“Clang.”
The pitch-black blade slashed against his Armament Haki-hardened right arm, sending a shower of sparks flying.
Lucas tossed the giant bear corpse off his shoulder, using the force of the slash to propel himself backward, carving two half-foot-deep trenches into the ruined street.
“This time, I will definitely arrest you.”
Gion walked out from behind the shattered wooden door with a cold expression.
Armament Haki spread from her fair wrists to the blade of konpira, making her appear like a drawn sword, sharp and imposing.
Lucas brushed the faint white mark on his right arm, a wicked smile curling at the corner of his lips:
“It’s been three years; why won’t you give up?
The first time you said that, I stole the Soru technique from you; the second time, I learned Moonwalk; and the third time…”
He deliberately drew out his tone, his gaze sweeping suggestively over her slender waist and long legs.
“Shut up!”
Gion’s pretty face flushed instantly red, the color spreading to her ears.
She interrupted him, both embarrassed and furious,
“You were cheating before!
This time, I will never give you another chance!”
The konpira in her hand suddenly traced a stunning semicircle.
A solid, peach-colored crescent slash tore through the air, easily slicing the ground along its path and kicking up a flurry of rubble.
The katana at Lucas’s waist unsheathed, splitting the incoming slash into a dissipating wave of air.
The air wave sent rubble and rotting wood flying.
With a flick of his wrist, he thrust his blade forward, sending an invisible sword aura straight toward Gion’s face.
Gion tapped her feet lightly, sidestepping slightly.
The sword aura grazed her hair, and with a thunderous “boom,” it split the crumbling house behind her in two.
Almost simultaneously, she flicked her wrist upward, returning the favor with a similar peach-colored flying slash.
Lucas didn’t dodge or retreat.
Thick Armament Haki surged from within his body, forming an impenetrable armor on his skin.
With a muffled “thud,” the sword aura struck the armor and shattered instantly into a sky full of light particles.
He pushed off with his feet, causing the ground to collapse, and launched himself like a cannonball, his katana slamming hard against the konpira Gion held horizontally to block.
The ear-piercing sound of metal clashing echoed far into the distance.
Sword light and shadows intertwined in the dilapidated slums, fighting from dusk until deep into the night, and from night until dawn.
The scent of blood and gunpowder filled the air, and the already ruined street had turned into scorched earth.
It was the third night of their battle.
Lucas seized an opening and slashed at the hilt of konpira.
With a loud “clang,” konpira flew from her grip and embedded itself deep into a broken wall in the distance, the blade still vibrating incessantly.
Before Gion could react, his arm moved in a blur, sending several razor-sharp, invisible sword auras tearing through the air.
The Armament Haki armor Gion hastily erected was shredded as easily as thin paper in the face of these sword auras.
With a few crisp “rips,” her Marine uniform was shredded by the sword auras, fluttering in the air like white butterflies.
Under the Moonlight, the girl’s fair, beautiful body was partially revealed, her skin glistening with fine beads of sweat and dust, outlining breathtaking curves.
“You…
you shameless bastard!
You’ve certainly gotten more skilled at using that move!”
Gion gritted her teeth, her cheeks flushed so red they seemed ready to bleed.
She hurriedly covered her chest with her arms, leaning against the cold broken wall, panting heavily.
The continuous three days and nights of intense battle had long since exhausted the last ounce of her strength; let alone raising her hand to counterattack, even just standing was her limit.
She was both angry and embarrassed, her eyes slightly red.
Yet, in her heart, there was a sense of helplessness she refused to admit—she had lost again, lost completely.
“Of course.”
Lucas chuckled, sheathing his long sword.
The crisp sound of metal clashing was exceptionally clear in the silent ruins.
He stepped over the giant bear corpse on the ground, which had long been sliced into pieces by the sword aura, and walked up to Gion.
Before she could resist, he scooped her up into his arms.
“After all, I have the most dedicated sparring partner in the world.”
He looked down at the girl in his arms, who was filled with shame and anger yet lacked the strength to struggle.
A flash of imperceptible tenderness crossed his eyes before he turned and walked into the dilapidated wooden house while holding her.
The wooden door closed slowly behind him, shutting out the Moonlight and the scent of blood.
The next morning.
A thin ray of sunlight filtered through the gaps in the old curtains, spilling onto the messy bed.
Lucas slowly opened his azure eyes, a trace of sleepiness still lingering in them.
He looked down at Gion, who was curled up in his arms, sleeping soundly, and gently pinched her smooth, delicate waist.
The girl let out a dissatisfied hum and burrowed deeper into his embrace, her long eyelashes fluttering like two small fans.
Lucas chuckled, carefully withdrawing his arm, and got out of bed.
He walked to the table, picked up the bottle of aged liquor from the West Blue, and poured himself a full glass.
The spicy liquor slid down his throat, burning his esophagus like liquid fire.
Lucas leaned against the window, his gaze gradually becoming unfocused.
Eighteen years.
Eighteen years ago, he was just an ordinary corporate slave in the 21st century, typing code at a computer every day, working himself to death for a mortgage and car loan.
A sudden car accident had caused him to inexplicably transmigrate into this man-eating Great Pirate Era, becoming an infant abandoned on the shores of the Country of Wild.
A local, dilapidated orphanage took him in, and a gentle, kind nun gave him a name—Lucas.
That was the only time in his life filled with sunshine.
