"So that is Water 7. It's bigger than any other island we had to stop at for supplies. It looks almost like a giant water fountain," murmured Law as they finally got a view of the majestic island they had been searching for over the past two months.
Due to the state of the ship, Lucien had decided it was better to move more slowly so as not to put too much pressure on the already shaky hull. But it turned out to work in their favour as well, as the pirate population in the Grand Line proved to be far greater than even in the notoriously dangerous North Blue.
It seemed like Lucien had built up a small amount of fame even in North Blue due to the events at Lake 4 and the absurd bounty on his head, which acted like light to moths.
Every few days, they would come across either a bounty hunter or a pirate crew jealous of his bounty and wanting to test his strength. Wanting to know whether he was worth the nine-figure sum on his head.
The fights that followed were actually refreshing for Lucien, especially after the near beatdown he had once again received from Sakazuki before landing the one punch that flatlined him.
He managed to defeat quite a few crews along the way and collected a good amount of gold from them. Robbing pirates turned out to be a decent side income, given that they had absolutely no money.
"We should probably exchange all the gold we have into berries before we head towards Tom's Workers. Hopefully, it will be enough to get ourselves a decent ship."
"Didn't you also want to get yourself a weapon? Every temporary sword you pick up from the pirates keeps breaking after a few swings," said Idris. Even he had lost count of the number of times Lucien had cursed the mediocre swords he picked up from defeated pirates, always hoping at least one of them would turn out to be decent.
"I can look into buying one if we have any money left over, but I don't know. At my current strength, any normal sword would just break anyway, and fighting with my hands is fine, it just feels a little awkward not to have something on my waist. Besides, who knows, we might stumble across something worth having somewhere on this island," responded Lucien, shrugging his shoulders.
Idris didn't respond. He knew Lucien had his own way of doing things, and since Lucien himself didn't seem bothered about it there was no point nagging him.
The ship moved slowly into the outer canal system as the three of them took it all in. Water 7 was the first truly unique island they had come to since entering the Grand Line. Most of their stops until now had been small islands where they restocked for a few hours before moving on. Water 7 was different. It felt like the island had been built around water rather than beside it.
The most distinct feature was how people got around. Most used the canals rather than roads or bridges as their main means of transport. As they drifted through, the three of them watched the unique creatures pulling carriages through the waterways.
The buildings stacked up the island's slope in pale stone, balconies overhanging the canals at every level. At the centre, water pressure vented upward through the architecture in thick columns, catching the light before falling back down in curtains. From the sea, it had looked like a fountain. Up close, it still did.
The lower district was busy and loud. Merchants, dockworkers, and shipwrights moved continuously, haggling with one another at full volume. Their damaged ship did not stand out much, given the sheer number of vessels already docked. Most of the ships around them were bigger and grander than theirs.
"So, shall we look around and ask someone for directions to exchange our gold?"
"Someone should stay on the boat. I'll go ask around. You stay here in case anyone unwanted comes by," said Idris, and jumped from the ship onto the platform before Lucien could respond.
Lucien sat down on his chair on the deck with his arms folded. Law climbed up beside him and looked out at the canal traffic.
A sea bull pulled a flat-bottomed carriage past them, its handler standing at the back with a long pole, steering it through the intersection without slowing. Law tracked it until it disappeared around the bend.
"What's a sea bull doing pulling a carriage?" he said.
"Working," said Lucien.
Law considered this for a moment, then accepted it.
Idris was back in under ten minutes. He stepped back onto the boat, glanced at Lucien still sitting exactly where he had left him, and said nothing about it.
"Cashing house. Left canal branch, third bridge, building with the grey stone front. Hard to miss."
Lucien stood up, picked up the gold bag, and slung it over his shoulder. "Let's go."
The walk didn't take long. The left canal branch was narrower than the main waterway, with buildings packed tighter together on both sides. Most of the ground floors were open shops or exchange stalls. The air smelled faintly of seawater and freshly cut stone.
Law kept slowing down to stare at things along the way. Many of the goods on the stalls were unlike anything he had seen before. He would stop and stare for a few seconds before turning and running to catch up with Lucien and Idris, who were already ahead.
The cashing house sat at the very end of the branch, right where Idris said it would be. The building looked older than those around it, built from darker stone with a wide open doorway and a plain sign hanging above it. Inside, two clerks stood behind a long counter, both already occupied with customers.
Lucien stopped in front of it and looked at the bag, then at the door.
"Let's see what this is actually worth," he said.
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1 Chapter For Every 50 Power Stones. Please Do Support.