Chapter 34: Drum Island
Bang!
Walking into the first-floor cabin, Reiner casually tossed a small bag of treasure onto the table.
"What's this?"
"The spoils from just now."
Hearing this, Nami glanced over. Curiosity compelled her to reach out and open it; her intuition told her it must be something good. Untying the drawstring and lifting the flap – sure enough, a captivating golden light met her eyes.
"Woah~" Nami immediately shot up, her eyes shining with a golden light even more dazzling than the treasure itself.
Reiner nonchalantly walked to the side, picked up a cup from the table, and poured himself some water.
"It's yours."
"Really, Reiner!? I love you!"
Heh heh, all smiles when there's money, cursing when there's none. Reiner put down his water cup and rolled his eyes at her. Unexpectedly, Nami turned around and gave him a big hug.
???
Reiner had just come in after exercising and was still shirtless. Feeling Nami press against him, his heart felt strangely stirred.
He glanced at the table – treasure worth maybe several million, less than ten million Beri.
This earns a hug? Reiner couldn't help but think of the hundreds of millions stored in his private stash.
I have a plan!
"Nami," a wicked smile suddenly appeared on Reiner's face. He took the opportunity to slide an arm around Nami's waist, saying slyly, "Let's just say... my private stash still has quite a bit saved up..."
"Hm?" Nami looked up at him, feeling the arm around her waist.
Black lines formed on Nami's head, and she delivered a punch.
Duang!!
And so, a teary-eyed figure ended up face down on the floor, ass in the air. "I didn't even say anything yet..."
"One look and I knew nothing good would come out of that dog's mouth."
Nami shot him a glare and said irritably, "That Drum Island you mentioned earlier, looking at the map, we should reach the nearby waters tomorrow."
"Ah, got it."
Reiner regained his serious expression, sat down next to Nami, and took the sea chart to look. "We'll enter the winter island climate zone tomorrow. Get your thick clothes ready so you don't catch a cold."
"Okay. Right, what's a 'Winter Island'?" Nami agreed, then asked.
Reiner: "..."
"Are you planning on making me do your navigator job part-time as well?"
Reiner squinted at her, his disdain unconcealed. How did this logistics role gradually become an 'all-purpose' one?
He had even started helping with cooking recently. The Wolverine undead was fused from Sanji and Kuro's templates – surprisingly, its skills weren't bad, but lacking a brain, Sanji had recruited it as a kitchen helper.
Nami just chuckled awkwardly and waved her hands dismissively. "Hahaha..."
"Dinner's ready, everyone!"
Sanji's voice came from the second-floor living area. Reiner picked up the blue shirt draped over the back of his chair, buttoned it up, and went upstairs with Nami.
"Today's lunch looks sumptuous!"
"Ah, thanks to Reiner's undead, they caught a small Sea King this morning."
"Woahahaha! Lots of meat!"
"To celebrate Reiner catching a Sea King, I'll go get the last barrel of booze!"
A smirk appeared on Zoro's lips as he stood up and headed towards the storage room downstairs. He always found excuses to drink.
When leaving Little Garden, they had left one barrel each for the two giants. Of the dozen or so barrels Zoro bought in Loguetown, only this one remained.
Luckily, they would reach Drum Island tomorrow, where they could buy more. Reiner took the opportunity while everyone was present to mention detouring to Drum Island to restock supplies.
"Eh? Drum Island?" Vivi paused, looking up at Reiner.
"What's wrong, Vivi? Is there a problem with that island?"
Drum Island was only about a four or five-day journey from Alabasta, almost making them neighboring countries.
Vivi had never been there, but she had heard stories, including a ridiculous incident that once shocked the world.
[The Doctor 20 Incident!]
Vivi slowly began explaining to everyone.
"Drum Kingdom was once a nation famous for its medical arts."
"Until one day, the king there selected the 20 most outstanding doctors who were willing to obey him, and then killed or exiled all the others..."
"Why would he do that?" Nami put down her utensils upon hearing this, asking curiously.
Gripping her cutlery tightly, Vivi's expression suddenly turned ugly. She gritted her teeth, forcing out the words:
"Because that bastard King Wapol had a disgusting fetish! He enjoyed watching his subjects kneel and beg him for medical treatment, taking pleasure in their suffering..."
The small room filled with people fell into an eerie silence for a moment.
Click!
"Wapol? Didn't the guy just now call himself that?" Sanji lit a cigarette and spoke coolly, seemingly confirming with Reiner and Zoro.
"Probably. Don't remember."
"That was him, alright. Already sunk to feed the fish."
"NANI!! So you three just casually sunk a king without saying anything, you bastards!"
Nami cursed loudly, then slowly sat back down, sighing helplessly. "Oh well. At least it was done quietly. Shouldn't cause any problems."
"Eh? What's going on?" Vivi looked completely bewildered.
This conversation sounds like something incredible just happened!
"That bastard Wapol-whatsit! Let's go beat him up too while we're at it!" Luffy stood up on his chair, slamming a foot on the table and shouting angrily.
Everyone else: "...So slow."
"And get your feet off the table, damn it!"
Duang!
The next day at noon, the gray, oppressive sky was filled with falling goose-down snow. Visibility at sea was very poor.
Nami and Vivi were bundled up in thick clothes, wearing warm earmuffs. They had even tailored a warm outer coat for Karoo.
The wind at sea was strong, and combined with the severe cold, the icy chill bit to the bone. Even Nami was rarely seen wearing thick long pants.
Very boring.
Only two people on the ship were having a blast.
"Watch the ball, Luffy!"
"Oof! Damn it! Take this, Usopp! Gum-Gum Giant Snowball!"
"Hey, hey, wait! Using your ability is going too far!"
Thump!
"Ugh..."
On the crow's nest, an undead falcon broke formation, flapping its wings towards the stern.
"Looks like we're almost there." Putting down his barbell, Reiner followed the falcon back to the crow's nest.
Looking out, the sea was a vast expanse of white. The heavy snowfall obscured almost all vision, revealing only a tiny black dot in the distance.
After quite some time, the island's features gradually became clearer. The entire island was almost completely covered in snow, with huge, white-topped, cylindrical mountain peaks towering upon it.
"Approaching the island, everyone!"
"Coming, coming! Winter Island adventure!"
At that moment, in Big Horn Village on Drum Island, the thick snow on the streets had been swept into piles along the sides.
A panicked figure ran along the cleared road, footsteps echoing crisply.
"Bad news! Pirates are here again!"
"Quick, go inform Dalton!"
"Everyone! Prepare for battle!"
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Inside an ordinary residential house, violent knocking disturbed the large man who was eating.
"What is it?" The man wasn't angry, simply standing up and calling out, his voice steady and deep.
The response was a panicked, urgent shout: "Bad news, Dalton! The pirates are here again!"
The large man, Dalton, frowned instantly upon hearing this. He quickly grabbed the oval-shaped, double-edged greatsword leaning against the wall, opened the door, and ran outside.
"Get a few people to warn the nearby villages! The rest of you, grab your weapons and follow me!"
Dalton shouted gravely, taking the lead and charging towards the coast.
"Yes!"
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