In Bell-mère's tangerine orchard, the crew had already eagerly begun harvesting the fruit. Despite having traveled all over the world and fought numerous life-or-death battles, this was actually the first time many of them had manually picked fruit straight from the tree. As a result, the harvest didn't feel like a chore at all; to the crew, it was just a fun, relaxing game.
Before long, they had filled over a dozen large woven baskets to the brim. Seeing the massive haul, Nami was absolutely ecstatic. With this much money coming in, she could finally afford to buy that expensive navigation book she had been eyeing!
After Bardock paid the tab in full, Nami eagerly insisted on helping them carry the heavy baskets back to their ship. Her little ulterior motives couldn't hide from Bell-mère and Nojiko; it was glaringly obvious that Nami just wanted an excuse to grill the sailors about their voyages. After all, her ultimate dream since she was tiny was to draw a comprehensive map of the entire world.
Bell-mère and Nojiko exchanged a knowing look and pitched in to help carry the fruit as well. In reality, given the monstrous physical strength of Bardock's crew, they didn't need the help at all. Nami and Nojiko were mostly just tagging along for the excitement rather than the actual labor.
Bardock was more than happy to spend more time interacting with Nami. It was just a shame she was far too young to set sail right now. Otherwise, given her absolute, world-class innate talent as a navigator, there was no way he would let her slip through his fingers.
Once aboard the White Dragon, Nami looked at absolutely everything with wide, star-struck eyes. She had seen ships before, but never one like this. She didn't know ships could be powered by electricity instead of just sails! And what was the deal with those little robots walking around the deck? Did the East Blue really have advanced technology like this?!
"Wow! So you guys actually started your journey in the West Blue?! And you've already been to the South Blue and the Grand Line?!"
Hearing about the crew's unbelievable maritime adventures, Nami felt a profound sense of awe and intense envy. She was still just a fledging beginner desperately trying to accumulate basic cartography knowledge, having never even taken a single step off her home island.
"Your dream is incredibly ambitious," Bardock praised the little girl warmly. "Traveling the entire globe and drawing a complete map of the world is a magnificent goal."
Receiving such high praise from a real, seasoned Captain made Nami incredibly happy. She proudly puffed out her chest, tilted her nose up in the air, and threw a smug, triumphant look at Bell-mère and Nojiko.
But a moment later, her bright demeanor plummeted.
Her family was incredibly poor, and the advanced navigation books she desperately needed to study were obscenely expensive. She absolutely refused to become a heavier financial burden on Bell-mère, but her desire for those books gnawed painfully at her heart.
Having anticipated this exact dilemma, Bardock smiled gently. "To support your grand dream, I actually have a special gift for you."
At his signal, a heavy wooden chest that had been prepared in advance was brought out onto the deck. Bardock gestured for Nami to open it.
Possessing the boundless curiosity of a child, Nami was instantly distracted from her gloom. She eagerly unlatched the chest and threw open the lid.
The next second, her eyes literally morphed into massive, beating hearts, and she practically tackled the chest in pure joy. It was packed to the brim with high-grade, incredibly rare navigation and cartography books!
However, reality quickly set in. Even at her young age, she knew instantly that these books were incredibly valuable. She shouldn't accept them... but she wanted them so badly! Torn, she looked up at Bell-mère, desperately hoping her mother would give her the answer.
Bell-mère had been watching Nami closely the entire time. Seeing the situation, she stepped forward protectively, her maternal instincts flaring. "Mr. Bardock, we deeply appreciate your incredible kindness, but we absolutely cannot accept such an extravagant gift."
Hearing this, Nami lowered her head in disappointment, the vibrant light in her eyes dimming instantly.
Bell-mère's heart ached seeing Nami's reaction, but she steeled her resolve and continued firmly. "I am more than willing to purchase these books from you at full price. However, I don't have that much cash on hand right now. Could you wait for me to go back to the village and gather the funds?"
In truth, Bell-mère was fully prepared to bankrupt herself and go into massive, crushing debt just to buy these books for Nami. The chest contained incredibly rare volumes that were virtually impossible to acquire in a remote place like Cocoyasi Village. Missing this opportunity would be a catastrophic loss for Nami's future.
At the same time, she absolutely could not let Nami accept such a valuable gift for free. They had just met these heavily armed men whose backgrounds were a complete mystery. As a mother, how could she safely let a group of strange, powerful men lavish expensive gifts on her little girl?
Bardock looked at Bell-mère with profound admiration. She was undeniably an absolutely phenomenal mother. She poured every single ounce of her love, soul, and protection into these two adopted orphans.
'I definitely need to figure out a way to prematurely deal with Arlong and Captain Nezumi,' Bardock resolved internally. But for now, the immediate priority was finding a way to get these books into Nami's hands without causing a scene.
"Please, don't worry," Bardock raised a hand placatingly. "Since you refuse to accept them as a gift, let's consider it a loan to Nami. The entire purpose of a book is to spread knowledge. We've already read these; letting them sit in a storage closet gathering dust is a waste.
"Nami wants to travel the entire world, right? Someday, when she finally sets sail and we cross paths out on the ocean, she can return the books to us then. Doesn't that sound like a fun promise?"
Despite the generous compromise, Bell-mère remained tense, her guard still fully up.
Bardock suddenly realized the core of the problem: Bell-mère was terrified that he harbored dark, predatory ulterior motives toward Nami. To clear the air, he quickly reached into his coat, pulled out an old, heavily circulated newspaper, and handed it to her. It was the specific edition detailing their discovery of the Golden City of Shandora.
"When Nami successfully masters her craft and becomes a brilliant navigator, she can come help guide our ship as repayment," Bardock added reassuringly.
Bell-mère took the newspaper and read the massive, bold headline. Her eyes widened drastically.
Upon realizing that these men were literally world-famous, unfathomably wealthy explorers who casually swam in oceans of solid gold, she let out a massive sigh of relief. They weren't dangerous predators with sinister intentions; they were just ridiculously rich adventurers casually throwing their spare change around!
The suffocating tension completely vanished. It was finally okay.