Captain, are you serious about that?
Lucky Roux, gnawing on a huge chicken leg, looked at his mustached captain with eyes sparkling in anticipation.
"O-of course!" the curly-mustached captain answered, though his gaze wavered slightly before he nodded in agreement.
It wasn't that he, Curly-Mustache, was stingy. As a pirate with a bounty of 64 million Berry, he was considered quite a big name in the first half of the Grand Line. And truth be told, Lucky Roux had contributed greatly to that bounty. For that reason, he usually treated the little chubby guy fairly well.
But even with all that, he was beginning to feel like he couldn't afford to feed Lucky Roux anymore—he simply ate way too much.
Other than sleeping, Lucky Roux spent all his time eating. And no matter how much he ate, he never seemed satisfied.
Hearing his captain agree to let him eat as much as he wanted, Lucky Roux's eyes lit up. He stuffed the chicken leg into his mouth in a few quick bites, then suddenly drew two pistols from his waist, pointing them straight at Shanks.
"Time to get serious!"
Shanks smiled faintly. His opponent was a gunman. Against ranged fighters, he had plenty of experience—after all, his captain was a master of ranged weapons.
But the moment Lucky Roux moved, Shanks immediately sensed the difference. Instead of pulling back to maintain distance like most gunners, Lucky Roux rushed at him head-on, moving surprisingly fast.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Shots rang out in succession. Shanks wiped his cheek in disbelief and saw fresh blood on his fingers.
If he hadn't reacted in time just now, one of those bullets would have gone right through his skull.
"Heh… consider yourself lucky. Next time, you won't be," Lucky Roux chuckled, licking his lips as he spoke.
"Be careful, Shanks! He's a close-range gunman!" Fang Yi called out from the sidelines.
"Interesting… Captain, leave this guy to me!" Shanks' smile faded. He realized he needed to take this fight seriously.
"No problem," Fang Yi nodded, his gaze shifting to the Curly-Mustache captain before him. With a bounty of over sixty million, Fang Yi's eyes sparkled with excitement.
That was worth 6,000 points!
"Y-you little brat, what do you think you're doing? I'm the infamous pirate Curly-Mustache, wanted for sixty-four milli—ahhh!"
Before he could finish boasting, one of Fang Yi's arrows had already pierced his chest.
"You cowardly brat—attacking by surprise! Men, kill him!" Curly-Mustache roared, clutching his chest where the arrow had lodged, and ordered his crew forward.
But Fang Yi was stunned. His arrows carried the Pierce passive skill—they shouldn't have just "stuck" in someone's chest like that. And other than a scream of pain, Curly-Mustache looked completely fine.
This was the first time Fang Yi had ever encountered such a situation.
"Could he be some strange Devil Fruit user?" Fang Yi wondered as he fought through the rushing underlings. But even after observing closely, Curly-Mustache didn't display any unusual traits—other than the fact that he couldn't swim.
To test his theory, Fang Yi stowed his bow, cut through the small fry, and stepped right up to Curly-Mustache. With a swift kick to the chest, he sent him flying into the sea.
"Captain fell into the water!"
"Oh no! Save the captain—he can't swim!"
The crew panicked at once.
In the middle of his fight with Shanks, Lucky Roux's eyes widened at the shouts. Looking toward the sea, he saw his captain thrashing helplessly, on the verge of sinking.
"Never look away in the middle of a fight!" Shanks seized the moment, landing a solid punch to Lucky Roux's gut and knocking him back.
But Shanks immediately felt something was off—the blow didn't give him the satisfying impact of actually hitting flesh.
Sure enough, Lucky Roux slammed into the ship's railing, shook his head, and charged right back as if nothing had happened.
Meanwhile, Fang Yi, realizing that Curly-Mustache must indeed be a Devil Fruit user, grew more cautious.
Until now, his abilities had always been unstoppable. No Devil Fruit power had ever countered or blocked his attacks. But this was a wake-up call—this world was full of strange abilities. Someday, he might meet someone who could truly restrain him.
"Really… I should thank you for showing me this lesson. But as thanks, I'll be taking your 6,000 points!" Fang Yi whispered as he raised his bow toward the drowning Curly-Mustache.
Whoosh—Splat!
Before his crew could even dive in to save him, Fang Yi's arrow struck true. Blood spread quickly across the surface as Curly-Mustache sank beneath the waves.
"Th-the captain's dead!!"
"Run! These guys are monsters!"
"No—avenge the captain! Everyone, kill them!"
The Curly-Mustache Pirates broke into chaos, some fleeing, others rushing in blind rage.
