Having grown up in the Kuja Pirates, Hancock had seen Devil Fruit encyclopedias before. However, the Devil Fruit Wood was holding now was one she was sure had never been consumed by anyone before.
This meant that if she ate this Devil Fruit, she would become unable to swim, and the power she would gain was unknown.
If the power turned out to be strong, it would be worth it, but if it was a useless ability, the price would be too high.
"Even though Mariejois is in chaos right now, I honestly have no confidence that I can safely get all of you out of here," Wood said. "And if we encounter enemies during our escape, I won't be able to protect so many people at once."
"So, for Mary and Sonia's sake, are you willing to become an ability user to protect them and help me?"
Hearing Wood's words, Hancock slowly took the Devil Fruit from his hand, her expression showing a bit of hesitation.
"Why not choose to trust me once more, Hancock? I can assure you, this Devil Fruit does not have a useless ability and is definitely the best fit for you!"
Wood wasn't actually sure what ability the Devil Fruit he had taken out possessed.
However, since he found this fruit in Charlmoss Saint's private collection and considering Charlmoss Saint was the one who purchased Hancock and her sisters, Wood believed there was a good chance this fruit was the "Mero Mero no Mi" (Love-Love Fruit)!
Some might point out that Hancock's two sisters, Mary and Sonia, also consumed Devil Fruits.
But whether Mary and Sonia ate their fruits at Mariejois was never explicitly mentioned in the original story.
"I don't care about becoming unable to swim, as long as I can gain the power to protect Mary and Sonia," Hancock said. "Besides, if this Devil Fruit were sold on the black market, it would fetch at least a few billion Berries. Are you sure you want to just give it to me?"
Hancock, who had been hesitant, became resolute after hearing Wood once again ask her to trust him. With Wood's confirmation, she closed her eyes and took a bite of the fruit.
Despite being starved for two days, Hancock found the taste of the Devil Fruit to be unbearably disgusting.
"Big sister, is the fruit Wood gave you tasty?" Mary asked, biting her finger and drooling, curious about whether the fruit Hancock had just eaten was delicious.
Hancock, like her sisters, had also been starved for the past two days, so Mary's reaction wasn't surprising.
"It tastes horrible, something you'd never want to eat a second time..."
The taste was so bad that Hancock considered giving the rest of the fruit to the greedy little Mary, but Wood quickly intervened.
"You need to eat the entire Devil Fruit to gain its powers. No one has ever tried sharing a fruit between two people, but I think it's best not to test such things."
Wood explained that if one person ate two Devil Fruits, their body would explode. Although two people sharing a single fruit hadn't been tried, Wood didn't think the outcome would be good, so he stopped Hancock from taking that risk.
Hancock, forcing herself to swallow the rest of the fruit, began to feel changes within her body and sensed the new power she had gained.
Meanwhile, Wood continued to free the other prisoners in the dungeon. By the time Hancock had a basic understanding of her new abilities, Gion arrived at the scene.
Gion had brought more keys, but her approach to dealing with the Celestial Dragons was much less aggressive than Wood's. She had only knocked out the guards and left the Celestial Dragons unconscious.
With Gion back and all the intended prisoners rescued, the time had come to plan their escape.
Most of Mariejois's defensive forces were occupied with Fisher Tiger's group, so the obstacles Wood and his group encountered were relatively minor.
With both Wood and Gion unleashing their full power, the combined swordsmanship of the two swordmasters easily crushed any enemies that dared to stand in their way.
During the escape, Hancock also helped eliminate some minor enemies while getting more accustomed to her Devil Fruit powers.
Pink heart-shaped energy gathered at Hancock's fingertips, and her Pistol Kiss attack outmatched conventional firearms in both frequency and power, easily dispatching small fry with a single shot each.
"Big sister's power is so strong now! And for some reason, I suddenly find her even more charming," Mary exclaimed as she watched Hancock take down enemies with her Pistol Kiss. Mary and Sonia, who had already admired Hancock, were now completely in awe of their sister's newfound power.
Seeing Hancock's abilities in action, Wood breathed a sigh of relief. He had guessed correctly: the Devil Fruit she consumed was indeed the Paramecia-type Mero Mero no Mi (Love-Love Fruit).
Even though Hancock had only recently eaten the fruit, her aura was already beginning to change subtly.
Wood wasn't sure if the Mero Mero no Mi could enhance a person's looks, but it undoubtedly gave the user an aura that could captivate anyone, regardless of gender or age.
This seductive aura affected the body in such a way that even when restrained by Seastone, the user's natural charm would remain unaffected.
Though Hancock was still unfamiliar with her Mero Mero no Mi abilities, her charm was already having an effect on ordinary people like Mary, Sonia, and the others.
As for Wood and Gion, their strength far surpassed Hancock's, and their strong wills as swordmasters prevented them from being influenced, though they still found themselves inexplicably liking Hancock more, proving just how powerful this fruit was.
The group had prepared for this escape well in advance, setting up an optimal route and preparing a rope ladder and a ship for their getaway.
A medium-sized two-masted sailing ship was packed to the brim, and with everything in place, they were ready to sail to safety. But just as they were about to set off, Wood made a decision that nearly gave Gion a stroke.
"You say you're going back alone to help Fisher Tiger? Are you crazy? If the Marine Headquarters reinforcements arrive, you won't be able to escape!"
With everything that had happened, if Wood were caught by the Marines, he would be as good as dead, with no one able to save him.
Gion couldn't understand why Wood would risk his life to help Fisher Tiger, someone with whom he had no close ties.