Two Easily Fooled Fools

"Looks like someone beat me to it~ They even locked the safe back up... As expected of a member of the cowardly trio, they really were cautious~" Rayson muttered with an amused smile as he looked at the slip of paper in his hand~

The paper bore a comical clown pirate emblem, with a line of neat handwriting beside it:

"I took the sea chart. Thanks for the hospitality~"

The system's prompt for that safe was:

----

＞Trait (Safe): A box that Nami pried open and locked again~

----

The sea chart had been taken first. Nami had probably deliberately left this distraction behind to avoid drawing the Marines' attention~

Rayson was not particularly disappointed. Before mastering Observation Haki, trying to corner a top-tier thief in such a large base was simply unrealistic~

Besides, he was not worried about losing track of her at all. Before long, they would meet again at that fellow named Buggy's place~

"Clown... Buggy, huh~"

Rayson studied the note, a thoughtful glint flashing through his eyes~

That man had once been an apprentice aboard Pirate King Gol D. Roger's ship, standing on equal footing with one of the current Four Emperors, "Red-Haired" Shanks~

It was said that when the Roger Pirates fought the Whitebeard Pirates back then, Buggy had left an even deeper impression on Whitebeard than Shanks had~ What unknown secret was hidden within this man? That had always been an unresolved mystery when Rayson read the original story in his previous life~

After all, in the original story, Buggy had become one of the Seven Warlords largely by using his connection to Roger's former crew to attract a group of powerful followers, along with the broadcast during the Marineford War that had come about by chance~

Later, through a series of coincidences, he had even coasted his way into becoming one of the Four Emperors under Hawkeye and Crocodile's "support"~

Judging purely by his combat performance, this guy's record was practically unbearable to look at~

However, before Rayson, who possessed the Strongest Trait System, no matter what strange traits Buggy was hiding, none of them would escape notice~

"Someone Roger valued could not possibly be a completely useless piece of trash~ I hope you do not disappoint me, Buggy~"

Rayson put away the note and turned toward Rika's family restaurant~

"Rayson! You're back! Did you get the sea chart?"

Thanks to the convenience of the system map, Rayson easily found Rika's family tavern without even needing to ask for directions~

Luffy, whose mouth was currently stuffed with food, saw Rayson enter and asked indistinctly before swallowing with a gulp~

"Buggy took it~" Rayson unfolded the note in his hand and held it out before him~

"Buggy? Who's that? Is he strong?" Luffy blinked curiously~

"A pirate with a bounty of fifteen million Beli~ Around East Blue, he could be considered a fairly decent small fry~" Rayson answered calmly with a smile~

"Fifteen million Beli?! If we take him down, can my bounty rise that high too?" The moment he heard the bounty amount, Luffy's eyes lit up with excitement~

"Maybe~" Rayson could not help but chuckle~

Good, the fish had taken the bait!

"Alright! Let's go beat up that guy named Buggy, snatch back the sea chart!" Luffy shouted as he rubbed his fists together, blazing battle intent immediately igniting all over him~

"Hey! We're going to wage war against an entire pirate crew just for a bounty?" Zoro stared in shock from the side, suddenly feeling the absurdity of having boarded a pirate ship~

Before Rayson returned, he had already confirmed with Luffy that aside from Rayson, he was the second companion aboard this ship~

And their "pirate ship" was really just that pitiful little wooden boat docked at the harbor~

But now, they were actually going to sail such a tiny wreck into battle against the Buggy Pirates? He was not afraid, but was Luffy not being far too reckless? This was nothing like how a captain should behave!

"This is not just about the bounty~ Without a sea chart, we cannot reach that Devil Sea~ You want to become the world's greatest swordsman, right? If you keep hiding in East Blue, you will never achieve your ambition~ Only by reaching that Devil Sea can you fulfill your vow~" Rayson met Zoro's gaze with a composed expression and analyzed the situation unhurriedly~

"Fine! Buggy's head is mine!" Zoro slammed his hand onto the table, his battle intent instantly blazing just as fiercely~

Heh~ What two easily fooled guys~

Rayson laughed to himself~

After setting their next sailing destination, Rayson enjoyed a hearty meal at Rika's family restaurant~

Since he had fused with the "Beastly Strength (Blue)" trait, Rayson's appetite still could not compare to Luffy's bottomless pit, but it had already far surpassed that of an ordinary civilian~

Fortunately, the townspeople were grateful that Rayson and the others had defeated Morgan and saved the town, so they enthusiastically brought ingredients from their homes to the tavern~

Naturally, Rayson did not put on airs and refuse them. Being overly polite at a time like this would only make them seem distant~

Seeing Rayson heartily eating the food they had brought, every one of the townspeople wore a gratified smile~

After the meal, just as in the original story, the Marines whom Rayson had knocked unconscious earlier with Conqueror's Haki finally came to~ They arrived at the tavern to express their gratitude to Rayson and his group. Although they declared that they would not arrest them, they still politely asked them to leave port as soon as possible~

Unlike in the original story, that crybaby Koby had already been sent away by Rayson in advance, so Luffy did not need to put on another clumsy act of self-sacrifice~

Moreover, Rayson knew all too well how unreliable Luffy and Zoro had been in the original story. Not long after setting sail, they had nearly starved to death at sea~

So, after stocking up on enough dry rations and fresh water, the three of them headed toward the Straw Hat Pirates' temporary "mothership"~

"Set sail!" Luffy stood at the narrow bow, shouting spiritedly~

Zoro resignedly gripped the oars and guided the little boat slowly out of the harbor~

Rayson held the temporary sea chart in his hand, directing their course from the side~

As the little wooden boat gradually sailed away, the Marines at the harbor spontaneously lined up and solemnly saluted, seeing off the benefactors who had saved their town~

"Rayson, how long until we see land? I'm almost sick of eating apples~ I want meat~" Luffy lay limply over the side of the boat, looking pitifully at Rayson as he studied the sea chart and complained~

"Stop complaining~ If Rayson had not been so thoughtful, we would not even have apples to eat~ I seriously cannot believe you keep saying you want to become Pirate King, yet you set sail without preparing even a bit of supplies~" Zoro rowed while expressing his heartfelt disdain for this unreliable captain~