Chapter 144: Lies...
"As long as you aren't free here," The Administrator poked at Adam's chest aiming at his heart before continuing with a smirk, "You'll never be free no matter how powerful you become."
"Yo-…" Adam's eyes widened but before he could speak he was already falling.
'I think you have wasted enough time here, Anyway, I believe that you will follow the rules since they are indeed important for this place to exist,' Just as Adam was about to do something he heard the voice of the Admin and his mind raced.
'Is he talking about that, I see, then I can understand why he refused to slow down time, it is not that he doesn't want to but he can't,' Adam continued to make his assumptions based on the information he had, 'This universe surprisingly has an enormous amount of timelines created, and with a weaker Admin like him it is tough to manage this place, that is why each world relies on certain people of importance and if those important people are missing then the timeline will collapse.'
'And in the end, that bastard….. He really thinks that I don't know that,' Adam gritted his teeth as the wind whizzed past his face, but he didn't care, the reason for that was
'Well, it is not I can die from falling,' Adam thought but just then he felt what was below him…
"Oh, Shi-BOOOOM!" Adam forgot what would happen if he landed on top of someone or something other than the sea.
And guess what? That just happened.
***
1514, Cocoyashi Village, Conomi Isalnds, East Blue.
It was just another normal day for the village, there was nothing out of the ordinary even if…
'Maybe I shouldn't have said that,' A little girl with short orange hair was questioning the previous words that she spoke to her mother and sister.
"Nami! I knew you would be here," Just as this girl was thinking about that her sister came into the place like a storm or more like her non-blood-related sister as she had called her a few hours ago.
The blue-haired girl was looking for Nami because…
"See, she already knew where to find you, Now go and talk to Belemere," Genzo said with a smile coming on his stern face, he had seen Nami grow up and knew her mother as well so he knew how the two were.
'Well, should I go?' Nami wondered, She knew she had said bad things in anger and after hearing how her mother raised her from Genzo considering that they weren't even blood-related.
It honestly made Nami feel even worse for saying such things not that she meant what she said.
But she didn't get the chance to speak to her mother once again because of Pirates attacking the village.
"It is the Arlong Pirates!!!!" The Arlong Pirates swept through the place like nothing and they weren't satisfied with plundering it just this once, what they did next was worse.
"100,000 berries for an adult and 50,000 berries for a child every month, anyone who can't pay will be killed," That is what their leader Arlong declared with a crooked grin.
'No one can win against them,' Nami and her sister Nojiko had to watch this from afar as the pirates still hadn't noticed them, But the bad news came soon after for them because…
"Arlong! There seems to be a house a little distance from the village, look there is smoke rising!" One of the crew members noticed and pointed it out making everyone notice.
'Shit!' Genzo who had hidden Nami and Nojiko before the pirates could get them cursed, they had been playing it off so that these pirates won't notice Belle-mere's house which was far from the village next to her grooves because there was no way she had 200,000 berries saved up.
And considering how she was, there was no doubt in their mind that she'd attack Arlong the moment she saw him, and just like their thoughts she attacked but it didn't end well.
"Arrgghh!" Belle-mere groaned in pain, Arlong had crushed her hand under his foot mercilessly. Even with her experience of fighting in wars as a Marine, The Fishman Arlong was too strong for her.
And his superior physical strength made it easy for him to defeat Belle-mere. And while Nami and Nojiko were watching in horror, Arlong's crewmates ransacked her house and took out 100,000 berries that she had been saving for her children.
"There are three plates of food inside, so there should be two more people around!" One of the crewmates noticed and spoke up but Genzo lied about being invited to have dinner there so that Belle-mere could get away with this, The main reason was there was no more money in the village.
'They still haven't found the two kids, If they do then….' Genzo gritted his teeth as there was simply nothing he could do here.
On the other hand, the village Doctor alongside the chief was trying to make Nami and Nojiko run away before the pirates take note of them.
They also didn't need to worry since their names weren't on the registry alongside Belle-mere so there was no way they would be able to connect them. So, they could easily play it off while saving their lives but…
"No! Why do we have to leave? I want to stay here, is it because I am poor?" Nami was already crying, she wanted to talk to Belle-mere again, leaving like this after what she had said was weighing down on her but there was no other choice.
Belle-mere only had 100,000 berries meaning she didn't have any money for them, All of the money in the village was already taken by the pirates so there was no other way.
This meant that the pirates would kill them and Belle-mere wouldn't let that happen, but it was evident that she wouldn't be able to stop them with how injured she was, and expecting mercy from the pirates was foolish.
"Ok, I'll leave!" Nojiko who had been completely silent spoke up and Nami turned with tears streaming down her face, she was in disbelief but, "Let's go Nami, if it means that Belle-mere can live then we should go."
Nojiko was correct as Nami had said this morning, they weren't blood-related, but even then it was normal to repay Belle-mere like this because of how she had taken care of them for so long.
It was an amount of courage that even adults would lack but these girls had it, Even then their feet stopped as soon as they heard the next words from their non-blood-related Mother.
"100,000 Berries, that's good…. With that I'll be able to save my children," Her words stopped Arlong who was about to leave turned around with a grin, "Even if it means I'll die, even if it is just mere words, I still want to be called their mother, those girls…. Are my children aren't they?"
'NO, you idiot!!' Genzo shouted in his head, but before he could go on, Nami and Nojiko came running.
"Belle-mere!!!" The two were crying their eyes out hugging the injured Belle-mere.
They couldn't walk away after hearing that, just like she saw them as her children, the two had thought of her as their mother no matter what happened or how much they fought, In the end, she was their only mother.
'I wish I had been adopted into a rich family,' Nami could hear the words she had spoken just this morning in her spat with Belle-mere this morning.
"I was lying!!" Just like Belle-mere, Nami was also a hot head, she would end up saying things in the moment of anger but she didn't mean it.
For her, the family she had with Belle-mere and Nojiko was something she cherished, and she wouldn't give it up even if she was offered all of the treasures of the world.
But right now, in front of her very eyes that family was about to be broken just because they didn't have enough money.
"I'll make you the example for what happens when you can't pay up," Arlong grinned while aiming his pistol at Belle-mere's head while his crewmates stopped the villagers who were trying to stop them.
"Sure, but don't touch them afterward," Even at death's door Belle-mere was still worried about her kids rather than herself at this moment.
'Noooo!! Please, someone…!!' Nami cried looking at what was happening and that day Bellermere died….Or she was supposed to because something changed that.
BOOOOOOOOOOOM*
…..Something fell from the sky landing right where Arlong was standing.
"Waaaaaaa!!" Nami cried as she was knocked off her feet, and not just her alone everyone was on the ground because that impact shook the entire island breaking houses in the process while making some deep cracks form in the land around Cocoyashi village.
And in that moment when everyone had fallen, Nami saw someone stand up from the place where the impact happened.
'Who is he?'
Weekly Power Status
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