He Had Hair but Lost His Soul

Devil Fruit Shop.

"My hand... actually turned into a claw?"

"Holy crap, this fur has spots too. I turned into a Dalmatian?"

"This is so exciting! Woof woof woof!"

"Ohoho, look at this tail. It's absolutely perfect!"

Excited cries rang out one after another. A "half-man, half-dog" fellow stared at the changes in his body, so thrilled he was practically about to jump.

He even reached out and petted his own dog head!

He stroked himself until he squinted comfortably.

Rosha could not help feeling speechless. A Zoan fruit was meant to give him animal-like strength and agility, not turn him into a pet dog!

And he was enjoying it so thoroughly.

Still, even as Rosha was speechless, he felt quite relieved. After so many days, he had finally met someone who was not afraid of dying.

When the other man saw those colorful, strange Devil Fruits, he had actually become extremely excited.

Like Columbus discovering the New World, he had eagerly gone ahead with a tasting.

And that had led to the scene before them.

"This cool little tail."

"These adorable little ears."

"This... hey, hey, hey, what's going on? Why did I change back?"

Just as he was reveling in it, the five minutes ran out.

A trendy young man with a hip-hop style returned to his "original form."

He immediately looked displeased as he called out to Rosha.

"Sir, the sample tasting only lasts for five minutes. The time is up now."

Rosha patiently explained to the fashionable young man, "If you want to permanently obtain this ability, you need to eat a Devil Fruit."

"Then what are you standing around for? Hurry up and bring out the fruit. I'll take it!" the young man urged Rosha impatiently.

"Sir, the one you want is the Dog-Dog Fruit, Dalmatian Form. That will be five hundred thousand dollars," Rosha quoted him the price.

"You're so long-winded. Five hundred thousand it is, like I can't afford it... What? Five hundred thousand?"

The young man's voice instantly rose several octaves. His eyes widened as he shouted in disbelief, "Boss, are you robbing me? You're selling one fruit for five hundred thousand?"

"Sir, let me emphasize that this is not fruit. It is a Devil Fruit, and the price is non-negotiable."

Rosha continued to smile politely at him.

"Boss, don't be so heartless. Look at how badly I want this fruit, but I really don't have that much money. Can we work something out?"

"I'm sorry."

"Fine... what a pity. Then can I keep tasting some of the other fruits?"

"Not if you want to explode and die..."

"I'll explode and die? Boss, please get me one right away!"

Rosha: "..."

This guy was way too bizarre. Sure enough, there was a reason foreigners were so few.

"I'm sorry, sir. Shop policy prohibits repeat tastings."

"Fine, what a shame."

In the end, the fashionable young man left with a face full of regret.

Rosha watched as the young man's figure disappeared into the crowd and could not help shaking his head.

He had spent more than half an hour fooling around with that guy.

To be honest, when the young man had shown interest in the Devil Fruits and readily agreed to the tasting, Rosha had been rather excited.

But now, it seemed Rosha had been overthinking things.

Generally speaking, someone like that, who so easily believed the claims about Devil Fruits and so readily tried one, probably did not have much money.

Real wealthy people were likely more rational and cautious in their dealings.

Forget it. That bastard had gotten his hopes up for nothing. Better play a few rounds of Honor of Kings.

Rosha swiftly logged back into the international server for Honor of Kings and began a series of exhilarating battles.

However, his touch seemed off today. He played five ranked matches in a row, and lost every single one with remarkable consistency.

His hard-earned Diamond II rank dropped all the way to Diamond I.

That left Rosha somewhat depressed.

Yeah, the heroes on the international server must be different from those on the domestic server. That had to be why he was not used to them!

He was stewing over it and preparing to play another match when the wind chime over the shop door rang.

Rosha looked up and saw a man in a trench coat, exuding a strong British style, walk into his shop.

Holy crap.

James McAvoy?

And the older-gentleman version of James McAvoy, at that.

Rosha could not help looking at the newcomer a few more times. He quickly ran through several Marvel characters in his mind.

There was only one person he could think of who had James McAvoy's face.

Could this be Professor X?

But Professor X could walk?

And that head of his... it had hair!

Rosha was not quite sure who this British-looking man was.

"What a warm little shop. The decor has excellent taste and gives one a sense of peace."

The British-looking man surveyed the shop, then nodded approvingly at Rosha.

Rosha had no idea whether he truly felt that way or was simply being polite.

In any case, Rosha himself felt the shop was utterly ordinary, with nothing particularly outstanding about it.

"Thank you for the compliment, sir."

Though that was what he thought, Rosha still politely stepped forward to greet the customer.

"That was not a compliment. I merely stated how I felt." The British-looking man smiled faintly at Rosha, then extended his hand. "Charles Xavier."

Charles Xavier?

It really was Professor X!

Rosha suddenly understood. It seemed Professor X must have gone to Zhao Hailun and cured his paraplegia... and his baldness.

That made sense. Zhao Hailun had mentioned in the group some time ago that she wanted to treat Mutants. Could Professor X have been the one she meant?

But honestly, Rosha was not particularly surprised that Professor X could stand again. However, seeing such a thick head of hair on him was genuinely hard to get used to.

It always felt like Professor X without baldness had no soul.

"Rosha!"

His inward grumbling did not stop Rosha from greeting Professor X. He extended his hand and shook Professor X's.

"Shopkeeper Rosha, hello. You surely still remember Dr. Zhao Hailun, correct?" Professor X began exchanging pleasantries with Rosha.

"Of course. Dr. Zhao took great care of my shop when it first opened. I'm still very grateful to her," Rosha said with a smile.

"I experienced some incredible things at Dr. Zhao's place. An accident many years ago caused me to lose the use of my legs forever, but Dr. Zhao actually needed only a few minutes to get me back on my feet."

"Honestly, even as I stand here like an ordinary person now, I still find it difficult to believe. It is simply incredible."

"So, Shopkeeper... are these the miraculous Devil Fruits Dr. Zhao told me about?"

As Professor X spoke, he turned his gaze toward the Devil Fruits in the display case.