"We need a ship that can handle the weather of the Grand Line."
Zoro stated his request directly. He had never been the type to beat around the bush.
"A ship for the Grand Line? That won't be cheap," Usopp casually quoted a price, "Even a small wooden sailing ship starts at a few hundred thousand berries."
Kaya's family owned a huge fleet, so Usopp knew these prices by heart.
In fact, the ship he had originally prepared for the Straw Hat Pirates was around that level.
"That expensive..."
Zoro felt a little pressure.
Objectively speaking, the price was completely fair for a seaworthy ship. Nobles and famous pirates could pay that much without thinking twice.
The problem was that they were just a group of rookies who had only recently set sail.
Back when he worked as a bounty hunter, Zoro had actually saved up several million berries.
But money had never meant much to him. Besides, to make himself look like a broke swordsman and smoothly join Luffy's crew, he hadn't brought any of that money with him.
Zoro instinctively looked at Nami.
If anyone among the three of them was loaded, it was the famous thief of the East Blue.
Forget a few hundred thousand. She could probably take out tens of millions of berries without blinking.
"I do have money, but why should I lend it to you?"
Nami folded her arms and smiled as she watched Zoro's awkward expression.
"Nami! We're crewmates!"
Luffy immediately ran over, looking at her with pleading eyes.
When it came to who controlled the money, Luffy always knew who to ask.
"We'll borrow it from you. Once we have money, we'll pay you back with interest," Zoro spoke seriously.
A debt of a few hundred thousand berries was nothing compared to what he planned to do in the future.
"Sure."
A calculating look flashed through Nami's eyes.
"One percent interest per day. That's fair, right?"
"Deal!"
Zoro gritted his teeth and agreed immediately.
Having received basic education through the system, he naturally knew that one percent daily interest was outrageous by normal standards.
But it didn't matter.
Time was money.
As long as they could set sail, he was completely confident he could earn enough to repay both the principal and the interest in a short time.
"Great!"
Nami immediately put on a bright business smile and turned to Usopp.
"Boss Usopp, what's the cheapest ship you can hand over right away? I'll pay for them first."
Only an idiot turned down money.
They were teammates in name, but that didn't stop her from earning interest without any guilt.
Her sister was working hard to move up, so it wasn't good to keep taking too much money from the World Government. She had to help out somehow.
Besides, she and her mother planned to retire on the Red Line one day. They would definitely need money.
"Hahaha! With interest that high, you're making me want to quit and become a moneylender."
Usopp laughed before holding up a hand.
"The fastest one I can get you costs 550,000 berries."
"Fine, we'll take the 550,000 one. But let me ask one thing. That ship can make it to the Grand Line, right?"
"The ship itself can definitely make it through Reverse Mountain."
Usopp became a little more serious and shook his head.
"But you're pirates, right? You should know that the ship is never the biggest obstacle to entering the Grand Line. The real problem is whether you can get permission to pass."
"Huh? Permission? What's that?"
Luffy tilted his head in confusion.
"We need permission too?"
"You idiots! You don't even know about Reverse City entry permits, and you're already talking about going to the Grand Line?"
Seeing the identical confused looks on Luffy and Zoro's faces, Nami was completely speechless and rubbed her forehead.
"Reverse City is the only route from the East Blue to the Grand Line. It's also the first city for people from the Four Seas who want to immigrate to the Red Line."
Usopp patiently explained with a smile.
"Normally, if it's just a ship passing through, the toll is about one million berries. If people are immigrating as well, the cost becomes astronomical."
"Oh? So that's how it works..."
Luffy scratched his head thoughtfully. Then his eyes lit up, "Then we'll just fight our way through."
"Fight our way through?"
The moment he said that, everyone present, including the Red Hair Pirates several kilometers away who were watching through Observation Haki, gave him the same speechless look.
That is the World Government.
