Chapter 105: The Cookies Are Bad
Groves 40 through 49 of the Sabaody Archipelago were the public face of the island.
Tourist streets. Specialty shops. Restaurants. Bubble rides. Souvenir stalls. Crowds from every sea.
And among them, Grove 44 was one of the busiest. It was meant for ordinary civilians coming and going through Sabaody, so the flow of people was even heavier than in the neighboring districts. Marines had even set up Den Den Mushi surveillance on a number of rooftops, allowing nearby patrols to respond quickly if trouble broke out.
Because of that, very few people dared to cause problems here.
Or rather, very few dared to cause problems openly.
"I'm telling you, that woman was definitely lying to me—"
A man strode through the crowd, still grumbling to his companion, too focused on his story to watch where he was going.
At that exact moment, Axel, still walking with his eyes closed, drifted lightly to one side and slipped past him without the two bodies ever touching.
The man stopped dead.
He turned around and scratched his head.
"What's wrong now?" his companion asked impatiently.
"I… did something just brush past me?"
His friend rolled his eyes. "You haven't slept right in three days. Of course you're seeing things. Come on, we've got business to do."
The man glanced back again.
All he saw was a fierce-looking young man and a blind swordsman walking away through the crowd.
He hesitated for a moment, then gave up and hurried after his companion.
Axel, meanwhile, clicked his tongue under his breath.
"Looks like I shouldn't use that trick in crowded places anymore."
Over the past year, his control over vector manipulation had improved again.
The technique he had just used was simple in theory, though absurd in practice: he bent and redirected light around himself, fooling the naked eye and creating a crude form of invisibility. The only reason he could still move accurately with his eyes closed was because of Observation Haki.
His Observation Haki was different from most people's.
By linking it directly to his brain and feeding the gathered information into his calculations, he could build a vague internal image of the world around him. It had no color, no fine detail, and no real beauty to it. Just outlines, motion, density, distance, shape.
Enough to walk.
Enough to fight.
Not enough to read the number carved into a mangrove trunk.
Since the three of them only knew they needed to head toward Groves 1 to 29, but not the exact route, they moved toward the loudest nearby storefront in search of directions.
"Grand Line Buns! Grand Line Chocolate! Grand Line Rice Crackers! Fresh local specialties! Best souvenirs in Grove 44!"
The owner of the snack shop shouted with practiced enthusiasm.
The moment he saw Issho and Hawkins approaching, his eyes brightened.
Outsiders. Definitely outsiders.
Their clothes were wrong for locals, and the slight uncertainty in their bearing made that even clearer. As for the two blind customers… well, blind people could still carry money. In fact, people with inconveniences often carried more than most, just in case.
His smile became instantly warmer.
"Welcome, welcome! Grand Line Snack Shop, finest treats in the district! Would you like to sample some? Freshly made!"
Issho stopped first.
"Then I'll trouble you for a taste."
"Of course!"
The owner quickly picked up a cookie and handed it over. Issho accepted it, then passed samples to Axel and Hawkins as well.
Only after doing so did the shopkeeper truly look at them.
He froze for half a second.
The older blind man, he could handle. The child too, though seeing someone so young walking in darkness tugged at him a little.
But the last one—
That expressionless face. That dead stare. That murderous aura.
The shopkeeper's smile twitched.
Still, business was business.
Issho took a bite and nodded. "It's good."
Axel and Hawkins ate theirs too, and both gave small nods.
The owner relaxed at once.
Naturally it was good. His shop stayed open in one of the busiest parts of Sabaody for a reason.
"So?" he asked eagerly. "Would you like to buy some? We also have other souvenirs. Keychains, banners, ornaments, shell carvings, little grove markers—"
Issho scratched his cheek, suddenly a little awkward.
"Actually… we only came to ask for directions."
The shopkeeper's enthusiasm dimmed by half on the spot.
So that was it. Not customers. Just passersby who'd eaten the free samples.
Still, he had already handed them food, and it would make him look petty if he threw them out now.
"Where are you trying to go?" he asked flatly.
After hearing their destination, he blinked in surprise.
"That area?" He frowned. "That's dangerous. You still plan on going?"
"Yes," Issho replied calmly.
The shopkeeper shrugged. He had warned them. That was kindness enough between strangers.
"This is Grove 44," he said. "Go that way and you'll hit the amusement district. From there, one route will take you deeper toward the tourist groves, and another will lead toward the lawless side. Ask again once you reach the next junction. You'll get there faster that way."
He was mostly speaking to Hawkins. In his mind, the other two clearly wouldn't be navigating anything on their own.
The directions given, he waved them off and turned back toward his counter.
But just as the three of them began to leave, he saw Issho's cane-sword and Axel's wooden blade tapping against the ground in an almost identical rhythm.
Tap.
Tap.
Tap.
The sound hit him strangely hard.
By the time Axel and the others had taken several steps, the man's conscience had already lost the fight.
"Wait!"
They stopped and turned back.
The owner scratched his cheek, clearly embarrassed at his own softheartedness.
"There's a bubble car rental place not far from here. They've got routes that go straight to the amusement district. Pay a small fee and they'll take you over directly. And if you really need something from the dangerous side…" He hesitated, then added, "You can hire a runner. Plenty of people here will buy and carry things for you. Safer than wandering in yourselves."
"Thank you," Axel said sincerely.
He could tell the man meant it.
Then he stepped forward, pulled a 1,000-Berry note from his pocket, and held it out.
"I'll buy some cookies."
It was not all the money he had. Not even close.
Over the years, his work as a bounty hunter had left him with more than enough to spend. But a child casually pulling out a thick wad of cash in Sabaody was just another way of inviting trouble to dinner. He had no interest in painting a target on himself before entering the lawless zone.
The shopkeeper took the note and gave Axel a longer look.
Maybe the blind kid wasn't so bad after all.
"Alright."
He packed the cookies quickly.
A box only cost around three hundred Berries. Strictly speaking, one thousand should have bought Axel three boxes, maybe four if he was being generous.
The owner put in five.
Then, after a pause, he added another.
He said nothing about it.
Axel said nothing either.
Once they had left the shop, Hawkins suddenly spoke.
"The cookies… are bad."
Axel stopped.
He turned his head toward Hawkins.
"What does that mean?"
Hawkins didn't answer.
"The cookies taste bad?" Axel asked.
Silence.
"Or something bad is going to happen because of the cookies?"
Hawkins remained expressionless.
After several more attempts, he finally gave the same answer he always gave whenever fate was involved.
"Fate."
Axel's face twitched.
He had come to a realization over the past year.
There were many irritating people in the world.
But among them, Hawkins ranked extremely high.
Because people who only spoke in half-sentences were the absolute worst.
.....
[If you don't want to wait for the next update, read 50 chapters ahead on P@treon.]
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