Gawain's lips curled into a faint smile. Ignoring the warning, he took a step forward.
Bang!
A gunshot rang out from the dense forest ahead.
Before the black bullet could reach Gawain, a streak of silver blade light sliced it cleanly down the middle. Split in two, it skimmed past Gawain's clothes and flew away.
"Take one more step, and my next bullet will be aimed at your head!"
The warning came from the forest again.
But Gawain had already seen through his fear and unease. He had even guessed the identity of the newcomer.
He continued forward.
A box with a green afro came into Gawain's view.
"What's that?"
Nami curiously examined the box ahead, then pointed at the flintlock pistol nearby.
"The gun's over there! It's even still smoking!"
As soon as she spoke,
the box visibly trembled.
Gawain even caught sight of a small section of a foot sticking out beneath it.
He stepped forward, grabbed the afro protruding from the box, and lifted it up.
An uncle-like face immediately emerged from the box. Other than the arms and feet that could barely extend outside, every other part of his body was crammed inside it.
"Stop pretending. You were the one who fired that shot, weren't you?"
Gawain had already recognized the strange man trapped in the box. He was Kamon, the memorable Box Monster from the original story.
He was unfortunate: the treasure he had guarded his entire life had turned out to be nothing but several boxes. Yet he was fortunate as well, because here he had found something truly worth protecting.
"Let go of me! Pirate!"
Kamon struggled desperately, but his tiny hands could not even reach the top of his own head. The sight was incredibly comical.
"What is that?"
Nami squeezed out