Two Monsters

"Look! The new monster is here."

"Wow, he's really tall!"

"Stay away from him. Maybe he got this big by eating children!"

In the shadows of the residential area of Ohara Town, several half-grown children huddled tightly together, their fingers pointing straight at the silver-haired boy in the middle of the street. Their whispered voices buzzed into his ears like annoying mosquitoes.

Adams himself acted as though he had heard nothing. He had endured this for three days straight. Ever since the first day, when he had tried to make friends with the children on the island and revealed his age, word had quickly spread that a monster, only six years old yet enormous in stature, had arrived on the island.

Dr. Clover, who knew of this, told him that most of the island's residents were ignorant and foolish. Although the scholars had tried to educate them, their efforts had yielded little. He hoped Adams would not take it to heart.

That was why Adams could ignore the children's words. Reason told him that arguing with people who were ignorant and unwilling to accept proper education was nothing but a waste of time.

Thus, he walked on alone amid the gossip and slander.

As he passed the mouth of an alley, the shouting of several half-grown children caught his attention.

"Monster, monster!"

"Her mother threw her away!"

"Because she's a monster, right?!"

The children shouted as they hurled stones into the alley.

Adams's gaze passed over their bobbing heads and settled on the depths of the alley, in a corner pressed against a mottled stone wall.

A small figure stood there, pressed tightly against the stone wall, so weathered that its original color was nearly impossible to discern. She was like a young sapling repeatedly lashed by wind and rain, yet stubbornly refusing to fall.

Her messy black hair clung wetly to her pale little face. She did not curl up or cry for help.

She simply stood there in silence, letting the stones thrown by the children whistle through the air and strike her small body.

The sight filled Adams, who had received a good education since childhood, with rage. He could tolerate the stares and finger-pointing aimed at him, but he could not turn a blind eye to the bullying of the weak.

His massive body moved before his mind could catch up, roughly shoving aside the two boys blocking the alley entrance.

"Stop!!"

His roar exploded at the end of the narrow alley like a muffled clap of thunder.

The tremendous sound wave shook dust loose from the walls. Even he was stunned—the foul breath that had been bottled up in his chest for so long had been fiercely ignited by the cold stones before him.

Was that really his own voice?

The boy leading the stone-throwing was sturdily built, a head taller than his companions. His face had gone pale, but he still refused to back down.

He took half a step back, craning his neck as he tried to glare with eyes full of fear.

"Y-you... what are you trying to do?! She's a monster! W-we're getting rid of a danger!"

"There are no monsters in this world. She's just a child too. You call yourselves boys, yet you bully the weak without restraint. Aren't you ashamed?"

With a dark expression, Adams took a large step forward. His enormous shadow instantly swallowed the leading boy, carrying an irresistible pressure like a collapsing mountain.

He disliked fighting and only wanted to make them retreat in the simplest way possible.

"Hit him!"

Someone in the crowd egged them on.

Several stones that had originally been aimed at the corner came whistling through the air, slamming hard into Adams's broad, bare back—there was no shirt covering it.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The impacts were dull, like blows striking thick cowhide left beneath the blazing sun for years. The sharp-edged stones left only several glaring red marks and pale streaks on Adams's skin. Not a single drop of blood seeped out.

This inhuman sight instantly drained the remaining children's faces of color.

They had never seen someone who did not bleed when struck by stones. Nothing remained in their eyes but incomprehensible fear.

"Run! This guy isn't human!"

With that cry, the little group that had just been united against a common enemy instantly fell apart. They scrambled out of the alley on hands and feet, rolling and crawling as they vanished into the scorching sunlight in the blink of an eye.

The alley suddenly fell quiet. Only heavy breathing remained.

After all the children had left, Adams slowly turned around. His gaze fell upon the corner.

The girl still stood rigidly upright. Bruises and bloodstains stood out clearly against her fair skin. Yet she did not even furrow her brow, as though the stones had not struck her body.

Something stirred within Adams. He asked in the gentlest tone he could manage.

"Why... didn't you dodge? Why didn't you cry out in pain?"

The girl slightly raised her face. Her overly tranquil eyes looked at him like two dust-covered sapphires as she answered with unusual calm.

"There was no need. Besides, if I cried out in pain, they would only throw harder."

