A Return Gift!

Hearing a heavy object hit the ground outside, Dadan ran out to see what had happened.

She immediately sucked in a breath.

"Whoa, that's one huge wild bull!"

At Dadan's astonished words, Mercer smiled and said to her:

"I heard from Ace that you like eating wild bull meat, Dadan. I happened to run into this one while I was up the mountain, so I brought it back for you. Let's have it for dinner."

Dadan glanced at Ace helplessly. "Why do you have to run your mouth so much, you brat? Wild bulls are dangerous. What if your brother got hurt?"

Ace pressed his lips together, then looked at Mercer with some concern.

"Hey, you're not hurt anywhere, are you?"

"Are you worried about me?"

Mercer spun around for him. He was perfectly clean, without a single scratch, and then said:

"What are you thinking? For this dumb bull to hurt me, it'd need to grow another five or six meters."

"Yeah, right. If it grew another five or six meters, one stomp would flatten you like a pancake."

Ace looked unconvinced.

Mercer smiled and said no more. Instead, he turned to Dadan.

"Got a big basin? I'll butcher this bull."

Dadan immediately waved both hands.

"No, no! How could I let you do that, Mercer? Leave it to us."

She called out to Dogra and Magura, who had come outside:

"What are you standing around for? Go get the tools!"

Magura was a huge, burly man with a kind-looking face. He was bald, apart from a tuft of red hair on his crown that looked like a rooster's comb.

At her words, the two men happily went back to fetch the butchering tools.

They didn't get to eat wild bull very often.

Today was their lucky day.

Seeing how eager they were, Mercer let them handle it.

He walked over to Ace and watched him with a grin.

Before long, Ace blushed and shouted, "Why are you staring at me?"

"My eyes are part of me. I can look at whoever I want. What's wrong with looking at you for a bit?"

"What, are you a girl, so I'm not allowed to look? Or do you charge people to look at you?"

Mercer's lips curled up as he teased him cheerfully.

Just as Ace was about to blow his top, Mercer patted him on the shoulder. "Want to go for a walk with me?"

Ace froze.

He hadn't expected Mercer to say that.

He stared at Mercer for a moment.

Finally, he nodded, trying to look calm, and said with a pout, "Since you're asking so nicely, I suppose I can humor you."

Mercer slapped Ace on the back, making him grimace in pain.

"Would you die if you stopped acting all tsundere?"

"You grumpy little brat."

"You're the one who's grumpy! Don't walk away! Get back here!"

After giving him a slap, Mercer casually picked a direction and set off.

Ace ran after him, trying to hit him back, but couldn't land a blow. It was as if Mercer had eyes in the back of his head, dodging every time with perfect timing.

The two of them disappeared into the forest, bickering and play-fighting as they went.

Dadan opened her mouth, about to warn them that the forest was dangerous. But when she saw the wild bull being butchered in front of her, she decided not to say anything.

They strolled through the lush forest, sunlight filtering through the canopy and dappling the ground around them.

As they walked, Mercer used his axe now and then to chop through branches blocking their way.

Ace kept eyeing Mercer's unusual axe, sneaking glances at it as they went.

Boys just loved playing with swords and clubs.

Especially cool-looking axes.

Mercer pretended not to notice.

The forest was thick with plants.

And full of different species.

Sure enough.

Before long, Mercer spotted some medicinal herbs in the forest.

They were in a low-lying area, with a sizable pond surrounded by thick reeds.

"Do you know what those are?" Mercer asked Ace, pointing to the patches of reeds.

"Those are reeds, aren't they?" Ace said, rolling his eyes. "Don't treat me like an idiot."

Mercer smiled and walked over, yanking up a few reeds with their muddy roots.

Pointing to the jointed root at the base, which looked like bamboo, he said, "Reed rhizome. It's a common herb that clears heat and detoxifies, stops vomiting, and promotes urination. You can juice it—"

While Ace looked on in confusion, Mercer tossed aside the reeds and continued wandering through the forest with him.

Every so often, he pointed out common herbs and clearly explained what they were used for. As time passed, Ace grew increasingly impatient.

Finally,

Ace grabbed Mercer's arm and glared at him. "What are you even trying to do?"

Mercer stopped and looked at him sympathetically, shaking his head.

"My foolish little brother, you still haven't figured out what I'm doing?"

Ace's eyes flickered, but he stubbornly held Mercer's gaze.

Mercer reached over and tugged at his cheek. As Ace bristled, he said, "I'm teaching you some wilderness survival skills, of course."

"Dadan and the others can make sure you don't starve, but there are things they can't teach you."

