Seeing Margaret collapse into his arms, Luffy immediately grew anxious.
In his eyes, she was a genuinely good person. She had pulled him out from a pile of strange poisonous mushrooms, saving his life, and even gave him food afterward. To Luffy, that already made her one of the best people around.
Because of that, he did not want anything to happen to her.
Still, something felt off.
From what he could sense, Margaret did not seem sick at all. Her presence felt normal. Yet her body was burning hot, as if she had a fever.
"Hey, Margaret, don't die on me!"
Without hesitation, Luffy scooped her up in his arms.
Margaret instantly stiffened.
Her mind went blank, and it felt like steam was about to rise from her head. Her cheeks flushed a deep red, like ripe apples. She did not know how to react and could only let him carry her.
Luffy moved quickly, heading toward the residential area of Amazon Lily.
Margaret gradually regained some awareness. With her Observation Haki, she could already sense they were getting close to where others might see them.
"Lu... Luffy, I'm fine now!"
Panicking, she struggled out of his arms and landed on her feet.
Her face still burning, she turned and ran back the way they came.
Luffy stood there, staring at her retreating figure in confusion. He scratched his head.
"She really is strange. She's burning up but won't see a doctor."
A hint of concern appeared on his face.
"Nothing will happen, right? She's running pretty fast though, she doesn't look sick."
After saying that, his attention quickly shifted.
He sniffed the air.
"That smells amazing... is that roasted Sea King?"
His eyes lit up, and without another thought, he ran toward the source of the scent.
Meanwhile, Margaret ran through the forest, her thoughts in complete chaos.
"Margaret, what are you doing? How did you end up in his arms? Aren't you embarrassed?"
Just thinking about it made her entire body heat up again.
Yet, at the same time, she could not deny the feeling she had when Luffy held her. It was warm, safe, and strangely comforting.
A feeling she had never experienced before.
"If I could just stay like that a little longer..."
She froze for a moment, then shook her head quickly and rubbed her cheeks.
"What am I even thinking?"
She turned back to look behind her, her lips forming a small pout.
"Hmph."
She had expected Luffy to follow her.
She was alone in a forest filled with dangerous creatures. Was he not worried at all?
"He's such an idiot."
Still, she kept running, trying to avoid being seen. Before long, she found herself back at the place where they first met.
"I actually came back here..."
She stopped and looked around.
Familiar scenes flooded her mind.
The first time she saw Luffy, she had thought he was nothing more than a strange lump covered in mushrooms. Not far away, the scorched marks from when she burned off the mushrooms were still visible.
Her gaze shifted toward the pond nearby.
The moment she saw it, her face turned even redder.
That was where she had bathed him.
And also where she had seen that strange mushroom.
Her thoughts drifted again, completely losing track of her surroundings.
A sudden loud sound snapped her back to reality.
She turned around nervously.
Luffy was standing there.
Her eyes lowered instantly, as if she had been caught doing something embarrassing.
"Lu... Luffy... why are you here?"
Luffy looked at her, his tone serious.
"That was dangerous. Didn't you notice that wild boar? It almost bit you."
He pointed to the side.
A large wild boar lay there, covered in lumps from where he had punched it.
Margaret looked at the boar, then back at Luffy.
Her face softened, and she lowered her head again, her fingers fidgeting.
"Th... thank you..."
She had been completely lost in her thoughts and had not sensed anything approaching. If Luffy had not shown up, she might have been injured.
Just moments ago, she had been upset that he did not follow her.
Now, it seemed he had been watching her the whole time.
A quiet sense of happiness filled her chest.
Luffy reached out and patted her shoulder.
"It's nothing, don't worry about it."
Then he spoke again, his tone bright.
"By the way, are you hungry? I saw a noodle shop earlier. It smelled really good."
Margaret did not respond.
She was still caught up in her own thoughts.
Luffy waved a hand in front of her face.
"Hey, I said let's go eat noodles!"
This time, she reacted.
"O-okay..."
Then she immediately shook her head.
"No, wait, don't go!"
If they went together, people would definitely see them. She could not even imagine how awkward that would be.
So she refused without thinking.
Luffy frowned slightly.
"But it smells really good."
As he spoke, drool almost slipped from his mouth.
Margaret shook her head firmly.
"No."
She looked around, then pointed at the wild boar nearby.
"You can roast meat, right? Let's just eat this."
Luffy tilted his head, thinking for a moment before nodding.
"Alright."
Originally, he planned to go eat noodles alone. But remembering that Margaret had almost been attacked, he decided to stay.
Soon, smoke rose from the fire, and the smell of roasted meat spread through the forest.
Luffy tore off a large piece and took a bite.
He looked at Margaret curiously.
"What's wrong? You're not eating? It's really good. Not as good as Rolan's cooking, but still great."
He took another big bite.
Margaret shook her head.
"No, I'm not hungry."
She rested her chin on her hands, quietly watching him eat.
No matter how she looked at him, she liked what she saw.
===
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