This time, everyone except Lucas lost everything!
Triple Six beat every other combination!
The 40,000 Berries Lucas had wagered instantly multiplied three hundredfold, becoming 12 million Berries!
Nami nearly jumped for joy beside him.
Although the gamblers around them had all turned red-eyed with greed, Nami didn’t care in the slightest.
As long as there was money to be made, why worry about anyone else?
Well… Lucas was still someone she had to care about a little…
Lucas had no idea what Nami was thinking.
He calmly said,
“Let’s continue.”
This time, even the slender man’s hands began to tremble.
His expression suddenly changed, and he gave a cold snort.
“Men!”
In an instant, dozens of burly men wielding steel blades surrounded the entire casino.
The slender man pointed at Lucas and said coldly,
“This bastard is cheating!
We need to settle accounts with him.
Everyone who has nothing to do with this, get out!”
One of the gamblers who had just lost everything flew into a rage and began shouting loudly, throwing the entire casino into chaos.
A cruel expression appeared on the slender man’s face.
He waved his hand.
The armed men immediately rushed forward and hacked several of the most vocal gamblers to death.
The remaining gamblers were scared witless.
None of them dared to make another sound, and they all hurriedly fled the casino.
Only Lucas, Nami in his arms, and Ace—who remained completely unconcerned—were left behind.
Seeing the people he had been playing cards with run away, Ace opened his mouth in confusion.
“What are you doing?
What a buzzkill!”
Nami looked at the steel blades but wasn’t frightened in the slightest.
Nestling against Lucas’s chest, she said sweetly,
“Lucas, you’re amazing!
From now on, I’ll rely on you to make money!”
Lucas smiled bitterly.
“What does this count for?
This isn’t really a reliable way to make money.
If we want to make serious money, it’s better to take down a few pirates with extremely high bounties!”
“Uh… Isn’t that dangerous?”
Nami looked frightened.
Lucas smiled and pinched her cheek.
“Then isn’t gambling dangerous?
Look at all these shiny blades.
They’re awfully sharp!”
“Hmph!
You’re such a bad guy.
Don’t pinch my face!”
Nami struggled and protested.
Lucas and Nami continued acting as though nobody else existed.
The slender man’s face had become as dark as the bottom of a cooking pot.
He didn’t bother saying anything about leaving the money behind for cheating anymore.
He simply roared,
“Kill them both!”
All the armed men immediately charged forward.
Lucas was just about to draw his sword when a wave of flames suddenly swept across the room.
Several men were burned to ashes, while the entire building was blasted open, leaving a huge hole in the wall!
Seeing this, Lucas’s eyes narrowed slightly.
What incredible power!
Had Ace already obtained the Mera Mera no Mi at this point?
The power of a Logia-type Devil Fruit really was formidable!
Although Lucas admired its power, he wasn’t envious.
The original story had already shown that, in the later stages, Logia-type Devil Fruits weren’t necessarily as useful as they appeared.
Some Paramecia-type Devil Fruits could actually be far more powerful.
After all, once everyone possessed Haki, strength ultimately came down to whose Haki was stronger.
The damage reduction provided by a Logia’s intangibility became far less significant.
Thinking of this, Lucas smiled faintly.
He stood up and positioned himself in front of Nami.
Click!
Everyone only saw Lucas move slightly.
The heads of the dozen or so men who had surrounded them suddenly flew into the air, accompanied by fountains of blood.
Clap!
Clap!
Clap!
Ace applauded appreciatively.
“What a fast sword!
And what incredible strength.
Are you really sure you don’t want to join my crew?”
Lucas calmly replied,
“What do you think?”
“Such a shame.”
Ace looked genuinely disappointed before turning and leaving.
The only person still alive was the slender man.
His face was filled with terror as he stammered,
“Y-You’re… Ghost Sword Lucas?”
“Obviously.
Are your eyes just for decoration?
Hand over all the money.
Maybe I’ll spare your life!”
Lucas sheathed his sword and shouted impatiently.
However, the slender man suddenly regained his composure.
He gave a sinister laugh.
“Ghost Sword Lucas?
Quite a reputation you’ve got there.
But do you really think someone who can run a casino where pirates come to gamble would be powerless?”
