Chapter 135: Path Of Revenge, 3
“Mom, I’m hungry.”
“An hour ago you just ate a roast wild boar, two roast chickens, three loaves of bread, and half a sea beast leg, damn it, alright! I know, no choice, who let you be my child! Eating a lot isn’t your fault, is this the price? The price of power······”
The little old lady muttered softly.
She swung the cane in her hand and tapped the floor. “You deserve to be eaten by fish, you wretch, go cook, didn’t you hear? My son is hungry, if you don’t want to be treated as food, get to work right now.” Amid the little old lady’s vigorous scolding, the maid helper in the clinic silently slipped into the kitchen.
This was the only clinic on Black Thorn Flower Island.
The signboard outside read ‘Ms. Bakin’s Clinic’. No mistake, the name was that simple and straightforward, because the owner of the clinic was this short and stout little old lady, so she directly used her own name as the signboard. After all, it was the only clinic on the small island.
The little old lady—Ms. Bakin, the old lady who was said to be already seventy years old—had appeared on Black Thorn Flower Island two years ago, bringing her son who ate more than a sea beast but whose brain was somewhat lacking, to the island. To be honest, the islanders didn’t really like this greedy, opportunistic, and ill-tempered lady.
However,
Ms. Bakin’s medical skill was very impressive.
For the residents of Black Thorn Flower Island, who lacked doctors and could only endure illnesses with willpower, a doctor was a precious treasure, even if this treasure was somewhat unsightly. The children secretly called Ms. Bakin the old witch, but the islanders still tacitly accepted Ms. Bakin settling on the island.
Because Ms. Bakin was no longer young, and her only son was a mentally challenged person whose intelligence level was stuck at a child’s stage, the islanders had always secretly helped Ms. Bakin, selling her food and other living supplies at low prices, and lending a hand with any work as much as possible.
Although their efforts received no return from Ms. Bakin, and the treatment fees were still painfully high.
But having a doctor was a good thing.
The simple islanders didn’t value gold and silver much, because gold and silver had little use here. Without perfect and convenient trade channels, gold and silver in hand were no more useful than the dirt clods outside the door. Since Ms. Bakin liked it, they gave it to her.
Anyway, there were many sunken ships in the Black Algae Sea Area, and the islanders familiar with the habits of black algae had their own ways to search for gold and silver jewelry in the sunken ships.
It was precisely the wealth buried in these sunken ships that held Ms. Bakin’s steps. To dodge the Navy’s eyes and avoid attracting the attention of the Whitebeard Pirates, she wandered endlessly in the Edge Region of the New World with her ‘son’, and in the end, because of the wealth in the sunken ships, she stayed on Black Thorn Flower Island.
Ms. Bakin stared at the cooking maid for a while, then walked away from the kitchen door, sent her brainwater-lacking son to eat, leaned on her cane, and slowly strolled out of the clinic, leisurely walking on the street.
The cane was actually of no use to her.
Don’t think that just because the old lady was over seventy, her sturdy body could still dance a samba in the middle of a bar’s dance floor, but she liked carrying a cane. Wherever she went, basically everyone would make way for her, and she loved that feeling.
Unfortunately, the population on Black Thorn Flower Island wasn’t that large.
On this small street, all the pedestrians added up to just about a dozen people, and they were all acquaintances whose names could be called out. Seeing Ms. Bakin, this troublesome little old lady, from afar, they all avoided her in advance, which made the lady feel a bit displeased.
“Delier, haven’t those outsiders fixed their ship yet?”
She stood outside the door of the town’s only restaurant, poked her head in to look at the empty restaurant, and greeted the boss who was lying behind the counter looking at a sexy picture book.
“No, no, there’s a big hole on the left side of the ship’s side, impossible to fix that fast.”
The restaurant boss—Mister Delier, a sixty-something-year-old man, was intently appreciating the picture book he had traded from the outsiders. Even though it was actually an old book from several years ago, for this isolated small island, it was a precious treasure.
