Evening, Orange Town harbor.
"Clang."
Several heavy sacks filled with gold and jewels were tossed onto the Eclipse's spacious deck.
Buggy wiped the sweat from his brow. His bruised and swollen face still showed a hint of lingering fear. But when he looked up and finally took in the ship's interior, his little eyes instantly widened like saucers.
The precious Iron Pine deck had been polished spotless. Soft silk carpets covered the living quarters, and through an open cabin door, he could even see a full set of extremely expensive leather sofas and a temperature-controlled wine cellar.
"What kind of royal warship is this?"
Buggy swallowed. As a former apprentice aboard Roger's ship, he had weathered countless storms, but the terrifying amount of money spent on this vessel's comfort and quality still left the greedy pirate's mouth dry.
"Looks like coming aboard isn't all bad," Buggy mused. "If I show off a little of my sailing experience, I might be able to snag a private room with a soft bed in this spacious living room. Sipping fine wine every day doesn't sound too bad."
At that thought, Buggy straightened up and cleared his throat, then started toward the leather sofas that looked incredibly comfortable.
"Clack."
A wooden mop and a bucket full of seawater landed with uncanny accuracy at Buggy's feet.
Buggy froze, then followed the mop handle with his eyes.
Sabo stood there, holding down his top hat, his lips pressed together to hide a smile. Beside him, Ace leaned against the cabin doorway, tossing an orange in his hand as he watched Buggy with a sunny, teasing grin.
"Hey, Red Nose."
Ace grinned, revealing a row of pearly white teeth. The terrifying murderous aura he'd shown in the square was gone. Now he looked like a boy about to play a prank.
"Since you brought us a decent haul of treasure, I've decided, as captain, to officially grant you a special title aboard the Eclipse."
At the words "special title," Buggy's eyes lit up, and his resentment vanished.
"Maybe he'll make me his first mate? No, no, this kid joined the ship first. At the very least, I should be navigator or head of combat!" Buggy rejoiced inwardly, while trying to look composed.
"From today on, you're the Eclipse's Head of Household Chores!" Ace announced with a hearty laugh.
"Head of household chores?!"
Buggy stood there for two seconds before the meaning sank in. That fancy-sounding title was just a dressed-up way of saying he'd be the senior deck scrubber!
"You've got to be kidding me! I'm the mighty East Blue tyrant with a bounty of tens of millions, and you're making me do this—"
Buggy jumped up and down in anger, pointing at the mop as he prepared to protest.
"Hahaha! Don't be such a stingy guy, Buggy!"
Ace darted over and clapped his broad, sturdy hand on Buggy's shoulder as if they were old friends. The blows landed so hard that Buggy nearly collapsed onto the deck.
"How can a great pirate ship go without a great head of household chores? It's a core position that reflects the whole crew's image!" Ace laughed, shamelessly spinning his story as he shoved the orange into Buggy's mouth. "The deck's yours tonight. Do a good job, and I'll give you an extra serving tomorrow!"
Looking at Ace's utterly unreasonable grin, Buggy bit down on the orange, the corner of his eye twitching like mad. But the memory of that monster beating him senseless kept him from daring to complain. He could only pick up the mop with a miserable look.
Late at night.
The Eclipse bobbed gently with the waves on the vast expanse of the East Blue.
The entire ship had fallen silent.
In the shadows on the deck, a red nose carefully peeked out.
"A bunch of brats who don't know their place. Do they really think they can keep me trapped?"
Buggy gave a barely audible snort. He clutched a small cloth pouch containing several top-quality rubies he'd secretly swiped from the treasure pile while cleaning.
He glanced at the pitch-black cabin. As far as he was concerned, those two idiots were fast asleep in their luxurious bedrooms.
"I'm a free spirit who ate the Chop-Chop Fruit! As long as I leave my feet on the ship, the rest of my body can fly through the air. In this endless night, all I have to do is fly beyond the ship's reach, find a reef to drift on, and no one will ever catch me!"
