A Chance Encounter with Ace

At dawn, Lu Zhuo got up early. A night of tenderness hadn't made him forget who he was.

Actually, what happened last night could even be called being taken from behind.

Lu Zhuo had still underestimated just how open-minded this world was. It was nothing like Earth, and the girls' way of thinking was completely different...

He drew his sword and gave it a light swing. Watching Nami walk out of the room with an awkward gait, he flashed her a mischievous grin.

Seeing Lu Zhuo's grin, Nami blushed and pounded his chest with her tiny fists.

"Bastard, this is all your fault!"

"Huh? How is it my fault again? You were the one who was so wild." Lu Zhuo gave a helpless smile and spread his hands, letting Nami's little fists rain down on him.

Just then, a few villagers walked past. Seeing Lu Zhuo and Nami, they gave them knowing looks. Nami's body trembled with embarrassment, and she nearly fell into Lu Zhuo's arms again.

"Bastard, pay up!" With her cheeks flushed, Nami held up her tiny fist and grumbled at Lu Zhuo.

"Huh? Pay for what?" Lu Zhuo froze and asked, bewildered.

Nami gave a snort. "I'll give you a bargain: one hundred thousand Beli a time. Hurry up and pay."

Pfft!!!

Those words left Lu Zhuo completely stunned.

Lu Zhuo stared at Nami with a speechless look and said solemnly, "Nami, you absolutely, absolutely can't do this with anyone else. Not even for a hundred million Beli!"

At his words, Nami reached out and tapped him on the forehead with one finger. She rolled her eyes and said, "Do you think I'm stupid? Since I've given myself to you, of course I won't give myself to anyone else. But... you still have to pay!"

As she spoke, Nami smiled sweetly, her eyes curving into crescents. She held up her slender fingers and said with a grin, "From now on, it'll be one hundred thousand Beli each time!"

I... give up!

This time, Lu Zhuo was completely floored...

A breeze swept along the coast, and wave after wave broke against the rocky shore.

On a small sailboat, Nami tugged hard at the sail.

Lu Zhuo sat nearby, holding Nidai Kitetsu, and smiled at her. "If you hadn't stolen my ship, we'd have a big one to live on."

"Hmph!" Nami stamped her foot and pouted.

"Those damn Marines stole my money... That was a hundred million Beli! Bastards! I'm so mad!"

Seeing her like that, Lu Zhuo smiled gently and said, "Yeah, never mind. We'll just have to put up with it for now. The most important thing is that we're short on money..."

He rubbed his chin and smiled. "Let's go to the nearest casino first."

"Uh, all right!"

Nami put a hand to her forehead. She didn't think Lu Zhuo could win enough money at a casino to buy a ship, but she was still determined to go along with what he wanted.

At the Subori Casino, a lean, handsome man with a cool air about him walked in, his arm around a beautiful woman with orange hair.

As if suddenly remembering something, the man's expression turned awkward. He leaned toward the girl beside him and whispered, "Um... Nami, you should still have a little money stashed away, right? How about lending me some to use as capital?"

Hearing this, Nami's eyes widened. "What?! No! Don't even bring up money!"

"Uh..." Lu Zhuo awkwardly scratched his head and said with a dry laugh, "Just one hundred Beli is enough. It'll only get me one chip, okay..."

"No! I don't have any!" Nami pouted and turned her head away.

Smack!

Lu Zhuo slapped his forehead, looking utterly helpless. Getting money out of Nami was even harder than getting on top of her...

Just then, a cheerful laugh rang out.

"It's only one hundred Beli. I'll give you ten chips, worth a thousand Beli. Come on, have some fun."

Hearing the voice, Lu Zhuo looked toward the speaker, surprised. When he recognized the figure, his eyes narrowed slightly.

"It's you... Ace!"

"Oh? You know me? Looks like I've gotten pretty famous! Ghost Sword Lu Zhuo!" Ace laughed heartily. He looked a little younger than he did in the original story.

Lu Zhuo was a little surprised by Ace's words.

Ghost Sword Lu Zhuo—that's my title? I didn't realize I'd gotten a bit of a reputation. If I remember right, Ace shouldn't be famous yet at this point.

After thinking it over, Lu Zhuo smiled slightly and said, "Thanks for the stake. I'll pay you back tenfold later!"

"Haha!" Ace laughed heartily. He hopped down from his chair and walked over to Lu Zhuo. "You're pretty strong. Interested in joining my Spade Pirates?"

Lu Zhuo looked at him with a strange expression. So these brothers really do have the same personality. Just like Luffy, he wants to recruit anyone he happens to meet...

