In the basement prison, a single flickering lamp did little to cut the gloom. The air was thick with the stench of salt and despair.
Alvida's former crew was whispering in their communal cell, their voices, usually hushed with fear of their captain, now laced with contempt.
"They're going to transfer us tomorrow," one pirate lamented. "I heard them talking. We're finished."
"And she's the reason!" another spat, directing his rage at the solitary cell. "All that talk of strength, and she got played by a rubber brat and a chore boy. I told you, her fat head was too big for this sea! She let him hand us over for bounty! We should have mutinied long ago, but no, we had to follow the 'most beautiful woman' right into a cage!"
Alvida sat alone in her cell, her massive form barely contained by the bars. She was boiling with impotent rage, the humiliation of their whispered insults stinging almost as badly as her capture.
This was all part of his damned plan. "Let them capture you," he had said, his voice cold and certain. "Play the part. I'll get you out."
She had agreed—what choice did she have? It was the only reason she had allowed this charade. But he hadn't mentioned this part: the stench, the damp, and the endless, grating whispers of her own worthless former crew.
The waiting was becoming unbearable. Her stomach growled, a deep, angry sound. Hours had passed. Where was he?
A cold knot of genuine fear began to form in her gut. In the real pirate world, a deal was just a suggestion. Betrayal for profit was the only true rule. He had his bounty money now. What if that was all he wanted? What if he had just sailed away, leaving her here to rot?
She clutched her arm, the spot where the contract had sealed itself to her soul. She knew it demanded her loyalty, but what did it demand of him? Was it a two-way street, or just a leash for his new dog? The uncertainty was a poison. She wasn't just waiting for a rescue; she was waiting to see if she had made the biggest, and last, mistake of her life.
The heavy iron door at the top of the stairs creaked open, signaling the change of the night watch.
"Did you hear about the Captain?" one guard muttered. "He's been acting like a madman. Sent us up to his office earlier with a huge order of food. A feast, I'm telling you."
"Yeah, I heard," the fresh guard replied. "My buddy saw the bounty hunter kid go up there with him, and then there was a crash and a gunshot. That bounty hunter hasn't been seen leaving the office. You think he's still up there?"
The new guards settled into their posts. The night dragged on.
__________
Two hours later, in the dead silence of the tyrant's office, Luffy's eyes snapped open. The darkness was absolute, but the first thing he saw was the familiar, ethereal green text blooming in his mind.
[Task Complete: A Marine's Dream]
[Reward: 2 Contracts]
[Contracts Remaining: 14]
A slow, satisfied smile spread across his face, followed by a low, pleased laugh. "Shishishi."
He swung his legs off the couch and stood, stretching his rubbery limbs. The knock on the door had been his alarm clock.
Luffy opened it. Morgan stood there, a silent, obedient shadow. In his hands, he held three sheathed katanas.
Luffy took the swords. He then unholstered his own pistol and handed it to the hollowed-out captain. "Use this only if you are seen," he commanded. "You know what to do."
Morgan gave a single, stiff nod, took the pistol, and melted back into the shadows.
With the swords in hand, it was time for Luffy's own task. He walked through the sleeping fortress, his footsteps the only sound in the unnaturally silent corridors. Unconscious Marines were slumped in doorways and against walls, evidence of Morgan's efficient work. He moved with the fluid ease of a predator who knows he owns the territory. He soon reached the courtyard, where a single figure was bound to a wooden cross.
Roronoa Zoro was sleeping, his head slumped forward. Even defeated, he projected an aura of dormant danger. Luffy approached, his footsteps making no sound. He reached out a hand.
Before he could make contact, both of Zoro's eyes snapped open. They were sharp, intense, and lethally focused.
"What do you want?" Zoro's voice was a low, raspy growl.
"I'm here to recruit you," Luffy said simply.
Zoro sized him up. A skinny kid holding his precious swords. "You've got guts," Zoro grunted. He saw an opportunity. "Look, untie me, give me my swords, and I'll help you get out of here. I'll owe you one. A favor."
Luffy scoffed. "Nah."
Zoro's eyes narrowed. "What?"
"I don't need a favor. I want you on my crew. Join me, and sign a contract."
"I will not become a pirate and A contract?" Zoro's voice was laced with contempt. "I already said I'd owe you. My word is my bond. What kind of pirate needs a contract to make sure his allies don't stab him in the back?"
"Mine," Luffy answered, his voice flat. He laid the three katanas on the dusty ground, just out of Zoro's reach. "you are already a criminal so you can either die here at dawn, and I sell your swords to the next guy who wants them. or you Join me"
The threat was profound. His jaw tightened, his gaze turning to ice.
"I can't," he said, the words torn from his throat. "My dream... is to become the World's Greatest Swordsman. It's a promise I made. I will not be a puppet."
The finality in his refusal was palpable. Leverage had failed. Luffy fell silent. The word "dream" seemed to hang in the air, and something in his demeanor shifted, a crack forming in the cold, pragmatic facade.
