After saying goodbye to the two giants.
The Ark Maxim flew in the clouds for two days.
The following evening, a white island appeared on the horizon.
It's not the white of the sand, it's the white of snow.
Drum Island.
The entire island was covered with thick snow. From the air, the cylindrical Drum Mountain looked like giant stone pillars standing on the white earth.
On the summit of the highest mountain, the outline of a castle can be vaguely seen.
"Wow—" Yamato, leaning on the ship's railing, his eyes shining, "Snow! So much snow!"
Pea, wrapped in a thick coat brought from Hachinosu, huddled behind Roy, only half her face showing. "So... so cold..."
Enel floated in mid-air, curling his lip in disdain. "Mere wind and snow? I've seen plenty of that on Sky Island."
As soon as he finished speaking, a gust of cold wind mixed with snowflakes rushed into the back of his neck.
He shuddered, silently lowered his flight altitude, and hid behind Tesoro.
Tesoro: "... Aren't you not afraid of the cold?"
"I am not afraid! This is... this is strategic concealment!"
The Ark Maxim landed on a snowy patch on the coast of Drum Island.
The moment the hatch opened, a blast of cold wind carrying snowflakes rushed in, and everyone shivered involuntarily.
Yamato the first to jump off the ship, rolled around in the snow, and yelled excitedly, "So cool! So comfortable!"
Pea carefully stepped onto the snow, her foot sinking halfway in, almost causing her to fall, but Kazami caught her.
"Thanks..."
Kazami nodded and released his grip.
Roy Telekinesis to create a protective shield, blocking out the wind and snow.
The group walked along the coast toward the Big Horn Village.
Big Horn Village is the only port village on Drum Island.
But when Roy and his group entered the village, the streets were deserted.
The doors and windows of the house were tightly closed. Occasionally, someone would peek out through a crack in the window before quickly drawing the curtains back up.
"What's wrong with this village?" Tesoro frowned. "It's like it's haunted."
Roy's Observation Haki swept across the entire village—the villagers huddled in their homes, a gray fog of fear enveloping the whole village.
He walked to a house where smoke was still rising from the chimney and knocked on the door.
No one answered.
I knocked a few more times.
The door opened a crack, and a middle-aged man peeked out, eyeing them warily.
"You are... outsiders?"
"Just passing by," Roy said. "Looking for a doctor."
The man's expression changed instantly.
He lowered his voice and spoke very quickly:
"You'd better get out of here right now! If the 'Hunter Doctors' see you looking for a doctor, they'll arrest you all!"
"Hunter Doctor?"
The middle-aged man looked around to make sure no one was on the street before opening the door a crack wider and explaining rapidly:
"King Wapol issued a decree that only the royal ' Isshi-20 ' was allowed to practice medicine throughout the country, and all other doctors would be exiled or arrested."
Now, on the entire Drum Island, besides the group in the palace, only one doctor dares to practice medicine openly.
"Who?"
" Dr. Kureha the Witch."
The man lowered his voice even further when he said this.
"She lived in a castle Drum Mountain, Wapol's soldiers dared not go up—those who did were all driven down by her."
But if you want to find her, you'll have to climb up Drum Mountain yourselves.
That mountain is very steep, and the wind and snow are heavy; most people simply can't climb it.
Roy nodded. "Thank you."
Before closing the door, the man added, "Be careful."
Wapol's patrols roam the village daily, specifically targeting people looking for a doctor.
The door closed.
Roy turned and looked at the highest peak, Drum Mountain. The outline of the castle was faintly visible in the wind and snow, like a ghostly ancient castle.
Let's go.
He did not take the mountain path.
They enveloped everyone with their Telekinesis and flew directly up from the foot of the mountain.
Drum Mountain is higher than I imagined.
The straight-line distance from the foot of the mountain to the summit exceeds five kilometers, and the rock walls along the way are covered with icicles.
The cold wind howled between the cliffs, forming visible vortexes.
Yamato, propelled upwards by Telekinesis, still had the leisure to look around. "Wow, this mountain is so steep! It's even more exaggerated than Mount Fuji in Wano Country!"
Pea closed her eyes, clutching Roy's clothes tightly, too afraid to look down.
Enel floated at the top, using his Observation Haki to detect the air currents ahead and provide early warnings.
When they reached the middle of the mountain, the wind and snow suddenly intensified.
Visibility dropped to less than three meters, and the Telekinetic Shield, creating a dense crackling sound.
Roy remained expressionless, steadily maintaining the protective shield with his Telekinesis output, while also diverting some of his Telekinesis to sense changes in the surrounding airflow and avoid the most dangerous gusts of wind.
Ten minutes later, the snowstorm suddenly stopped.
It wasn't that the weather had improved; it was that they had broken through the snow and ice.
The summit of Drum Mountain is actually above the clouds.
Sunlight shone on the pristine white snow, reflecting a dazzling light.
The castle was built on a flat area atop the mountain, its gray stone walls and pointed towers standing out from the surrounding snowscape, yet strangely harmonious.
At the castle gate, a tall, elderly woman with a full head of silver hair leaned against the doorframe, holding a bottle of plum wine in her hand.
She saw Roy and his group fly up from the cliff edge, raised an eyebrow, and took a swig of her drink.
"Hey, isn't this the Heavenly Dao Emperor of Hachinosu?"
"What wind blew you to this old woman's dilapidated castle?"
Roy landed and deactivated his Telekinetic Shield.
"He was introduced by Senior Crocus."
" Crocus?"
Dr. Kureha's eyes lit up.
"That old guy is still alive?"
"They're doing quite well. They even have a baby Island Whale."
"Tsk, never learns."
Kureha took a swig of her drink, her gaze sweeping over the group of people behind Roy before finally settling on Roy.
She squinted and stared at Luo for a few seconds.
Amber Lead Disease?
Luo's body stiffened slightly.
"Come in." Kureha turned and walked into the castle. "It's cold outside; if an old woman freezes to death, she won't care about burying him."
The castle interior was much larger than I had imagined.
Kureha led the group into a large hall with a fireplace, then sat down in a rocking chair, crossed her legs, and took a swig of wine.
"Tell me, what's going on?"
Roy briefly recounted Roy's experiences—the outbreak of Amber Lead Disease in Flevance, the government's cover-up of the truth, Roy's escape, joining the Donquixote Family, Rosinante stealing the Op-Op Fruit for him, and finally being taken away by Roy.
After listening, Kureha remained silent for a moment, then looked at Luo.
"Kid, take off your clothes."
Luo hesitated for a moment, then took off his shirt.
The white lesions have spread to his chest and arms, and in some places the skin has begun to harden, feeling like rough tree bark.
Kureha stood up, walked over to Luo, and gently scratched the white patches with her fingernail.
I opened his eyelids again to look at him, then finally placed my fingers on his wrist and closed my eyes.
The hall was so quiet that only the crackling of the burning wood in the fireplace could be heard.
A moment later, Kureha opened her eyes.
"You're lucky to be alive."
Luo lowered his head.
"Platinum-lead toxins have seeped into the bone marrow."
With the old woman's medical skills, she could only suppress or delay the symptoms, not cure the disease.