Monet and Sugar

"Soul Magnetic Field, Activate!"

Closing his eyes, Gray allowed his spiritual energy to rotate in tandem with the Soul Magnetic Field, spreading it across a radius of one kilometer to observe everything emitting a magnetic signature in the vicinity.

Gray needed to sift through these myriad fields to identify those beneficial to the soul, then absorb them into his own rotating field to strengthen his spirit and achieve his ultimate evolution.

"Not this one!"

"This won't do! Trash!"

"A bit of attraction, but unfortunately, not it!"

Every time he captured a field, Gray accelerated the rotation of his Soul Magnetic Field, forcibly dragging the external energy in and passively integrating it into his personal circulation to digest it.

Unfortunately, the magnetic fields in this world—ranging from the powerful to the weak, and those so faint they were negligible—were simply too numerous.

Identifying each one to find a single beneficial specimen was a task as tedious and repetitive as counting every individual grain of salt in a bag.

Take it slow! At least I can see hope now!

Days turned into weeks, and the Donquixote Family continued to drift across the sea. Even when they stopped at islands, they replenished their supplies with haste before setting sail once more.

This left the pursuing Marines incredibly frustrated.

Kizaru Borsalino, however, seemed entirely unbothered. He trailed behind them, neither using his Devil Fruit powers to close the distance quickly nor showing any sign of urgency.

The two parties maintained this distance for nearly four months, drifting across the ocean until, without realizing it, they reached the end of the Marine Calendar year 1509.

"Gray-sama, would you like to go ashore and look around?" As they approached another island, the family subordinates busied themselves with supplies, and Baby-5 took the opportunity to ask about Gray's plans.

"Let's go for a stroll." The tedious work of filtering magnetic fields had left Gray feeling dizzy and heavy-headed; he intended to relax on the island to clear his mind.

For once, Gray did not use his Flying Chair, choosing instead to walk onto the island alongside Baby-5 like an ordinary person.

"After drifting on the sea for so long, feeling solid ground beneath my feet is truly reassuring." As he felt the stability of the earth, the gloom in Gray's heart vanished.

"Gray-sama! Let's check out a restaurant on this island! I heard from Trebol that there's a place here with excellent food."

Hearing this, Gray instantly perked up: "Then let's go!"

To Gray, the delicacies of this world were something he could not afford to miss.

As a glutton from his previous life, fine food was an essential part of his existence. The unique cuisine of this different world was by no means inferior to what he had known before.

The island contained only one small town, with a straight main road running from the harbor through the center, lined with various shops and restaurants.

The place they were looking for was located in the middle of the thoroughfare.

"Is this the place?" Looking at a restaurant no larger than the small shops he remembered from his past life, Gray looked at Baby-5 with confusion.

"The name of the shop, according to Trebol, is: Monet and Sugar's Cottage. If I remember correctly, this should be it!"

"Monet and Sugar!" Gray felt deeply puzzled by the name. These were the same names as the Snow-Snow Fruit and Hobby-Hobby Fruit users in the original Donquixote Family. He didn't believe in such coincidences.

Despite his doubts, Gray and Baby-5 pushed the door open and stepped inside: "Welcome! Would you two like to order something?"

A young girl with light green hair greeted them as soon as they entered.

Seeing that familiar hair color and face, Gray's initial confusion was answered.

"Bring us one of everything on your signature menu! If it suits our tastes, we'll take five servings." Three for himself, two for Baby-5.

As his body grew stronger, his appetite naturally increased as well.

Gray's order made the little girl beam with joy: "Please wait a moment, guests!"

"Coming right up!" With that, the girl hurried toward the back kitchen.

"Sister, Sister! We have a big order!"

The green-haired woman preparing ingredients in the back called out: "Slow down, Sugar. What did the guests order?"

"Two guests just arrived, and they want five servings of our signature dishes." Sugar held up her small hand, gesturing excitedly.

"Understood!" The woman smiled gently and immediately began heating the pan and oil to cook for them.

The woman's movements were clean and efficient; in no time at all, dish after dish was brought out by Sugar.

"Guests, your food is here!"

Gray picked up his chopsticks and took a small bite, instantly conquered. To be honest, the culinary skill here was on par with the food Jora prepared.

Yet, the ingredients used here were not premium; they were merely common, fresh produce from the island. Being able to create such delicious food with these was even more impressive than Jora's work with rare ingredients.

"Not bad!" Gray nodded, his appetite fully awakened. He transformed into a glutton, accepting all food without hesitation and devouring it in large mouthfuls.

Just as the two were busy gorging themselves, a group of men who clearly looked like trouble walked into the shop.

"Boss, where is the boss?" The leader, a man wearing sunglasses and acting like a common thug, kicked a chair and shouted loudly.

"Leonard, what are you doing here?" Seeing the intruders, Sugar clearly recognized them, and her expression soured as she asked about their intentions.

"Yo~ if it isn't little Sugar! Tell your sister to come out; we have some 'good business' to discuss with her!"

"Leave our restaurant! We don't need any of your 'good business'!" It was clear that Sugar was well aware of the thug Leonard's reputation; whatever he called "good business" was certainly anything but.

"What would a little brat like you know? If you don't call your sister out now, I'm going to get angry."

"Do you have any idea what the consequences are for angering me?"

"You!" Sugar was clearly intimidated, her small face puffed up in indignation as she glared at Leonard.

"I'm out now. What do you want, Leonard?" A soft, melodic voice from ahead drew Leonard's attention.

Her long green hair and the curvaceous figure of a seventeen-year-old left Leonard feeling a surge of desire.

"Heh heh! Monet!" With a lecherous smirk, Leonard spoke again, "I'm here to notify you that it's time to pay your protection money."

"Bullshit! We paid this month's protection money just yesterday; how could we possibly owe more today?" Before Monet could speak, Sugar couldn't hold back her fury and demanded an answer indignantly.

"What you paid yesterday was for the Black Bear Gang. Today, you need to pay for the Fierce Tiger Gang I just founded." After offering a casual explanation, Leonard added with malicious intent, "Of course, if you can't afford it, Monet, you could become the gang leader's wife. That way, you wouldn't have to worry about protection money anymore."

"Despicable! Aren't both the Black Bear Gang and the Fierce Tiger Gang run by you anyway?" In this small town, gang members ran rampant, and the factions led by Leonard held absolute dominance.