"Proprietress, I... well, I'm terribly sorry. I forgot to bring my wallet today. Would you mind if I settled the bill in a different way?"
As if suddenly remembering a minor detail, Rowan turned toward the kitchen door where the proprietress, Ririka, had just emerged.
Ririka, still dazed by the sheer majesty of the old man's silhouette, was caught completely off guard. Her face flushed a faint pink as she stammered, "Ah? What... what did you say?"
"I said, I might have to find an alternative way to pay for today's meal," Rowan replied.
Ririka cleared her throat, forcing herself to remain calm. "An alternative way?" she asked, confused.
Rowan pointed toward the whimpering Helmeppo slumped on the floor. "I've taken care of this town's biggest problem for you. In exchange, how about you treat this old man and his great-grandson to a meal? Does that sound fair?"
"But he's—"
Ririka began to explain exactly who Helmeppo was, but Rowan had already called out to Luffy.
"Luffy!"
Luffy, who had been coiled like a spring, moved in a flash. He was in front of Helmeppo in an instant.
"Gomu Gomu no... Pistol!"
BOOM!
The scrawny Helmeppo was sent flying by the punch, spinning dozens of times in mid-air before slamming into the tavern wall. He remained there, embedded in the wood like a biological specimen.
"I've wanted to do that since we got here! If it weren't for Great-Grandpa, you would have wasted my meat!" Luffy huffed, looking at the unconscious Helmeppo with disdain.
[System Prompt: Host commanded subordinate to defeat Helmeppo. Gained favorability from Ririka and Rika. Faith Points +3]
A notification chimed in Rowan's mind. He blinked in surprise.
Defeating this brat only earned 3 points? That's it?
Back at sea, Rowan had spent over a thousand Faith Points to max out his Conqueror's Haki in the shop. He had assumed that since the system started him with over ten thousand points, they would be easy to come by. It seemed he had been mistaken.
Rowan rubbed his chin, theorizing: I suppose those ten thousand points, much like the Constitution Serum, were the accumulated results of my last hundred years in this world. I'd better be careful with how I spend them from now on. Good thing I didn't blow the whole lot on a whim.
He had originally thought the shop items were cheap. He'd planned to buy half the inventory—Ryuou, Future Sight, and the like—thinking he could clear the shop out eventually. If he had, he'd be kicking Emperors and punching Admirals into the dirt. But the reality was that a lifetime of living had only bought him a fraction of the shop's power. He needed to find a more efficient way to farm these points.
Shaking his head to clear the system thoughts, Rowan looked at the wall where Helmeppo was barely breathing. "Proprietress, about my offer—can you accept it? If not, I'll have to send this boy out to catch a few pirates. We can pay the tab once he collects the bounties."
Ririka didn't seem to hear him. She hurriedly pulled the cheering Rika to her side. Watching the few Marine soldiers scramble out of the tavern, her face clouded with worry.
"Sir, forget about the bill," Ririka urged. "You and your grandson need to leave this island immediately! Helmeppo's background isn't simple. His father is the commander of our Marine base—Colonel Morgan!"
"You just attacked his son. Given Morgan's personality, he will never let you leave alive!"
To the people of Shells Town, "Axe-Hand" Morgan was synonymous with invincibility. No matter how strong these two strangers were, how could they stand against a man backed by an entire Marine base?
"Yes! Grandpa, you and the big brother should go now! It'll be too late if you wait!" Rika chimed in, her young face pale with fear.
These two... truly a pair of selfless, foolish girls.
Looking at their desperate attempts to usher him to safety, Rowan felt a tug at his heart. Having lived here for a century, he knew that people like Ririka and Rika—those without a single malicious bone in their bodies—were the ones who suffered most in this world.
Anyone else in their position would have been trying to distance themselves or, worse, thinking of how to turn Rowan in to appease Morgan. These two were actually worried about his safety.
He had just neutralized Helmeppo in their restaurant. Morgan was a tyrant brainwashed by Jango's hypnosis; even if Rowan fled, the Colonel wouldn't spare these women. In the original story, that man was crazy enough to try and slice Garp himself.
Looking at Ririka clutching her daughter, Rowan gave a carefree smile. "Don't worry. I've heard plenty about Colonel Morgan. I may have been retired for decades, but I was once a Marine who carried the weight of Justice on my back."
"As a veteran, seeing such a disgrace in our ranks is something I cannot ignore. My responsibility is to put a stop to it."
"In fact, the very reason I came to this island was to bring Morgan to justice."
When Rowan first mentioned being a Marine, Ririka recoiled instinctively, her long oppression leaving her with a deep-seated fear of the uniform. But as he continued, she stopped her retreat. She looked at him with hesitation, torn between hope and the crushing reality of Morgan's rule.
"Proprietress, don't worry! My Great-Grandpa is a super-strong Marine!" Luffy chimed in with a wide grin.
"Yeah, Mama! Grandpa is amazing. When I was behind him, I felt like I wasn't afraid of anything!" Rika added.
"See? Even the kids know better. You can relax..."
Rowan reached out to pat Luffy's head, but out of the corner of his eye, he spotted a smear of grease and chili flakes on the boy's mouth. A cold sense of dread washed over him.
He turned his head. The massive platter of roasted lamb legs he had just "saved"—the one he intended to eat—was now nothing but a pile of bare, white bones.
A vein throbbed in Rowan's forehead. The hand meant for a pat tightened into a fist, which he promptly slammed onto the top of Luffy's head.
"LUFFY!"
"You ate all of it AGAIN?! I literally caught that from mid-air to save it! We agreed I would eat first this time! Am I even your Great-Grandpa anymore?!"
As Rowan's roar echoed through the tavern, his stomach gave a perfectly timed, thunderous growl.
Gurgle—!
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