Chapter 14 Crushing Strike! The Cat-Man BrothersOn the morning of the third day, the weather was clear.
Butler Clow, impeccably dressed, bowed respectfully to Kaya, his tone as deferential as ever:
"Miss, I need to go to town to purchase a new batch of medicinal herbs and daily necessities. I won't be back until the afternoon. Please stay in your room and get some rest."
Kaya, unsuspecting, even showed some concern: "Take care on your journey, Mr. Krabatel."
Clow smiled and acknowledged, turning to leave, the gloom in his eyes concealed by a perfect mask.
Nojiko, as usual, arrived at the villa shortly after Clow left. Today, she had brought some calming dried flowers, intending to diffuse them for Kaya to help her relax.
In Kaya's bedroom, filled with sunlight and books, Nojiko gently combed Kaya's beautiful blonde hair, her movements practiced and her voice gentle.
Books & Literature
Kaya savored this rare moment of peace, a faint smile on her pale face.
Suddenly, a maid's short, startled cry and a heavy thud echoed from downstairs!
Nojiko paused, her eyes sharpening instantly.
Kaya was also startled, instinctively grabbing Nojiko's sleeve: "What's wrong?"
"Stay here, don't make a sound," Nojiko whispered, quickly rising to shield Kaya behind her, her gaze warily fixed on the door.
Nojiko's hand stealthily reached for the short knife hidden inside her skirt.
Bang! The bedroom door was violently kicked open!
Two men with mocking, sinister grins burst in—the cat-man brothers, Sam and Banchi.
They held sharp short knives, their eyes scanning the room with greedy cruelty, finally settling on Kaya, whom Nojiko was protecting.
Banchi licked his lips. "Tsk tsk, what a delicate young lady. Too bad she'll die today."
"Get rid of her quickly. Make it look like an accidental murder during a burglary." Sam was calmer, but his eyes were equally cold.
"Who are you? What do you want?!" Nojiko forced herself to remain calm and shouted sharply.
At the same time, Nojiko leaned forward slightly, completely blocking Kaya. She could feel Kaya trembling behind her.
Banchi tilted his head, sizing up Nojiko, a lewd glint in his eyes:
"Oh, a protector too? Not bad looking either. Want to take Rakuro with you?"
Sam frowned. "Don't cause any trouble. Just kill her."
Sam raised his knife, pointing it at Nojiko. "Get out of the way, or I'll kill you too."
Nojiko's heart pounded, but she remembered Luffy's words, gritted her teeth, and refused to back down.
Just as Sam's eyes flashed with murderous intent, and he swung his sword to strike—
A hand covered in jet-black ink suddenly emerged from the blind spot beside the door, striking with lightning speed and precisely catching Sam's descending blade!
*Crack!*
A teeth-grinding sound of metal shattering!
The steel dagger, in that jet-black hand, was easily twisted and shattered like a fragile biscuit!
The cat-men's grins froze instantly, replaced by utter horror. They hadn't even seen where the hand had come from!
The next moment, the owner of that hand appeared like a ghost from beside the door.
Straw hat, black hair, red vest.
Luffy.
He didn't even glance at Sam's stunned face, stunned by the destruction of his weapon. His right hand, gripping the shards of the blade, darted forward, clamping down on Sam's neck like a vise, lifting him off the ground.
Simultaneously, Luffy's left hand shot out with lightning speed, also seizing Banchi's throat!
The entire process was lightning fast; from the moment he struck to subduing the two, less than a second had passed.
Sam and Banchi only had time to let out choking gasps, their hands futilely clawing at Luffy's unmoving arm, their legs kicking wildly in the air, their eyes bulging from lack of oxygen and fear.
Luffy's gaze didn't even linger on their狰狞 (zhengning, meaning ferocious or hideous) faces. He merely tilted his head slightly, looking behind him at the pale-faced Kaya and the tense Nojiko, and said three words in a calm tone:
"It's alright."
As the words fell, Luffy exerted a slight force with both hands, slamming the two "cats'" heads together violently!
*Bang!*
The muffled thud sent chills down everyone's spine.
Sam and Banchi didn't even have time to scream. Their eyes rolled back, blood instantly spilling from their mouths and noses. They went limp like two dead fish, tossed casually into a corner by Luffy. They twitched a couple of times before falling still.
From breaking down the door to finishing the job, it took less than three seconds.
The room was deathly silent, broken only by Kaya's trembling breath.
Kaya stared blankly at Luffy's back. His back wasn't particularly broad, yet it seemed like an insurmountable mountain, blocking her path between herself and death.
One second, she was gripped by extreme fear, believing she was doomed.
The next second, the two menacing thugs were swept away like trash.
She was saved…
This realization slowly flooded her mind, followed by a profound exhaustion from the ordeal and a powerful emotional surge.
Tears welled up unexpectedly, blurring her vision.
Kaya looked at the boy who had turned to face her. His face remained expressionless, not a drop of blood on it, as if he had merely swatted two flies.
"It's alright," Luffy repeated, his tone still calm.
But Kaya felt as if those words had shattered her last defenses.
All the fear, resentment, and lingering dread, mixed with an indescribable gratitude, erupted in an instant.
"L… Mr. Luffy—!"
Kaya sobbed, bursting out from behind Nojiko and throwing herself into Luffy's arms, hugging his waist tightly and sobbing uncontrollably.
Her tears quickly soaked the front of Luffy's shirt.
Luffy's body stiffened almost imperceptibly, but he didn't push her away, simply letting Kaya hug him, patting her trembling back symbolically with one hand.
[System Notification: Kaya's favorability has skyrocketed! Current 65/100. Status: Dangerous! Exceeding the harvest threshold!]
Luffy's eyes flickered slightly.
65 points, it really skyrocketed too fast. The suspension bridge effect in this situation definitely makes it easy to develop excessive emotional dependence.
It needs to cool down.
"Miss! Miss, are you alright?!" The maid stumbled upstairs, and seeing the scene in the room, she screamed again, pointing incoherently at the cat-man brothers lying in the corner, their fates unknown, and Kaya crying and hugging Luffy.
Nojiko reacted quickly, rushing to comfort the maid: "Don't be afraid, Luffy has already subdued the bad guy. Go quickly and inform the village sheriff, and also check if there are any other accomplices."
Nojiko's calm words gave the maid a sense of security, and she nodded hurriedly and ran downstairs.
Luffy waited until Kaya's crying subsided before gently pulling her away from his embrace and saying to Nojiko, "After you've dealt with this, I'll go find Kuro."
Kaya raised her tear-filled face, sobbing as she asked, "Mr.... Mr. Krabatel? He..."
"He's the mastermind," Luffy answered directly, his tone flat.
Kaya was struck dumb, frozen in place, all color draining from her face.
The butler who had cared for her for three years, always so gentle and polite... was actually the mastermind behind her murder?
A profound sense of betrayal and absurdity overwhelmed Kaya, leaving her swaying.
Nojiko quickly helped Kaya up, gently comforting her.
Luffy said nothing more, turned and left the room, his figure quickly disappearing at the top of the stairs.
Nojiko helped Kaya to sit on the bed, looking at her distraught state, and sighed inwardly.
Luffy had achieved his goal; Kaya had completely seen through the butler's true colors and developed an almost blind dependence and gratitude towards him.
Nojiko looked in the direction Luffy had left, her eyes filled with complex emotions.