Chapter 112: The Straw Hat Girl… Should Become My Bride!
Zoro narrowed his eyes, feeling a sense of familiarity:
"Using hostages as leverage... what a despicable tactic."
"That's why for seven years, no one dared to resist."
Borodo's voice was low, "The residents could only endure the exploitation and oppression of the Trump Pirates."
Sanji exhaled a puff of smoke:
"People like that don't deserve to live on the sea."
As the Going Merry drew closer, the details of Spiral Mountain became clearer.
"Based on my investigations over the past few years,"
Borodo continued explaining, "there's a vertical elevator at the center of Clockwork Mountain, which is a passage exclusively used by the Trump Pirates. They only open the hidden door at the mountain's base when they go out to plunder.
"As for this visible spiral mountain path..."
He paused:
"It's filled with traps. Bear King deliberately doesn't maintain this road and has installed numerous mechanisms precisely to prevent outsiders from entering."
"Charge—!"
Before Borodo could finish speaking, Lufia shot forward like a catapult.
"Wait!"
Sanji hurriedly followed.
Zoro grinned and chased after them as well.
Ralph facepalmed: "Sigh..."
Borodo stared in disbelief, "Th-they just charged up like that? That's a trap-filled mountain path!"
Nami sighed, "You'll get used to it. Ralph, what should we do?"
Ralph looked toward the spiral mountain path.
It was a wide stone staircase spiraling upward along the mountainside.
Low stone walls served as railings along the roadside.
"Let them do as they please."
Ralph said, "We'll take the safe route."
"Safe route?"
Usopp was puzzled, "What safe route?"
Ralph pointed to the railings beside the mountain path:
"Walk there."
"On the railings?"
Nami widened her eyes.
Ralph leaped onto the railings first.
Borodo hesitated for a moment, then followed.
Although Akisu was still sulking, he stuck close behind Borodo.
Nami and Usopp exchanged glances.
"D-do we really have to..."
Usopp's legs began to tremble.
"It's better than getting killed by traps!"
Nami gritted her teeth and stepped onto the railings as well.
On the main mountain path, Lufia, Zoro, and Sanji were experiencing a "trap-filled adventure."
First, the steps beneath their feet suddenly turned into a slope, causing them to slide down unexpectedly;
Then, spiked boards rose from behind, forcing them to rush forward;
Next, stone pillars on both sides suddenly closed in, squeezing their movement space;
Finally, floodwaters gushed out from holes, forming a rapid current on the mountain path!
Lufia stretched her arms to grab the rock wall, preventing herself from being swept away.
Zoro's blade flashed, slicing through the approaching stone pillars.
Sanji stomped on the floor, cracking it open to let the water drain through the fissures.
Though disheveled, the three actually managed to stabilize themselves amidst the flood and rapid current.
Finally, facing three massive rolling boulders descending from above, Sanji kicked, Zoro slashed, and Lufia punched—each destroying one boulder!
"Pant..."
Sanji gasped, "These traps... are actually kind of exciting?"
Zoro sheathed his sword, "Nothing special."
Lufia burst into laughter:
"So much fun! Are there more?"
Meanwhile, on the railing tightrope, Ralph led the thief brothers, Nami, and Usopp, leisurely walking upward.
Spiked boards? Floodwaters? Rolling boulders?
These traps indeed couldn't affect the railings, as all the trigger points were located on the main mountain path.
The only danger was the handrail being old and dilapidated, with a bottomless cliff on the other side.
But for them, this was no problem at all.
"You cheated—!"
Lufia on the mountain path finally noticed the group on the handrail and pointed at them angrily.
Usopp immediately puffed up with pride:
"You're just too dumb! Can't see the right answer!"
However, the comeuppance came quickly.
After walking a bit further up, the handrail ended, turning into a fully enclosed walled passage.
Ralph and the others had no choice but to jump back onto the mountain path.
Lufia, Zoro, and Sanji immediately surrounded them.
"Oh, wasn't that the 'safe route'?"
Zoro teased.
Sanji elegantly straightened his tie:
"It seems some people's clever tricks can only take them this far."
Lufia simply stretched out her arm and wrapped it around Ralph's neck:
"Ralph is so sneaky! Next time, I want the handrail too!"
Ralph smiled helplessly, letting her hang on him.
And so, amid all the bickering and playfulness, the group finally made it through the trap-filled mountain path.
When they burst out of the tunnel entrance, their view suddenly opened up—
A bustling town spread out before them.
The architectural style was peculiar, with many houses shaped like spirals.
In the center of the town, the towering control tower pierced the sky, its peak flying the flag of the Trump Pirates. The patterns of spades, hearts, diamonds, and clubs stood out starkly under the setting sun.
"Clockwork Town..."
Borodo murmured.
This should have been Clockwork Town, the place where Akisu might have been born.
He took a deep breath and turned to the Straw Hat crew:
"Everyone, Bear King is in the central tower. Let's charge straight in and defeat him! Liberate this island!"
But Lufia tilted her head, her rubber finger pointing toward a fun-looking spiral-shaped restaurant in the town:
"That building looks exactly like the wind-up toy I found! And I'm hungry—I want to eat first!"
Borodo: "...?"
Ralph had already automatically followed Lufia:
"What do you want to eat? I'll pay."
Nami, meanwhile, was drawn to a clothing store:
"The clothing style here is so unique... I want to see if there are any styles that suit me."
Sanji immediately moved to Nami's side:
"Miss Nami, no matter what style of clothing, it would be an honor for it to be worn by you! Please allow me to serve as your guard and bag carrier. By the way, I'd also like to check out the food market—there might be unique seafood here."
Usopp's eyes sparkled as he stared at a mechanical workshop:
"Over there! They have gear-driven models! I want to check it out!"
Zoro looked left and right:
"I'm going for a walk."
With that, he headed off in the completely opposite direction.
The thief brothers stood dumbfounded in place.
Borodo's voice trembled:
"W-wait! This is enemy territory! Are you all just... wandering around? What if the Trump Pirates spot us?"
Akisu also whispered:
"Aren't we here to fight...? How did it turn into a vacation?"
Lufia had already run to the restaurant entrance, turning back with a bright smile:
"You need to eat to have the strength to fight! Borodo, Akisu, come along too!"
Ralph stood smiling beside her.
Meanwhile, on the top floor of the central tower in the town.
The leader of the Trump Pirates, "Bear King"—
a man nearly three meters tall, built like a bear—was listening to his subordinate's report.
"Report, Chief! There are unfamiliar faces in town! A group of people, men and women, and a girl wearing a straw hat!"
Boo Jack and Honey Queen had just escaped and returned not long ago, now kneeling on the ground trembling.
Upon hearing the words "Straw Hat Girl," both of them looked up simultaneously.
Honey Queen shrieked, "It's them! The Straw Hat Pirates!"
Boo Jack also hurriedly said:
"Chief! They're the ones who defeated our fleet! That Straw Hat Girl is a Gomu Gomu no Mi user, incredibly strong!"
Bear King slowly turned around.
He had a face like a brown bear's, but his eyes were unusually sharp.
He walked to the table and picked up the latest wanted poster.
On that bounty poster, Lufia's smiling face was as radiant as sunlight.
"Straw Hat..."
Bear King's fingers traced over the wanted poster, his mouth slowly curling into a grin.
"A Gomu Gomu no Mi user... incredibly strong..."
He looked up, gazing out the window at the sky, a greedy glint flashing in his eyes.
"She should become my bride!"