"In a few years, once you're a bit older, you'll definitely go hunting in the forest, given your personality. But the forest has plenty of poisonous things in it. I'm teaching you this so you can save yourself.

"If you need it one day and come across an herb that can cure you, but don't recognize it, you'll be in real trouble."

Ace fell quiet. Mercer sighed and ruffled his hair.

"We might not get to be together for a long time, so you have to stay safe." Mercer smiled. "You're my little brother, after all. I don't want to suddenly hear one day that you're dead."

Ace shook his head, brushing Mercer's hand away. He glared at him, looking as cocky as ever.

"You're the one who'll die! Corvo Mountain is perfectly safe. You're the one who should watch out. I hear the Grand Line is a sea that eats people alive."

"You'd better not die, either."

Mercer nodded and smiled.

"Then let's both live freely and stay safe."

Ace nodded firmly. After that, he listened more attentively as Mercer introduced him to all sorts of herbs.

Time passed.

The sky gradually darkened.

The two of them came out of the forest and returned to Dadan's Home.

The lights inside were already on, and the rich smell of meat filled the air.

Mercer's eyes lit up. "Come on, let's go eat."

Ace nodded enthusiastically, brimming with anticipation.

Inside.

As soon as they entered, they saw Garp sitting at the head of the table.

When he saw them return, Garp took a bite of beef and laughed. "Mercer, I heard you brought down that wild bull. Not bad! You're my grandson, all right."

"Ace, you'd better work hard too. See? I told you Mercer was a lot stronger than you."

Garp laughed heartily.

Ace flushed with anger. "Shut up, you old geezer! Nobody asked you!"

Garp's face darkened. Pointing at Ace, he scolded, "You little brat! I'm your grandfather, and you dare call me an old geezer?"

"Gah! I'm so mad! Mercer, don't hold me back! I'm going to beat Ace up today!"

Mercer found a seat, picked up a piece of bone-in meat, and started eating. Without even looking up, he said, "Do whatever you want. Just don't kill him."

Garp grew even angrier.

Ace squeezed in beside Mercer, looking smug, and started eating meat.

"Beat me up if you want. Just let me eat my fill first."

Garp laughed in exasperation, turning his anger into an appetite as he ate and grumbled, "You ungrateful little punk. When you need something, I'm Grandpa. Otherwise, I'm an old geezer."

The good times lasted a whole week. Every morning, Garp would "disappear," then return when evening was drawing near.

During that time, Mercer asked Garp to return the fishing rod from the warship to the village chief's house.

Every morning after waking up, Mercer took Ace for a run and helped him work on his breathing.

After breakfast,

he took Ace into the mountains to teach him wilderness survival skills and how to use various tools, while also looking for food.

They climbed trees to raid birds' nests.

They caught fish and shrimp in the river.

They found all kinds of wild vegetables and fruits.

Or edible insects like scorpions in the cracks between rocks.

Cut off the heads and tails.

Char them over a fire to kill the germs.

With his Appraisal ability, Mercer was practically a walking encyclopedia of wilderness survival.

From morning until night.

Like Garp, he returned just before evening, bringing along whatever game he'd caught.

They ate dinner together, chatted, then washed up and went to bed.

A week later,

Morning.

After breakfast, Mercer and Garp said goodbye to Ace.

"Grandpa's leave is almost over. I have to head back to work at Marine Headquarters, so that's it for this time."

"Don't miss me too much, Ace." Mercer smiled at the reluctant look in his eyes.

"Oh, and here. I got you a present."

Mercer took the axe and its sheath from his waist and handed them to Ace.

"For me?" Ace's face lit up, but then he frowned. "If you give me your weapon, what will you use?"

"It's fine. It's nothing special, just an ordinary refined weapon. I'll have someone make me another one later."

Mercer waved his hand. "Keep this versatile axe for self-defense. Don't refuse. If I'm giving it to you, take it."

Ace nodded, his eyes reddening. He sniffed. "Okay. See you next time, then."

Mercer smiled and waved. "Yeah. See you next time."

He left with Garp without looking back.

On the way,

Mercer and Garp walked together through the forest, breathing in the fresh air.

"What did you think of Ace?"

At the question from beside him, Mercer thought for a moment and said:

"He's sensitive and easily embarrassed, but he can be pretty stubborn too. Still, he's a good kid."

Garp smiled, clearly agreeing.

"Yeah, he's a good kid, but his stubbornness is a flaw. He's just like your father. Sometimes he can be incredibly hardheaded.

"But you're different, Mercer. You're not as stubborn as they are."

But as for you, Mercer, apart from the things you care about, you hardly pay any attention to anyone or anything else.

Garp thought to himself.

