Beneath the white city of ice and snow.
As the blizzard descended, the cobblestone streets were already covered in thick white snow.
There were not many people on the road. Only those who had to work to make a living were out, hurrying through the streets.
No one spoke to anyone else. They did not even dare exchange glances, afraid that the smallest contact might make them vanish from this world for no reason the next day.
From the faint white patches showing on their bodies, it was clear their health was far from good.
In the storm, where visibility was extremely poor, two figures, one large and one small, walked slowly down the street. Both were wrapped tightly in thick brown overcoats, and one of them carried a small suitcase.
Not far behind them, two people in white overcoats followed closely, holding a Den Den Mushi.
"Confirmed?"
"Confirmed. The shorter figure is the Sky Pirates' ship's doctor, Killmonger Ayala. As for the burly one, he should be that very mysterious dinosaur-like creature from the Sky Pirates, and he's also a Devil Fruit user. We've caught up to them. Should we arrest them?"
"Is Killmonger Erik not with them?"
"No. That makes this our best chance."
"Understood. Then move in and arrest them. I'll send people to support you..."
"Got it. Then... mmph..."
"Hey, what happened? Why aren't you talking? Have you already moved in? Respond if you received the order..."
Unfortunately, amid the raging snowstorm, the two people in white overcoats had already disappeared, leaving only the Den Den Mushi shivering alone in the thick snow...
...
In front of a large, luxurious villa, Ayala and Kurota, both wrapped in thick overcoats as they walked through the storm, came to a stop.
"This is the place, Third Sister. I'll go ring the doorbell!"
"Mm!"
Kurota's towering figure walked up to the door and pressed the bell. After a while, the door opened a crack, revealing a man who looked utterly exhausted, with dark circles under his eyes.
The man looked at the burly creature in front of him, whose entire face was wrapped up with only a pair of eyes showing, and asked in confusion, "You are?"
The answer did not come from the burly figure, but from behind him, in a young woman's somewhat familiar voice.
"Uncle Vatel, it's been a long time. I came to visit after receiving your invitation..."
The man named Vatel was startled at once. Then he quickly realized who it was and opened the door with a hint of panic, glancing outside as he called, "Hurry, come in..."
As the two of them entered, the whirling snow vanished behind them, replaced by warm air thick with the smell of medicine.
"You can hang your coats by the door!"
"Excuse us!"
Ayala and Kurota shook the snow from their bodies, slowly removed their overcoats, and hung them on the coat rack nearby.
Vatel stared at Ayala's healthy figure with excitement and disbelief in his eyes.
Only when Ayala looked back at him did Vatel realize he was being rude and say, "Sorry. I got too excited. Ayala, and your companion too, please come sit in the living room."
As he spoke, Vatel walked forward excitedly and called upstairs, "Marilyn, we have guests! Hurry and prepare afternoon tea!"
Excited footsteps immediately came from upstairs.
Ayala, already seated on the sofa, smiled and said, "There's no need to go to all that trouble, Uncle Vatel. You and my father are old friends. You're my elder."
Vatel sat down on the sofa opposite them, looking as if he was forcing himself to calm down, and said admiringly, "Truly remarkable. Brother Killmonger really raised a fine son and daughter. Has your brother Erik come back too?"
"Mm."
Ayala nodded.
"My brother is busy with something else right now. Once he's done, I'll definitely have him come visit you."
"No, no, I should have been the one to visit you. But I've been far too busy lately. People die in the hospital every day, and I'm completely powerless to stop it. Now even my daughter Gado has contracted Amber Lead Disease. I was truly starting to lose hope... until I suddenly heard that someone had found a way to treat Amber Lead Disease. That was why I took the liberty of inviting you here... I hope I haven't caused you any trouble..."
At this point, Vatel grabbed at his own hair, clearly already driven to despair.
Seeing him like this, Ayala deeply understood how he felt. She had once suffered through that same pain herself. Because of that, she did not want the same tragedy to happen to anyone else.
At Ayala's signal, Kurota picked up the suitcase beside him and placed it on the coffee table.
When the case opened, three small syringes filled with green liquid appeared before Vatel.
"Uncle Vatel, this is the antidote that can treat Amber Lead Disease."
Vatel stared at the green syringes with wide eyes, as though he were looking at priceless treasures. His hands trembled as he cautiously reached toward them.
"Could I take a look? I'm sorry, Ayala, it's not that I don't trust you. It's just..."
"It's all right, Uncle Vatel. In fact, I need to make this clear. At present, the antidote we've created to treat Amber Lead Disease still can't be guaranteed to be one hundred percent safe. There's nothing we can do about that. The time was too short. We've only had three months..."
"Three months..."
Vatel froze.
"Then your Amber Lead Disease, Ayala...?"
Ayala shook her head.
"My Amber Lead Disease wasn't treated with this antidote. It was cured through Dr.Kureha's surgery, and because Captain Brother and Tiger-san exchanged their own lives for mine..."
"Dr.Kureha, Captain..."
Vatel froze again, as if he had heard something extraordinary. But then he shook his head. That was no longer important. Right now, the antidote mattered most.
"Could you tell me how this antidote works? We've tried countless methods, but none of them could treat Amber Lead Disease..."
"Of course. My teacher, DR·Indigo, is an incredible doctor and a chemist. He proposed that if medicine couldn't treat Amber Lead Disease, then we might as well use chemistry to create a substance capable of reacting with Amber Lead and reducing its toxicity."
"Create a substance... Is that even possible...?"
"It really shouldn't have been possible. But luckily, I have some very reliable companions. With their help, we succeeded. That is how this antidote came to be. However, because the timeframe was so short, we still don't have much experimental data. There may be some safety issues. But based on what we've seen so far, this antidote can indeed treat Amber Lead Disease..."
Hearing this, Vatel no longer doubted her. Instead, he pleaded with her very seriously.
"I know this request is a bit presumptuous, but if possible, I can contact the critically ill patients at the hospital. I'm sure none of them would give up this hope..."
"Of course. In fact, that's exactly why I came to visit you, Uncle Vatel. After all, you are the best doctor in the Kingdom of Flevance..."
Vatel was overjoyed.
Just then, as if affected by his joy, the sound of quick footsteps came from upstairs.
A beautiful young blonde woman came down, holding the hand of a child who looked about four or five years old, her face full of gratitude.
Vatel hurriedly introduced them.
"Ayala, let me introduce you. This is my wife, Marilyn, and my son, Ro..."