In the East Blue, somewhere in an uncharted stretch of sea, a strange ship sailed across the waves.
There were no sails on it.
Will sat on a deck chair with a glass of orange juice in his hand.
A few ice cubes floated inside, and he slowly sipped the drink through a straw.
He had just finished training, and his entire body was still steaming with heat.
Even after taking a shower, he hadn’t cooled down much, so he had grabbed himself an ice-cold orange juice and stretched out on the deck chair.
A fishing rod rested in front of him.
A gentle sea breeze brushed against Will’s face as he gazed out at the ocean.
It was a sight that could never be seen on land—a magnificent yet tranquil view.
Will had already been at sea for several days, but he still hadn’t found the Baratie.
The culprit was a sea chart he’d bought from a shop in Loguetown.
That chart was absolute garbage.
After examining it carefully, Will discovered that even the markers for north, south, east, and west were wrong.
He had brought enough food and fresh water aboard to survive several months at sea.
As for water for washing, the ship was equipped with an electrically powered seawater filtration system.
It was fine for bathing and cleaning, but it wasn’t suitable for drinking.
Even with Will’s physique, after drinking some of it once, his stomach had felt extremely uncomfortable.
He had never dared to try that suicidal stunt again.
“This is pathetic.
I’m Will, a former assassin and current adventurer, yet I actually got scammed by a shady merchant.
Why didn’t I check the sea chart properly when I bought it?
Sigh…
I wasn’t exactly in the best state of mind back then.
That incident had just happened.”
Will had no idea how many times he’d already berated himself over it.
Just as he was about to return to his training, he noticed the vague outline of a ship in the distance.
He went into the cabin and grabbed a pair of binoculars.
It was a pirate ship.
When Will saw the pirate flag flying from its mast, he couldn’t help bursting into laughter.
The flag featured the head of a dog with two crossed bones behind it.
That part was perfectly normal.
The problem was the dog’s black eye patches, blue eyes, white face, and enormous nose.
It looked exactly like a famous breed of dog from Will’s previous life—the Siberian Husky, affectionately known as a “Husky.”
“Hehehe…
Hahaha!
I can’t believe there’s actually a pirate crew using a Husky as their Jolly Roger!
Does this world actually have Husky dogs too?”
Will laughed for a while before shrugging.
“Forget it.
I won’t rob them.
If they’re sensible, I’ll just buy a map from them.”
Looking at the ridiculous pirate flag, Will was in a rather good mood.
He decided to make friendly contact with the pirates and see what happened.
The “Husky Pirates” drew closer and closer.
Eventually, the two ships came alongside each other.
Will stood at the bow and looked at the people approaching him.
At the bow of the “Husky Pirates'” ship stood a tall, middle-aged woman.
Not only was she tall, but she was also rather heavyset.
“Kid, what do you want?
Why did you stop a pirate ship?”
The woman studied the young man with interest.
“I’m Julius, captain of the Black Dog Pirates.”
She didn’t underestimate Will simply because of his age.
A person sailing the seas alone was already extremely unusual.
And this young man was casually holding a glass of orange juice and sipping it leisurely, giving off an incredibly relaxed air—as though the sea was not a dangerous place at all.
“Hehehe.
That’s quite a nice name for a pirate crew.”
Will looked at the woman in front of him.
“I want to buy a map of the East Blue from you.
Name your price.
You’re heading toward the Grand Line, right?”
The pirate captain was surprisingly polite, which fascinated Will.
Weren’t most small-time pirates supposed to be arrogant and overbearing?
Apparently, these ones had some manners.
“Oh, so you want a sea chart?”
Julius laughed heartily.
“No problem.
I might not have a chart of the Grand Line, but I have plenty of charts of the East Blue.
They aren’t particularly accurate, though.
They only mark the famous locations.”
“As for the money, forget it.
It’s only worth a few thousand Beli.”
“We are indeed planning to head for the Grand Line.
