The tavern fell silent in an instant.
The desert bandits' leader, Dak, stared in disbelief at what was left of his spiked club—just the handle.
His underlings were frozen in fear, their faces pale.
Takumi glanced at his fist, now covered in pieces of the shattered club. With a slight frown, he shook his hand to rid himself of the debris.
That small motion made Dak think Takumi was about to attack, and he stumbled backward in panic, retreating several steps.
"W-we'll let you off this time! Boys, retreat!" Dak stammered.
With that, he bolted for the door, his lackeys following closely behind.
As soon as they were gone, the tavern erupted into cheers.
"That was amazing! I can't believe it, Takumi—you're incredible!"
"No wonder Shanks told us to remember your name. You're definitely not just some ordinary kid."
"To think you scared off those vicious desert bandits… Takumi, you're something else."
"Ah, too bad they got away with our money, but at least nobody was hurt. Haha… Honestly, surviving something like this feels kinda exhilarating."
The tavern owner peeked out from behind the bar, relieved to see everyone laughing and drinking again. After a moment, he announced, "Everyone, drink as much as you want tonight! It's on the house!"
"What? Really, boss? You better watch out, we can drink you dry, haha…"
"If the boss is being this generous, we won't hold back! Cheers!"
"Bring on the drinks, boss! We all went through this together, so let's drink until we drop!"
"Hell yeah! And let's raise our glasses to our little hero, Takumi!"
The tavern quickly returned to the lively scene it had been before the bandits arrived.
Takumi, though, just kept drinking in silence.
Robbed and still this cheerful—these people have some nerves, he thought.
Shanks, chuckling, watched Takumi. When he saw that Takumi had finished his bottle, he helpfully opened another for him.
"How do you like the vibe?" Shanks asked with a grin.
Takumi sighed. "It's nothing special."
"Hahaha!" Shanks laughed heartily.
At that moment, the tavern door swung open again.
A tall, young man with brown hair walked in, flanked by heavily armed soldiers. He wore an Arabian-style headscarf, with deep purple makeup around his eyes, and a white robe adorned with black patterns. Two orange necklaces hung around his neck.
Everyone in the tavern immediately recognized him.
"Hey, isn't that Captain Pell, the Vice-Commander of the Royal Guard?"
"Pell should be protecting the King in the capital. What's he doing here in our little town?"
"Maybe he's after those useless desert bandits?"
"Captain Pell, those bandits have already been chased off. Everything's fine now."
"Chased off?" Pell raised an eyebrow. He had been on official business passing through the town when he received a distress signal about a bandit attack, so he hurried over.
These were the same bandits who had easily overpowered the town's guards. And now they were telling him the bandits had been driven off?
Pell scanned the tavern, his eyes landing on the two figures sitting at the bar—a man and a boy, neither dressed like locals.
Could it have been them who chased off the bandits?
With that thought, Pell strode into the tavern, heading straight for Shanks and Takumi.
"Excuse me, were you the ones who drove away the desert bandits?" Pell asked in a calm tone.
Takumi didn't bother responding.
Shanks, still sipping his drink, laughed and said, "Yeah, you could say that. But really, it was all him." He pointed at Takumi, seemingly eager to stir up some trouble.
Takumi shot Shanks a withering glance, as if to say, "You talk too much..."
Pell looked at Takumi, surprise flashing in his eyes.
Before he could say anything else, the surrounding patrons started chiming in with their own accounts of what happened.
"That's right, Captain Pell. It was that kid who did it. You wouldn't believe it—he smashed the bandit leader's weapon with just one punch."
"Yeah, we all saw it with our own eyes. And get this, they shot at him from just two meters away, and they still missed!"
"Oh, and when someone tried to slice him with a sword, the sword broke instead. Hahaha! I'm starting to think this kid isn't even human—nothing can harm him."
"Anyway, this kid's incredible. Thanks to him, we're all safe."
Pell was initially skeptical—a child scaring off that many bandits seemed impossible. But with so many witnesses, it must have been true.
After a brief silence, Pell spoke up, "I'm Pell, Vice-Commander of the Alabasta Royal Guard. Thank you both for your help in this incident."
He bowed slightly, then added, "I'm on official duty and can't stay in this town for long, but as a token of my appreciation, allow me to cover your drinks tonight."
"Uh, Captain Pell," the tavern owner interjected with a sheepish laugh, "All the drinks are free tonight. But if you have the time, why not stay for a drink?"
Pell hesitated. "…"
"Hahaha!" Shanks laughed. "No need to be so formal. This kid isn't one to fuss over stuff like that. If you really want to thank him, just buy him a drink the next time you cross paths."
"Understood," Pell nodded. "Well then, I'll be on my way."
Seeing that Takumi had no interest in further conversation, Pell took his leave without another word.
Once he was gone, Takumi turned to Shanks and said, "Shanks, you really talk too much…"
"Hahaha!" Shanks just laughed it off, unconcerned.
As the tavern owner brought them another round of drinks, he couldn't help but remember something. From the moment he had first seen Shanks, he had felt that the man looked familiar, but couldn't quite place it.
"You… You wouldn't happen to be the captain of the Red-Haired Pirates, would you?" the tavern owner whispered, lowering his voice.
Shanks looked over and smiled, "Oops, you figured it out."
"So you really are…" The tavern owner's voice got a little too loud, and he quickly covered his mouth before lowering it again. Leaning in closer, he whispered, "I never imagined it would be a pirate who saved us… So, are you here for that?"
"That?" Shanks asked, puzzled. "What's that?"
"The Devil Fruit being auctioned off at the underground auction in Yuba in two days, of course," the tavern owner explained.
"What? A Devil Fruit?" Shanks exaggeratedly feigned surprise.
Takumi didn't even glance his way.
"Shh, keep it down!" The tavern owner urgently shushed Shanks. "Don't tell me you really didn't know?"
Shanks scratched his head with a grin. "Well, I know now."
The tavern owner could only sigh in exasperation.
Shanks turned to Takumi with a mischievous smile. "Devil Fruits don't come around often, kid. Interested in taking a look?"
Takumi took another sip of his drink, his tone indifferent. "Not really."
******
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