The World Government's first checkpoint on the Red Line, guarding the Four Seas
The World Government actually didn't care much whether pirates passed through. Their rules were simple.
Pay the money, and you could pass.
But if someone wanted to force their way through with violence, not a single lunatic had managed it in the hundreds of years since Reverse City had been built.
"If you want to die, jump into the sea by yourself. Don't drag me with you. I'm still young, and I want to live for a few more decades!"
Nami shook her head so hard it was almost a blur as she quickly backed away from Luffy.
She had heard that Luffy acted recklessly, but today she had finally seen it herself.
This wasn't just reckless.
He was asking to get himself killed.
"So what if it's the World Government? If they won't let us through, we'll just beat them all up!"
Luffy still refused to accept it. A bright grin spread across his face as he threw a punch into the air.
"Hahaha! Having spirit is a good thing. But it's better to keep those words to yourself. Don't let anyone else hear them."
Usopp laughed and shook his head.
This was the first time in his life he had met someone this reckless.
'So this is the child of destiny Yasopp and the others believe in?'
Usopp quietly laughed to himself.
At least so far, he couldn't see anything about this straw hat idiot that suggested he could change the world.
The deal for the ship went through without any problems.
Since there was still paperwork to finish before they could take the ship, Usopp generously invited Luffy and the others to stay in the manor's guest rooms.
Since they still needed to buy a large amount of supplies and spend some time getting familiar with the new ship, Zoro and Nami accepted.
———
When they finally saw the new ship worth 550,000 berries docked by the shore at sunset, both Zoro and Nami were a little surprised.
Its appearance was plain, exactly what you would expect from a wooden sailing ship worth only 550,000 berries.
As for performance, thanks to the technological changes Rosse had brought to the world, even a cheap mass-produced ship like this performed well.
At least, in the eyes of Zoro and Nami, who knew ships, the 550,000 berries had been well spent.
There was a small disagreement over the ship's name.
In the end, it was officially named the Going Merry.
The public reason was that Merry was the name of Kaya's personal maid, and they borrowed it to thank Usopp for his hospitality.
But that was only the explanation they gave.
In truth, the name had already been decided before Luffy ever set sail.
Everyone present, including Nami, who paid for it, Zoro, who would steer it, and even Usopp, who gave them the ship, already knew that.
No one knew why it had to be Merry.
But everyone knew that this ship was meant to have that name.
———
Night fell. The manor in Syrup Village was wrapped in silence.
After eating and drinking their fill, Luffy and the others returned to the rooms prepared for them.
After spending days drifting at sea on that broken little boat without decent food or proper beds, they had finally enjoyed themselves.
Luffy's stomach was round like a ball. Nami had finally tasted fine wine. Even Zoro had drunk a few extra cups.
After all, free good liquor was there to be enjoyed.
After showing each of them to their rooms, Kuro politely prepared to leave.
He stood at the doorway as straight as ever. The silver-rimmed glasses reflected the candlelight.
"Please have a good rest. If you need anything, simply pull the bell rope beside your bed."
His tone remained polite, and every word was carefully chosen.
However, the moment he turned around, Zoro caught something.
Something that felt wrong.
The corner of Kuro's mouth lifted slightly, and a trace of darkness flashed through his eyes.
The expression vanished in an instant, so quickly that it could have been nothing more than a trick of the candlelight.
But Zoro never believed in coincidences.
His hand moved to the hilt of his sword as he watched Kuro disappear down the hallway.
"What is it?"
Nami spoke from the doorway of the next room. She had noticed Zoro's reaction as well.
"Nothing."
Zoro looked away, "Get some rest."
Nami asked no more questions, but a hint of caution appeared in her eyes as well.
After so many days at sea, they had learned to trust their instincts.
And right now, both of them felt the same warning.
Something was wrong.
———
[Late into the Night]
The manor had gone completely quiet.
Even the insects seemed to have disappeared into the darkness.