That’s where my dream—and the dreams of my companions—lie.”
“I want to become a famous female pirate!”
Julius laughed boldly.
“So you’re a group of pirates with dreams.”
Will caught the sea chart Julius tossed toward him.
“Since you’re being so generous, I’ll give you a piece of advice in return.”
“When you reach the Grand Line, find a way to learn a power called Haki.”
“It’s a power capable of countering Devil Fruit abilities.
More importantly, it’ll be the foundation that allows you to achieve your dream.”
“Having a dream alone isn’t enough to survive as a pirate.”
“Oh, right.
My name is Will.”
“If you ever run into trouble in the future, you can come find me.
I have a little ability of my own.”
Will had always been like this.
He could be ruthless at times, and he was something of a battle maniac, but toward anyone who had helped him, he never hesitated to return the favor.
Julius’s relaxed expression immediately turned serious.
Forget the information Will had just given her about a power capable of countering Devil Fruit abilities.
Devil Fruits themselves were legendary treasures.
What kind of power could possibly counter them?
But more importantly, the name “Will” and the two swords hanging from his waist made Julius think of someone.
The Sword of Slaughter—Will.
He was a major figure in the East Blue.
Who knew how many wealthy merchants and notorious pirates had died beneath his blades?
There were even rumors that some Marines had fallen to him as well, although those stories had never been confirmed.
“I never expected to run into someone as formidable as you.”
Julius gave him a serious nod.
“Thank you for the information.
I’ll do my best to find this power called Haki.”
“Goodbye, Will.”
With that, she hurriedly gathered her nervous companions and ordered the ship to depart.
It wasn’t because she didn’t want to chat with Will.
It was because the man standing before her was infamous throughout the East Blue for his unpredictable temperament.
If they accidentally said something that offended him, the consequences for her and her crew could be devastating.
Their entire pirate crew might be wiped out in these waters today.
It was better to leave while they still could.
“Hey, seriously?”
Will watched the pirate ship rapidly disappear into the distance.
“Did I scare them away?”
He scratched his head helplessly.
“Am I really that notorious?”
“Man, what a headache.”
Looking at the ship that had already sailed far away—or perhaps more accurately, fled in panic—Will was speechless.
Could he really not even introduce himself by name in the East Blue anymore?
What a headache.
Will checked his current position on the sea chart.
After sailing for so many days, he discovered something unbelievable.
Not only had he failed to get closer to the Baratie…
He had somehow gotten even farther away.
His hatred for that unscrupulous merchant deepened.
If he ever encountered that merchant again, he would definitely teach the man a lesson he would never forget.
Selling counterfeit goods was bad enough.
Selling counterfeit goods to Will was practically asking to die.
Will started up his beloved ship and headed toward the Baratie at full speed.
After approximately a week of sailing at maximum speed, Will finally spotted a huge, oval-shaped ship in the distance.
He slowly guided his ship toward it.
After dropping anchor, he jumped aboard the Baratie.
It was an enormous ship.
Ships of all kinds were anchored around it—merchant vessels, ships belonging to nobles, and even Marine vessels.
The Baratie truly lived up to its reputation.
It was incredibly lively.
Will entered the restaurant and immediately chose a seat near the window.
Almost at once, a young man with blond hair, curled eyebrows, and a black suit approached him.
That’s right.
It was Sanji.
“Welcome, sir.
Do you have a reservation?”
“If not, please take a look at the menu.”
As he spoke, Sanji handed Will a menu.
Out of courtesy, Will accepted it, but he didn’t even bother looking at it.
“Forget the menu.
Bring me every specialty dish your restaurant has.”
“And I want them personally prepared by you and Zeff.
Don’t serve me anything made by anyone else.”
Will handed the menu back to Sanji.
This was a condition he’d decided on before coming.
If he was going to eat food prepared by some random chef, he could have gone to any restaurant.
