"Now, kids, don't be like that. I won't take it all, after all, it was you both who did the majority of the work. Let's split the treasure these guys have. How about a 50-50 split?" said the merchant as he smiled like a weasel while rubbing his hands.
Lucien slowly sat down as the exhaustion was catching upto him but looked at the merchant and the guards with a dead expression and the same flat tone, "I don't think so. You should be grateful your cargo didn't get stolen this time as well. Just turn around and go on your way. My friend here loves money. I wouldn't test him on that." as he pointed at Idris who had the same level expression he always had while pointing his gun at the guards.
The Merchant's face turned a darker shade of red as he stared at them with enough hatred that could kill them. After the standoff continued for a few more seconds, just as Lucien was slowly starting to get annoyed by the silence and the dimming light, the merchant turned around and waved his guards to come back.
"Both of you better watch your backs. I control these parts of North Blue," he threatened one more time before shouting at his workers to stop standing and continue on their journey.
Both of them watched as the merchant ship sailed off into the distance and finally relaxed as Lucien just exhaled and fell onto his back and looked at the stars that had come out at this point and raised his hands to see the bloody knuckles.
He smiled as the adrenaline was wearing off and the pain started to kick in. Before he could ever speak, Idris was already moving around, tying up any remaining alive crew members and lighting up the lanterns he found on the ship.
"Alright, according to our deal, the bounty is yours as you defeated Virex, and I go through the treasure," said Idris as he came back after a few minutes of finishing up. It didn't take much time as most of the crew were dead from his bullets.
Lucien pulled himself up, looked at Idris for a second, and said, "How about you take the bounty and even any money we find in their chests?"
"But?" Idris asked.
"But you join me from now on. I am planning to travel the entire world and uncover all the secrets it has to offer, and go to the end of the world too. To do all this, I need a strong crew that can help me on my journey through the Grand Line, which is filled with monsters way stronger than this guy right here. Travelling alone through the Grand Line is just a slow way to die," proposed Lucien.
Lucien saw how Idris worked and fought during this short trip, and he was really good. He had a really good eye and control of the gun. He also had this thought for a while now, since Roger's execution, he knew travelling alone through the Grand Line was just a death wish and if he had to it was best to find people that can come along on the journey.
"And hey, before you reject, think about the money that is in the Grand Line. This is all just some chump change compared to what's there, and you saw just now, our fighting styles just work together well, and we can get stronger quicker together than put ourselves at risk trying solo," he reasoned and just went and leaned onto the edge of the ship, looking at the now dark and quiet sea.
"Sure," replied Idris, and went to remove the dead bodies by throwing them into the sea.
"That's it? Don't you think you agreed too quickly? I was actually brainstorming ways to get you to agree just now," replied Lucien in an instant as he whipped his head towards Idris.
"There isn't much to disagree about. I know I can't earn enough money by just bounty hunting in North Blue; there aren't enough strong pirates here, with how strong the Marine Branch in North Blue is lately. So going to the Grand Line is a better idea, and as you said, traveling solo in the Grand Line is a death wish," responded Idris.
Lucien just nodded as he helped Idris finish up, throwing away the dead bodies as Idris asked, "So, what are we now? Pirates? Bounty Hunter Group?"
"No bounty on our heads yet, so technically we aren't pirates. But the way this world works, I wouldn't count on that lasting. So yes, Pirate Crew."
"Are there any other members?"
"No, no one else. You are the first, so you will be my First Mate." Lucien responded as he patted Idris's shoulder.
"Alright, let's go and see what these guys have on them after all these robberies. They should have some food, right? I haven't eaten properly in five days, and I am starting to find it genuinely offensive. Let's first eat up and then look for their chest," said Lucien as he walked into the ship.
The dining area turned out to be mostly drinks. A considerable variety of them
He found some meat behind the drinks, which answered the question of whether the pirates ate anything solid. Within a few minutes, he had something edible for both of them on the table. It was their first proper meal in five days; true to form, the merchant had not provided any.
After a quick dinner, they made their way to the captain's cabin and found the chest they were looking for. Idris didn't bother to look for a key to open it as he whipped out his pistol and shot the lock to open a considerable amount of shimmering objects that would fetch them both a lot of money.
Lucien left the chest to Idris and walked through the room. He paused near the far wall, looked down, and tapped the floor with his foot a few times.
"Hollow," he said, and knocked on it twice to confirm. Idris crossed the room and crouched beside him.
Lucien found the edge of the panel and pulled it up. Underneath, sitting in a shallow recess lined with cloth, was a fruit. He looked at it for a moment.
"A Devil Fruit," whispered Lucien.
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