Chapter 31: Loguetown
Going Merry.The Crow's Nest.
Usopp, on lookout duty, idly scanned his surroundings through the telescope.
Suddenly, his body stiffened. His eyes widened as he stared straight ahead. A few seconds later, he shouted, "Hey! Land ho! I see an island!"
Whoosh!
In seconds, everyone appeared at the bow of the ship.
After many days of sailing, they finally had land in their sights again.
At the edge of their vision, a black dot sat on the horizon. As the ship continued forward, the dot grew larger and larger, eventually taking the distinct shape of an island.
Nami leaned on the ship's rail with one hand and brushed her hair back with the other. "We're finally here! This should be the last stop before the Grand Line."
"Oh, and there's a famous city on this island: Loguetown."
"The former Pirate King was born here and was also executed here."
Zoro nodded. "I know. The Town of Beginnings and Endings."
Luffy's expression was rarely this serious as he stared ahead and softly said, "Is that where the Pirate King was executed?"
Apollo leaned on the ship's rail next to him and chuckled. "Speaking of which, Luffy, you and the Pirate King have a very deep connection."
"Me?"
Luffy looked confused.
The others also looked puzzled. Luffy hadn't even been born when Roger died. They found it hard to imagine what kind of relationship these two could possibly have.
Apollo pointed at Luffy's head. "Don't you know? That hat of yours belonged to Roger."
Nami and the others gasped.
"This is Roger's hat?!"
"No way! Luffy said Shanks gave it to him!"
Luffy nodded repeatedly. "Yeah, Shanks gave it to me!"
Apollo smiled. "Shanks was once an apprentice on Roger's pirate crew. Roger gave the straw hat to Shanks, and Shanks passed it on to Luffy."
Luffy clutched his straw hat, looking stunned. "This... is the Pirate King's hat?"
"There's something even more astonishing."
Apollo continued, dropping another bombshell. "Roger's son and Luffy are sworn brothers."
"Brothers? Roger's son and Luffy are actually..."
Nami froze mid-sentence, her eyes widening. "Wait. The Pirate King had a son?!"
The others looked horrified.
This was far more shocking than the history of a hat. If this news were true, it would shake the entire world to its foundations!
Luffy wasn't truly foolish; he just didn't pay attention to irrelevant things. He reacted quickly, stuttering, "Are... are you talking about... Ace? Ace is the Pirate King's son?"
Apollo nodded gently. "That's right. Portgas D. Ace is indeed the Pirate King's posthumous son."
Luffy was speechless. The rest of the crew fell into a stunned silence.
The news that the Pirate King's bloodline still walked the earth was too heavy, leaving everyone dazed as the ship approached the dock.
When the Merry finally docked, Apollo dropped the anchor. "Let's go. Let's explore the town. I'm sick of looking at the sea every day."
After he disembarked, everyone finally snapped out of their daze and quickly followed him.
The group soon arrived at the entrance of Loguetown.
Sanji sighed, looking at the bustling streets. "What a big town. I should be able to buy some rare ingredients here!"
Luffy: "I want to see the execution platform!"
Usopp: "I'm going to buy some new equipment."
Zoro: "I need to buy two swords. I'm practically unarmed right now."
Nami: "Apollo, come with me to buy clothes!"
Apollo: "Coming, coming!"
Everyone had different objectives, so they decided to split up, with only Apollo and Nami staying together.
After walking a short distance, Apollo paused and looked in a specific direction.
"What's wrong?" Nami looked at him curiously.
Apollo chuckled softly. "I just saw a father who cares deeply about his son. I was going to say hello, but then I thought better of it. I won't bother him right now."
Nami glanced in the direction he was looking and mumbled, "Is that someone you know? Where? Why don't I see anyone?"
"Never mind him." Apollo turned back. "Oh, right. Nami, I also want to go to the execution platform later."
"Huh? You're not a pirate. Why are you interested in the Pirate King?"