"Uh, I'll pass. I'm not planning to become a pirate for now..."

Ace scratched his head, a little embarrassed, and said with a grin, "All right, then let's just be friends!"

"Sounds good!" Lu Zhuo smiled and headed for a nearby gambling table. He liked Ace as a character, and after meeting him in person, he liked his personality even more. Though he knew there was no chance of making Ace his subordinate for now, there was nothing wrong with becoming friends.

They passed each other. Ace went back to playing cards, while Lu Zhuo walked over to the dice table.

The dealer, who was shaking the dice, said calmly, "Place your bets! What are you betting on, sir?"

Lu Zhuo shook his head slightly. "I'll watch first."

"Sure." The dealer didn't mind and lifted the dice cup.

Two, three, three—eight, low!

Some people cheered, while others groaned. Lu Zhuo didn't care. He slowly closed his eyes.

In an instant, the world around him fell silent. He could hear only the Breath of All Things.

Clatter, clatter!

"Place your bets!"

Lu Zhuo's eyes snapped open. He smiled slightly and placed all ten of his one-hundred-Beli chips on high.

Three, five, six—fourteen, high!

Seeing Lu Zhuo win his very first all-in bet, the dealer froze for a moment but didn't think much of it. He'd seen this sort of thing plenty of times at the casino. The man would surely lose everything on the next round!

After cheerfully sorting out the winnings, the dealer covered the dice again.

But after three more rounds, sweat had begun to bead on the dealer's forehead.

Lu Zhuo had actually won four times in a row. After multiplying his thousand Beli by 1.8 each time, he now had more than twelve thousand Beli!

Nami's eyes had turned into little stars again!

Talk about turning a small stake into a fortune! I can't believe Lu Zhuo's so good at gambling! Looks like we'll never have to worry about money again! Nami was thrilled, and she found Lu Zhuo more pleasing to the eye than ever.

Seeing her expression, Lu Zhuo grinned mischievously and rubbed his chin. Maybe I can try a few more positions with Nami. She's probably at the point where she'll do anything I say...

The dealer wiped the sweat from his forehead and said something to a man beside him before shaking the dice cup again.

It might not have been much money, but Lu Zhuo's four straight wins had already led most of the gamblers to follow his bets!

If this kept up and Lu Zhuo continued winning, the casino would be ruined!

This time, nearly everyone followed Lu Zhuo's bet. He remained expressionless, completely certain of the result.

Seeing the dealer leave, Lu Zhuo frowned slightly. Before he could think further, another lean-looking man slowly walked over.

"Sorry, the dealer's a little tired. I'll take over for him. Is that all right?"

"Quit yapping and hurry up and shake the dice!"

"Yeah! Hurry up!"

The gamblers below had won several rounds and were excited now.

The skinny man smiled slightly, picked up the dice cup, and whirled his hands up and down like a pair of spinning wheels.

Lu Zhuo closed his eyes again, his face giving nothing away.

So what if you shake them faster? Even if this move can't match Observation Haki, I can still hear your dice just fine.

Sure enough, Lu Zhuo won again, and everyone at the table won along with him. The cheers grew louder, gradually making this the center of attention in the casino.

Watching from the card table, Ace gave a helpless smile. "I didn't know that guy was so good at gambling, too. Too bad he doesn't want to join my crew!"

The lean man shaking the dice narrowed his eyes slightly and gave Lu Zhuo a meaningful look.

Lu Zhuo sat there with one arm around Nami, completely unbothered by the looks around him.

The next moment, a sharp gleam flashed in the skinny man's eyes. After rattling the dice cup vigorously, he wore a confident expression and said, "Place your bets!"

Watching him, Lu Zhuo furrowed his brow slightly.

He still knew what the dice showed, but the skinny man's confident expression made him suspect something was wrong.

By now, Lu Zhuo had fifty thousand Beli in chips. He took out ten thousand and bet on high.

The gamblers around him immediately began placing their bets on "high" one after another. Almost nobody bet on "low."

The skinny man sneered coldly. His arm twitched as he started to lift the dice cup.

Lu Zhuo's expression changed slightly. In an instant, he tossed his four remaining ten-thousand-Beli chips onto the three sixes—Sky Leopard!

Seeing this, the skinny man's hand, which had already lifted the dice cup halfway, suddenly stopped. He stared at Lu Zhuo in disbelief.

He'd just used a trick to change the dice results, but he hadn't expected Lu Zhuo to react so quickly and bet on the exact Sky Leopard just as the dice cup was lifted!