Ron's New Bounty

An hour later.

After unremitting effort, Annika finally finished preparing a lavish feast.

Ron, Kaido, and Stussy sat at the long table, each wearing a different expression as they stared at the plates and pots piled before them, their eyes full of suspicion.

"Can this blackened stuff... really be eaten?" Stussy poked the charcoal-like object with her fork, her doubts obvious as she raised her eyes slightly to look at Annika, who stood beside the table with an expectant expression.

"Mm!" Annika nodded confidently, folding her hands in front of her. Her tone was sincere yet somewhat apologetic. "Lady Stussy, I'm truly sorry. I didn't control the heat properly, so it got burnt. But I promise, it's edible!"

"Then what is this pot?" Ron asked doubtfully, stirring the brown stew with a ladle.

"This is a stew made with lamb, pork, beef, chicken... and some meat I don't know the name of," Annika explained patiently. "I tasted it. It's quite delicious!"

Ron fell silent.

Whitebeard fell silent.

Kaido fell silent as well.

Stussy took a deep breath and slowly said, "Who taught you to cook like this? Tell me. I'm going to kill them."

"I'm sorry, Lord Ron, Lord Kaido, Lady Stussy..." Annika lowered her head, her long pink hair covering half her face. "It's all because my cooking skills aren't good enough."

Ron glanced at her, then lowered his head to look at the pot of stew. Honestly, it looked awful. He picked up a piece of meat and stuffed it into his mouth. Hm? It was actually... rather fragrant?

However, Ron didn't think it tasted good because Annika had cooked it well. It was more likely because he hadn't had a proper meal in the past few days.

A long time later.

On the sea, a pirate ship slowly sailed away from the battered island.

Roger sat cross-legged beside the figurehead at the bow, holding a Den Den Mushi in one hand while the other rested on his knee. His expression was more somber than usual.

"I'm sorry..." Roger spoke slowly. "We ultimately arrived too late and failed to stop the tragedy."

The Den Den Mushi remained silent for a long time.

So long that Roger thought the other party had already hung up.

After a while, the Den Den Mushi's mouth twitched slightly, and a choked voice that desperately suppressed its trembling came through. "Did... did you find a body?"

"There were bodies." Roger's expression grew even more solemn. "But because of the battle's impact, only severed limbs and remains were left at the scene... We couldn't tell which belonged to Annika."

"We searched the area and buried all the severed limbs and remains we could find together... Then we erected a simple gravestone."

The person on the other end finally could not hold back any longer. A sob that had been suppressed for a long time came through the receiver.

Roger lowered his head slightly, his expression hidden from view. "Shakky, I'll help you find Ron and make him pay for what he's done."

"Ron?" Shakky's voice abruptly rose from the other end of the Den Den Mushi, filled with obvious astonishment. "What does this have to do with Ron?"

Roger did not answer immediately. He switched the Den Den Mushi to his other hand. "You reached a cooperation agreement with the Rocks Pirates, right? But while Ron was seizing the treasure, he ignored the conditions you proposed and indirectly caused Annika's death."

Shakky froze. Her lips parted, and only after several seconds did she force out a sentence. "You... didn't you arrive too late? How do you know these details?"

Roger's eyes flickered slightly. "I heard even more important information from Ochoku."

"They failed to divide the spoils fairly and abandoned Ochoku. But before that, Ochoku personally witnessed Ron ignoring the condition you emphasized most. During the battle with the Marines, he indirectly caused all the imprisoned slaves to die."

Shakky fell silent.

She simply could not believe that Ochoku would be kind enough to tell Roger what had really happened—especially when it involved the disgraceful fact that he had been abandoned.

"You believe him?"

"I don't believe him, but I believe in his weakness. A man who values profit above all else will ruthlessly betray anyone for enough money."

And according to Ochoku's account, all responsibility pointed toward Ron.

And Ron was known on these seas as the Devil Butcher. To him, indiscriminate slaughter was as normal as drinking water.

Therefore, Ochoku's words were highly credible.

"Although we can't be certain that Ochoku is telling the truth, at the very least, there are no flaws in the logic," Roger said unhurriedly.

After a long while, a deep sigh came from the other end of the Den Den Mushi.

"This is ultimately Annika's fate." Shakky's voice was weary. "You've already done enough for me. There's no need to look for Ron anymore. Thank you very much, Roger."

After all, Ron belonged to the Rocks Pirates. Shakky did not want Annika's death to deepen the conflict between the innocent Roger Pirates and the Rocks Pirates. That would only bring disaster upon the Roger Pirates.

Shakky paused, then added, "Lastly... please tell me where the bodies were buried."

"Alright." Roger nodded gently.

Two days later.

New World, a certain island.

The morning sea fog had just dispersed, and sunlight slanted through gaps in the clouds, coating the entire town in a faint golden hue.

Ron and his group had arrived on the island early. As agreed, they would wait here for everyone from the Rocks Pirates to return.

After drifting at sea for so many days, setting foot on solid ground again felt exceptionally pleasant.

Seeing that Ron was in a good mood, Annika carefully made a request. She wanted to walk around the island and stretch her legs.

Ron agreed.

The main reason... was that he was getting a little tired of staying on the ship too.

The bustling streets were packed with people.

Ron unconsciously slowed his pace, taking in the lively atmosphere around him.

"Mr. Ron."

Annika suddenly turned around and took two steps backward as she walked. "Why did you become a pirate... for freedom?"

Through their time together these past few days, Annika had gradually come to feel that Ron was actually a good person.

Although he always called her stupid and never held back with his words, whenever she ruined a meal, Ron would patiently teach her. [Mainly because he wanted someone to cook the dishes from his "hometown."]

"To live." Ron answered flatly.

Annika paused, then said seriously, "But... if it's only about 'living,' there are many ways to do that. Like them, for example..."

"They place their tomorrow upon someone else's blade. But whether it's tomorrow, the day after tomorrow, or every day beyond that, every tomorrow of mine must be held in my own hands."

"Living is not breathing. It is not a heartbeat. Living means that your fate is judged by yourself."

For a moment, Annika could not grasp every meaning behind Ron's words. She only felt that those few sentences carried immense weight.

Just then, a booming voice rang out behind Ron.

"Ron, good news!!!"

Those of you reading, say something.