"Um, do you want to read it again?" Leo asked innocently as he picked up the booklet that had fallen to the deck.
Except for Luffy and Sanji, everyone took a few steps back instinctively.
Who would dare to look at this thing? Can't you see that Nami is still lying on the ground?
"Hahaha! How funny!" Luffy grinned widely, clearly unaffected. For him, there was no danger, so it was all just another source of entertainment. Why would he be scared?
"That... Leo, cough cough..." Sanji, who had just been knocked down by Nami, walked up with a burning look in his eyes and a mysterious smile on his face. He leaned closer to Leo and whispered in his ear:
"Since there's magic that can turn things into gold, is there... ahem... magic that can make people transparent or invisible?"
Sanji couldn't suppress his chuckles. His face wore a smile that any man could understand.
The thought of women's bathhouses and bathrooms—man's biggest dream—was now, for the first time, within his reach.
Nami, who was slowly recovering, and Vivi, who stood next to her, seemed to have caught the tail end of Sanji's question. Both showed disgusted expressions at the same time. Their faces quickly shifted to dark, ominous lines, filled with malice and murderous intent.
But clearly, Sanji didn't notice the change in the girls' expressions as he continued to smile at Leo, oblivious to the impending storm.
"No, of course not," Leo replied, glancing at Nami, who was slowly pulling a stick from her waist, and then at Vivi, who was clenching her fists. He continued with a meaningful look in Sanji's direction. "Whether it's the refraction of light, the concealment of darkness, or even escaping into another dimension in the space series, well, none of those are things I can do."
Leo's voice held the assurance of someone who had complete control over their skills, as though such sneaky magic was beneath him.
"Why would an elegant and mysterious magician like me need such magic?" Leo added with a confident smirk.
Before Sanji could respond, a loud voice interrupted.
BANG!
"BAH! I'll beat you to death, you lewd cook!" Nami's furious shout rang out, and the next thing Sanji knew, he was hit by a flurry of fists and a stick as Nami and Vivi unleashed their fury on him.
Sanji crashed to the deck with a cry of pain, his body looking as if it had gained several hundred pounds from the barrage.
"Squeak..."
After several minutes of relentless punishment, Nami and Vivi finally stopped, their hands on their hips, glaring down at the crumpled figure of Sanji.
Leo watched this with a satisfied grin and put the magic book away. It seemed that his earlier explanation about not knowing such magic had been well-received by the crew.
However, just as Leo turned to head into the cabin, he noticed Nami and Vivi giving him suspicious glances, their expressions still filled with disbelief. After all, he had demonstrated the magic of creating gold earlier—how could he claim not to know any other magic, especially one as "convenient" as invisibility?
"Why are you looking at me like that?" Leo asked, taking two steps back, a defensive edge in his voice. "I really don't know it. Ugh, I can't!"
But as soon as the words left his mouth, Leo realized he had accidentally given himself away. He quickly tried to cover up his slip-up.
"Great! I didn't expect you, Leo, to be this kind of person!" Sanji, who was now gingerly picking himself up off the deck, jumped out, his body aching from the beating.
"You obviously know this kind of magic, but you lied to me, saying you don't. How could you do this to me?" Sanji's expression became one of exaggerated jealousy, his eyes wide with what seemed like admiration, though tinged with frustration.
With a mocking grin, he added, "I've already imagined what you've done with this magic. You sly dog."
"BAH! Don't treat me like you!!" Leo shouted in anger, his face reddening. He quickly turned and bolted toward the cabin. "How can you say that a magician's business is a lie? If I say there's no such thing, then there's no such thing!"
Nami kicked Sanji hard, sending him sprawling onto the deck once more, before chasing after Leo, her voice calling, "Stop! If you don't explain yourself to me today, you're going to pay!"
Vivi hesitated for a moment, but seeing Nami in such a rage, she mimicked Nami's actions, kicking Sanji before running in after Leo.
After a while, Nami returned from the cabin with a satisfied grin, and the familiar sound of clinking gold and coins echoed behind her.
"You should just be happy," Nami said with a smirk. "You know, there are tens of millions of Baileys there. I guess Leo has plundered all of it. Heh, that's a lot of wealth for just a little inconvenience."
She chuckled at the thought. Though she didn't fully understand the magic of creating gold, it made her exceptionally pleased to know she had plundered so much wealth from Leo.
Meanwhile, Leo was still in the cabin, working on something, when he suddenly spoke up, "Make it rain all over Alabasta?"
Vivi, who had been lost in thought, blinked in confusion. "What do you mean?"
Leo, as if recalling something, looked back at her. "It's possible. If Nami spends some time learning it, she can easily make rain across the whole of Alabasta. It's quite simple."
Vivi's eyes widened in surprise. "Really?! That would be amazing!"
Leo shook his head with a smile. "Of course, it would take time to master, but it's definitely within reach."
Vivi beamed, her smile radiating gratitude. "Thank you, Leo!"
"What are you thanking me for?" Leo chuckled, shaking his head. "Aren't we partners?"
With that, Leo pulled a magic wand from his sleeve and tapped Vivi gently on the arm. "Bear with it. I'll give you a stamp."
A sudden burning sensation flared across the back of her hand, and Vivi instinctively jerked her arm back in surprise.
"Hiss…!" She winced, the pain sharp, but it faded almost immediately. When she looked back, there was a mark on her hand.
"There. You'll feel its function soon. I'll go make one for Pao De Kuai as well." Leo added nonchalantly before walking out of the cabin.
Vivi stared at the mark, feeling the faint magical energy coursing through her arm. She had no idea what the exact result would be, but she trusted Leo's words. It was just another example of how much more there was to learn from him.
Back on the deck, Luffy and Usopp were once again fishing, this time because they were both starving.
"What's that?" Usopp asked, pointing at something in the distance.
"It's marshmallows," Leo said casually, watching the two of them with amusement.
"Marshmallows?! Where?! Where?!" Chopper's eyes lit up, and he rushed over excitedly, eager to try more of the sweet treats Leo had introduced him to.
As Leo came out of the cabin, he noticed the crew standing near the edge of the ship, gazing curiously at a plume of smoke rising into the air.
Nami, who had finished her task, ignored them, content with the progress they had made. She made sure the Merry was still on course and then walked over to join them.
"That's water vapor," Nami explained, rolling her eyes as she noticed her crewmates' lack of knowledge. "It's produced by magma from volcanic eruptions deep in the ocean."
Leo nodded in agreement. "Nami's right. After thousands of years, a new island will likely appear in this place."
At that moment, Leo approached Luffy and Usopp, tapping them both lightly with his wand. Just like in the original story, the two had used fast-running as bait to catch fish, and Leo figured he might as well help them out.
After the spell worked its magic, the two fishermen reeled in something that had been caught on their line.
Luffy and Usopp's voices rang out in unison. "We caught a guy!"
The figure that had been caught looked particularly strange. Not only was he wearing a swan-shaped costume, but he also had bizarre makeup on, indicating he was no ordinary person.
"Oh, I'm so sorry!" the stranger exclaimed. "I was saved by pirates I didn't even know. I'll never forget your kindness!!"
"If it's not too much trouble, could I have a bowl of hot soup?" the strange man asked politely, sitting cross-legged before Luffy and the others with an overly serious expression.
Sanji, who had recovered from his earlier beating, immediately dragged his aching body toward the kitchen.
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