"A dream..." Luffy repeated the word, tasting it.
The calculating smirk vanished. For the first time, a genuine, wide grin stretched across his face—the innocent, reckless smile of the boy whose body this was, now powered by the burning ambition of the man within. He pointed a thumb at himself, his eyes alight with a fire that seemed to push back the darkness.
"So do I. I'm going to be the King of the Pirates."
Zoro's eyes widened slightly at the staggering, unadulterated audacity. It wasn't a boast; it was a statement of pure, unshakable fact.
"The World's Greatest Swordsman should be on the Pirate King's crew," Luffy continued, the logic cold and simple, but the passion now undeniably real. "Your dream doesn't conflict with mine. My journey will take us to the Grand Line, where the strongest swordsmen are waiting. Your goal lies directly on my path."
For a long time, the two just stared at each other. Zoro's mind was a battlefield. To trust this boy, to bind himself to this impossible dream... it was insane. But to refuse was to die, his own dream turning to ash.
"Fine," Zoro finally grunted, his voice filled with grudging acceptance. "I'll join your pirate crew. But know this, Captain. If you ever, for any reason, stand between me and my dream... contract or no contract, I will cut you down."
"I'd expect nothing less," Luffy replied, his confident smirk returning. He willed the golden scroll into existence.
Zoro stared at the magical light, his weary eyes widening. "What... is this?"
"The contract," Luffy said simply. "Wanna read it first?"
"No," Zoro grunted. "But I thought it'd be paper or something. What is this... magic?"
"It's one of my powers," Luffy said with an easy grin. "Don't ask how i got it. Just accept the contract."
"How?" Zoro asked, glancing down at his bound hands. "I'm a little tied up here."
"Just think it," Luffy said. "Think that you accept the terms."
Zoro closed his eyes, focusing his formidable will on a single thought of acceptance. The moment he did, the scroll flared with brilliant light and vanished.
[Task Complete: Recruit the Pirate Hunter]
[Reward: 5 Contracts]
[Contracts Remaining: 17]
[New Task Assigned: Defeat Buggy the Clown]
[Reward: 1 Contract]
"Just know," Luffy said, his voice turning serious, "from now on, you can never betray me. And I can never betray you."
Zoro opened his eyes. "Fine. Anything else? Or are you going to cut these ropes now?"
"Oh, right," Luffy said, as if just remembering. He picked up the white-sheathed katana, the Wado Ichimonji. With a quick, clean slice of the blade, he cut through the thick ropes.
The swordsman slumped to the ground, weak from days of starvation. He immediately reached for his other katanas, his hands closing around the familiar hilts with deep, visceral relief. He tried to stand, but his legs trembled.
"You alright?" Luffy asked.
Zoro pushed himself to his feet, leaning on one of his swords like a cane. "I'm fine," he growled, his pride stung. "Just... a little hungry, Captain."
"Shishishi," Luffy laughed, the sound echoing in the silent courtyard.
__________
At the very moment Luffy's shadow fell across Zoro, another, far larger shadow was descending into the fortress's dark underbelly.
A loud, heavy THUMP... THUMP... THUMP echoed from the stone stairs. In the communal cell, the sleeping pirates stirred. Alvida went rigid.
The large iron door groaned open, and a towering, cloaked silhouette stepped into the corridor. A wave of primal fear washed over the prisoners. They scrambled back, a trembling mass of bodies.
The figure ignored them. It stopped by the two Marine guards, who stood frozen with fear. Before they could react, its hand shot out. Two sickening, heavy THUD impacts echoed as the guards were brutally incapacitated. The figure then moved to the solitary lamp, its hand snapping the mechanism with a sharp CRACK.
Absolute darkness swallowed the basement. A chilling silence followed. Then, the rhythmic jangle of keys... getting closer... it stopped. Right in front of her cell.
The bolt slid back with a loud, grating KERR-CHUNK!
Alvida's cell door swung open. A massive, gloved hand emerged from the cloak, holding the familiar, weighted haft of her iron mace. It pushed the weapon into her hands.
Then, the figure turned. As it passed the unconscious guards, it intentionally opened its gloved hand. The metallic sound of a flintlock pistol clattering onto the concrete floor echoed in the basement. The black shadow then ascended the stairs, vanishing into the darkness as the iron door groaned shut.
She stood there, alone and free.
__________
Author here :
Hello there, One Piece fans!
Hope you're all doing great, especially after reading chapter 1164.
I have a quick update for you. Our community has collected funds to organize a kitchen service for pilgrims visiting our area, and I am going there to volunteer.
Because of this, I won't be writing any new material for the next 4 days.
But don't worry! I already have a few chapters prepared that were originally for early release on Patreon. I'll be posting those here as usual so you still have content to read while I'm away.
This message is also for anyone who might be thinking of supporting me on Patreon in the future.
Please know that even when I have to take a short break like this, I will always work extra hard to make it up to you.
Thanks for your understanding, and I'll be back to writing soon!