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The Strongest Frost Loli (16)
🕑 Added 2024-03-26 01:33:26 +0000 UTCChapter 16 - A Day We'll Surely Meet Again
Kanata, the "Dragon Slayer Witch."
The worst criminal in the West Blue, having slain a Celestial Dragon and battled her way past the escorting Marine fleet to escape.
The young girl branded with an unprecedented 380 million berry bounty in the initial wanted posting.
Two days after the incident in Kano Country, when the news of her bounty spread worldwide, Olvia was deeply concerned upon seeing the wanted poster.
Despite their acquaintance of five years, Olvia knew Kanata was not the sort to commit such senseless acts. Yet she was also aware that the girl possessed immense "power" that she wouldn't hesitate to unleash if needed.
Kanata was like a little sister to Olvia, voraciously reading the many books in the Tree of Knowledge and engaging in intellectual conversations, absorbing a wealth of knowledge.
"I wonder if that child is alright..."
"Worrying won't change anything for us... All we can do is pray for her safety," said Professor Clover, seated beside Olvia.
He too was well-acquainted with Kanata, whose eagerness to learn was admirable even among the scholars congregating on this archaeological island. Though she claimed the merchant's life suited her better than scholarship.
Well, even as a "merchant," Kanata merely acted as an armed escort for cargo shipments.
"If she's unharmed... Yes, as long as she's unharmed, that's enough." Olvia believed they would surely meet again one day.
That night, the scholars who secretly researched the "Void Century" of lost history in defiance of the World Government's prohibitions often worked late, immersed in the Tree of Knowledge's archives.
As Olvia returned aboveground for a break, a modest knock made her assume it was a fellow researcher, lowering her guard as she opened the door. In an instant, a hand clamped over her mouth as she was forcefully pulled inside.
(--?!)
Though capable of self-defense, the hooded figure before her didn't allow even that opportunity, kicking the door shut with a foot.
"Stay quiet," a hushed voice instructed in Olvia's ear.
Recognizing the voice, Olvia's assailant released her mouth and lifted the deep hood slightly to reveal her face.
"Kana--"
"I said stay quiet," Kanata reiterated, re-clamping Olvia's mouth.
With an apologetic look, she nodded reassuringly until Olvia's panic subsided and her hand was pushed away.
Though startled, joy overshadowed Olvia's surprise at reuniting with the girl she considered a little sister, feared lost forever.
"Kanata, you're alright!"
"Hardly alright, but...I live, at least," Kanata shrugged, revealing her left arm bundled in bandages.
Her fingertips poked through, able to grip items, but combat seemed far-fetched. Though concealed by the hood, bandages were also visible wrapping her head. Donning baggy men's clothes hid the extent of her injuries, but the visible bandages conveyed she was gravely hurt - more so than Olvia had ever witnessed.
As a Logia Devil Fruit user, avoiding injury was easier for Kanata, but her sheer strength surpassed what Olvia could fathom, a key factor in her survival.
For one so powerful to be so severely wounded...
"...Are you okay?"
"...I can never return to this island again."
Evading the direct question, Kanata grasped Olvia's intent - whether she would recover - yet wished to avoid vague reassurances of uncertainties.
"This island's scheduled maritime routes connecting it to the outside world, my frequenting the Tree of Knowledge...the government will likely hound Ohara relentlessly seeking any leads to me."
Marx Island served as her home base, but acquaintances there were superficial - they would readily sell any information about the "monster" Kanata for self-preservation. The convenient partnership with the ostensibly non-ability user George managing operations yielded profits, but Kanata knew the crew's underlying fear of her Devil Fruit powers.
Thus, she kept minimal personal belongings at the Marx Island headquarters, her ship's quarters being her sole refuge.
With Olvia and her colleagues, the situation differed.
"You're free to reveal me to the government. Prioritize your own safety foremost."
"I could never...! How can you say that?!"
"Having the government's eyes on you would only bring trouble, Olivia."
"That's...but still!"
"I'll be fine."
Insisting so while grievously wounded lacked conviction. Seeing Olvia unwilling to abandon her over such concerns prompted a resigned smile from Kanata.
"My, you're stubborn. I'd hoped to spare you worry, at the very least."
"Of course I'd worry - you're like a little sister to me!"
"...I see."
Though called an "scholars' island," not every Oharan resident was an academic - a practical populace maintaining life's necessities.
Kanata once expressed surprise at how differently Olvia and her brother lived despite being siblings, the latter uninvolved with research.
‘Due to her immersion in study at the Tree of Knowledge, Olvia seldom sees her family - about as infrequently as me,’ Kanata recalled.
That said, Olvia's life wasn't devoid of romantic pursuits.
"Well then, a final request from your little sister. You'll be marrying soon, yes? Best to avoid unnecessary entanglements."
Flushing at the implication, Olvia averted her eyes before giving Kanata a stern look, resolving to say what must be said.
"Don't speak of 'final' requests...We'll meet again someday, I'm sure of it."
"Yes, I look forward to seeing your child then as well."
"Aren't you getting ahead of yourself... Still, you may be right - we may struggle to meet freely again."