"I'm mainly going there to 'punch my card'."
"Punch your card? What does that mean?"
"Uh, it's a long story..."
"..."
The two weren't in a hurry. They chatted and shopped, and before they knew it, they were carrying huge bags of items, mostly clothes.
Not only Nami's, but Apollo's as well.
Actually, Kaya had already prepared a lot for him when they boarded the ship, but Nami insisted on buying more to dress him up, and he couldn't exactly refuse a stylist.
After finishing with one boutique, Nami suddenly felt the air pressure drop as they stepped onto the street.
Her navigator's instincts kicked in. She predicted it would rain soon, so she decided to cut the shopping trip short and return to the ship.
Apollo glanced toward the town square. "You go back first. I'm going to the execution platform."
Nami was startled and quickly said, "Then I'll go too. We can grab Luffy and go back to the ship together."
"No need."
Apollo shook his head gently. "There's some trouble brewing at the execution platform. I'm going to check it out."
"Trouble? Is it Luffy?"
Nami's expression tightened. She knew their captain was a magnet for chaos.
"Don't worry, nothing bad will happen," Apollo assured her.
For Luffy, this trip to Loguetown, though seemingly dangerous and nearly costing him his head, was actually the safest place he could be.
"The upcoming storm will be fierce. You need to be careful on your way back."
After cautioning Nami, Apollo's figure blurred and disappeared from the street without a trace.
Nami didn't doubt him. She had already witnessed Apollo's mysterious powers.
She hurried along the path and coincidentally ran into Usopp, Sanji, and Zoro, who had finished their shopping, right at the entrance of the plaza.
When she looked up and saw Luffy trapped on the execution platform with a sword at his neck, she finally understood what Apollo meant by "trouble."
Zoro and Sanji immediately rushed forward to rescue him.
Nami didn't hesitate either, grabbing Usopp and sprinting toward the port to prep the ship.
"Hey, hey, where are you going? We should be helping out in the plaza too!" Usopp yelled.
"It's fine! Apollo is there!"
"Oh, then it's no problem."
On a nearby rooftop.
Watching Buggy raise his long blade high above Luffy's neck, Apollo couldn't help but turn to look at the mysterious figure standing beside him, draped in a dark green cloak.
"Aren't you going to make your move? If you wait any longer, you're going to lose your son."
The mysterious figure—Dragon, the Revolutionary—maintained a placid expression, though a hint of curiosity flickered in his eyes. "How did you know? There are very few people in this world who should know that."
CRACK-BOOM!
As he spoke, a blinding bolt of green lightning struck down from the heavens, hitting the execution platform with pinpoint accuracy and shattering the blade, allowing Luffy to escape unharmed.
"Very timely," Apollo noted.
"Just a stroke of luck," Dragon replied smoothly. Then, he looked at Apollo. "You know too much. You're not worried I might silence you?"
A smile played on Dragon's lips, but the air around them grew heavy.
Apollo grinned. "With your current strength... even if you wanted to, I doubt you could do it."
Dragon's eyes narrowed slightly, then relaxed. "Want to test that theory?"
Apollo's eyes lit up with battle intent. "I'd love to."
Dragon's smile widened as he gently shook his head, the tension dissipating. "Haha. I'm not here to fight today."
"However, I am curious. Why would a powerhouse like you interact with a rookie like Luffy? Their little adventures... to you, they should be insignificant child's play, right?"
Slightly disappointed at not getting a chance to test Dragon's strength, Apollo shrugged and said indifferently, "Don't you think that navigator girl is very cute?"
Dragon, the most wanted man in the world, cracked. He couldn't maintain his composure, an undisguised look of astonishment appearing on his face. "A girl?"
Apollo laughed loudly. "Hahaha! Just kidding."
Dragon didn't laugh. His expression turned serious again. "There are many cute girls in the Revolutionary Army, too. If you're willing to join us... I can introduce you."
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