After healing the girl with his Healing Palm Technique, Lin Mo casually walked away, carrying the two bottles of liquor he had taken from the man's house.
The man hugged his daughter tightly, tears streaming down his face. He turned to look at Lin Mo, who hadn't gone far, and cried out, "Thank you! Thank you so much! You're our savior—what's your name?!"
Lin Mo didn't respond and simply continued walking forward.
The townspeople around him all wore stunned expressions of disbelief.
"What did he just do? How did Old Xing's daughter recover so suddenly?"
"It's incredible! His hand glowed just now—was it that light that healed her? Who is that kid? Does anyone know him?"
"No idea. There are only a few towns on Drum Island. Judging by the style of his coat, it's not made locally."
"Ah, so he took the liquor as payment for saving Old Xing's daughter... We misunderstood him."
"Uh-oh, I said he had no manners earlier. Do you think he'll hold it against me?"
Lin Mo completely ignored the clamor behind him. He uncorked one of the bottles and poured both into his gourd as he walked.
After the gourd was full, he downed the remaining half bottle in one go.
Though the taste was mediocre, it was better than nothing.
Instantly, his body felt much warmer.
Not long after, he came across an inn that was still open.
Without overthinking, Lin Mo went in and booked a room for seven days.
He had a comfortable sleep in the inn.
By the time he woke up, it was already dark outside.
Feeling a bit hungry, Lin Mo prepared to go out and get something to eat.
Just as he stepped out of the inn, someone caught his eye—a boy, slightly taller than him, wearing a furry winter hat with leopard spots, gold earrings on both ears, heavy dark circles under his eyes, and a long black winter coat. He was carrying a stack of books and hurrying past a row of houses.
That's… Torao?
Torao was the nickname Luffy would one day give to Trafalgar Law.
In Lin Mo's memory, Trafalgar Law lost his loved ones at a young age and, at ten, joined the Donquixote Family to take revenge on the world. Later, he was rescued and reformed by Doflamingo's brother, Corazon. At thirteen, he left the Donquixote Family to avenge Corazon and eventually founded the Heart Pirates, becoming infamous across the seas.
Given the current timeline, Law should be around thirteen or fourteen now.
Lin Mo was sure there were no Donquixote Family members nearby.
And Corazon wasn't with Law either.
Which likely meant Corazon was already dead.
As for Law, he must've already left the Donquixote Family and was preparing to find crewmates to form the Heart Pirates.
Sensing someone watching him, Law turned to look at Lin Mo.
Their eyes met.
Law paused, unable to think further.
Behind him, two large men were chasing after him.
"You little brat! Stop right there and put the books down!"
"I've seen people steal money and food, but never books! Hey, you punk—stop right there!"
Seeing them gaining on him, Law took off running.
But he didn't get far before townspeople, there to help, blocked his path.
Clutching the books tightly to his chest, Law stepped back, his expression grim.
The crowd surrounded him, and one of the two men lunged forward to grab the books from his arms.
"Let go!" Law growled through clenched teeth.
"You little punk—stealing and still acting righteous?" The man grabbed Law by the back of his coat and tried to yank the books from his hands. But the books felt like they were fused to Law's arms—no matter how hard he pulled, they wouldn't budge.
"Strong little bastard for a kid! Come on, let go before I have to beat you!"
"Yeah, just give it up already. You're still a kid—there's time to turn back."
"Quit being stubborn. You're in the wrong here. Return the books."
The townspeople tried to talk him down.
Law gritted his teeth and said with frustration, "Your country is running out of doctors anyway. What's the point in keeping these medical books? Sooner or later, they'll be banned too. Better I take them now before that happens!"
The moment he said that, the aggressive man suddenly lost his momentum.
The once-noisy crowd fell into a heavy silence.
The man lowered Law and trembled slightly, his voice laced with restrained anger: "What do you know? You're just a child. Maybe those books will become banned someday… but not yet, right? Everyone's got family who might get sick. If we can't even protect these books, then our country really is finished."
After speaking, he raised his arm to cover his eyes and began to sob.
The surrounding townsfolk sighed in sorrow.
Law held the books tightly, seething.
His original goal in coming to Drum Island had been to improve his medical skills. After all, the island was renowned for its advanced medicine.
But to his dismay, the moment he arrived, the king had issued orders to hunt and expel all doctors.
With no one to learn from, Law could only rely on these books to teach himself.
He might still be just a kid—fourteen years old—but with his current strength, taking down everyone here would be easy.
Yet when he saw the suffering and oppression of the people here, it reminded him of his own tragic past.
Law understood their pain.
That's why he didn't resort to violence.
But even if he left the books behind—so what?
Medical knowledge wasn't something outsiders could just pick up and master from reading a few books.
Law came from a family of doctors. Influenced by his parents from a young age, he had learned a fair amount of basic medicine. Had his hometown not been destroyed when he was ten, he might've already become a skilled doctor by now.
"Do you even understand what's in these books?" Law asked flatly.
The townspeople remained silent.
Law continued, "For outsiders, learning medicine on your own is nearly impossible. Keeping these books is a waste. I don't want to hurt anyone—but I'm taking them. None of you are getting these back from me."
"You… you know medicine?" the man who had tried to grab the books asked in shock.
Law gave a silent nod.
Just then, a small figure calmly walked through the crowd.
"Look—it's that kid who saved Old Xing's daughter with some strange technique!"
Someone shouted.
Immediately, everyone's attention shifted to Lin Mo, who had just been heading out to find food.