Held Up?

After leaving the tavern.

Swain acted casually, wandering around without any apparent destination before entering an empty alleyway.

Sure enough, someone followed him in. The person wore a gray coat and had a layer of white cloth wrapped around their head, looking like someone dressed in the fashion of the desert kingdom.

Swain stopped in the middle of the alley. With his back to the person behind him, he said, "Looks like you really like outsiders!"

Through Observation Haki, he could sense the nervous expression of the person behind him.

"Hand... hand over some of your money!"

Even their speech was stammering, and they held a long dagger in their hand.

The voice also sounded very young.

Swain directly took out a small piece of gold from his pocket.

He tossed it at his feet and said, "Then let's see if you've got the guts to take it!"

He spoke teasingly.

Because through Observation Haki, he had sensed that the person was actually two ordinary people!

Why two? Because two children were standing together, pretending to be an adult while holding him up.

And the little brat had even said that he only wanted some of Swain's money, leaving him "enough for the trip home."

Swain did not know whether to laugh or cry. Did he really look that easy to bully? Even children dared to rob him now.

"Take it." Swain kicked the gold over with his foot.

The person behind him seemed not to have reacted yet, so Swain added, "Don't want it?"

That "person" immediately split into two halves down the middle.

"Big Brother! We have money!" one of them said excitedly.

They were clearly brothers, and both of them looked rather adorable.

The older brother took his younger brother's hand, looked at the gold, then looked gratefully at Swain.

The two bowed to him together before leaving with the money.

Watching the two children imitate the way adults acted made Swain unable to hold back a laugh.

"Does this count as doing a good deed for the day?" Then he returned to the tavern.

Elsewhere.

The two brothers whom Swain had given money to hurried home. "Modi, hurry up."

"We have to go back and save our sister!"

"Big Brother, wait for me!"

The moment they arrived at their doorstep, they saw several burly men gathered outside their home.

The leader wore a suit and had slicked-back jet-black hair. His name was Hanson, a notorious loan shark boss in this area.

"Do you have the money to repay your debt or not?" Hanson's voice was sharp and cutting.

It did not sound like a man's voice at all.

He was berating the woman before him, who had a curvaceous figure, a pretty face, and some charm to her.

"Please give us a few more days!" she said in a soft, delicate voice.

"More time? How many times has this been already?" Hanson said impatiently.

"There's only one way left for you to repay the debt! Sell yourself at the auction."

She had just been about to explain when Hanson said, "That way, your two idiot brothers can live properly."

He burst into shrill laughter, his voice seemingly sharp enough to pierce everyone's eardrums.

"We have money!!" Modi was impatient by nature and rushed out, holding up a money bag.

They had already exchanged Swain's gold for Beli.

Two whole bags of money!

Everyone turned to look at them.

"Mokai, Modi! Go somewhere else and play first, okay?" their sister shouted.

Her voice was already trembling with tears.

"No! Sister, I'm already a man!" Mokai said.

He walked up to Hanson, holding up the money bag.

Like a victor, he said, "Take this money and get out of here!"

"We don't welcome you!" Modi shouted as well.

Hanson signaled for one of his lackeys to check whether there was enough money in the bags. When he saw the man nod, an ugly smile appeared on his face.

Their sister immediately sensed that something was wrong and hurriedly cried, "Run!"

But it was already too late.

"Catch these two little thieves who stole the money!"

The brothers did not even understand what was happening before two burly men lifted them up like chicks.

Modi's little face turned deathly pale as he hurriedly explained, "We didn't steal it! A big brother gave it to us!"

"If I say you stole it, then you stole it! Say another word, and I'll sell you too!"

The younger brother was so frightened that he could no longer speak.

"You bastard!" Their sister punched Hanson in the face.

But how could a frail woman compare to a burly man? Hanson barely felt it, as though she were scratching an itch!

"Hmph! Bitch! You don't know what's good for you!"

Hanson slapped Modi's sister across the face, and blood immediately seeped from the corner of her mouth.

"Sister!" the two brothers shouted together.

They glared furiously at Hanson's every move. If looks could kill, he would have died hundreds or thousands of times already.

Fortunately, Mokai caught them off guard and bit down on the arm of the man holding his brother.

"Go find that big brother from earlier!"

After breaking free, Modi immediately fled.

"Idiot! Go after him!" Hanson kicked the lackey who was still standing there in a daze.

Fortunately, Modi had known this area well since childhood and narrowly escaped their pursuit.

"At the auction the day after tomorrow, I'll sell every last one of you!" Hanson said viciously.

He locked the siblings in a cage and left the place.

Meanwhile, Modi ran until his face was covered in snot and tears.

"Waaahhhhh! Why does everyone bully us?"

"We obviously haven't done anything bad. They're all bad people!"

He ran until he fell onto the road.

The people around him looked over. Some stepped forward to ask what had happened, but when they heard Hanson's name, they all stopped asking.

Hanson was simply too infamous, guilty of every kind of evil!

Seeing how everyone around him reacted, little Modi understood that the only person who could save them was that kind big brother!

After returning to the tavern, Swain remembered that he needed to visit Cardiff.

After hurriedly asking around for his residence, he knocked on the door but received no response. Only after asking the neighbors did he learn that Cardiff had gone to sea a week ago.

By the time Swain returned to the tavern, it was already dusk. He heard the waiter say someone was looking for him. Thinking it was the captain he had met when he got lost, he went to the hall, only to discover it was the child who had "robbed" him that afternoon.

"You were looking for me?" Swain asked in confusion.

"Mm!" Modi had barely uttered a single word before he burst into loud sobs.

"Big Brother! Please save my brother and sister!"

His little hands clung tightly to Swain's trouser leg, refusing to let go, even smearing snot onto his pants.

Swain had Modi get up and explain slowly.

After spending ten minutes explaining everything from beginning to end, he finally stopped sobbing.

"Damn it!" Swain punched the wall in frustration.

"This Hanson is nothing but an animal!"

In truth, Swain bore part of the responsibility as well. After all, giving the brothers such a huge sum of money might have exposed them to danger. Possessing a treasure invites misfortune—he had not considered that.

With some guilt, he said, "Big Brother will definitely rescue them!"

Hearing that, Modi burst into tears again. After all, he was still just a child.

"Do you know where Hanson lives?" Swain asked.

Modi shook his head.

He asked several more questions, but Modi only shook his head.

That gave Swain quite a headache.

"From what he described, I doubt anyone else would dare tell us."

"Then we can only find out about the auction!"