"Merry! Merry!!"
Kaya immediately recognized the blood-soaked head of the sheep-faced butler lying on the floor. Panic overtook her in an instant.
Without a second thought for the blood that might stain her pajamas, the usually gentle and kind Kaya rushed to Merry's side and carefully lifted him up.
"Merry!!! What happened!? What's going on!? Please, wake up!! Don't die!!"
Tears streamed down her face as she cried out. At the same time, she began to administer emergency treatment using the medical knowledge she had learned.
"Cough… ugh…!"
Less than a minute later, Merry, who had been unconscious, suddenly coughed up a mouthful of thick blood. He flipped over, braced one hand against the ground, and vomited more blood onto the floor.
"Cough… cough…"
It was as if all the strength had drained from his body. After a brief pause, Merry collapsed again and lay back down.
"Merry!"
Kaya looked down at him anxiously, softly calling his name.
But Merry didn't respond right away. Instead, he lay flat on the floor, gasping heavily for breath.
After a long moment, perhaps because the pain had dulled or his body had gone numb, Merry gritted his teeth and forced out a whisper with what little strength he had:
"Miss… Kaya…
Hah… You're safe… hah… that's… such a relief…"
"What?" Kaya's heart ached as she looked at his terrible wounds.
"Of course I'm fine… What are you talking about!?"
"Hah… hah…"
Merry caught his breath, as if gathering strength. Then, suddenly, he let out a furious cry:
"Klahadore!!!"
Kaya flinched. It was the first time she had ever seen gentle Merry wear such a terrifying, twisted expression. Confused and frightened, she murmured:
"W-What…?"
"Cough!"
Merry coughed again. This time, his expression shifted, grief, hurt, regret…
Tears flowed silently from his eyes. His lips trembled as he choked out the words:
"It… it was him… He's the one who did this to me!!!"
"No way!!"
Kaya suddenly covered her mouth, her eyes brimming with tears.
In her memories, the butler Klahadore was always gentle and kind. She simply couldn't accept what Merry was saying.
"No… no… That can't be true! You're joking, right!?"
Her voice trembled. Her world, her very beliefs, were shattering. Tears fell quietly as she resisted the truth.
Then, as if a thought struck her, her eyes widened, and she turned to Merry.
"Then… what Usopp said yesterday…"
Merry closed his eyes, recalling his attitude toward Usopp the day before. He spoke with bitter regret:
"Looking back now… It was all true!! He discovered the truth and tried desperately to save us, but we…!!"
The room fell into silence, as if giving Kaya a moment to absorb it all.
"What… what have I done to him…"
Kaya dropped to her knees, dazed and remorseful.
─────────🏴☠️────────
Meanwhile…
"Hey! Onion-head! Wake up!!"
In a small clearing within the woods, Usopp Pirates' usual meeting spot, an apple-headed kid yelled at another kid who was sleeping soundly under a tree.
The boy, nicknamed "Carrot-head," groggily rubbed his eyes and complained:
"Geez, what's the big idea!? I don't usually wake up this early!"
The onion-headed boy grew anxious and shouted:
"This is no time to be sleeping! Something big might happen soon!"
"I really think pirates could be coming to attack today…"
He gestured wildly as if trying to convince himself of what he was saying.
"Even though Captain Usopp said he was lying… I think that was the real lie!"
After spending so much time around Usopp, he noticed something off about the way Usopp acted yesterday. It wasn't like their usual captain at all.
At first, he chose to believe Usopp's words, after all, Usopp had never lied to them before.
But after thinking it over, comparing Usopp's expressions and behavior… he came to a new conclusion:
Captain Usopp was lying to protect them.
So, first thing in the morning, he gathered his two friends here to share what he had figured out.
To his surprise…
"I thought the same thing…"
"Yeah… something was weird about Captain yesterday…"
All three of them had sensed it.
Something big was about to go down!
Just as they began to discuss what to do next, Carrot-head suddenly pointed toward the road and shouted:
"Look over there!!"
The other two looked in the direction he pointed, and were immediately stunned.
"Isn't that… Miss Kaya!?"
"Oh no!! Miss Kaya came out alone!?"
"Something big must've happened!! Definitely!!"
Kaya was well-known throughout Syrup Village for being frail and rarely even stepping outside.
And now she was wandering around alone?
The three boys instantly pieced together what must be going on.
Their expressions turned serious in a flash.
─────────🏴☠️─────────
Back at the coast…
Shrrip!
"Agh!"
Usopp couldn't dodge in time and took another hit. George, one of the cat-like Nyaban Brothers, slashed his arm, five bloody claw marks tore through his flesh.
"Stink Bomb!!"
In a panic, Usopp quickly pulled a special rotten egg from his backpack and hurled it at their faces.
An unbearable stench exploded into the air, forcing the Nyaban Brothers to back off just enough for Usopp to catch his breath.
Of the six pirates who had escaped the burning mansion, Usopp had already taken down four.
But the Nyaban Brothers, actual wanted criminals with bounties, were clearly on another level.
Though Usopp wasn't weak in terms of stamina or speed, his lack of combat experience had taken a toll. By now, his body was covered in slashes. His clothes were torn and soaked in blood.
Blood dripped constantly from his wounds, staining the ground beneath him.
But his will remained unbroken.
His blurry vision slowly refocused with determination, locking onto the brothers preparing to strike again.
From his observations, the leaner brother, George, was weaker than the bulkier Buchi.
With no stamina left for a long fight, Usopp decided, George would be his target, his breakthrough!
Quietly, he reached into his backpack and gripped a specific item tightly in his hand.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
As the stench faded, the Nyaban Brothers lunged again.
They couldn't afford to return to Captain Kuro in failure, not after being wiped out by just one kid.
Fear and rage boiled inside them, and they aimed it all at the one boy responsible.
"Die, brat!!"
But this time, Usopp didn't dodge.
Instead, he raised his slingshot and shouted directly at George:
"LEAD SHOT!!"
"Tch!"
Having seen Usopp's lead bullets before, George ignored it completely. Those weak, slow shots couldn't possibly hurt him, not even worth dodging.
He reached out with his sharp claws, ready to swipe it away,
But then…
"Heh…"
Usopp suddenly grinned.
The black pellet shot through the air in a dark blur. George casually slashed it with his claws, splitting it cleanly in half.
But something felt off, it didn't feel solid.
It was… soft?
Poof!
The pellet burst mid-air, releasing a cloud of black powder, forming a small smoke cloud right in George's face.
A breeze blew it straight at him.
"Achoo!!"
George sneezed uncontrollably, having inhaled a large amount of the powder.
"Achoo!!"
Usopp smiled, but didn't stop for a second. As he pulled another item from his pack, he muttered:
"Did you forget…? I'm the Great Liar, after all!"
"Hahahaha…!t!!"
He quickly loaded the next item into his slingshot and pulled it back with force.
"Die, brat!!"
At that moment, Buchi had reached him. His razor-sharp claws slashed in a cold flash, slicing across Usopp's waist and sending him flying sideways.
Usopp's face twisted in pain as he slammed into a rock wall.
But even midair, he managed to launch the slingshot.
"LEAD SHOT!!"
A black streak flew toward George.
Buchi's eyes widened.
"Look out, George!!!"
But George, still reeling from the pepper, couldn't react in time.
And when he finally saw the projectile,
It was already too late.
"Hmph…"
Usopp, grimacing in pain as he hit the wall, let out a victorious chuckle:
Thud!
A spray of blood erupted from George's forehead. A small, black dot appeared in the center of his skull. He stumbled forward two steps, mouth slightly agape, like he was about to sneeze again,
And collapsed.
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