Perhaps they would truly never reunite, the world's vast oceans segmented by the Red Line continent and Calm Belts, rendering revisits difficult once Kanata ventured elsewhere.
Nevertheless, they wished for a reunion, embracing tightly before parting ways.
Donning her deep hood, Kanata exited the Tree of Knowledge as Olvia stepped outside, shivering slightly in the chilled air.
"Ah, that's right," Kanata stopped, recalling something. "The books I borrowed - I can't return them. Please apologize to Professor Clover for me."
"...You dummy. Do it yourself, whenever. Just come back and return them properly."
"Is that so? Then I'll return them...someday."
With a faint smile towards the responding Olvia, Kanata melted into the night's shroud without a backwards glance.
Clouds obscured the starry sky, the dim unease of that night seeming to beckon untold hardships.
***
Walking across the sea's surface with a Baby Transponder Snail, Kanata remained wary of potential eavesdroppers in the absence of Vivre Cards - the peculiar papers drawn towards their owners - to pinpoint her crew's location.
The night grew increasingly chill, her wounds liable to stiffen if she lingered overlong, though the cold itself posed no issue. She hoped to locate her compatriots swiftly as she scanned Ohara's vicinity.
Around midnight, the Transponder Snail's signal finally connected.
"--You're alright!"
"Hardly unscathed, but alive at least," Kanata replied to George’s relieved voice amidst background clamoring - the others within transmission range couldn't be far.
Though Marines potentially lurked nearby as well, rendezvous took priority for now. Agreeing to fire a signal flare, she said:
"That might work better. As long as I spot it."
"No starlight tonight, so the flare should be visible enough." George fired the flare.
"Ah, I see it--"
"Alright, get back here ASAP then!"
Watching the flare's smoky trail arc skyward, Kanata adjusted course, dashing across the sea toward the ship.
She soon located the ship and jumps onto its deck. The only thing that bothered her was that there was only one ship instead of the two - where was the second?
Feiyun instantly rushed over. "Miss Kanata! You're safe, thank goodness!"
"Feiyun. I'm relieved you are as well.”
"Yes. It's all thanks to you Kanata. But you're hurt...Please, no more recklessness." Crouching to meet Kanata's eyes, the tearful Feiyun stroked her chilled cheek before Kanata flicked her forehead playfully.
"Ow!"
"This was my selfish ego. Not your burden to bear, Feiyun."
"Still..."
"Then lend me your strength to protect me. You have that power, don't you?"
"...Yes! I'll get stronger!" As the resolved Feiyun nodded firmly, the sparse crew trickled out from belowdecks - ten percent their initial number, Kanata realized with mild surprise towards George.
"Ah, so this is what...?"
"Basically, the regular laborers straight up bailed on another ship back to Marx Island. 'We're uninvolved, so let us go' and all that," Kuro bluntly explained George's hesitance.
Defying a Celestial Dragon amounted to making the world their enemy - understandably daunting for hired manual labor with no stake beyond wages.
"I see. So be it, then."
Only the original founders remained: George and his subordinates alongside Junshi, Kuro, Feiyun, and Zen.
Down to a mere thirty-three, though appreciating their choice, Kanata suspected the dissidents wouldn't elude the renegades' taint so readily by fleeing to Marx Island either.
"In any case, we have much to discuss.”
“What now, milady?" Prompting her intentions, Junshi and Kuro shared the underlying curiosity.
Kanata provided a succinct answer. "--We enter the Grand Line."
While continuing to flee the West Blue remained viable, their human ties had been effectively reset.
Some adventure beckoned, she judged, the Grand Line interior more conducive for anonymity than these familiar waters regardless.
The Marines and World Government would undoubtedly initiate thorough manhunts soon - low profiles were advisable for now.
"Does that make us wanted men too? Should we just fly a pirate flag?"
"I've no intention of openly branding ourselves pirates, nor flying their flag."
"If you say so..."
While Roger's brazen piracy held a certain appeal, Kanata preferred discretion until reinforced sufficiently to withstand overt aggression. Provoking retaliation prematurely invited only annihilation.
That said, bolstering their combat prowess begged the question of its purpose. "Why not aim to conquer the Grand Line itself while we're at it - be the first crew to traverse it?"
"That's...quite an ambitious goal, mind you. An enormously arduous undertaking," said Junshi
"All the better. Fleeing endlessly would be dreadfully dull. Aiming for a nigh-insurmountable achievement provides purpose, at least."
The loftier the ambition, the finer the goal. Simply being hunted was unbearably dreary in itself. If setbacks necessitated battling the World Government directly, so be it - Kanata had no intentions of submitting without resistance.
"Alright, it's decided then!"
Resolved to conquer the Grand Line, preparations were paramount - mapping Log Poses indispensable for island-hopping, accruing rations and freshwater for the journey.
Their initial destination was the city preceding the Grand Line's entrance at Reverse Mountain, territory governed by one of the West Blue's Five Families: the Larsh Family.
"--So let us embark! Set sail!"
…
Three days after departing Ohara's vicinity, news spread of Marx Island's devastation at the Marine Headquarters' "Buster Call" directive.