The nun taught him to read and write, shared her only piece of bread with him, and stayed by his bedside all night when he was sick.
Unfortunately, good times don’t last.
When he was ten, a small gang called the Gray Wolf Gang slaughtered the orphanage to seize territory.
To protect him, the nun was hacked to death before his eyes.
The soaring rage and despair caused him to awaken his Conqueror’s Haki at that moment.
The invading gang members all collapsed into unconsciousness.
However, this did not save him.
Thanks to Golden Lion Shiki, the gangs in the Country of Wild were no strangers to Haoshoku, though they only knew that those who possessed this Haki had extraordinary potential.
The gang leaders who remained conscious didn’t kill him; instead, they took him away and trained him as the perfect killing machine.
The next five years were five years of hell.
Lucas pretended to be completely brainwashed, obeying the gang’s orders without question and killing without blinking.
He was like a sponge, frantically absorbing everything that could make him stronger.
Finally, on his fifteenth birthday, he made his move.
Overnight, not a single one of the more than three hundred members of the Gray Wolf Gang survived.
Blood dyed the entire courtyard red, and even the sewers flowed with blood.
From that day on, there was one more living taboo in the Country of Wild.
It was also that year that he met Gion.
That spirited girl, who had just graduated from the Marine Elite Training Camp, wore a pure white coat of Justice, her eyes as clear as a spring, firmly believing in the Absolute Justice of the Marines.
She made the Country of Wild her first stop for field combat, swearing to purge the gangs there.
In their first encounter, Gion used her exquisite Rokushiki and two types of Haki to beat him until he was covered in wounds.
Lucas could only rely on his superhuman recovery and iron will to crawl back up from the ground time and time again.
In this life-and-death struggle, he accidentally discovered his innate talent—he could copy and master all of his opponent’s techniques at an astonishing speed during battle.
The gangs in the Country of Wild were all idiots who only knew how to use brute force; he had never had the chance to discover this talent.
And Gion was like the best teacher heaven could have sent him.
Once he had stolen all the Rokushiki and two types of Haki from Gion through battle after battle, the scales of victory tipped completely.
From then on, every time they clashed, Gion lost.
But strangely, she never gave up.
Every few months, she would come to the Country of Wild on a warship, get defeated, and then…
the feelings between the two, in this strange and twisted way of interacting, heated up uncontrollably.
By now, they were only a government-issued certificate away from being a real married couple.
“I’ll kill you, you bastard!”
A shy and angry shout suddenly pulled Lucas back to reality from his memories.
Behind him, a sharp gust of wind struck.
Armament Haki wrapped around Gion’s long, fair fingers, stabbing like daggers toward his heart.
Lucas didn’t turn around; thick Armament Haki instantly formed a layer of armor on his back.
With a muffled “thud,” her fingertips struck the armor, making a dull sound.
He turned around in the same motion, grabbing Gion’s wrist.
“So much anger early in the morning?”
“What, trying to murder your husband?
Or is it that you want to be a widow while you’re still so young?”
Hearing the words “husband,” Gion’s eyes instantly turned red.
She struggled with all her might, but she couldn’t break free from Lucas’s grip.
Finally, she gave up the resistance, leaning weakly against the edge of the bed, tears rolling down like beads from a broken string.
“Why won’t you just come with me?
Why won’t you just join the Marines?”
“Is being a gangster that good?”
Personal feelings and the ideals of justice she had held since childhood were like two sharp knives, repeatedly cutting into her heart, leaving her in agony.
She hated Lucas’s rebelliousness, hated that he wouldn’t accept her kindness, and hated herself even more—hating that she, a Marine, had fallen in love with a gangster.
Lucas’s heart softened abruptly.
He let go, reached out, and pulled Gion into his arms, gently patting her smooth back.
The girl’s body trembled slightly, and warm tears soaked his shirt.
“I’ve answered that question for you countless times.”
“I don’t like being controlled, and I certainly don’t want to be a dog for those high-and-mighty Celestial Dragons.
As for being a gangster…
do you think that was my choice?”
If he could, he would have liked to live a normal life.
But this world had never given him a choice.
From the day the orphanage was slaughtered, his life had only one path left—to become strong, strong enough to protect himself, strong enough to ensure no one would ever dare to bully him again.
Gion pursed her lips and said nothing more.
She certainly understood his hidden hardships.
She had seen the darkness of the Country of Wild, seen those nobles riding on slaves and running rampant in the streets, and seen those gangs treating human lives like grass for a little profit.
She was just…
unwilling to give up.
She thought that if only Lucas joined the Marines, he could escape the shadows of his past and live a life in the light.
Lucas lowered his head and gently kissed her lips, silencing what she wanted to say.
This kiss carried the spiciness of the strong liquor and endless tenderness.
After a long while, they parted.
“I’m going to take care of some business; I’ll be back soon.”
He got up, dressed cleanly and efficiently, and turned to walk out of the bedroom.
“Don’t forget to fix the door when you leave.”
A pillow hit the spot where his head had just been.
The wooden door closed gently, leaving Gion alone on the bed, staring blankly at his retreating figure, her eyes complex and inscrutable.
(Note: There is no source reference for Gion’s age in the original work; theoretically, fanfiction authors can write it however they want within a reasonable range.
In this book, I have set her age at 40 during the original series timeline.
This chapter takes place 20 years before the original series, meaning Gion is currently 20 years old.)