Lock didn't even bother sparing Alvida a second glance. She looked ready to take his head off, but the hesitation in her eyes was almost funny. Without another word, he gave a light hop and landed back on the deck.
"Mr. Luffy, Mr. Lock is still down there with that scary Alvida," Coby said nervously. "Why don't we go help him…?"
When Luffy and Coby had first climbed onto the merchant ship's deck, Alvida's goons had rushed them. Unfortunately for the goons, Luffy was… well, Luffy. Now the entire lot of them lay groaning on the floorboards.
Luffy tilted his head at Coby. "Is that rude auntie strong? I don't think she can beat Lock."
"But—"
"What are you talking about?" Lock's voice cut in. He was already standing beside them, brushing off his sleeves like he'd just taken a stroll.
Coby blinked in surprise. "Huh? Mr. Lock, you're here! So… did you beat Alvida?"
To Coby, there were only two explanations. Either Lock had beaten her outright, or he'd bolted so fast she couldn't catch him. Judging by Lock's calm expression, the first option felt more likely.
Lock shrugged. "Didn't even fight her. She's so weak she didn't dare to try." His tone was as casual as if he were commenting on the weather.
Luffy frowned in mild disappointment. "What? Coby wanted me to go down and help you! Turns out she's as timid as Coby. She wouldn't even fight you?"
Somewhere, in some alternate reality where Alvida overheard that, she'd probably be screaming, 'Anyone would be scared if they saw someone casually shatter a spiked mace, you rubber idiot!'
Coby pointed at himself indignantly. "Why am I in this again?"
Lock's eyes flicked to the horizon, where navy ships were already lining up their cannons. "Luffy, we should leave. The navy's on their way."
Puff—
Biu—
Another shell whistled in from the distance.
"Is that so? Then let's go!" Luffy said, already shoving a small boat into the water. He leaped over the rail with Coby tucked under one arm. Lock followed right after.
Down on the waves, they happened to pass a small boat where a young woman with orange hair was rowing away fast. Lock recognized her in a heartbeat—Nami—hands gripping oars, a suspiciously heavy sack beside her. Alvida's treasure, no doubt.
She hesitated for a moment when she saw them, but quickly turned her boat in the opposite direction.
The three of them drifted on their tiny craft, letting the currents take them wherever they pleased—exactly as in the original timeline, though Lock tried not to think about the "Oda logic" that would probably dump them straight at Zoro's location.
"Coby," Luffy said, "what's that pirate hunter guy like?"
Coby came back from his thoughts. "The pirate hunter? He's terrifying. But… he's locked up at the naval base."
Luffy grinned, hands behind his head. "I wanna see if he's a good guy. Maybe I'll get him to join us."
He flashed his trademark grin at Lock. "What do you think? Maybe this Zoro guy's nice?"
Lock chuckled to himself. Only Luffy would recruit someone based on a gut feeling.
"You're the captain," Lock said. "Do whatever you want. Don't ask me to sign off on your hires."
"Oh, I get it," Luffy nodded. Then, with complete sincerity, added, "But you're my vice-captain, so I have to ask for your opinion. Hey, hey, hey—" His big white grin returned in full force.
Lock smirked but let it drop. No point in trying to logic Luffy out of being Luffy.
Naval Execution Grounds
A man in a green bandana was tied to a wooden cross, baking in the sun.
Luffy and Coby were lying on their stomachs atop a wall, peering down at him. Lock leaned lazily against the same wall, a piece of grass in his mouth, looking like he was there to watch a street performance.
"If I just untie that rope, we can free him," Luffy said, eyeing the knots.
"What are you talking about?!" Coby hissed. "If we free him, he might cut all of us down—even you and Mr. Lock!"
"It's fine. I'm strong. And Lock's strong too," Luffy replied with a shrug.
Hopeless, Coby thought. Completely hopeless.
"Mr. Lock, this is too obvious! If they see us, we're dead!" Coby's eyes darted to the navy patrols.
Lock waved lazily. "Relax, Coby. I checked earlier—these navy guys have terrible eyesight. They can't see me."
Coby stared. "You just got here! When did you check their eyesight?"
In truth, Lock hadn't checked anything. He'd simply cast a small concealment spell—an old trick from his magic academy days, perfect for sneaking up on classmates and scaring them half to death. Unless he spoke directly or attacked, nobody would sense him.
Luffy's eyes lit up. "As expected of you, Lock! You even investigated their eyesight. I'm doing that too." He flopped down beside Lock, mimicking his posture.
Coby pinched the bridge of his nose. "He's joking, Luffy."
"I believe Lock wouldn't lie to me," Luffy said, grinning.
Lock resisted the urge to facepalm. Great. Now I have to make this spell work perfectly so I don't 'lie' to the captain.
Down below, Zoro finally spoke. "Hey, you three! You're an eyesore. Get lost!"
Coby practically jumped out of his skin. "See?! If we freed him, we'd be dead in seconds!"
Bang!
A small girl scrambled up the wooden ladder, glancing around before tossing a rope down. She slid to the ground and walked toward Zoro, clutching something in her hands.
Zoro scowled. "What are you doing here?"
"I…" She held out two rice balls in her palms. "You must be hungry. This is… this is the first time I made rice balls."
"Go away! I'm not hungry!" Zoro barked.
"But… but—"
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A/N: Please Leave A Comment Or Drop A Powerstone It'll mean alot to me...