it was yours, which is why I carried him all this way."

As soon as he finished speaking, the skunk—who had just finished serving his purpose—was casually thrown aside.

When the skunk hit the ground, his fractured limb was struck, and he hissed in pain. He nearly spoke in human words, but fortunately managed to hold back at the last moment.

You two shameless bastards will get struck by lightning sooner or later!

The skunk suppressed his pained cries and viciously cursed Wolf Rat and Maud in his heart.

Wolf Rat naturally had no concern for the skunk's feelings. He looked around and pretended to be surprised.

"This place is pretty close to where I live. Brother Usopp, why don't you come over and treat your inju—uh, rest for a while?"

He had originally wanted to say "treat your wounds," but Wolf Rat realized that this bastard Maud wasn't injured at all. He himself, on the other hand, was wounded all over, and both his hands had nearly been crippled.

"Heh."

Maud smiled faintly at his words.

"???"

Wolf Rat froze. After a long moment, he cautiously asked, "Does 'heh'... mean you agree?"

"All right. I'll go rest at your place for a while."

Maud had intended to refuse, but after thinking it over, he agreed.

He could tell that something was wrong with Wolf Rat, but back in the tavern, if Wolf Rat hadn't blocked Kazt...

For that reason, Maud didn't mind going to see what Wolf Rat was really up to.

Seeing Maud agree, Wolf Rat was overjoyed. He felt that all his efforts had been worthwhile.

However, he didn't show it on his face and calmly said, "Follow me."

With that, he headed forward.

Maud discreetly put away his pistol, then followed.

After walking a few steps, he suddenly turned to look at the white skunk, who was slowly crawling across the ground, trying to leave.

"Brother Wolf Rat, do you think skunk meat is edible?"

Hearing Maud's words, Wolf Rat stopped and turned to look at the white skunk as well, unable to help falling into deep thought.

Two malicious gazes pierced into his body. The skunk stiffened all over and lay on the ground, not daring to move an inch.

What beasts...!