“······”
A gloomy expression appeared on Ms. Bakin’s wrinkled, orange-peel-like old face.
A few days ago, a rare super storm swept through the Black Algae Sea Area, and a fleet battered beyond recognition by the storm drifted to Black Thorn Flower Island. Some of the outsiders’ ships had suffered serious damage and couldn’t set sail immediately, so they stayed on Black Thorn Flower Island, repairing ships while doing some small business with the islanders.
Spirits, cigars, some photo picture books, and other miscellaneous items—the outsiders traded these from the locals for food and some ship repair materials······ everything seemed so normal.
However,
For some reason.
Ms. Bakin didn’t like this group of outsiders. Well, of course, she also didn’t like the local natives, or rather, in this world, aside from herself, she didn’t like anyone. More accurately, the appearance of this group of outsiders made her feel uneasy.
“It’s been so long already, there shouldn’t be any issues, right?”
Bakin stood at the restaurant door, craning her neck, straining to gaze toward the port. She could vaguely see the mast tops of the large ships docked at the port, with the Golden Coffee Tree Flag hanging on them swaying slowly in the wind. Although she had come to Black Thorn Flower Island two years ago, through the World Economic Newspaper, she knew this flag represented the Fifth Overlord of the New World—the Black Prince.
However,
She didn’t know that the Black Prince had a close connection with Zephyr.
Her intuition told her that unknown risks might be approaching. Ms. Bakin didn’t doubt her intuition. Without this intuition’s help, she might have been killed by World Government agents long ago. This intuition had helped her dodge death’s approach time and again.
She was already planning to leave Black Thorn Flower Island.
But on this vast sea, it wasn’t like she could leave whenever she wanted. Relying only on the small sampans the local islanders used for fishing, it was impossible for her to leave the Black Algae Sea Area. She needed a large ship, and enough sailors······ In this world, not everyone could roam the Four Seas alone like Hawk Eyes with one person and one ship.
At this moment—
Urgent clattering footsteps came from ahead, and five drenched kids rushed onto the street, running wildly while shouting:
“Another large ship is coming!!”
“We saw the ship! So many large ships!”
“Everyone come see quick!”
This was a small island with little entertainment. Watching unfamiliar ships was already a rare entertainment for the islanders, and it would become an enduring topic retold among people until the next new ship appeared.
Hearing the kids’ report.
Islanders idle at home all came out, many burly, robust-waisted women even put on makeup. The spectacle-watching islanders gathered in twos and threes, soon arriving at the nearby port dock, chattering about the fleet whose outline could already be seen faintly with the naked eye from afar.
Ms. Bakin was greedy, cold-blooded, ruthless.
But she was also curious.
Following the crowd to the port, she pushed aside the islanders in front, and Bakin stood at the forefront of the dock, opening her sharp eyes no less keen than a young person’s, carefully watching the approaching unfamiliar fleet······ Suddenly, the old lady’s body shuddered, like she was going mad, startling the islanders squeezed beside her.
“······How could it be? This is impossible······Why······”
Seagull flag.
She saw the seagull flag.
Of course, if it was just the seagull flag, it wouldn’t be a big deal. The problem was her excellent eyesight also caught the appearance of the person standing on the deck: purple short hair, black sunglasses, missing one arm······ These distinct features she had never forgotten.
The reason she hid in such a remote place like Black Thorn Flower Island was half because of dodging this man.
“Zephyr!”
She muttered in an extremely small voice.
Yes,
The man she was dodging was Zephyr, because of the good deed her son had done back then. To evade the Navy’s pursuit, she had to leave those bustling big cities and come to this remote, desolate Black Thorn Flower Island covered in bird droppings.
She had gone to such lengths to escape, yet she was still found.
Panic uncontrollably spread. Ms. Bakin was a highly skilled doctor, a biologist few had heard of. In her life, she had encountered many dangers, but that didn’t mean she was an escape master.
