“Bastard!
Damn pirate!
All you know how to do is bully me!
Sob…”
Lucas immediately realized that he had gone too far with his teasing.
He hurriedly lowered the sword in his hand and rushed over to her.
Gently stroking her golden hair, he said in a soft voice, “Don’t cry.
All right, I was just teasing you.
The sea chart drawn by the great navigator Nami is worth 21 million Berries.
Once we get to the Marine branch and collect the bounties, I’ll give you 10 million Berries.”
“Really?”
The moment money was mentioned, Nami immediately stopped crying.
She raised her head and looked at Lucas with a smile.
However, her impression of Lucas was honestly rather terrible, so her expression was full of disbelief.
Seeing her reaction, Lucas reached out and gently wiped the tears from her face.
Staring into her eyes, he said, “Don’t worry.
If I say I’ll give it to you, then I definitely will.
I like you, so I won’t lie to you.”
His sincere expression left Nami slightly stunned.
A moment later, her cheeks flushed red.
She pushed Lucas away and ran off.
Watching her retreating figure, Lucas still wore the same smile.
The seed he had planted in her heart over the past several days had finally begun to take root and sprout after his confession.
Nami, you won’t be able to escape from my grasp anymore…
A day and a half later, just as Nami had said, an island finally appeared on the horizon.
Lucas and Nami went ashore together and headed toward the Marine branch.
Nami, however, seemed somewhat afraid and looked as though she had no intention of going inside.
Lucas certainly wasn’t going to let her slip away, so he forcibly brought her along.
Looking at the Marine branch before him, Lucas suddenly felt rather emotional.
Actually, after coming to this world, he could have chosen to follow the Marines’ path and rise to the top.
But in his opinion, there were simply too many rules within the Marines, and he would have to obey orders.
There was far too little freedom.
Although he could learn the Six Powers that way, it would also make it difficult for him to control the course of events.
As Lucas entered the Marine branch, Nami behind him was visibly nervous.
After all, she was a pirate of the Arlong Pirates.
Whenever pirates faced the Marines, there was naturally a sense of facing their natural enemy.
Of course, what mattered even more was Lucas, who had forcefully broken through the defenses around her heart.
She didn’t even know how she was supposed to face him.
She had been avoiding him for the past two days, yet the seed in her heart had only sunk deeper.
His mischievous teasing, his comfort when she was sad, and the occasional words of genuine concern—all of them lingered in her heart and refused to disappear.
Lucas tossed two nearly rotten heads onto the floor and said with a smile, “I’m here to collect the bounties.
These two heads belong to Captain Flower Blade and Captain Kuro.”
The Marine branch’s major had known about Lucas for quite some time.
After all, the Marines had an extensive intelligence network.
Even so, he was somewhat shocked when he saw Lucas in person.
Someone with such strength was actually this young?
“Very good.
Truly, the younger generation is impressive!”
Lucas didn’t recognize this major at all.
Apparently, the man wasn’t even important enough to qualify as a minor character in his memories of the original story.
The major handed him a stack of banknotes.
Nami’s eyes behind him immediately sparkled with countless little stars.
With a slight smile, Lucas handed the money to her.
Just as they were about to leave, the major suddenly stopped him and said with a smile, “My friend, you’re very strong.
Why not join the Marines?
The higher-ups have already given instructions.
As long as you join the Marines, you’ll be given the rank of major—equal to mine!”
“This…”
Lucas was somewhat surprised.
He hadn’t expected that the higher-ups in the Marines had already noticed him after he’d only made a move twice.
There was no way he was going to join the Marines.
Naturally, he couldn’t openly say that he wanted to become a pirate while standing inside a Marine branch either.
He didn’t believe he possessed the same protagonist aura as Luffy, allowing him to simply storm out of a Marine branch without consequences.
Without becoming a Sword Master, he would undoubtedly be shot to death if the Marines surrounded and attacked him here.
“Let me think about it.
I want to hunt down some more pirates and improve my strength first,” Lucas said calmly.
The major was surprised by his answer.
Even if Lucas wanted to become a pirate hunter, the major would still try to force him into joining the Marines.
If Lucas chose to become a pirate, they would certainly eliminate him immediately.
But Lucas hadn’t openly stated anything.
He had merely said that he wanted to kill pirates, leaving the major with no way to respond.
After all, he couldn’t exactly forbid someone from hunting pirates.