Just then, Fang Yi heard the system's voice:
"Congratulations, host, for killing the wanted pirate Curly-Mustache (64 million Berry). Capture his soul?"
"Yes."
"Success. Green Soul Energy acquired. Detained in the Bounty Tower—check when convenient…"
"Shop updated. Please check…"
"Green Soul Energy?" Fang Yi frowned. "And why did the shop update now?"
Questions filled his mind, but this wasn't the time—he needed to clean up the rest of the small fry first.
Meanwhile, Shanks and Lucky Roux's fight had also shifted after Curly-Mustache's death.
"Hey, your captain's dead," Shanks smirked as he retreated slightly. "How about it? Want to come aboard our ship instead?"
Lucky Roux hesitated. "But… you killed my captain."
"So what—you planning to take revenge?" Shanks asked, narrowing his eyes.
He could already tell—this chubby kid never really fit with the Curly-Mustache Pirates. There was no bond between them.
"Revenge? Not really," Lucky Roux shook his head. "He wasn't a good man. He just used me for my strength. I only stuck around because they gave me food."
"So it's just about eating, huh? Then come aboard my ship. I'll make sure you eat your fill every day," Fang Yi interjected with a grin as he approached.
"Really? I eat a lot, you know!" Lucky Roux's eyes lit up.
"Of course. And if you ever feel you can't get enough food with us, you're free to leave anytime," Fang Yi shrugged. Then he turned to Shanks and sighed, "By the way, Shanks… our sixty-four million bounty just sank to the bottom of the sea."
Shanks' face darkened. "Why are you telling me? Go ask Wangzai!"
"Haha, fine, fine. I'll leave this guy to you—I'll go get Wangzai to fetch the body!" Fang Yi chuckled, glancing once more at Lucky Roux before running off toward the Dragon Wolf to ensure Curly-Mustache's corpse didn't drift away.
Seeing Curly-Mustache killed so quickly by mere "kids," the surrounding pirates scrambled in fear, terrified of drawing their attention.
Soon after, Wangzai returned with Curly-Mustache's body. Barrett skillfully severed the head and sealed it in a wooden box—prepared especially for Tiffany, who refused to carry severed heads when exchanging bounties.
As Barrett finished, Shanks arrived with Lucky Roux in tow.
"Captain, he agreed to join us," Shanks reported, grinning.
"Welcome aboard the Dragon Wolf Pirates!" Fang Yi said warmly. "I'm Captain Fang Yi. The one you fought earlier is Shanks. That's our combat commander, Barrett. The cute girl there is our chef, Tiffany, and beside her is our musician, Jessica."
"Uh… h-hello, Captain. I'm—er… Lucky Roux," the chubby boy scratched his head awkwardly. Just moments ago, he'd been fighting Shanks, and now he was standing here as an ally.
"Lucky Roux, huh? By the way, your former captain—Curly-Mustache—was he a Devil Fruit user?" Fang Yi asked curiously.
Lucky Roux nodded. "Yeah, though he never said what fruit it was. Honestly, none of us noticed much difference—other than the fact he couldn't swim."
"I see…" Fang Yi nodded, then added, "For now, you'll serve as one of our fighters. How's that sound?"
"Fighters get to eat their fill, right?" Lucky Roux asked bluntly.
"Of course! Tiffany, let our new companion taste your cooking. From now on, we're partners—partners who live and die together. So don't ever ask again whether you'll get enough to eat. Whatever we have, we share!" Fang Yi said firmly.
"Yes, Captain!" Lucky Roux replied with a nod, clearly moved.
True to form, Tiffany had already prepared a feast before they even reached the Sabaody Archipelago. Soon, the entire crew sat watching in awe as Lucky Roux devoured dish after dish like a starving beast.
"You… just how long have you been starving? Did those guys not even feed you?" Barrett asked, his mouth twitching at the sight.
"Mhm," Lucky Roux nodded, still chewing. "They never let me eat my fill. They made me fight for them—win, and I'd get food. Lose, and I'd go hungry."
"What?! That's horrible!" Tiffany slammed the table angrily. As a chef, she despised anyone who let others go hungry.
"They never treated you as a real comrade," Shanks muttered, shaking his head.
Lucky Roux kept eating, not answering.
Alright, enough. We're about to reach the Sabaody Archipelago, Fang Yi clapped his hands, drawing everyone's attention back. Once we arrive, we're going to make the Dragon Wolf Pirates' name known across the seas. Right now, we may just be rookies—but not for long!