Deep in the primeval jungle, sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting dappled patches of light.
Leona lay in the shallow crater she had crashed into, her fierce, untamed vertical pupils fixed on Ace for a long while.
"Send every unknown monster in these seas straight to my chopping board?"
She panted heavily, then suddenly threw her head back and laughed. Her laughter brimmed with the fiery excitement of a chef hearing such grandiose words.
On Primordial Island, where the law of the jungle reigned, a loss was a loss. The absurdly tall, black-haired man before her had utterly overpowered her in strength, and his unfathomable composure had left her thoroughly convinced by her defeat.
"Since you took my blade head-on with your bare body, this Tyrannosaurus is yours."
Leona used her great sword to push herself to her feet, then deftly rolled up her sleeves and slid her two Bone-Cleaving Blades into the leather sheaths at her waist. "But letting a crude guy like you start a fire and roast it would be sacrilege against this prime cut of tenderloin."
"The name's Leona. Go gather some dry firewood. I'll show you what real primordial cuisine looks like."
Ace stood to one side, watching the red-haired woman, who was so brisk and no-nonsense, and the corner of his mouth curled into a carefree smile.
Now that was the kind of chef a pirate ship needed.
"Portgas D. Ace." After giving his name, Ace turned to gather firewood nearby.
Half an hour later.
A huge bonfire blazed in a clearing in the jungle.
Leona displayed a level of expertise that left Ace marveling. The silver boning knife in her hand fluttered like a butterfly among flowers, following the Tyrannosaurus's muscle fibers as she precisely carved away the fattiest, most energy-dense cuts.
Then she brought out several strangely colored primordial spices and rubbed them on evenly, pounding the meat with her tools until the flavors had thoroughly penetrated.
The Tyrannosaurus meat roasting over the fire soon began to sizzle. Golden fat dripped into the flames, releasing a rich aroma that made the mouth water.
"Eat up. Ancient Zoan meat usually has an unpleasant sourness to it, but I neutralized that with some special herbs from the island. And by pounding it, I've locked every bit of the beast's violent calories and vital essence into its muscle fibers."
Leona lifted a gigantic piece of roast meat weighing dozens of pounds on the tip of her knife and tossed it straight to Ace.
Ace caught it and began tearing into it without the slightest hesitation.
The moment the meat touched his tongue, Ace's eyes lit up slightly.
This hearty, direct-to-the-taste-buds flavor was countless times better than Buggy's half-baked barbecue. More importantly, Ace's terrifying digestive system, transformed by the Zhuque Fruit, immediately sensed that this meat was different.
With Ace's current constitution, he could perfectly absorb the calories even from raw Sea Kings. But Leona's cooking had already removed every impurity from the savage beast meat. The moment Ace swallowed it, his stomach and intestines hardly needed to process it at all. Pure, highly efficient calories flowed straight into every part of his body.
His efficiency at eating and absorbing had increased dramatically.
"This is the chef I need."
Ace swallowed the enormous piece of barbecue in just a few bites and praised her without reservation. "The meat's cooked perfectly. Your cooking makes my body absorb energy incredibly efficiently."
"Of course. I was born to cook monsters."
Leona sat across from the bonfire, taking long swigs of the liquor she carried. A chef's pride flickered in her eyes.
After eating and drinking their fill, Ace leaned against a thick, dead tree trunk and looked at Leona across from him.
"If you're this good, why stay on this island and live like a wild woman?"
Ace made another offer. "My proposal still stands. Come aboard my ship and be the head chef of the Eclipse. Out on the open sea, there are countless unknown monsters waiting for your blade."
Leona took a soft cloth and carefully wiped the edge of her Black Steel Bone-Cleaver. The dancing firelight illuminated her delicate yet wild-looking face.
"Hunt giant Sea Kings in the Calm Belt. Search the New World for monstrous beasts that exist only in legend."
Leona's movements slowed, and an unmistakable longing appeared in her eyes. "That really is a dream invitation no chef pursuing perfection could turn down."
But soon, the fervor in her eyes faded.
With a click, she sheathed her Bone-Cleaving Blade, looked up at Ace, and shook her head.
"I can't leave. I appreciate the offer, Ace."
Leona's voice grew heavy. "Once you've finished this meal, you'd better get off Bacchus Island as soon as possible. The waters here run too deep. They're not for a few rookies who've just entered the Grand Line to wade into."
Ace said nothing. He watched her quietly with his dark eyes, waiting for her to continue.
"The island's outer shores are a bustling food paradise, but this Primordial Hunting Ground inland is a slaughterhouse through and through."
Leona clenched her fist, her knuckles turning slightly white.
"The man who controls this island is an underworld tyrant with an 85-million-Beli bounty on his head, Gluttony Baron Truff. He's a complete lunatic. He treats the island's natives like slaves and wantonly destroys the inland ecosystem. He has people capture these primordial beasts, not out of any respect for ingredients, but to satisfy the twisted nobles' simple lust for slaughter!"
Leona gritted her teeth, flames of anger burning in her eyes.
"They use poison gas and heavy weapons to torture those wild giants until they're on the verge of death, then serve them alive at the nobles' tables. I'll never forgive scum who trample on life and food like that!"
Ace listened quietly, his expression barely changing.
In these seas, the law of the jungle was the law. He had seen the cruelty of nobles and the greed of the underworld too many times to be surprised.
"If he has an 85-million-Beli bounty on his head, you can't kill him with your blade alone," Ace pointed out bluntly.
"I know I can't kill him."
Leona rose to her feet, her tall figure casting a long shadow beside the bonfire. She grabbed the two great swords beside her, her gaze resolute.
"But deep in this island, our tribe's guardian deity has slept for generations—a centuries-old Ancient Kong. It's the last remnant of dignity in this forest."
Leona took a deep breath and turned toward the depths of the forest.
"Truff and his men have had their eyes on that Ancient Kong for a long time. As the tribe's guardian, I have to patrol this forest day and night. As long as I'm alive, I won't let them set foot any deeper into the mountains."
She turned toward Ace, still sitting where he was, and smiled with easy grace.
"Thanks for recruiting me, Captain Ace. If I'm still alive and we meet in the New World someday, I'll make you another barbecue."
With that, Leona didn't look back. Like a nimble lioness, she plunged into the dense, shadowy jungle once more, continuing her seemingly hopeless patrol.
The bonfire crackled in the wind.
Ace sat on the deadwood, watching Leona's disappearing figure, but didn't immediately get up to stop her.
He picked up a remaining piece of meat with the bone still in it and took a leisurely bite, savoring its exquisite flavor.
"Gluttony Baron Truff. An 85-million-Beli bounty."
Ace murmured the name to himself.
If this were just an ordinary gang feud, he couldn't be bothered to get involved.
But that red-haired woman was the first chef he, Ace, had personally announced he wanted to recruit in the Grand Line. Being trapped on this island forever by poachers just to protect a gorilla wasn't an outcome he wanted to see.
"A centuries-old Ancient Kong, and a noble hunting party that kills just for fun."
Ace stood up, his body blocking most of the bonfire's light. He casually tossed the clean-picked bone into the fire, his dark red coat fluttering slightly in the jungle's cold wind.
He certainly wasn't going to treat someone else's faith as an ingredient, but he was, indeed, becoming interested in what was about to happen on this island.
Ace lifted his foot and stamped out the bonfire, then strode steadily in the direction Leona had gone.
"If she's a chef I've set my sights on..."
A domineering smile, as if the matter were only natural, curled the corner of Ace's mouth. His voice slowly faded into the silent woods.
"Breaking these ridiculous shackles is part of a captain's job, too."
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