Red Bull Incident

"Run!"

"Get the hell out of my way!"

"Where are the sailors? Hurry up and drive that monster away!"

Burly men shoved one another, trying to get out of the corridor as quickly as possible.

The usually elegant ladies screamed at the top of their lungs, venting their terror.

Dill had no intention of taking the corridor. Instead, he kicked a window to pieces.

The sea cow was rampaging on the left, so the right side, which they faced, was still relatively safe.

Robin activated her ability, forming a rope out of arms for the three of them to climb down.

Soon, all three reached the deck.

Without lingering, Dill pulled the two girls along and found the lifeboats.

More precisely, they were dugout boats without sails.

They were lined up neatly at the stern, offering the sailors some psychological comfort.

Dill also found a megaphone.

"Record~"

"That sea cow only attacks red things! The lifeboats are here!"

"That sea cow only attacks..."

After setting the megaphone to play on a loop, Dill quickly pushed a lifeboat into the sea.

His abilities were limited. This was all he could do.

If they waited any longer, they might not even have a lifeboat to take.

The ship kept rocking. He picked his spot and pulled the two girls with him as he jumped into the little boat.

Robin activated her ability, and four delicate arms worked the oars.

Hina looked back and saw two people leap down, landing in another little boat.

Judging by their figures, they looked somewhat like her father and mother.

"Seriously, what's the point of this species existing? Just to die en masse, give everyone a scare, and earn a place in history?"

Dill sat with his back against the side of the boat, hugging his knees as he grumbled listlessly.

How could such bizarre, freakish creatures exist in this world?!

They had a special fondness for red and would go berserk, utterly destroying red objects.

The passenger ship was red, and the Red Line was red too.

Thirty years ago, changes in the ocean currents had caused the black sea cow population to change its migration route.

Then they passed the Red Line and collectively rammed themselves to death against it.

Bovine heads floated across the blood-soaked waters. History called it the "Red Bull Incident."

"An extinct creature reappeared, and we just happened to run into it. Someone is definitely targeting us!"

"All right, stop complaining. At least we survived."

Robin patted Dill's head to comfort him.

She had been the first to identify the black sea cow earlier and had proposed their escape plan.

Fortunately, both of them were used to a life of being ready to flee at any moment. They slept together and kept all their important belongings by the bed.

Otherwise, even if they had escaped, they would most likely have ended up lost at sea.

Robin took a nautical chart and compass out of her little bundle, intending to establish their current position first.

"It's a bit dark. Give me some light."

"Oh."

Dill silently held out his glowing right hand.

The ability he had gained this month: making his body glow.

He could make his whole body glow or just part of it. The light was gentle rather than glaring, suitable for reading at night.

Robin held his hand, occasionally glancing at the compass as she carefully calculated their exact position.

With nothing to do, the semi-literate Dill turned his gaze toward Hina beside him.

The girl in pajamas sat hugging her knees, trembling. Faint tear tracks remained on her face, making her look pitiful.

"Put this on."

Dill handed her a suit jacket, unconsciously activating his hypnotic power.

"I don't know what you've been through, but how about sticking with me from now on?"

He had saved her in passing earlier, so naturally, he couldn't let her get away now.

"Oww~ Robin, why are you pinching my hand?"

"No reason. Stop moving around."

Without even looking up, Robin held his hand and continued studying the nautical chart.

Hina accepted the jacket and put it on without meeting Dill's eyes.

She buried her face in her knees and asked in a muffled voice:

"I'm very grateful that you saved my life, but who exactly are you?"

"Hina is confused."

The sleazy middle-aged man had vaguely turned into a boy, then back into a middle-aged man, and now he was a boy again.

She had already noticed while they were escaping earlier. She could even see the top of Dill's head.

The middle-aged identity was clearly a disguise. This handsome young face was his real appearance.

"Don't you check wanted posters when you write your articles?

I'm the accomplice, Kali Dill, the one who took over a restaurant on Cologne Island and set it on fire."

Then the one next to him was the Devil Child?!

Hina raised her head at his words and looked toward Robin beside him in astonishment.

She still had some recollection of the Devil Child and her seventy-nine million bounty.

"I thought she'd be some hideous monster. I never expected her to be kind of cute."

"Hina is shocked."

Dill: "..."

I was introducing myself just now, wasn't I?

Then why did she turn to look at Robin?

Hina pressed her lips together and held out a hand, creating a black spear half a meter long and as thick as a thumb.

"I'm a Cage-Cage Fruit user. I can create hard bars to imprison enemies, and I can also create black spears to attack, like this."

She had accidentally acquired this ability while trying her hand at farming. No one else knew about it yet.

A princess consort didn't need fighting strength. Telling her parents would only make them more demanding.

"I have nowhere to go now. Please let me join you!"

"Hina is nervous."

She wasn't stupid. Having seen the faces of two wanted fugitives, how could she possibly leave unscathed?

She might as well join them outright in exchange for better treatment.

After all, being a pirate counted as a profession too.

Robin looked up in confusion. Why was this person looking at her?

"If you want to join, ask Dill. I follow his lead."

"Y-yes!"

Hina awkwardly turned around. She hadn't expected the decision-maker to be the one worth a thousand rather than the one worth seventy-nine million.

She bowed toward Dill, presenting the black spear with both hands.

"Please let me join you!"

"Hina is embarrassed!"

"Saying it out loud makes it even more embarrassing!"

Dill made a quip about her verbal tic, then reached out to take the black spear and squeezed it. It was pretty hard.

"Welcome aboard, Miss Hina."

"Sit down. Don't tip us over."

"All right. Hina obeys!"

The fourteen-year-old newcomer joined them, becoming the oldest member of their little group.

Robin was ten, Dill twelve, and Hina fourteen.

They could be called the youngest pirate crew.

"I've worked it out!"

Robin spoke excitedly, pointing to a spot on the nautical chart.

"We're here right now. There's an island directly east."

"Great!"

Dill waved a hand. "Let's go!"

The newcomer, Hina, volunteered to take on the rowing.

Robin glanced down at the compass from time to time, making sure they were heading in the right direction.

Dill tied a line to the half-meter-long black spear and started fishing, leaving the catch to chance.

About five hours later.

After Robin and Hina's tireless efforts, an island finally came into view.

The little boat landed on an empty stretch of sand and gravel, with a dense forest not far ahead.

Without lingering, the three hurried straight into the forest.

Dill hadn't caught a single fish, so they wanted to catch some game in the forest.

It was early morning, and some mist still lingered in the forest, giving it a hazy look.

"There seem to be people over there."

Hina pointed deeper into the forest and reminded them quietly.

Looking in the direction she pointed, they could vaguely make out two figures arguing about something.

"Robin, listen to what they're saying."

Robin nodded, crossed her hands in front of her chest, and activated her Devil Fruit ability.

First, two little hands appeared in the distance, one with an eye growing in its palm and the other with an ear.

Through the eye, Robin saw the scene deep in the forest clearly.

Beside a fallen black bear, two men in their prime, dressed as hunters, were arguing over who the kill belonged to.

But their argument left Robin a little bewildered.

"I shot this Kuma dead! Don't you come stirring up trouble, you balding, long-bearded Dill!"

"Don't think I'm afraid of you just because you're Hunter Dill! I clearly killed this Kuma with one slash!"