Even Garp didn't know whether that was a good thing or a bad one.

The boy had a weak sense of right and wrong.

Like those researchers, he saw life as nothing more than a number.

Unaware of what Garp was thinking, Mercer watched the forest rushing past around him.

At one moment, a flash of grayish brown caught his eye, and he abruptly stopped.

He released his Observation Haki.

Mercer precisely picked up a single aura.

He quickly scanned the surroundings. A palm-sized stone caught his eye, and he bent down to pick it up.

He breathed in.

Entering a state of Unity of Heaven and Man, his aura grew still.

Garp was also a little surprised by the change in Mercer.

He was just about to ask when he noticed Mercer behaving strangely.

Mercer was quietly making his way off to one side.

Garp immediately swallowed his words.

Mercer slowly raised his right arm and gazed at a deer in the bushes not far away.

Thirty meters.

Twenty meters.

Fifteen meters.

He crouched slightly and put power into his soles, launching his entire body forward with a fierce spring when he reached a distance of ten meters.

The sudden burst startled the deer within ten meters, causing its body to suddenly bound and leap into the air.

Now.

Mercer let out a low cry. His Observation Haki locked onto it and predicted its movement. He rotated his arm inward, adjusted the angle, and a stone whistled out with a gust of wind.

Bang!

A muffled sound struck the deer's head, and its entire body was knocked askew in mid-air, losing balance and crashing down into the bushes.

Mercer quickly rushed to the deer's side, clamped his hands around its deer head, and gave a twist. Following a snap, its neck was broken.

Mercer let go of the deer head.

A dozen seconds later, the deer breathed its last.

An irregular crystal the size of a grain of rice, suffused with a mysterious luster, appeared.

[Acquired F+-rank Soul Crystal * 1]

Garp walked over at that moment and asked doubtfully, "Is this an extra meal to add to noon?"

Mercer shook his head, saying amidst Garp's surprise:

"A return gift."

"Someone treated me to lunch the other day, and since I'm leaving today, I'm just returning the favor."

The corner of Garp's twitching mouth twitched.

"Well, your gift is certainly impressive—a whole deer."

"Tell me about it. Let the old man hear which fellow it is that can make a kid like you feel so favorably toward them."

He said this naturally because he knew Mercer too well; this kid wouldn't really bother with ordinary people.

Whether he bothered with someone depended entirely on his mood.

Just like all the people on the warship, after all these days, Bogard was the only one who chatted and laughed with him.

As for the other fellows, ranging from field officers to miscellaneous choresmen, there were hardly any who could exchange a few words with Mercer.

Looking at the deer in front of him that was even larger than himself, with a body length of at least one meter sixty, Mercer thought for a moment and looked up at Garp.

"Old man, if I tell you, will you help me carry it down the mountain?"

"Take it or leave it." Garp's face darkened. "You won't even give me the game you hunted to eat, and you want me to help? Unless—"

"Then forget it."

Garp's expression stiffened.

I hadn't even finished talking yet?

Mercer didn't look at him again. Instead, he glanced around, found a thin vine hanging down from a tree, and pulled it off with force.

He used the dozen-meter-long vine to tightly bind the deer, leaving two shoulder straps on both sides of the deer's body.

Like carrying a schoolbag, he hoisted the entire deer horizontally across his back, raised his head, and raised an eyebrow at Garp before walking down the mountain without looking back.

Garp followed behind, the corners of his mouth twitching with a very peculiar expression.

With a brat carrying a deer bigger than himself, if it weren't for the deer's head drooping down, one really wouldn't know who was carrying whom.

The entire journey was without words.

In less half an hour.

Mercer and Garp arrived in Foosha Village.

Ignoring Garp, Mercer followed a familiar path, making several turns until he reached the back door of a dwelling.

Knock, knock, knock!

He knocked forcefully.

A few seconds later, a clear, spring-like voice came from inside.

"Who is it? Who are you looking for?"

"It's me, Makino."

Then he heard hurried footsteps from inside, along with an eager voice saying, "Wait for me, I'm coming right now." A few seconds later, the door was opened from within.

Seeing Mercer carrying the deer, Makino's expression turned blank, and she covered her mouth. "Little Mercer, what is this?"

Rolling his eyes, Mercer reached out, pushed Makino aside, and walked inside.

He placed the deer in the courtyard.

Clapping his hands, Mercer spoke to her, "I'm giving this deer to you as a return gift for the meal you treated me to the other day."

The corner of Makino's eye twitched. This gift was too valuable, and just as she wanted to open her mouth to refuse, she noticed another person enter the courtyard.

"Eh? Mr. Garp? Why are you here?"

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