When that mysterious group showed up, Lin Mo hadn't planned on making a move at all.
After all, with Smoker and Aokiji here, there was no way they'd allow outsiders to cause large-scale destruction in Loguetown.
But as those attackers began their assault, a few of them actually targeted him…
All kinds of strange weapons came flying his way.
Lin Mo dodged several times, but eventually got fed up. He coated his arm in Armament Haki and sent a few of them flying with a single punch.
When the rest saw their comrades taken out by a kid, they all redirected their attacks toward him, charging at him in a frenzy.
The bad weather was already annoying enough—now this?
Lin Mo simply shot them a glare. Instantly, everyone charging at him collapsed under the pressure of his Conqueror's Haki.
On the execution platform, Rayleigh watched the skirmish nearby. Seeing Lin Mo getting swarmed, he made no move to help.
He didn't know the full extent of Lin Mo's strength, but he did know—those people didn't stand a chance.
And the moment Lin Mo unleashed his Conqueror's Haki…
A golden glint flashed in Rayleigh's eyes.
"Conqueror's, huh?" Rayleigh smiled. "Looks like you're even more impressive than I thought, Lin Mo. Roger... this kid might just be the one to change the era you once set into motion. If you were still alive, I bet you'd be excited to meet him."
Just then, Rayleigh sensed Smoker and Aokiji moving from the building behind him.
Without hesitation, he stood up, leapt off the execution platform, and walked over to the two, carrying his two empty rum bottles.
Smoker narrowed his eyes. "Was that you?"
Rayleigh pointed to Lin Mo in the distance and smiled. "That was him."
Aokiji rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Conqueror's Haki, huh…"
"What?!" Smoker said in disbelief. "You mean Lin Mo took down all those guys with Conqueror's Haki? That's impossible! Not just anyone can use that! Even if he has it, he's just a kid—how could he use it so skillfully?!"
"I was surprised too," Rayleigh replied with a grin. "But he did it. If Roger were alive, he'd be very interested in that kid. Haha. Anyway, my purpose here is fulfilled. Time for me to leave. Farewell."
With that, Rayleigh turned and walked away, laughing.
Smoker clenched his weapon, the Jitte, teeth grinding in frustration. "Damn it… I'm still too weak…"
He knew full well the gap between himself and Rayleigh.
If Aokiji went one-on-one with Rayleigh, he'd have less than a 50% chance of winning.
And if Smoker fought Aokiji one-on-one, he wouldn't even have a 30% chance.
So, even if the two of them teamed up, they'd still lose to Rayleigh.
Especially with Lin Mo nearby—an unpredictable factor.
Smoker just couldn't tell which side Lin Mo was truly on.
If Lin Mo decided to help Rayleigh, their odds would be even worse.
"Geez, Smoker, you're overthinking it," Aokiji said lazily, even though Smoker hadn't said anything out loud. He already knew what the other man was thinking. "If Rayleigh wanted to start something, he'd have done it already. No reason to wait. And that kid, Lin Mo—these past few days I've napped around him, had a few chats. I can tell—he doesn't have any intention of picking a side. He's neutral."
Smoker's face changed, shocked. "Wait, what? You… you slept with him?"
Aokiji rolled his eyes. "What are you freaking out about? It was just a nap."
Smoker coughed awkwardly.
By now, the other Marines had come down from their hiding spots in the buildings.
"Eh? These invaders have all been taken care of? Commander, what should we do with them?"
"Lock them all up," Smoker ordered. "We'll question them when they wake up—find out who they are."
"Yes, sir!"
The Marines immediately began rounding up the unconscious attackers.
Aokiji watched Lin Mo and Rayleigh as they walked away and asked, "So, we're just letting them go?"
Smoker gave a dry cough. "Whatever. Also… I'll keep your secret."
"…Huh?" Aokiji blinked. "What secret?"
"…Never mind," Smoker mumbled awkwardly.
As they walked toward the port, Rayleigh smiled. "I'm heading off now."
Lin Mo responded with a simple, "Mm."
He was still feeling annoyed.
He thought helping Rayleigh would trigger some kind of mission progress.
But—nothing happened.
Noticing Lin Mo's distracted expression, Rayleigh continued, "What about you? When are you leaving Loguetown?"
"Soon," Lin Mo replied vaguely.
"Want to see me off?" Rayleigh asked with a grin.
Lin Mo was just about to say no.
But Rayleigh added, "After all the drinks I bought you these past few days, you can at least do that much, right?"
"…Fine."
Rayleigh laughed and kept walking.
Before long, the two arrived at the port.
Even though it was still raining, the port was bustling with people in raincoats, loading and unloading cargo.
Rayleigh glanced at the various docked ships and grinned. "Wanna guess which one's mine? If you get it right, I'll give you a reward."
Lin Mo gave him a deadpan look.
A ship?
Rayleigh, the guy who once swam solo from Sabaody to Amazon Lily through the Calm Belt, needs a ship?
Come on.
Seeing Lin Mo stay silent, Rayleigh burst into laughter. "Can't guess? Just take a random stab at it."
Without wasting more words, Lin Mo pointed lazily to a small wooden boat by the pier.
Rayleigh roared with laughter. "Hahaha! That's exactly it! No surprise coming from you—you guessed right."
Lin Mo: "?"
Rayleigh continued, "Since you guessed right, I'll do you a favor—anything within my power. Good or bad, I'll help."
Lin Mo sighed internally.
Seriously? The one boat he randomly picked turned out to be Rayleigh's?
Even if it was, he didn't need that kind of reward.
"No need," Lin Mo said flatly. "I don't want your reward."
"Don't be so quick to turn it down," Rayleigh smiled. "Who knows what the future holds? It's not like you owe me anything. It's a free favor—no reason not to take it. Haha! It's settled, then. If you ever need help, come find me at Sabaody Archipelago. See ya!"
With that, Rayleigh leapt onto the small wooden boat, waved at Lin Mo on the shore, and began sailing off toward the Grand Line.
Lin Mo watched as the boat drifted farther away. Just as he was about to turn back to the tavern…
A voice cried out behind him, "Ah! My boat! Dammit, who the hell took even my crappy little skiff?!"
Figures.
Lin Mo couldn't help chuckling.
Then, suddenly, a voice rang out in his mind.
"Ding! Sent off the Dark King Rayleigh. Sign-in progress +10%. Current total progress: 80%."
He blinked in surprise, not even done processing that when the system rang again.
"Ding! Gained the recognition of Marine Commander Smoker. Sign-in progress +10%. Current total progress: 90%. Reward: Tekkai Level +1. Current Tekkai Level: Lv2."