Buggy grinned in silent triumph, sincerely proud of his flawless escape plan.
"Chop-Chop!"
Buggy took a deep breath and activated his Devil Fruit power. His feet stayed on the deck as naturally as ever, while the rest of his body, carrying the little pouch of jewels, rose silently into the air like a ghost and flew toward the sea beyond the railing.
"Hahaha! So long, you two stupid brats! I'm off to find Captain John."
Buggy's upper body floated happily through the night sky, more than ten meters above the sea. He was just about to deliver a parting speech in his mind when—
"Hey, Buggy, out for a midnight flight? The moon really is beautiful tonight."
A familiar, teasing laugh came out of nowhere from the air to Buggy's right.
"Eek—?!"
Buggy's eyes nearly popped out of his head as he whipped around.
There, more than ten meters above the sea, was Ace, who had no wings at all. He had his hands behind his head, and muffled "thuds" of air bursts sounded beneath his feet.
He was casually walking on the air, floating steadily beside Buggy as if out for a stroll after dinner. He even seemed quite interested in Buggy's upper body hovering in midair.
"Y-y-y-you... why are you in the sky?!" Buggy shrieked as if he'd seen a ghost.
"Couldn't sleep, so I came out for a walk."
Ace grinned and moved in close, as if they were old friends. He poked the cut across Buggy's waist with a finger. "Whoa, this power's amazing. There isn't even any blood. You look like a bunch of blocks that got taken apart."
"Don't touch me!" Buggy yelled, flying frantically to the side to put some distance between them.
But no matter how he flew, Ace followed him with perfect precision, barely breaking a sweat as he used Geppo. He was like a giant black panther playing with a mouse.
"You fly pretty slowly. Waiting for the wind?" Ace called out, still following him and laughing. "Or does your power have a range limit? What happens if you fly too far from your feet on the deck? Do you fall into the sea and get eaten by sharks?"
"Monster! You're definitely a monster!"
Buggy's nerve finally broke. He put all his strength into dodging, speeding up, and even circling around, but the black-haired young man was like an inescapable ghost, always hovering half a meter away with an amused smile.
More than ten minutes later.
Exhausted and dizzy from flying around in midair, Buggy finally stopped in despair.
He'd finally accepted the cruel truth: against this monster, whose stamina, speed, and Observation Haki were all ridiculously monstrous, his Chop-Chop escape plan was as laughable as a baby learning to walk.
"Giving up?" Ace stopped beside Buggy, hovering in midair with a grin.
"I... I just came out for some fresh air! And to help the captain scout the area for enemies!" Buggy's upper body stiffly saluted Ace in midair, two tears of humiliation hanging from the corners of his eyes.
"Hahaha! No wonder you're the Head of Household Chores I picked. You're so dedicated!"
Ace burst out laughing. He grabbed Buggy by the back of his collar and, carrying his upper body like a little chick, easily flew back to the Eclipse with Geppo.
"Thump."
Buggy's upper body lined up perfectly with the feet he'd left on the deck.
"All right, your patrol's over. Get some sleep. You'll need to clean the living room windows tomorrow morning."
Ace gave Buggy's blue hair a playful ruffle. He didn't press him about trying to escape or stealing the jewels. Then, completely at ease, he turned and strolled back into the cabin.
Standing in the night breeze, Buggy watched Ace's carefree retreating figure, then looked at the pouch of rubies still in his hand. He stood there, stunned.
This powerful monster had seen through everything, yet hadn't killed him or confiscated his treasure. And when he'd teased him in midair, that carefree laughter had felt strangely familiar.
"Captain Roger?"
Buggy muttered to himself, then shook his head hard and snatched up the rag on the deck. "Damn it! I'm not going to be bought off by a few little favors!"
In the quiet night of the East Blue, the Eclipse's Head of Household Chores seemed to have accepted his fate.
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