Moke instinctively wanted to turn around and leave.
“Moke…” Seeing this, the village chief’s heart tightened, and he immediately called out to stop him.
Hearing the voice, Moke stopped and looked at the village chief.
Seeing the conflicted expression on his face, as well as the complicated look in his eyes, Moke could also understand the dilemma the village chief was facing.
If he sent Moke, then one fewer person from the village would have to become pirate cannon fodder.
However, Moke would almost certainly die.
If he did not send Moke, then one more young man from the village would have to go instead.
And those young men were all people the village chief had watched grow up from childhood…
The fact that the village chief had come looking for him meant that, deep down, he had already made his decision.
After all, how could an outsider compare to the young people of his own village?
Even so, he had chosen to tell Moke the truth.
That was because, for one brief moment, the kindness and principles in his heart had gained the upper hand.
After all, what he was doing was essentially making Moke die in place of someone from the village!
But when Moke chose to leave, the village chief still called out to stop him.
Clearly, when faced with human lives, he had chosen to break his own principles and turn himself into the villain.
Human nature was like that.
Without this kind of life-or-death choice, he would definitely be a good person…
But…
There were no buts.
Reality was right in front of them.
And now, this choice born from human nature had been placed before Moke as well.
The village chief was old.
If Moke wanted to leave, there was absolutely no way the chief could catch up to him.
However, after today, he would inevitably face the hostility and rejection of the entire village.
On this small island, there would no longer be any place for him.
Moke could not help but frown, because this was also a difficult choice.
However, he decisively chose the latter.
At worst, he would find a way to board a ship and leave the island.
After all, once he boarded a pirate ship, it would basically be a certain-death situation.
Just look at the original story.
Those small fries died in massive numbers!
If he boarded a pirate ship, he would definitely become one of those countless dead extras.
Seeing that Moke had already made up his mind to leave, the village chief immediately added, “The pirates who came are the Alvida Pirates.
Their captain, Alvida, is a great pirate with a bounty of five million berries.
Even ordinary Marines have to retreat when they see her.
If you get on her ship…
you probably won’t…
won’t…” He wanted to say, “You probably won’t die.” But no matter what, he could not bring himself to say it.
Because even he felt embarrassed hearing those words in his own head.
However, he could not keep hesitating anymore.
Otherwise, the village would have to send out one more young man.
That was something he absolutely did not want to see.
“Who?” Moke’s eyes suddenly widened.
He never would have expected that the pirate who had come here to demand money and people would actually be her.
She could be considered one of the more memorable supporting characters in One Piece.
Then he suddenly thought of a key point, and his entire body grew excited.
He immediately asked, “Is she that female pirate with a face full of freckles, a fat body, an ugly appearance, and an iron club in her hand?” The village chief was slightly stunned, then said in surprise, “You know her?” At this moment, Moke felt as if his blood was about to boil.
Alvida still looked the way she originally did.
That meant she had not yet eaten the Paramecia-type Slip-Slip Fruit.
Didn’t that mean he had a chance?
Blackbeard was able to stay in the Whitebeard Pirates for decades just for the sake of the Dark-Dark Fruit.
For the sake of this Slip-Slip Fruit, Moke did not mind staying on Alvida’s ship for a period of time.
Of course, with his current strength, boarding Alvida’s pirate ship would be extremely dangerous.
But if he took the gamble, a bicycle might just turn into a motorcycle!
Previously, he had accepted his fate because he could not see even the slightest bit of hope.
But now, an opportunity was right in front of him.
As a transmigrator, if he still chose to lie flat and rot away, then he would truly be useless.
So he nodded and said to the village chief, “Fine…
I’ll go!” “What?” The village chief looked shocked.
When he looked at Moke, even his gaze became a little strange.
The change in Moke’s attitude had been far too drastic.
He could not help but secretly think, Could this kid have wanted to follow Alvida from the very beginning?
It was not that he was overthinking things.
After all, in this world, there were many people who worshipped pirates because of their fame and even chose to follow them.
If that was really the case, then it would be wonderful.
Because then the guilt in his heart would lessen considerably.
He simply did not ask, because he was afraid the answer would be no.
After the two reached an agreement, they headed toward the island’s only port.
The village chief walked in front, while Moke followed behind him.
As if suddenly remembering something, the village chief immediately reminded him, “Right, although Alvida has an extremely cruel personality, as long as you constantly praise her beauty and go along with everything she says, she is actually much easier to deal with than other pirates…
Once you get on the ship, praise her.
Praise her with everything you have.
As long as she is happy, no one on the ship will bully you, even if you’re only a newcomer.” It had to be said, age really did bring wisdom!
…
Very soon, the port entered their sight.
The first thing that caught their eyes was the pirate ship of the Alvida Pirates.
There was no helping it.
It was simply too conspicuous.
Not only was the entire ship pink, but the sails were also painted with huge hearts.
If this belonged to some other beautiful female pirate, it might still be acceptable.
But with someone like Alvida, paired with this pirate ship…
It was simply…
“Why hasn’t that old village chief come yet?
We’re still missing one person!
Has he forgotten the might of the iron club in my hand?” Alvida was already growing impatient.
The village chief immediately rushed over.
“Miss Alvida, you are so beautiful and charming.
This old man could forget anyone, but I would never dare forget you!” “Holy crap…” Moke was directly stunned by the village chief’s shameless maneuver.
Then he looked at Alvida’s face, her figure, and that fierce aura of hers.
The village chief could actually bring himself to praise her?
And with such nauseating words too?
Did his conscience not hurt?
Respect.
Truly, respect.
It had to be said, the village chief had Alvida completely figured out.
Sure enough, Alvida, who had originally shown signs of anger, instantly turned that anger into a smile upon hearing the village chief’s “sincere” praise.
“Old man, you still have good taste!
Hahaha…” Alvida could not help but laugh.
Then she glanced at Moke, who had come over with the village chief.
“This is the last one from your village?” There was a hint of scrutiny in her eyes.
Because she could sense that the boy in front of her was quite different from the other young people on this island.
The village chief immediately nodded.
“He is one of the more capable people in our village.
Not only that, he has always admired you greatly.” As he spoke, he frantically gave Moke meaningful looks.
He was just short of saying it outright: Hurry up and praise her.
Praise her hard!
“Uh…” The corner of Moke’s mouth could not help but twitch.
However, he forced a professional smile onto his face, went against his conscience, and praised her with all his might.
“In my heart, you are like the stars in the sky, shining with dazzling brilliance.
You are also like the bright moon at night, so gentle and tender like water.
Truly, there is no beauty in this world who can compare to you…” Village chief: “…” Kid, you’ve got a bright future ahead of you!