A bandit den?
Smoke curled lazily from the chimney, drifting into the evening sky. The wooden structure, painted in a warm orange tone faded by sun and rain, stood firmly against the slope of Mount Colubo. Despite its rough construction, it radiated an odd sense of warmth.
Burly men in mismatched uniforms sat outside, bandanas wrapped around their heads. Laughter echoed freely.
"It's right ahead!" Ace pointed confidently.
Saint Roselith Seraphina slowed her steps.
Her silver hair swayed gently behind her Marine coat.
…A bandit stronghold?
Her expression shifted subtly.
Why did this child bring a Marine here?
Was this deliberate?
Was he attempting to use her to eliminate them?
Killing with a borrowed blade?
"Ace," she said calmly, "why did you bring me to a bandit den?"
He blinked.
"Didn't you ask where my home was?"
"This is my home."
She stopped walking.
For the first time in a long while, Saint Roselith Seraphina, Celestial Dragon by blood, Marine by conviction,was genuinely speechless.
Monkey D. Luffy and Portgas D. Ace…
Raised in a bandit den?
Before she could process further
"Luffy! Ace"
The door burst open.
"WHO ARE YOU?!"
A large woman with curly orange hair stormed out.
Curly Dadan.
Leader of the Dadan Family.
"Boss! She's the Marine I told you about!" a lackey whispered urgently.
Dadan slapped him.
"I can see the coat, you idiot!"
Her eyes narrowed at Seraphina, who was holding the injured boys.
"What business does a Marine have in my territory? I am Dadan! The fiercest bandit on this mountain!"
Her stance was aggressive.
But Seraphina did not sense killing intent.
Only fear.
Dadan's gaze lingered on the boys' wounds.
She misunderstood.
"You beat them and brought them here to threaten me?!"
✦ [SYSTEM] ✦
Threat Assessment: Low
Hostility: Defensive
Recommendation: De-escalate
Before Seraphina could answer, two panting bandits rushed from the trees.
"Boss! It's a misunderstanding!"
They explained everything rapidly
the forest, Bluejam, the gunshot, the slash.
Seraphina had noticed their distant surveillance earlier. Her Observation Haki had registered them, but without malice, she ignored them.
Dadan's face shifted instantly.
From hostility
To relief.
To gratitude.
"Boys!" she roared.
"We're hunting!"
"Tonight, we feast!"
Seraphina intended to decline.
But the enthusiasm was overwhelming.
The warmth was… unfamiliar.
She decided she would retrieve Bluejam first and return afterward.
After settling the children safely inside, she retraced her steps through the forest.
The scent of iron lingered faintly in the air.
Blood.
But when she reached the clearing
Bluejam was gone.
Her eyes sharpened.
Footprints.
Uneven.
Dragging.
A man walking with an injured leg.
She followed the faint scent trail until it ended at a cliffside.
Below, a narrow strip of beach.
A crude rope system extended downward.
And at the water's edge
An empty dock.
She stood silently.
He escaped.
Her fingers tightened slightly.
She had grown complacent.
A pirate playing dead had evaded her Observation Haki by suppressing presence and breath. It was a crude but effective deception.
She turned back toward the Marine warship anchored offshore.
When she boarded
"Teacher!"
A small figure rushed forward.
Kuina.
Daughter of Shimotsuki Koushirou.
Her short dark hair clung to her flushed face; sweat dripped from her chin. A wooden practice sword hung loosely in her hand.
She had been training again.
"Where did you go? You're late."
Seraphina noticed the concern hidden beneath her composure.
"It's nothing," she said evenly.
"I allowed a pirate to escape."
Kuina's eyes widened slightly.
"That's rare."
"Yes."
Seraphina nodded.
"And a mistake I will not repeat."
✦ [SYSTEM] ✦
Lesson Logged: Underestimation of enemy
Combat Awareness: Increased
She dismissed the prompt.
Then she remembered Dadan's invitation.
Her gaze drifted toward Kuina.
"Have you ever attended a mountain bandit banquet?"
Kuina blinked.
"…No?"
"Good."
Moments later
They stood inside the Dadan Family's den.
The mountain dwellers sat shoulder to shoulder along rough wooden tables. Meat sizzled over open flame. Barrels of ale were rolled into the center.
Ace and Luffy were already devouring food with terrifying speed.
"Ace! That's mine!"
"You snooze, you lose!"
Food flew.
Arguments erupted.
Laughter followed.
Ace's leg had been treated thoroughly; the bullet had missed bone, and Seraphina's field treatment ensured rapid recovery.
Seraphina stood quietly at first.
This atmosphere
This chaotic warmth
Was foreign to someone raised in the sterile halls of Mary Geoise.
Here, no one bowed.
No one knelt.
No one feared her bloodline.
They simply… lived.
Kuina sat beside her, posture straight, eating in small polite bites. Her eyes constantly assessed the surroundings.
Her teacher did not belong here.
Yet somehow she did.
Dadan approached awkwardly.
"You're a guest. Sit here."
She had prepared a separate table.
Rough as she was, Dadan understood dignity.
Seraphina smiled faintly.
"Thank you."
For a moment, she considered joining the scramble.
But she knew
If she moved seriously, even casually, no one at that table would secure a single piece of meat.
The banquet roared on.
Then
Boom.
Heavy footsteps approached from outside.
"Hahaha! And you didn't invite this old man?"
The room froze.
A towering silhouette blocked the doorway.
Broad chest.
Massive arms.
A scar over the left eye.
Ash-gray hair.
A red floral shirt worn carelessly.
The Hero of the Marines.
Vice Admiral Monkey D. Garp.
"Gramps?!"
Before either boy could react
BAM!
BAM!
Two fists descended.
Massive lumps instantly formed on Ace and Luffy's heads.
"Owwww!!"
"Why'd you hit us?!"
Garp crossed his arms.
"No reason."
He grinned.
"Just letting you feel Grandpa's Fist of Love."
The entire room trembled slightly from the impact.
Kuina stiffened.
Seraphina's eyes narrowed.
That strike contained controlled Armament Haki.
Perfectly measured.
Not lethal
But unforgettable.
Garp's gaze shifted.
It locked onto Seraphina.
A Marine coat.
Silver hair.
Composed posture.
He recognized her instantly.
"Ah."
"A Roselith brat playing Marine again."
The room went silent.
Even Dadan held her breath.
Celestial Dragons rarely left Mary Geoise.
And yet here she stood.
Garp snorted.
"Hmph. At least you've got better taste than the rest of your family."
Seraphina met his gaze without flinching.
"I walk my own path, Vice Admiral."
For a brief second the air between them tightened.
Two powerful Haki users measuring one another.
Then Garp burst into laughter.
"Good!"
He grabbed a slab of meat and bit into it.
"Then eat! What's a Marine doing sitting so stiff at a banquet?!"
The tension shattered instantly.
Noise returned.
Laughter resumed.
And under the lantern light of Mt. Colubo
A Celestial Dragon.
A future Pirate King.
The son of the Pirate King.
A legendary Marine.
And a future master swordswoman
Shared the same roof.
Unaware that the tides of the world would one day place them on opposite sides of history.