Of course, if the one who came wasn’t Zephyr, if the one standing beside Zephyr wasn’t the Black Prince······ perhaps, perhaps there was still a chance to escape?
But there were no more ifs.
The one who came was Zephyr, and standing beside Zephyr was the Black Prince who had appeared multiple times in the newspaper.
No matter how strong her ‘son’ was, he couldn’t be a match for these two.
————
“Very strong aura fluctuation, completely not hiding it!”
Elus stood on the deck, gazing at Black Thorn Flower Island growing larger in his view. His neuro-scan had already covered the island ahead of time, capturing almost effortlessly the monstrously powerful aura on the island.
Very strong!
A powerful aura already comparable to the Four Emperors’ seconds-in-command.
“It’s this one······It’s this one······”
Zephyr’s body was trembling.
He had never forgotten this aura.
“Calm down, Instructor Zephyr, we haven’t seen the main person yet! Whatever you have to say······ you can say it however you want once we really meet!”
Elus picked up the telescope, gazing toward Black Thorn Flower Island’s port. Sweeping half a circle through the crowded crowd on the dock, he spotted the little old lady trotting in the opposite direction of the port. Although he only saw that swift-moving back.
But his intuition told him this was the person he was looking for.
「Ms. Bakin! This time let me see just what kind of person you are!」
Compared to Whitebeard Jr., Elus was more interested in this old lady who claimed to be Whitebeard’s woman. It wasn’t some shady special fetish; it was just that the memory in his mind told him Whitebeard Jr.’s value might not be as high as this Ms. Bakin’s.
Mystery always arouses curiosity.
Ms. Bakin happened to be a mysterious lady. Her origins, her true identity, her relationship with Whitebeard, Whitebeard Jr.’s true identity······ these secrets were all on Ms. Bakin. A brainless fool like Whitebeard Jr. couldn’t know these secrets.
“Why so slow? Ain, hurry up and get the ship into port!”
The impatient Zephyr couldn’t help but urge.
Ain, who was in charge of commanding the fleet into port, had a bitter expression. She had already squeezed her brain pulp to the limit, making the most reasonable arrangements. The fleet’s port entry speed was honestly already fast, with little time left to save.
Soon, Zephyr also realized that blind urging couldn’t change objective reality.
He looked up at the dock that was no longer far away, estimated in his mind, and a conflicted expression appeared on his face, but it was quickly suppressed. Without notifying anyone in advance, this former Navy Admiral Your Excellency suddenly leaped into the sky.
He stepped on transparent air, running rapidly as if on solid land.
Geppo.
This was an impressive aerial walking technique, a combat technique called Rokushiki refined by countless experts of the World Government over eight hundred years. Geppo was one of the Rokushiki.
Besides the World Government’s high-ranking agents, only the Navy’s strong persons mastered Rokushiki. Zephyr, as former Admiral and former head instructor, and not an ability user, naturally had Rokushiki down pat, and had even developed many unique techniques based on it.
At this moment,
The former Admiral Your Excellency used his self-named unique technique, a technique that extended aerial walking time and distance. He named it 【Geppo: Air Road】—a very simple name, no unnecessary flair, concise and clear, full of Zephyr’s style.
“So impatient?”
“······Such a big drama, can’t miss it!”
Watching Zephyr who couldn’t wait for the ship to dock and had already rushed to the island, Elus didn’t want to miss the show, so he spread his pitch-black wings and flew into the sky chasing Zephyr’s back, leaving a group of bewildered sailors standing on the deck looking up at the two lords in the sky.
Ain watched Zephyr’s back, biting her pink lips until they bled, strands of fresh blood staining the girl’s shell-like teeth.
Strongly suppressing the complex emotions surging like massive tides in her heart, she patiently continued commanding the fleet into port and docking. She couldn’t fail the responsibility her teacher entrusted to her, even though she so desperately wanted to go with her teacher to deal with that devil who killed so many of her classmates.
