Author's note: sorry about the repost, I forgot to create a new volume, so I had to delete the chapter to move it to the new volume after creating it.
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"This island has no marine presence whatsoever," I remarked as we docked the black pearl in Mock town's small port, next to several other pirate vessels.
"We can relax and have fun here without worrying about vice admirals appearing out of nowhere and biting us in the ass," I added with a chuckle, dismissively waving my hand to the side.
"Not that they can afford to keep such a strong force hounding us anyway," I added in a clear tone. Vice admirals didn't grow on trees. They were a vital resource for the world government that they hardly afford to waste by sending them on a wild goose chase after us.
Dragon and his revolutionaries, the for emperors of the sea and their pirates, they many ambitious kings and nobles, these were all threats breathing down world movement necks. As short-handed as they were, I'm sure they're already suffering the consequences of relocating so many vice admirals.
There was no way in hell they could afford to ambush again, not this soon at least, and not with that kind of firepower, meaning the others and myself can genuinely relax with no worries for the meantime.
"The only thing to look for, I'd say, are the various pirates roaming Mock town, but they shouldn't prove much of a threat to any of us," I stated with a shrug, smiling carelessly.
"But everyone should keep an eye out just in case, and don't hesitate to ask for help if anything happens," I added in a stern tone. "And with that said, see ya," I concluded as I jumped off the ship and made my way towards Mock town without waiting for a reply from my friends.
...
Mock town was a peculiar place. It was archaic, to say the least, with many contrasts mixing together to form this haven of pirates away from the eyes of the world government and any force of order.
The air was fresh in the main wooden blank paved roads but tread deep enough, and the only thing you'll smell is the stench of pirates drunkenly pissing their hearts out all over the back alleys.
The many people roaming the streets, none of which were unarmed somehow or the other, were all laughing, some drinking, some eating, while others were mindlessly firing their pistols in the air for no apparent reason.
There was joy, there was beauty, but there was also suffering and unpleasantness, which you would only find if you knew where to look.
All in all, I'd say it was a charming place, but Mock town's atmosphere aside, the town's architecture was just as remarkable.
It was split into two areas, the first area on the flatlands near the small harbor by the seaside, where I currently was, it looked like a typical seaside town. It had wooden planks covered roads busy with people and the occasional palm tree sprouting next to the buildings dotting the streets.
The other part of Mock Town was built on the short hill, a distance away from the seaside where the greenery was at its thickest to the point where most of the buildings were covered, blocked from sight by beautiful light green leaves, with only their red slanted roofs poking out of the greenery.
The buildings themselves were beautiful, built with white bricks, decorative windows, and slanted red roofs, giving Mock town a resort-like image along with the greenery and the beautiful waters, which can be viewed from anywhere within it.
The people here and how they reacted to me weren't what I'm used to either. The majority of the people here were pirates, thugs, bandits, scoundrels, and even the few people who weren't either of those were not rightly decent as well.
Not to say there weren't any decent people here, but you get the idea, not that I should be judging anyone's decency, being a pirate, a killer, and all that jazz.
At any rate, the people here seemed to recognize at first glance, and wide-eyed glances, the panicked expression, along with the wide berth everyone gave me as they avoided me like the plague told me they weren't fans of my music.
"I guess it would make sense for the people here to keep up with all the intel about wanted pirates," I murmured with a raised eyebrow as I watched everyone laying eyes on me hurriedly step to the side with a panicked expression.
"Even a small fry like Bellamy was akin to a god to these people... I guess it's only natural they fear me as much as they do, Rehahaha," I said, laughing loudly.
"Silver Hand has mental. Everyone run before he starts cutting people with that cursed sword of his!" One of the surrounding people exclaimed while pointing at me, his face pale as he began running around like a headless chicken causing the other people to follow suit.
I looked at this comical scene of all manner of scoundrels running around in all directions while shouting nonsense about me going crazy and preparing to cut down everyone in front of me. And I began laughing even more loudly, causing the scoundrels to panic even more, creating a vicious cycle that only ended when my eyes landed on one specific building.
"And there it is at last... Pub and Pies," I muttered under my breath as I stood in the middle of the street, staring at a bar that looked no different from the other building nearby.
This place was the bar where Luffy met Blackbeard for the first time and the origin place of one piece's biggest mystery; what was better? The cherry pie or the drinks...? Whatever the case, I was about to find out.
My smile widened as I entered the bar, everyone going quiet as they turned to look at me with wide eyes as the door swung shut behind me.
I ignored everything, and everyone, as I made my way toward the man standing behind the bar. "One drink, and one cherry pie, Mr," I said as I sat down on a bench, putting my backpack on the ground.