“I used to be a member of CP9!”
“Oh?”
Lucas’s eyes immediately lit up.
The next moment, the slender man shouted.
Soru!
With a sharp whoosh, his legs kicked backward dozens of times in an instant.
His body disappeared and flashed directly in front of Lucas.
Shigan!
“That’s slow.
Are you really a CP9 member?”
Just when the slender man thought his attack had taken Lucas down, Lucas’s voice leisurely came from behind him.
The next instant, one of the man’s fingers flew through the air trailing a spray of blood.
“AAAH!”
The slender man screamed and collapsed onto the floor.
His body trembled as Lucas’s sword was pressed against his neck.
Seeing the murderous look in Lucas’s eyes, cold sweat poured down the man’s forehead.
His expression immediately became fawning.
“Uh… Lord Ghost Sword, I’m only a reserve member.
And the weakest one at that.
Otherwise, I wouldn’t have been kicked out and ended up here running a casino… Please, let me go.
All my money is…”
Hearing this, Lucas shook his head.
He had completely lost interest.
The Shigan and Soru this guy used were probably both half-baked.
They were of no use to him whatsoever.
With a single sword strike, Lucas killed the slender man.
He then turned toward Nami.
Black lines instantly appeared across his forehead.
Nami was carrying a gigantic bundle on her back.
Judging from its appearance, it was filled with banknotes and gold coins.
That was fast…
She was even faster at looting than he was at killing.
As expected of Nami.
Lucas smiled bitterly, then tapped Nami lightly on the nose.
“Looks like my Nami isn’t just capable of being a navigator.
You can be a treasure-hunting mouse too!”
“Treasure-hunting mouse?
That’s such an ugly name!
Come on, let’s go!
There’s more than 100 million Berries here.
That’s enough to buy a ship!”
Nami pouted and stomped her foot before pulling Lucas along and quickly leaving.
After buying a ship, Lucas finally made a decision.
He wanted to become a pirate first, and then become a Warlord of the Sea.
The path would be extremely difficult, but it would give him far more freedom.
And he believed that he could definitely succeed.
He already had a plan in mind.
However, he still needed to put it into practice.
Moreover, his strength was still somewhat lacking.
At the very least, he had to become a Sword Master before he would qualify for the position of Warlord of the Sea.
Someone like Dracule Mihawk, a Great Swordsman, possessed strength comparable to the Four Emperors and was even somewhat stronger than the Admirals.
He was probably only slightly below monsters such as Whitebeard and Sengoku.
Once Lucas became a Sword Master, even if he couldn’t defeat an Admiral, killing a Vice Admiral instantly should still be within his capabilities.
But he had only just reached the level of a first-rate swordsman.
There was still a considerable distance between him and becoming a Sword Master.
He needed to find a few powerful opponents to sharpen himself against!
Lucas tilted his head and rubbed his chin.
His eyes suddenly lit up.
Finding Ace was definitely out of the question.
The tremendous power of the Mera Mera no Mi meant that even if Ace couldn’t instantly kill Lucas right now, he could still severely injure him in an instant.
But there was someone in Loguetown who would make an excellent sparring partner.
The Smoke Man, Smoker, should have already been transferred to Loguetown and promoted to Captain by now, right?
A sinister smile appeared at the corner of Lucas’s mouth.
He looked toward Nami, who was studying the surrounding sea.
“Let’s go to Loguetown first.”
“Uh… All right.”
Nami was slightly startled before immediately agreeing.
She didn’t even ask why they were going there.
At this point, Nami practically obeyed Lucas unconditionally.
However, if Lucas wanted to take Nico Robin as well, it probably wouldn’t be so easy to convince Nami…
Lucas shook his head and laughed.
I’m overthinking things.
With such an adorable Nami in his arms, there was no need to rush about anything else.
A flash of movement brought him instantly beside Nami.
Before she could react, he picked her up.
“Ah!
What are you doing?!”
Lucas gave her a mischievous grin and tossed her onto the bed.
“Doing what you love, of course!”
“Bastard!
It’s broad daylight!
You… Mmph!”
Lucas’s lips instantly covered hers, silencing her protest.
Her eyes gradually lost their focus…