Paper Lantern Town, as its name suggested, made its living primarily by producing paper in every color.
The paper they made was not only beautiful and durable, but also highly water-resistant. Naturally, that made it popular in the ocean-dominated One Piece world. As a result, Paper Lantern Town's paper enjoyed a modest reputation throughout West Blue, and merchant ships came here every year to carry it to other islands across the sea.
This brought considerable profits to a town that was not particularly large, which naturally attracted plenty of gangs. Besides collecting protection money from the locals, they also wanted to squeeze something out of the merchants who came here to do business.
Why go into so much detail about Paper Lantern Town?
That was because...
By the time Xie Wen woke up that morning, Cody's merchant ship had already docked in the town's harbor!
In other words, even without boarding Cody's ship, they could have reached Paper Lantern Town by drifting along their previous course on the raft for another day or so.
Damn it! That News Coo ripped me off!
Although it had only cost "one Chopper," he had still been ripped off. More importantly, there were so many News Coos, and they all looked pretty much alike. He had no way to get even.
...Forget it. At least I got some information ahead of time, plus a free set of clothes.
Xie Wen could only comfort himself as he changed into the clothes Cody had provided for free.
"Wow-this town looks so fun, meow!"
Klee Meow climbed onto Xie Wen's shoulder as usual, then craned her neck to gaze at the town before them with eager interest.
As a town famous for its paper industry, Paper Lantern Town used its own colored paper for most of its decorations. All sorts of little paper ornaments hung beneath the eaves of every house, and even the streetlights were mostly paper lanterns. The whole town was a colorful patchwork with a distinctive charm.
"Big Brother Xie Wen, Big Brother Xie Wen, can Klee go play in this town, meow?" Klee Meow tugged at Xie Wen's ear, pleading in her sweet little voice.
"Of course, of course..." Xie Wen had never been able to resist Klee Meow's pleading, but he still had to give her the necessary reminders. "You can play, but the usual rules still apply. No taking out bombs, and no setting fires."
If Klee Meow started a fire in a place full of paper products... Xie Wen did not dare imagine how "heated" things would get.
"I know, meow! Klee isn't stupid!" Little Plushie said indignantly.
He insisted on repeating it every time, making her sound like some terribly disobedient girl.
The more Klee Meow thought about it, the angrier she became, until she bit Xie Wen's ear. It was only a gentle bite to express her displeasure, though. Afterward, Little Plushie even reached out a paw to rub his ear.
"Don't worry, meow. That idiot Xie Wen has thick skin. You could bite him harder and he'd still be fine, Klee, meow."
Unlike the well-behaved Klee Meow, that little brat Sanji Meow was getting increasingly fond of giving him trouble.
Xie Wen irritably flicked the little rascal on the forehead, then grabbed him by the scruff and held the flailing, mischievous cat in one hand.
After saying goodbye to Cody and the sailors, Xie Wen disembarked with one cat dangling from his hand and another perched on his shoulder, then headed into Paper Lantern Town.
Once they left the harbor, Sanji Meow finally settled down. Only then did Xie Wen put him down, letting him bite his hand without trying to dodge so he could vent his anger.
"Someone's secretly following us, meow."
Having bitten Xie Wen's hand and salvaged his pride, Sanji Meow twitched his ears as he spoke.
Having cats with such sharp senses had its drawbacks, too. It made him subconsciously less concerned about awakening his Observation Haki.
As Xie Wen made excuses for himself, he asked quietly, "Can you tell who it is by listening?"
"It should be that big Uncle Bax," answered Klee Meow from his shoulder. She twitched her little pink nose. "That uncle smells really strongly of alcohol, meow."
"Bax?" Xie Wen frowned and muttered under his breath, "Could it be... that Cody isn't actually a good person?"
Unaware that Cody meant well, his first assumption was that the man wanted to steal his cats.
But on closer consideration, that did not quite add up. He had been far more "at their mercy" aboard the ship. If Cody really had bad intentions, why go to all this extra trouble?
Unable to figure it out, Xie Wen simply pretended he did not know anyone was following them. With his and the cats' strength, they had no reason to fear anyone coming to make trouble anyway.
So he casually took the two cats for a stroll around town. Klee Meow, who shouted excitedly and darted everywhere along the way, successfully drew everyone's attention... some friendly, some malicious.
"How's it looking?" Xie Wen quietly asked Sanji Meow beside him.
Sanji Meow twitched his ears and raised a little paw to make an OK sign. "More people are following us now, meow."
Xie Wen nodded in satisfaction, beckoned Klee Meow back from pawing at an ornament beneath someone's eaves, and began heading toward places with as few people as possible.
Turning the tables on robbers and getting his first pot of gold from them was, after all, standard practice for someone who had crossed into another world.
He might have found something valuable to sell if he rummaged through his bag, but for one thing, he did not want to expose his spatial storage equipment so soon. For another... while making money without putting up any capital, he could also find out what Cody and Bax were really up to.
Whether people in the One Piece world were generally carefree or those gangs simply felt untouchable, Xie Wen's almost blatant attempt to lure them out did not scare his pursuers away. According to Sanji Meow, even more people had started following them instead...
They had not even reached a completely deserted spot before someone lost patience and jumped out.
"Hahahahaha! Kid! Hand over those two cats! Maybe we'll let you live~"
How should he put it... that was an utterly textbook villain's line. The fellows blocking his way also had the classic assortment of ugly mugs befitting villains.
And sure enough, gangs really were one of West Blue's signature industries. Every one of the men in front of him dressed like a member of the Black Organization from Detective Conan.
Just as Xie Wen was about to say something, another group appeared behind them, blocking their retreat.
"Sorry, Delanr, but the Caster Family has its eye on those two cats as well."
The newcomers clearly belonged to a different faction from the men ahead, but their clothes were no different: the same thoroughly gangster-like black suits...
So when they have gang wars, don't they ever hit the wrong people?
While Xie Wen was entertaining that absurd thought, a third group appeared.
"What a coincidence. Our boss also told us to bring them back."
Then the members of all three gangs drew their weapons and squared off against one another, while their actual targets, Xie Wen and the two Palicoes, were spectacularly forgotten off to the side.
"Big Brother Xie Wen, can Klee blow them up with bombs, meow?"
Klee Meow tugged at Xie Wen's sleeve and asked with shining eyes. Little Plushie had not set off any fireworks in days, and the pent-up urge was driving her crazy.
"Uh... no rush. Let's watch for now."
Xie Wen rubbed Klee Meow's head and soothed her softly.
Bax was still hiding somewhere and had yet to show himself, after all. It would be better to wait until everyone came out, then deal with them all at once.
Just as he thought that, Bax strode openly out of his hiding place. The burly man, who had previously seemed rather simple and good-natured, now carried himself with imposing authority, instantly drawing everyone's eyes.
"This young man is Mr. Cody's guest. Would you all do me the courtesy of backing off?"
Seriously, do all you people in West Blue like talking that way?
TheHunter: Call of the Wild is on sale again... I bought it at either 50% or 60% off, but now it's 80% off. Fourteen yuan a copy is a pretty good deal. Even if it drops to 90% off later, you won't lose out on much.
Still, the game is fairly slow-paced and suits patient players. Anyone who's impatient probably won't be able to get into it.
Before you continue