Chapter 8: A Visitor
"Flower Street"?
Isn't that the modern equivalent of a red-light district?
And Saul goes to a place like that to exercise in the morning?
With his physique and age...
Maud was speechless.
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The shop was open, but there wasn't a single customer.
Sunny hadn't given Maud any tasks, and he didn't offer to do anything either.
He leaned against a corner of the wall, closing his eyes to continue organizing his memories of One Piece.
When he finished sorting his memories, he would have to resume his "exercise routines" that he had long abandoned.
After all, his Hunter's Notebook couldn't offer him substantial help in the short term, unless a second Watts offered himself up.
Time passed slowly.
Two hours went by without a single customer coming in.
Maud looked at Sunny, who was sitting at the counter, reading and re-reading the same newspaper.
Judging by her calm demeanor, slow business seemed to be the norm for this gun shop.
Besides, it seemed too quiet.
Maud turned to look at the wooden door, which was ajar.
For a lawless area where fights and murders could break out at any moment, after several hours, the only thing he could hear were the light footsteps of people passing by the shop.
Feeling curious, Maud walked toward the door.
Seeing that Sunny didn't react, Maud opened the door and peeked out.
After a moment, Maud retreated and closed the door silently.
'Damn it, isn't it just an alley in a residential area?'
No wonder it was so quiet most of the time.
With the gun shop in this location, someone who didn't know would think you sold alcohol.
Maud cursed in his mind.
The image of Mad Hatter Town that he had imagined from the information he had was slowly diminishing.
Suddenly, he felt the urge to go out and see the streets, but he quickly suppressed it.
Instead of thinking about such things, it was better to think about how to get a gun from Saul.
Maud turned around and walked toward the corner.
After only a few steps, the door suddenly opened.
Maud instinctively turned, and seeing the visitors, his eyes were filled with surprise.
In front of the door was a group of three people. They appeared to be walking side by side, but the men on the sides stayed a step behind, highlighting the identity of the man in the middle.
The man on the left had curly, center-parted hair. He carried a long-barreled musket on his back and a five-finger-wide, earth-colored belt. On the left side of the belt, he wore a pouch full of ammunition.
The man on the right was fat but taller than the other two.
He wore a green bandana on his head, small wine-colored sunglasses that didn't fit his face, and a half-eaten piece of meat in his hand.
The double wooden door was opened by the man in the middle.
The man smiled cheerfully upon seeing Maud's unusual reaction: "Young man, did I not hit you?"
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A Day's Work in Mad Hatter Town
Lookout Street, Mad Hatter Town.
This area is next to the bar street and is the location of the black market.
Any illegal transaction can be carried out openly here.
Lookout Street, with the largest auction house in Mad Hatter Town at its center, has all kinds of establishments related to the illegal industry.
"Lovers' Home," where Arthur works, is also among them.
As an undertaker, he is always busy.
Of course, most of his business comes from his skill.
Today was his only day off of the month. To enjoy this time, he had planned a complete itinerary the day before.
However, just as he had eaten and drunk enough and was preparing to go to Flower Street to exercise, the Den Den Mushi rang, and he had a bad feeling.
Half an hour later, he returned to his workplace.
Working for others always had its limitations.
He lamented in his mind while putting on his work uniform.
The uniform, the mask, and the arm band with the word "Death" were the standard equipment of an undertaker.
After putting on the uniform, Arthur waited for the next instruction.
His colleagues also hurried back to the Lovers' Home, probably called urgently by the boss.
"Why did you guys come back too? Don't tell me there was another problem at the 'Slaughterhouse'?"
"Yeah, it happened this morning. Once again, it's because a group of slaves rioted."
"How many slaves died or were injured this time?"
"I'm not sure, but they say it was worse than last time."
"Bah, I thought it would be an important job, but it's just another crappy job from that area."
An undertaker complained.
The undertaker in charge looked at his colleagues and said calmly: "Let's go when we're all here."
Arthur, sitting in an inconspicuous corner, listened silently to the conversation of his colleagues.
It turned out there was another problem at the "Slaughterhouse," and surely many slaves had died or been injured.
In other words, today was going to be a busy day.
And it was a lot of effort for little money.
Arthur sighed in his heart.
His precious day off...
"I heard there will be some important items at the end-of-the-month auction."
"What items?"
"A Devil Fruit, a famous sword, and fish-man slaves."
"Are you serious? Where did you hear that? Do you already know what will be for sale before they publish the auction catalog?"
"I swear on my honor!"
"Then it's a lie."
"?"
"Oh, I almost forgot. I'm a heartless undertaker, and I lost my honor when I started working here. How about I swear on something else?"
In the corner, Arthur wiggled his ears and discreetly looked at the colleagues who were whispering nearby.
A Devil Fruit and a famous sword?
Arthur was surprised, but he didn't easily believe the veracity of the news.
Although in a place like this, full of all kinds of people, thanks to alcohol, sometimes street news could be faster than official news, Devil Fruits were extremely rare.
If the auction house had gotten one, they would have probably already announced it with great fanfare.
"A Devil Fruit..."
Arthur's eyes were filled with longing.
With his income level, he would have to stop eating and drinking for several decades to have the chance to compete for it.
If there really was a Devil Fruit at the end-of-the-month auction, even if he couldn't participate, he could go and watch.
As for the famous sword, old Saul would probably be interested.
On the bar street, in a tavern.
It was noon, but the tavern was packed.
As one of the main consumer centers, bars have always been one of pirates' favorite places, so this phenomenon of customers was not strange.
Kid was alone at a table. In the tavern, which was a bit crowded, he stood out from the crowd.
Even so, no one dared to bother him.
The reason was that the more than ten pirates lying on the floor were the warning.
At that moment, a man with a blue mask entered the tavern, looked around, and went directly to Kid's table.
When he arrived, the man in the blue mask sat down without a word.
Kid looked up at the man and said, "You're here."
The man in the blue mask nodded and asked, "Did you get the gun?"
"No."
Kid shook his head.
"Did someone else buy it?"
"No, the owner didn't want to sell it to me."
"He didn't sell it to you? Why?"
"I don't know."
Kid drank the rest of the wine from the bottle in frustration.
The man in the blue mask probably imagined what had happened and said, "Then give me the money, and I'll go buy it."
"I've almost run out of money."
"..."
The man in the blue mask was speechless.
But Kid had an expression of indifference.
In his opinion, money was something that could be easily obtained by stealing it.