"I'm sorry, Miss Vanessa, but you're planning to buy those other two Devil Fruits for Fisk, aren't you?"
Now that he understood what was going on, Rorschach looked at Vanessa with calm certainty and asked the question directly.
Vanessa froze.
Shock flashed across her face.
Could the shop owner read minds or something?
He had guessed her intention in one shot.
And yes, that was exactly what she had been planning.
Still, now that Rorschach had said it out loud, there was no point denying it.
As far as Vanessa was concerned, there was nothing shameful about it. She had no reason to hide.
"Yes, Boss. I was planning to give them to Fisk."
She nodded and admitted it openly.
"He needs these Devil Fruits more than I do."
"I'm sorry, Miss Vanessa, but this shop's purchase limit exists for a reason."
Rorschach spoke plainly.
"The purpose is to prevent any one individual from controlling too many Devil Fruits."
"No matter the method, one person cannot control more than the limit of three Devil Fruits."
"And unfortunately for you, Fisk has already reached that limit."
"So... I can only apologize."
Vanessa went still.
She truly hadn't expected that.
Fisk had mentioned the purchase limit to her before, but she hadn't really taken it too seriously.
Or rather, she hadn't thought too deeply about it.
After all, plenty of things in daily life came with so-called purchase limits. Most of the time, those were just marketing tactics. Nothing more.
They sounded strict, but in reality, as long as you had money, there was usually some way around them.
Vanessa had never expected the Devil Fruit purchase limit to mean something this absolute.
A real limit.
The kind where even money couldn't buy your way through it.
"I see... I understand now."
Vanessa quickly came back to herself, and instead of getting upset over the fact that there were fruits in stock but she still couldn't buy them, she immediately apologized.
"Sorry, Boss. I didn't think it through properly."
Even though Rorschach looked like a polite, well-mannered young man, anyone with a brain could tell that someone capable of selling something as miraculous as Devil Fruits was no ordinary person.
He was someone they absolutely could not afford to offend.
Even if it had been unintentional, she had still tried to bend the shop's rules.
That alone was enough to make Vanessa feel uneasy.
"Boss, Vanessa didn't mean any offense..."
Even Kingpin immediately stepped in to explain on her behalf.
"It's fine. You didn't know, and to be fair, I hadn't clearly explained that rule in advance."
Rorschach waved it off casually.
Only after seeing that he genuinely didn't seem offended did both Vanessa and Fisk finally let out a long breath of relief.
Still, Fisk couldn't help feeling a little regret in his heart.
Because before this, he really had been considering having some of his trusted subordinates come and buy additional Devil Fruits.
But now it was obvious that idea was dead.
The shop owner had made it crystal clear—allowing one person to control too many Devil Fruits was not permitted.
No matter how it was done.
At that point, the transaction was essentially over.
As usual, Rorschach asked for Vanessa's permission—more precisely, Vanessa Marianna's permission—then added her to the group chat.
Shop Owner: @Everyone, another new family member has joined the group. Everyone, welcome her!
Vanessa Marianna: Hello, everyone. I'm a new Devil Fruit user, and I'm very happy to join this big family.
Since there was already a Vanessa in the group, this one had added her surname to distinguish herself.
Wade Wilson: Another newbie? And it's a female member too. Does the newcomer know the rules here? New members have to post pictures and measurements. Of course, if you're ugly, then forget it.
Rorschach immediately saw the muscles on Kingpin's face start twitching.
He looked like he wanted to kill someone.
Wilson Fisk: Mr. Wade, Miss Vanessa is my fiancée. I am extremely offended by this kind of rude and disrespectful harassment. I am formally warning you—watch your mouth.
Vanessa: Sorry, Fisk. Wade's just got a foul mouth. He probably just wanted to say hello to Vanessa in his own stupid way... wait, Vanessa?
Wade Wilson: Vanessa? Vanessa? Fisk, your fiancée actually has the exact same name as my wife! Then no pictures. Otherwise when I'm holding my wife, if I accidentally think of your fiancée, that'd count as cheating.
Wade Wilson: Don't worry, sweetheart. My love for you is stronger than diamonds. Even if the other Vanessa is gorgeous, I won't cheat.
The vein on Kingpin's forehead started jumping again.
Rorschach was genuinely speechless.
He really was starting to regret inviting Wade into the group.
That mouth of his was unbelievable.
If not for his near-immortal body and monstrous combat skills, he probably would've been hacked to death ten thousand times already.
Ding! Wade Wilson has been muted by the group owner for two hours.
To preserve a healthy group environment, Rorschach didn't hesitate for even a second.
Shop Owner: Please keep things civilized in the group. @Wade Wilson, if there's a next time, I'm muting you for a month.
Vanessa: Boss, well done!
Vanessa Marianna: Thank you, Boss.
Wilson Fisk: Thank you, Boss.
Helen Cho had likely been busy, because she hadn't appeared at all while Vanessa Marianna joined the group.
That wasn't a big deal.
But Wesley, the Bullet Fruit user, also hadn't said a single word from start to finish.
That made Rorschach feel a little curious.
This was his boss's fiancée joining the group, and Wesley wasn't saying anything?
What Rorschach couldn't possibly know was that Wesley would never be able to speak again.
Still, that thought only crossed his mind briefly.
He didn't dwell on it.
Instead, he quickly pushed it aside and posted a new group announcement.
Group Announcement:
Everyone, please take note.
Some of you may not fully understand what this shop's three-fruit purchase limit really means, so I'm clarifying it here.
What the shop limits is the ownership—or more accurately, the control—of Devil Fruits.
Each purchaser may control a maximum of three Devil Fruits.
Whether you buy them yourself, have someone buy them for you, receive them as a gift, or acquire them in any other way, the total number of Devil Fruits you can control cannot exceed three.
Please remember this clearly.
The tone of the announcement was serious and formal, and it immediately drew everyone out.
Vanessa: Received!
Vanessa Marianna: Received!
Wilson Fisk: Received!
Helen Cho: Received!
Even the usually silent Helen responded right away.
As for Wesley...
Still nothing.
But Rorschach didn't think much of it.
Who didn't have moments when they were busy or unavailable?
Maybe Wesley really was just swamped.