Chương 44: The Island of Contradictions #44
Twelve days later...
"So this is Dawn Island..." I muttered, standing at the ship's bow as I looked at the island on the horizon before me, wondering how an island could look so contradictory.
From this angle, the island seemed divided into three parts: the capital, with its tall buildings and busy ports; the Grey Terminal, which looked to be nothing more than a landfill, a garbage dump full of scrap and rubbish; and finally, there was the lush forest east of Grey Terminal, separated from it by a small mountain range.
Though it wasn't easy to see from such a distance, I could spot the rough outline of a village with a small port inside a small clearing to the west of the forest. I immediately recognized it as Luffy's jometown and our current destination, Foosha Village.
It took us almost one week to reach Dawn Island, and I imagine it would have taken longer if we didn't sail through the Calm Belt, an experience I'm not looking forward to reliving anytime soon.
That damned patch of sea was too quiet and lifeless above the sea surface, almost eerily so. The fact that I could see countless gigantic shadows swimming beneath the ship every time I looked down didn't do much to endear me to the experience either.
Unfortunately, I'll have to go through it again once Garp concludes his business on Dawn Island, as we'll have to sail to Marine HQ, but that's neither here nor there.
The closer we drew to the island, the clearer Foosha Village became to my eyes, and I could already see a couple of people standing at the port and waving at us from there.
"That's close enough! Release the dumb beast!" the vice admiral said as we neared the village's port, and the marine soldiers on the battleship instantly obliged as they freed the sea beast.
The turtle-like sea beast roared loudly, seemingly excited at regaining its freedom, and swam away from the battleship. However, it didn't go far before the Lord of the Coast suddenly appeared and bit its head off before dragging its lifeless body into the depths.
I barely held back a chuckle as I looked at such a scene, turned to Vice Admiral Garp, and noticed the blood vessel bulging on his forehead as he gritted his teeth in anger.
"You dumb fish!" the vice admiral exclaimed, and the Lord of the Coast instantly popped its head out of the water to investigate as Garp's booming voice echoed around the sea.
The sea king's red eyes widened as they met Garp's gaze, only to instantly turn tail and flee without hesitation, much to the vice admiral's annoyance, leaving him with nothing to do but shout obscenities at the sea king.
Still, he was only upset for a minute or two, and he instantly seemed to relax, a broad, genuine smile splitting his face as he turned to the port and saw the villagers waiting there.
"Come on, brat. You're coming with me..." the vice admiral said as he walked up to me and patted my shoulder, instantly triggering my PTSD from the brutal back-slapping session he gave me two weeks ago.
"Do I really have to...?" I said, sheepishly scratching my head as I looked at the vice admiral, and the glare he gave me was more than enough to make me change my mind. "I mean, I'd be glad to come with you, sir..." I said as I cleared my throat, barely resisting the urge to sigh.
"That's the spirit," the Vice Admiral said, nodding as he turned to the ship's broadside and started walking. "My two grandsons are roughly your age. The older one is only two years younger than you," he added as he gestured for me to follow, and I could only oblige.
"The two dumb brats keep spouting nonsense about becoming pirates," the Vice Admiral continued as he jumped over the ship's railing and landed on the port. "Hopefully, they'll change their minds when they meet you," he added as he smiled and returned the greetings of the villagers at the port.
"I'm counting on you, kiddo. You better show the two brats how awesome the Marines are," Vice Admiral Garp said as he briefly turned to me with an encouraging grin, prompting me to sigh.
"Now, how the hell am I gonna do that?" I muttered to myself. "I could use someone showing me how awesome the Marines are myself," I added, shaking my head.
"What's that, kiddo?" The Vice Admiral turned to me, seeming to have heard me speaking to myself.
"Nothing, sir."
...
As she went on to close up her bar, the Partys Bar, Makino paused once she saw Vice Admiral Garp approaching, followed by several marine soldiers and an unfamiliar blonde young man dressed as a civilian.
She immediately stopped closing up and greeted the Vice Admiral with a broad smile. "Hello, Mr. Garp! It's been a while," she said as she approached him.
"Oh, hello, Makino," the Vice Admiral replied with a beaming smile of his own. "Are you closing up?" he asked, promptly stopping as he reached the bar's entrance and noticed how empty it was.
"Well, today's business was slow, so I figured I'd go and check on Ace and Luffy," Makino said, her smile waning at the mention of the Vice Admiral's grandchildren. "Ever since Sabo died...they haven't been the same," she added, shaking her head.
"Don't worry about the little brats...they're made of sterner stuff," the Vice Admiral replied with a careless shrug and a dismissive wave of his hand, earning a bitter smile from Makino.
She knew Garp was likely just saddened about Sabo's death and worried for Ace and Luffy, as she was, so Makino could only nod, despite realizing he was putting on a front to cheer her up.
"I know they will. They're Mr. Garp's grandsons, after all," Makino said, jokingly flexing her biceps. "Anyway...please come in. I'll make you all something warm and nice to eat," she added as she stepped into her bar and gestured for everyone to follow.
"Sorry for troubling you, Makino," Vice Admiral Garp said with a grin as he followed behind her, gesturing for Cedric and the marine soldiers to follow him. "By the way...this little brat is Cedric," he added, gesturing toward the blonde young man.
"He's a bit tall for a brat, but he's the same age as Ace," he added with a chuckle.
"Oh...I was just about to ask about him, actually," Makino said, stopping as she turned to Cedric. "Will you also be staying here with Luffy and Ace?" she asked with a kind smile.
"I wish..." Cedric replied, scratching his head. "But, no, I'll have to spend two more weeks on the same ship with this monster..." He added with a tired sigh, gesturing toward the vice admiral, much to his bemusement.
"Oh my..." Makino said, covering her mouth in shock as Garp promptly turned to Cedric and gave him a harsh knock on the head before blowing a light breath on his fist.
"He can be a bit foul-mouthed, but at least he's reasonable enough to become a marine..." Garp said with a chuckle as he watched Cedric hold his head in agony. "I'm hoping he'll rub off on the two brats..." He added as he sat on a stool before the bar's counter.
"Let's hope that works then..." Makino said without bothering to argue, despite knowing that nothing could possibly change Luffy and Ace's minds about becoming pirates. "So... what will you be having...?" She asked after waiting for everyone to be seated.
The Marines and Garp quickly ordered all sorts of food, and then it was Cedric's turn. "I'll have anything that isn't dried up or preserved..." He said as he felt a small lump form over his head and sighed.
"And some rum or whisky, please..." He concluded with a smile, prompting Makino to raise an eyebrow as she turned to Garp, who merely shrugged in response.
"Old enough to have a bounty, old enough to drink, I suppose..." The vice admiral replied, causing Makino to frown in confusion and give Cedric a skeptical look.
"I was framed..." Cedric said with a shrug. "Otherwise, I'd still be traveling instead of taking abuse from this old man--" He added, promptly pausing as he watched Garp raise his fist.
...
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