The girl's brief words struck heavily against Adams's heart. He fell silent for a moment before speaking again, his voice carrying a little more warmth and curiosity.

"Then why didn't you try asking for help?"

"I did. It was useless. The children and adults on this island all say I'm a monster. Not one of them was willing to help me."

The girl answered calmly, as if she were merely describing tomorrow's weather.

As she spoke, she stretched out a small hand and lightly pressed it against the filthy ground. Countless tiny arms sprouted densely from it.

The sight made Adams's eyes light up at once, like a child discovering some marvelous new creation.

"So, you're an ability user!"

His tone was certain, without the slightest trace of fear.

The girl's pupils trembled faintly, as though she were surprised.

"You... aren't afraid?"

The muscles in Adams's face shifted, revealing a bitter smile carved into his features.

"My family has produced physicists for generations. Naturally, we're interested in things like Devil Fruits... things that completely violate the laws of physics. So, ability users aren't unfamiliar to me."

Yet the bitterness on his face grew stronger, spreading across his handsome features.

"But you look like you really dislike physics."

The girl tilted her little head and examined him carefully, her small face full of confusion.

"Because my parents both died in accidental explosions while conducting physics experiments. Not only that, many of my ancestors suffered the same fate. Maybe that's the curse of the Willy family."

Adams explained the reason. After he finished, even he could not help falling silent for a moment.

The noise outside the alley seemed so distant.

"The Willy family, physicists... what is your relationship with Willy Gannon, the physicist who once said, 'Everything humanity can imagine may become reality'?"

The girl's small voice broke the silence. Her eyes shone as she looked at Adams, waiting for confirmation.

A fierce light of surprise burst from Adams's eyes.

"You know him? Willy Gannon is my ancestor. My name is Willy Adams."

He looked over the battered yet exceptionally perceptive girl before him again, with unprecedented seriousness.

"Your knowledge is truly astonishing. What's your name?"

"Robin."

The girl answered briefly.

"Robin? Nico Robin?"

The surprise on Adams's face turned to realization. He pointed at her.

"So it's you! Dr. Clover mentioned the little genius who often goes to the Tree of Knowledge to read. No wonder you know so much. Have you been busy with other things these past few days? I've been there for three days and never saw you."

"I was watching my uncle's house, so I couldn't go out. I only got free today and was just about to head there."

Robin briefly explained her absence over the past few days. Then, as if she had discovered a whole new world, she stared straight at the boy before her.

"You live at the Tree of Knowledge now...?"

In her memory, there should not have been any other children there.

"I only live nearby, but I go in every day to read. My grandfather... entrusted me to Dr. Clover before he died. He's my guardian now."

Adams explained.

"I see. Thank you for helping me. I'm going to read now."

Robin looked enlightened, then painfully shifted her battered body, preparing to go to the Tree of Knowledge alone as usual.

"Wait. I was just about to head home. Let's go together."

Seeing Robin about to turn and leave, Adams ultimately could not hold himself back and called out. He bent down and slowly extended his broad hand.

Sunlight slanted in through the alley entrance, illuminating the sharp lines of his profile. His short silver-white hair glimmered faintly beneath the sun.

Robin stopped and raised her delicate little face. Her sapphire-like eyes moved back and forth between Adams's outstretched hand and his gentle smile.

Mist churned continuously in those clear eyes—confusion, wariness, and a tentative attempt to confirm something.

At last, she took a deep breath, as if drawing what little courage she could from the alley. Then she cautiously stretched out her icy little hand and lightly touched the warm palm of the silver-haired boy.

Her small hand was like a feather battered by wind and rain, finally finding a branch upon which to rest. It trembled faintly.

Adams felt it. His fingers did not suddenly tighten; he simply gently enclosed that coldness and fragility that seemed ready to shatter at any moment within his palm.

He was incomparably gentle, as though afraid that even a fraction more strength in his fingertips would add fresh wounds to her.

Holding that icy little hand, he turned sideways through the narrow alley and led her toward the entrance, toward the broad swathes of golden yet still glaring evening light.

The light surged in like a tide, bringing with it a faint, insignificant warmth.

Two elongated shadows, one large and one small, quietly fell upon the filthy ground behind them, merging together in a strange and wonderful way.

TO BE CONTINUED