Moonlight slipped through gaps in the clouds, casting broken shadows across the windows as they swayed with the night breeze.
Tap... Tap... Tap...
A very faint sound echoed across the wooden floor of the hallway.
It was so light that it resembled the footsteps of a cat, almost drowned out by the wind blowing through the cracks in the windows.
An ordinary person would probably have dismissed it as the creaking of an old house.
But Zoro and Nami had never been ordinary people.
"!!!"
The instant the sound reached him, Zoro opened his eyes.
His right hand had already gripped Wado Ichimonji beside his pillow, but the rest of his body stayed perfectly still. His breathing remained slow, just like someone asleep.
Only his eyes, faintly visible in the darkness, showed that he was fully awake.
More than ten years of sword training and countless brushes with death had sharpened his senses until they matched those of a wild beast.
To him, a sound like this was as obvious as a war drum.
In the next room, Nami also woke from her light sleep.
As the famous thief of the East Blue, staying alert to her surroundings had become instinct.
No matter where she slept, she would unconsciously remember the room's layout, possible escape routes, and every unusual sound.
Without making a noise, she sat up, stepped onto the carpet barefoot, and slowly approached the door.
The footsteps were moving away.
Not toward their rooms.
They were heading... upstairs.
The target was the third floor.
Their rooms were part of a suite, with two bedrooms connected by a large shared living room.
When Zoro opened his door, Nami was already standing in the middle of the room.
Their eyes met in the moonlight.
Without saying a word, they both understood.
"Where's Luffy?", Nami whispered.
Zoro tilted his head toward the other bedroom with a helpless look.
Even now, loud snores were coming from behind the closed door.
After barely sleeping on that broken boat for days, Luffy was sleeping like a log.
Forget footsteps as quiet as a cat's. Even a cannon going off beside his ear might not wake him.
"I'll get him."
Zoro walked straight into Luffy's room and grabbed the head under the straw hat.
"Hey. Wake up."
"Mmm... another ten plates of meat..."
"Wake up!"
Zoro tightened his grip.
Only then did Luffy slowly open his eyes, a bit of drool still at the corner of his mouth.
"Huh? What... There's no danger... I'm sleepy..."
He rubbed his eyes, looking completely unwilling.
The rough days at sea had worn him out. He had finally gotten a comfortable bed, only to be dragged out of a good dream.
Anyone would be annoyed.
"Stop sleeping. Something's happening outside."
Zoro left no room for argument.
Then he suddenly looked up.
His ears twitched slightly.
Just then, from the floor above them, he heard the sound again.
Light, careful, deliberately quiet footsteps.
No one walked like that during a late-night bathroom trip or while patrolling.
That was how people moved when they were doing something they didn't want anyone to know about.
Nami hurried in.
Her face looked pale in the moonlight, but her eyes stayed calm.
"The footsteps were heading to the third floor."
The third floor was where Kaya and Usopp lived.
Their guest rooms were in the eastern corner of the second floor of the main manor.
Kuro and the other servants stayed on the west side of the first floor. Under normal circumstances, no one should have passed through the hallway outside their rooms.
'Unless...'
The two looked at each other.
The same thought crossed both their minds.
The person had deliberately taken the longer route just to alert them.
"Let's go upstairs and take a look."
Zoro spoke without hesitation.
Since they had gone out of their way to invite them, there was no reason not to go.
Nami nodded and quickly grabbed a heavy metal candlestick from the table.
She wasn't as strong as Zoro, but having a weapon was still better than using her bare hands.
"Mmm... what's going on..."
Pulled along by Zoro and Nami from either side, Luffy stumbled out of the room, still half asleep.
But he didn't resist.
Even though he could barely keep his eyes open, he instinctively followed his crewmates.
No matter what happened, staying with his companions was the right choice.
That was Luffy's way.
Simple and direct.
[T/N: Consider joining P@treon to keep the stories going. Enjoy~]