Would the Marines actually protect pirates?
“Um… you can hunt pirates after joining the Marines, too!”
Lucas frowned, feeling somewhat troubled.
Seeing that the Marines around them were subtly beginning to surround them, his mind raced.
This looked dangerous.
If he said the wrong thing, he might very well end up dying here.
Beside him, Nami’s eyes were still filled with little stars as she counted the money in her hands again and again, completely oblivious to the increasingly tense situation around them.
Lucas smiled bitterly inwardly, but his face took on a disdainful expression.
“With my strength, the rank of major is too low.
At the very least, I should be a Rear Admiral.
It seems the Marines still don’t recognize my strength.
Why don’t you let me take down a few more major pirates first, just to prove myself?”
“This…”
The Marine major immediately stammered, all the words he had been about to say getting stuck in his throat.
At that moment, a person Lucas was extremely familiar with walked over.
“So confident.
Should I call it self-confidence or ignorance?
Forget it.
You can go.”
The newcomer had two cigars in his mouth, smoke billowing around him as he looked at Lucas with a cold sneer.
Lucas’s pupils contracted slightly, but he maintained the same disdainful expression.
He grabbed Nami and immediately turned around and left.
He could sense danger from this man.
He was another powerful figure from the original story.
He was… the Smoke Man, Smoker!
Without Haki, Lucas had absolutely no chance against a Logia user.
Watching Lucas simply walk away, the Marine major became anxious.
He quietly said to Smoker, “Lieutenant Commander, the higher-ups ordered us to make sure he stays…”
“It doesn’t matter.
He’ll join the Marines sooner or later.
If he refuses and becomes a pirate instead, I’ll be the one to bring him back.”
Smoker looked completely unconcerned.
He took a deep drag from his cigars and said, “I’m about to be transferred to Loguetown anyway.
Even if this guy decides to become a pirate, I’ll capture him and bring him back.
I’ll uphold justice!”
“Yes!
Congratulations on your promotion, Captain Smoker!”
“Wow, Captain Smoker got promoted again!”
“Of course!
Captain Smoker is a powerful man who ate a Logia-type Devil Fruit.
He might even rise all the way to Vice Admiral!”
The Marines nearby looked at Smoker with envy and admiration.
Only after walking out of the Marine branch did Lucas finally breathe a sigh of relief.
That had definitely been a crisis.
Although he could have avoided trouble by simply agreeing to become a Marine, doing so would also have restricted his freedom.
He gave the Marine branch a cold sneer before turning around and leaving.
“Nami, that’s 23 million Berries in total, right?
Give me the remaining 13—huh?”
Lucas stared at the empty space behind him in surprise.
He spun around, but there was no sign of Nami anywhere.
That girl had actually taken advantage of the moment he was distracted and slipped away!
Just like that!
A bitter smile appeared at the corner of Lucas’s mouth.
All right.
Nami had finally managed to outwit him once.
She must have gone back to Cocoyashi Village.
He only needed to wait for her there.
With that thought, Lucas walked a few steps before suddenly realizing something.
He smiled bitterly and immediately broke into a run.
When he reached the coast, all he saw was the vast, empty sea.
Far in the distance, Nami was steering Lucas’s ship.
She gave him a mischievous smile and waved at him from the deck.
“Bastard, bye-bye!”
Smack!
Lucas slapped his forehead hard.
All right.
Being one step behind had left him behind at every step.
He had still underestimated Nami.
No—more accurately, he had spent too much mental energy dealing with the Marines just now, which had slowed his thinking.
Now he had lost both his ship and his money.
If he wanted to reach Cocoyashi Village, it seemed he would have to steal another ship.
Well, he was going to take the pirate route anyway.
After walking around the harbor for a while, Lucas spotted a small sailing boat several meters long.
This type of sailboat was ideal for a single person to operate.
If he stole a large sailing ship, he probably wouldn’t even be able to sail it without Nami, his navigator.
After taking the small boat out to sea, Lucas looked at the sea chart in his hand, his thoughts swirling.
Next, he needed to make this girl Nami truly accept him.
Otherwise, how was he supposed to make it to the Grand Line?
And besides…
If he remembered correctly, this should be the year Nico Robin joined Baroque Works under the future Warlord of the Sea, Crocodile.
The thought of having Nami on his left and Robin on his right made Lucas grin mischievously.