Why would he have traveled all the way to the Baratie?
“Sir, that’s a little difficult.”
Sanji shook his head.
“The head chef’s dishes require reservations.
And right now, the restaurant is too busy, so I’m filling in as a waiter.”
If the customer had been starving, Sanji would never have turned him away.
But it was obvious that Will had deliberately come to the Baratie.
Perhaps he was some kind of gourmet.
“Hehehe.
That’s cold, kid.”
Will chuckled.
“You’re actually refusing my request?”
“Go tell your head chef, Zeff, that Will wants to taste his specialties.”
“He’ll cook for me.”
Will realized that simply ordering the dishes wasn’t going to work.
Sanji obviously didn’t know that Will was a former assassin from the Underworld, so Will didn’t resort to the idiotic routine of boasting about his identity and demanding that Sanji know who he was.
Instead, he decided to speak directly to Zeff.
Will’s obsession with good food was no weaker than the Four Emperors’ Big Mom’s obsession with sweets.
“Uh…
all right.”
Sanji reluctantly nodded.
“I’ll go tell the boss.”
He turned and went to pass on the message.
Sanji arrived at Zeff’s room and found the old man grooming his beard.
“Old man, some guy named Will specifically asked you to cook for him.”
“What do we do?
Do you know him?”
Sanji lit a cigarette and waited for Zeff’s answer.
“Will?”
Zeff frowned.
“That name sounds somewhat familiar.
What does he look like?”
“Short ponytail, black coat, not very old, and not particularly tall.
A little over 170 centimeters, I guess.”
“Oh, and he’s carrying two swords at his waist.”
Seeing that Zeff apparently didn’t recognize the man, Sanji turned around and prepared to leave.
He intended to deal with this unreasonable customer himself.
“Wait!”
Zeff suddenly stood up.
“You said he’s young, not very tall, carries two swords, and calls himself Will?”
His voice became urgent.
If it really was that man, things could get ugly.
Perhaps Zeff wouldn’t have been afraid in the past.
But now that he’d lost a leg, he couldn’t be certain that he could defeat that man.
And considering Will’s temperament, the chefs under his command might get dragged into the trouble as well.
“What?”
Sanji looked at Zeff’s tense expression in surprise.
“Is this Will guy really that famous?”
“Heh.”
Zeff’s expression darkened.
“Famous?
He’s far more than that.”
“You spend all your time in the restaurant, so you don’t know.”
“Don’t let his young age fool you.”
“If we don’t satisfy his palate today, who knows whether this restaurant will still exist tomorrow.”
After saying that, Zeff picked up his chef’s hat.
He was going to cook personally and send this dangerous customer on his way.
He instructed Sanji to take care of Will and, most importantly, not to offend him.
Then Zeff entered the kitchen and began preparing a feast for Will.
Sanji was also somewhat nervous after hearing Zeff’s warning.
The old man had been a pirate in the past.
Even after retiring for many years, anyone who came looking for trouble had usually been dealt with in just a few moves.
Yet now, the old man was actually showing a trace of fear toward Will.
That guy really was a ruthless character.
For now, the best thing to do was keep him calm.
Sanji returned to Will’s table.
“Sir, the boss has agreed to your request.
Please wait a moment.”
After saying that, Sanji immediately went to attend to the beautiful women at the other tables.
He had his own principles, after all.
If there were beautiful women around, he didn’t care whether the man in the restaurant was named Will or anything else.
Beautiful women came first!
Will was delighted when he heard that Sanji had agreed.
If he really got to taste some delicious food today, he definitely wouldn’t let the Baratie suffer a loss.
He had brought more than a dozen diamonds with him.
Will didn’t care about the price of the dishes at all.
In his mind, good food was extremely valuable.
A chef took ingredients and various seasonings and transformed them into irresistible dishes.
Wasn’t that a magnificent thing?
And getting to taste those delicious creations was an even greater happiness.
Will had always believed that.