A "Confident" Departure

"All right, Mr. Zoro, the mission has been registered. This is the letter from the bakery owner, and this..." Mirajane smiled as she handed Zoro a sealed letter, then took out another sheet of paper. "This is a simple map Miss Lucy drew especially because she was worried about you."

Zoro took the letter and casually stuffed it into his clothes, but when he saw the so-called "map," the corner of his mouth twitched.

On the paper, two parallel streets had been drawn in crooked lines. On the left was a steaming loaf of bread, with enormous words beside it: "East Side · Bakery · Start Here!" On the right was a pair of crossed hammers, labeled: "West Side · Blacksmith Shop · Deliver Here!" A thick, bright-red arrow connected the two locations in the middle, as if afraid no one would understand.

Rather than a map, it looked more like a picture card for a three-year-old.

"Tch, totally unnecessary." Zoro disdainfully crumpled the map into a ball, ready to throw it away.

"Ah!!! Don't throw it away!!!" Lucy hurriedly snatched it from him, unfolded and smoothed it out, then forcefully stuffed it back into his hand. "Take it! Just in case! If you can't find the way, you can show it to a passerby and ask for directions!"

"I already said I won't get lost!!!" Zoro said impatiently. "Isn't it just from the east side to the west side? Follow where the sun rises and sets—straight line. How could I possibly go wrong?"

His tone was filled with powerful, unquestionable confidence. That confidence even made some guild members who had been worried begin to wonder if they had been overthinking things.

"Be careful on the road, Zoro!!!"

"Go early and come back early! We'll drink together tonight!!!"

Amid his companions' well-meaning reminders, Zoro waved his hand and walked out of the guild doors without looking back. His retreating figure was full of a master's effortless poise.

The guild entrance faced the town's main road. According to both the map and common sense, he should have turned left and followed the main road west.

However, the moment Zoro stepped outside, his gaze was drawn to an inn on the street corner to the right, its sign bearing a huge wine barrel. The inn looked ancient and refined, as though it might have some fine aged liquor hidden inside.

His feet instinctively started toward the right.

After walking a few steps, he seemed to remember that he had "important business" to handle, so he stopped in front of the inn and hesitated.

"Tch, I'll finish the job first, then come back for a drink."

He muttered to himself, then made a choice that would decide the course of his next day.

He did not turn around and head left. Instead, he continued... striding down the road on the right.

In his miraculous sense of direction, as long as the general direction was "forward," he could not be wrong! As for whether this "forward" led west, south, or somewhere else entirely, that was beyond his consideration.

The sun shone brightly, and a gentle breeze blew.

And so, our swordsman set out with a simple C-rank mission on a legendary journey of "getting lost" that headed in the complete opposite direction from his destination.

Back in the guild, Lucy said to Mirajane with a relieved expression, "See? Mr. Zoro looks really reliable this time. He should be back soon."