Click...
In Bell-mère's house, within the room shared by the three children, a door silently creaked open. Nami tiptoed inside, her eyes darting around to ensure no one was present. Upon confirming the coast was clear, she stepped out with a light-hearted skip.
Lynn followed closely behind, mirroring her cautious approach. As soon as they made it back, both exhaled in relief, their tension dissipating at once. Their eyes met, and a grin spread across their faces.
"That was close, Lynn! Bell-mère and the others aren't back yet!" Nami cheered, her delight evident. The longer they remained undiscovered, the later they would face the inevitable scolding.
"Yeah," Lynn agreed. "Let's put the meat in the fridge first. It'd be a shame if it spoiled."
"Oh! Right! Let's hurry!" Nami exclaimed and dashed toward the kitchen.
Opening a portal, she began stuffing large cuts of Beast King meat into the refrigerator. Lynn quickly joined in to help. However, the sheer volume of meat was far beyond what the fridge could hold.
"There's too much!" Nami groaned, staring at the still-substantial pile. "What do we do now?"
With no other option, they rushed over to Genzo's house and filled his refrigerator to capacity as well. Yet, even then, a significant amount remained.
"Lynn, there's still so much left..." Nami muttered, a worried frown crossing her face as she glanced at the untouched portions inside her spatial storage.
Lynn sighed. "We'll just have to wait for Bell-mère to get back and figure something out then. In the meantime, let's have a barbecue tonight!"
He made a mental note—he needed to invest in several large refrigerators in the future, perhaps placing a few inside Nami's alternate space.
As they headed back to Bell-mère's house, they spotted Bell-mère and Nojiko walking down the road toward them.
From a distance, Nami eagerly waved. "Bell-mère! You're back just in time! We have a problem—there's so much meat, and we don't know what to do with it! What should we—"
Bell-mère blinked in confusion. "Meat? What meat? Where did it come from?"
Lynn smacked his forehead. In her excitement over the meat, Nami had completely forgotten the crucial detail—they weren't supposed to have gone out to sea in the first place.
Realization struck Nami like a tidal wave. Her mouth clamped shut, and she turned to Lynn, her eyes pleading for help.
Lynn sighed. "Uh… Bell-mère, we… went out to sea today."
Silence.
Then—
"WHAT!!!"
Bell-mère's enraged roar echoed across all of Cocoyasi Village, sending seagulls scattering into the sky.
Thirty minutes later, back at Bell-mère's house, Lynn and Nami stood before her, heads lowered and shoulders hunched. They had spent the past half-hour enduring an intense lecture.
Nojiko remained by the door, peeking in from the hallway, curled up as if bracing for aftershocks.
Bell-mère finally exhaled, her frustration ebbing. "So… Nami, you're a Devil Fruit user now?" she asked, her voice carrying a mix of curiosity and concern.
Nami perked up instantly, the earlier scolding momentarily forgotten. "Yep! I ate the Door-Door Fruit! I can open doors anywhere—look!"
Eager to demonstrate, she summoned a portal in midair.
Nojiko, still spying from the doorway, gawked in disbelief. "No way...!"
Bell-mère stared at the spatial rift, her expression unreadable. She had served in the Marines for years, yet she had never encountered a Devil Fruit up close. They were among the rarest treasures of the sea, yet now, two of her three children had become users.
She sighed, running a hand through her hair. "Alright, we'll deal with the meat tomorrow. For now, let's have a barbecue tonight. Lynn, go tell Genzo to come back early."
She gave them a small smile, the warmth in her eyes replacing the earlier storm of anger.
Relieved, Lynn and Nami grinned at each other—crisis averted, for now.
Lynn immediately set off toward the village to call Genzo back.
Seeing that Bell-mère had finally calmed down, Nami let out a sigh of relief. Then, with bubbling excitement, she eagerly recounted her and Lynn's adventure at sea.
Nojiko, who had been eavesdropping from the doorway, finally stepped into the room, listening intently.
However, when Bell-mère heard Nami mention their visit to the Kingdom of Oykot, her expression darkened.
"Nami, you must never go back to the Kingdom of Oykot. Do you understand?" Bell-mère warned sternly.
She knew that Oykot was where Nami and Nojiko were born, but based on the reports she had seen during her time in the Marines, the kingdom's destruction had been anything but ordinary. She feared that if Nami returned, she would be putting herself in serious danger.
"Then... Bell-mère, does that mean Ling—I mean, Lynn and I are allowed to go out to sea in the future?" Nami asked, hardly daring to believe her own words.
Bell-mère let out a long sigh before nodding. "Yes, but only on one condition—you have to report to me first before you go anywhere!"
She had already accepted that neither the village nor herself could hold back these two anymore. Both Lynn and Nami were now Devil Fruit users, making them fundamentally different from ordinary people. Rather than stifling their growth, it was better to let them spread their wings.
"Yay! Thank you, Bell-mère!" Nami cheered, practically bouncing with excitement.
From now on, she could finally explore the sea freely with Lynn!
"Alright, alright. Enough of that. I'll go prepare the barbecue," Bell-mère said, heading toward the kitchen.
Neither Nami nor Lynn noticed the slight hint of envy flickering across Nojiko's face.
She was still a child, too. Of course, she wanted to set sail and have adventures like Nami.
Just then, Nami turned to her with a wide grin. "Hey, Nojiko, this is great! We can all go to sea together in the future. But..."
She trailed off, her eyes glinting mischievously as she circled around Nojiko.
"Huh?" Nojiko blinked. "Wait, did you just say I could go out to sea with you?!"
A bright smile lit up Nojiko's face. As expected of her little sister—she had thought of her even when making big plans.
"Hmm... well, according to Lynn, you're too weak right now," Nami said, suddenly adopting a serious expression, like a seasoned sailor passing judgment.
"You need to train hard and become stronger first. The sea is dangerous, you know!"
Nojiko hesitated for a moment before shaking her head. "But, Nami... I can't just leave Bell-mère alone to handle all the housework. I need to stay and help."
Now that Nami and Lynn had gained mysterious Devil Fruit powers, she was the only ordinary person left among them. If she joined them at sea now, she would only slow them down.
"Hmm... you have a point..." Nami nodded in thought. "Bell-mère definitely shouldn't be left alone."
Then, her face lit up again. "But our family won't be lacking in Berries anymore, so one day, you can come with us! Lynn and I will protect you, Nojiko! Hahaha!" she declared proudly, patting Nojiko on the shoulder.
Nojiko's eye twitched. "Hey! Who said I needed you to protect me?! I'm the older sister! It's my job to protect you!"
"Yeah, well, I'm stronger than you!"
"I'm your big sister!"
"I'm stronger!"
The two continued to bicker, their voices ringing through the house as Bell-mère smiled to herself, shaking her head. No matter what, some things never changed.
…
TN:
Hope you Enjoy~😊