Chapter 115: Ralph: Who Gave You the Guts?
No need for Usopp to explain further, the Trump Pirates announced their arrival in the most direct way possible.
"BOOM—!!"
The wooden door of the restaurant was smashed to pieces.
Boo Jack, curled into a ball, rolled straight in from outside, carrying a devastating momentum that instantly crushed all the tables and chairs in his path.
Wood splinters, glass shards, and fragments of tableware scattered everywhere. The entire first floor of the restaurant looked as if it had been struck head-on by a battering ram.
"Ahhh—!"
The customers in the restaurant screamed and fled in all directions.
The engineer couple stood up, the husband instinctively shielding his wife behind him.
As for the thief brothers, Borodo practically threw himself over Akisu, using his own body to block the flying debris.
And the Straw Hat crew's reaction...
Lufia was quick-eyed and swift-handed. With a stretch of her rubber arm, she grabbed the entire half-eaten roast suckling pig from the table, kicked off the ground, and leaped back three meters, landing steadily in a relatively intact corner.
Ralph was much calmer. With his left hand, he steadily lifted his plate of steak, lightly tapped his feet, and drifted back two meters.
Usopp's reaction was the most genuine.
He let out a scream, scrambling and crawling to hide behind Lufia and Ralph, curling into a ball:
"We're doomed, we're doomed! They've come to fight us!"
Ralph glanced at Boo Jack, then looked at Lufia.
"The enemy is already at our doorstep. I can't take action, so it's up to you now, Captain Lufia."
"No problem!"
Lufia swallowed the roast suckling pig in one gulp, wiped her mouth, and slammed her rubber fists together with a powerful thud.
"I'm full and satisfied! Leave the rest to me!"
Boo Jack had already stretched out his body, returning to his chubby form.
He stared at Lufia, his expression grave.
During the battle on the coast earlier, he had witnessed the strength of this Straw Hat Girl firsthand.
Her rubber body made her nearly immune to all blunt attacks, her extendable fists had an absurdly large range, and her power was astonishing.
If he had come alone... Boo Jack estimated to himself that the only effective method would probably be to blow up the entire building with explosives.
But today, he wasn't alone.
"My, my, isn't it rude to start fighting as soon as we meet?"
A strange, mocking voice came from outside the door.
Skunk walked leisurely through the hole Boo Jack had smashed, glanced around, and fixed his gaze on Lufia, revealing a lecherous smile:
"After all, the Straw Hat Girl is the bride personally chosen by the boss. When we 'invite' her back, we must be gentle, gentle~"
The moment the word "bride" left his mouth, the temperature in the restaurant plummeted.
A sharp, almost tangible killing intent erupted from Ralph, freezing the air as if even the floating dust paused for an instant.
Skunk's smile stiffened.
Although he was a Pirate with a bounty of 6 million Berries and had witnessed plenty of bloody scenes on the high seas, he had never felt such pure, skin-piercing killing intent before.
It felt like being stared down by a wild beast—his spine chilled, his limbs stiffened.
Skunk struggled to turn his head and look at the black-haired youth beside Lufia.
Ralph the Nameless Swordsman, the vice-captain?
The intel said this guy had a bounty of 35 million, even higher than the Straw Hat Girl's... But this killing intent is just too outrageous, isn't it?
He glanced at Lufia again. She was baring her white teeth in a bright, sunny smile, her fists clenched so tightly they cracked.
These two individuals, one exuding a murderous aura as chilling as deep winter, the other radiant as the blazing summer sun, were so vastly different in style it was almost absurd.
Ralph's mind was already in turmoil.
Bear King.
I'll admit you have good taste.
In the original storyline, you took a liking to Nami, and now you've set your sights on Lufia.
But who gave you the confidence?
Who gave you the guts?
Today, I'm going to dig out your bear gallbladder and see if you can still spout such nonsense!
Ralph's right hand quietly coated itself in a layer of pitch-black Armament Haki, ready to transform his palm into a blade.
His left hand, meanwhile, reached for the Pistol at his waist.
In the pirate world, executions required a Pistol to ensure the target was thoroughly dead.
But just then—
"Ralph."
Lufia suddenly turned her head, her pretty face drawing close, her big eyes blinking.
"You promised me you wouldn't intervene this time."
Ralph's movements froze.
He faced a difficult choice:
As a man, should he prioritize keeping his promise to the woman he loved, or remain indifferent when another man brazenly tried to take her away?
Emotionally, his rage was on the verge of shattering his reason.
But rationally... it was simple. He just needed to see Lufia's attitude.
Ralph took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his killing intent.
"Lufia, that Bear King wants to take you as his bride."
He paused, looking directly into Lufia's eyes.
"This is practically trampling on my dream. If you don't want me to act, you'd better make your stance clear quickly."
Lufia was momentarily stunned, tilting her head before suddenly understanding.
"So that's what it is!"
She turned around to face Boo Jack and Skunk, her expression turning unusually serious.
Placing her rubber hands on her hips and puffing out her chest, she declared, "Go back and tell your boss—I will not be his bride!"
Her voice wasn't loud, but it carried weight.
Boo Jack and Skunk both froze, their faces showing expressions of disbelief.
It seemed... they had never imagined that anyone would dare to reject Bear King's "proposal" so bluntly.
Didn't they know how ruthless their leader was as a great pirate?
Didn't they know the consequences of refusal?
As for Ralph—
The corners of his mouth uncontrollably lifted, his heart feeling as sweet as if he'd downed an entire barrel of honey.
Was this the first time Lufia had formally rejected another man for my sake?
So happy!
Although the next second, Lufia turned her head and added, "Of course, I won't marry you either. Because I'm the woman who will become the Pirate King!"
Ralph's smile stiffened for a moment but quickly returned to normal.
"Team matters can be discussed slowly later. Right now, dealing with the enemy is the priority."
Lufia clashed her two rubber fists together again, the dull "thud-thud" sounds demonstrating ample power.
"Don't worry! No one is a match for me! I'll fight my way up and knock that so-called Bear King flying!"
"Tch..."
Skunk suddenly let out a strange laugh.
"Straw Hat Girl, don't speak too soon."
Before his words faded, the massive backpack behind him suddenly swelled, inflating like a balloon.
At the same time, from behind his buttocks—yes, literally from behind his buttocks—
A metal nozzle "poofed" and sprayed a large cloud of yellow mist!
"What the hell?!"
Usopp screamed.
Skunk himself, using the recoil, "whooshed" backward out of the restaurant, his movements as fluid as if he'd practiced them countless times.
And almost simultaneously, Boo Jack and all the minions of the Trump Pirates retreated in unison, their movements perfectly coordinated—clearly a prearranged plan.
"Don't run—!"
Lufia shouted and was about to chase after them.
But she had only taken two steps when she suddenly felt something was wrong.
Her limbs grew weak, her head spun, and a sense of weakness washed over her as if she hadn't eaten for three days.
Lufia staggered, nearly falling.
"Devil Gas..."
Ralph instantly realized what Skunk's method was.