“Who cares about your five chicken drumsticks?!”
Only after Karl had left did Nami dare to vent her frustration.
Unfortunately, all she could do was rage helplessly.
After all, when you’re under someone else’s roof, you have no choice but to bow your head.
Nami was now drowning in regret.
Why had she ever set her sights on this ship?
She had finally escaped Alvida, only to run into an even worse monster.
No—
Calling him a monster was unfair to monsters.
The ruler of hell should vacate his throne and hand it over to Karl.
“Karl?
Karl?!
Where are you?”
The ship was enormous, with countless rooms and corridors.
Karl had no choice but to shout while searching.
Eventually, he found Luffy and Koby inside the storeroom, happily stuffing themselves.
Looking at Luffy’s stomach—which had expanded into something resembling a small hill—Karl immediately felt a vein twitch on his forehead.
“Just how much did you eat?!”
“Huh?”
Luffy scratched his head.
“Only one barrel…
two barrels…
I kinda lost count!”
“I-I tried to stop Mr.
Luffy!”
Koby spoke weakly from the side.
Karl pointed at him.
“You…”
Then he sighed.
“Forget it.”
Instead, he got straight to the point.
“I’ve dealt with the pirates.
This ship belongs to us now.”
“I came to ask where we’re heading next.”
“Should we stop at the nearest island, or—”
“I know!”
Luffy immediately perked up.
“Koby and I were just talking about it!”
“He said there’s a really strong pirate hunter nearby called…
Roro…”
“Roronoa Zoro,” Koby reminded him.
“Zoro?”
Karl searched his memories.
Back in his previous life, he had occasionally come across One Piece clips online.
The name did sound familiar.
Looks like this Zoro is one of Luffy’s future crewmates.
“That’s the one!”
Luffy grinned.
“So you’ve heard of him too?”
“Kind of.”
“Then let’s go find him!”
“If he’s a good guy, we can invite him to join our crew!”
“You’re the captain.”
Karl spread his hands.
“Whatever you decide.”
After the three of them had finished eating and returned to the deck, both Luffy and Koby were left speechless by the sight before them.
The once-ferocious pirates were now standing in orderly lines.
Several tables had been set up across the deck.
At one table sat a lone figure, furiously writing without pause.
If one listened carefully, occasional muttering could be heard.
“Damn Karl…
demon…”
“Uh…
Karl?”
Luffy stared blankly.
“What is all this?”
After Karl explained the situation, understanding finally dawned on Luffy.
“Can you use a different compliment for once?”
Karl rolled his eyes.
“Whatever.
Let’s go take a look.”
Walking over, he addressed the exhausted girl at the table.
“Nami, how’s it going?”
“Terribly.”
“Hm?”
“I’ve only finished ten of them!”
Nami looked utterly dead inside.
“There are still thirty-four pirates left!”
“You might as well just kill me!”
“That’s a lot of people and a lot of writing!
How am I supposed to record all this by myself?!”
“The more you can do, the more you’ll be asked to do .”
Karl shrugged.
“Besides, don’t forget your current status.”
“You still owe a massive ransom for your freedom.”
“Ransom?”
Nami blinked.
“I never told you?”
Karl looked surprised.
“You’re different from these pirates.”
“You’re just a thief.”
“Even if I handed you over to the Marines, without sufficient evidence they’d probably only hold you for a short time.”
“So you’ll work for me aboard the ship until you’ve earned enough to buy your freedom.”
Nami’s eyes lit up.
“So once I’ve earned enough, I can leave?”
“No.”
Karl shook his head.
“Then I’ll hand you over to the Marines.”
“You really are a demon!”
Nami practically ground her teeth into powder.
“Thank you.”
Karl nodded politely.
“So, Miss Thief, please continue working hard.”
“Work hard for your freedom.”
“U-Um…”
Koby suddenly raised his hand.
“I can write too.”
“Please let me help.”
Seeing Koby’s determined expression, Karl couldn’t bring himself to refuse.
“Alright.
Go ahead.”
The moment Nami realized she had help, her mood improved dramatically.
Unfortunately, it lasted only a few seconds.
“Since someone is helping you,” Karl added thoughtfully, “your wages are cut in half.”
“You demon!”
“Oh, right.”
Karl ignored her protests.
“Which one of you was the navigator?”
A pirate immediately raised his hand.
“We’re heading to the nearest Marine base.”
“The one where the pirate hunter Zoro is being held.”
“Don’t take us somewhere else.”
After dumping all the work onto Nami and Koby, Karl finally enjoyed some rare free time.
He and Luffy climbed onto the swan-shaped figurehead at the bow of the ship and sat there side by side, fishing peacefully.
“Hey, Luffy.”
Karl stretched lazily beneath the warm sunlight.
“Is this the kind of life you’ve always wanted?”
“Feels pretty good.”
“Right?”
Luffy grinned.
“I think so too.”
With his hands behind his head and one leg crossed over the other, he looked completely relaxed.
“Karl.”
“What?”
“No idea.”
Karl shook his head.
“I’ve never met him.”
“Koby said he’s like a hunting dog.”
Luffy stared out at the sea.
“He sails around catching pirates and turning them over to the Marines for money.”
“A bounty hunter, basically.”
Karl reeled in his line.
“Pirates have bounties.”
“Some people don’t want to become pirates, and they don’t want to join the Marines either.”
“But they’re strong and want to make money.”
“So they become bounty hunters.”
“In a way, the World Government’s bounty system encourages that profession.”
“Then he should be a good person, right?”
Luffy tilted his head.
“He catches bad pirates.”
“He doesn’t kill them.”
“He hands them over to the Marines.”
“Isn’t that basically the same thing you’re doing?”
“Maybe.”
Karl shrugged.
“But hearing something and seeing it for yourself are two different things.”
“Huh?”
Luffy blinked.
“I didn’t understand any of that.”
“Not surprising.”
“Anyway, Koby said he’s a really awful person.”
Luffy scratched his cheek.
“But he was arrested by the Marines too.”
“Why do you think that happened?”
“Maybe there’s more to the story.”
“Yeah.”
Luffy nodded seriously.
“If he’s a good guy, let’s invite him onto our ship.”
“You’re the captain.”
Karl replied casually.
“Your decision.”
“But you’re the vice-captain.”
Luffy looked confused.
“Shouldn’t I ask what you think?”
Karl froze.
“Huh?”
“When did I become vice-captain?”
Luffy blinked.
“Eh?”
“I never told you?”
“Of course you didn’t!”
Karl nearly fell off the figurehead.
“That’s the kind of thing you ask someone about first!”
“So you don’t want the position?”
“That’s not the point!”
Karl immediately looked away.
“Obviously I want it.”
“Oh.”
Luffy nodded.
“Then why—”
“Because proper procedures matter!”
Karl coughed awkwardly.
Luffy thought for a moment.
“So you’re agreeing?”
“I never said that.”
Karl folded his arms.
“First we need to see what kind of person Zoro actually is.”
“And besides…”
He glanced at Luffy.
“Even if both of us agree, who’s to say he’ll agree to join your crew?”