Mother And Daughter, Do You Want To Be The Island Owner?

"You're from Qinghai, right?"

When the girl heard this question, she was unsure of Arias's identity. In her mind, she began to fantasize: If I marry him, should I go to Qinghai with him, or should he stay in Birka?

Arias nodded in confirmation.

The shy girl, gaining a bit more courage, gazed at him with admiration and explained, "We're Sky Island, 10,000 meters above Qinghai. But my island is just a small place called Birka."

Birka?

Arias was surprised—wasn't that Enel's hometown? Did this mean that Birka hadn't been destroyed yet? And did Enel not have the Thunder Fruit yet?

If that was the case, he might have a chance to obtain the Thunder Fruit.

Arias's thoughts were interrupted as the girl, looking at him with a mix of boldness and shyness, asked, "Brother, can I invite you to my home?"

"Um?"

Arias, momentarily distracted from his thoughts about the Thunder Fruit, smiled and replied, "Sure!"

The girl's excitement was palpable. "Great! Brother Arias, my mother is an excellent cook. She can make your cloud octopus delicious!"

The girl chattered excitedly as she led the way. Arias followed, his mind still on finding the Thunder Fruit.

Entering a warmly decorated small home, they were greeted by a beautiful woman in her thirties who was tidying up the room. When she saw her daughter leading a handsome young man in, her heart, long untouched by such feelings, began to flutter.

"Yuli, who is this?" she asked softly.

Yuli replied, "Mom, this is Brother Arias from Qinghai! Can I invite him to stay with us?"

The woman, elegantly adjusting her hair, smiled warmly. "Of course, you're welcome, Mr. Arias!"

She set aside her broom and extended her delicate hand. "I'm Delia, Yuli's mother."

Arias took her hand gently. "Hello, Mrs. Delia. I apologize for intruding."

"No trouble at all."

Delia's hand trembled slightly when Arias touched it, but she quickly composed herself. Noticing the cloud octopus, she added, "Did Mr. Arias catch this? Large sea beasts from the cloud are quite hard to catch."

Arias handed her the octopus. "I heard from Yuli that you're a wonderful cook. Could you prepare this for us?"

Delia accepted the octopus with gratitude. "It would be an honor!"

Turning to Yuli, she instructed, "Yuli, Mr. Arias is visiting Sky Island for the first time. Show him around while I cook the octopus."

"Okay, Mom!" Yuli agreed enthusiastically.

She didn't want to leave Arias's side for a moment. "Brother Arias, let me show you around. Though Birka isn't as bustling as Angel Island, it's still a beautiful place!"

Arias smiled. "I appreciate it."

As they wandered, Yuli shared her story. She had never met her father and her mother rarely spoke of him. They had lived together on a remote beach, and though Delia's cooking skills were exceptional and she worked at one of Birka's largest hotels, their life was relatively modest.

"Today is my mother's day off. Otherwise, you wouldn't have been able to enjoy her cooking!" Yuli said.

As they walked, Arias kept an eye out for Devil Fruit.

Suddenly, a young man from Sky Island approached, flanked by five burly bodyguards. His gaze was fixed on Yuli, and upon seeing Arias, his expression turned to one of fury.

"Who are you? Stay away from Yuli!"

Arias sighed, annoyed by the sudden confrontation.

Before he could respond, Yuli spoke up. She scolded the young man, "Lucas, it's none of your business who Brother Arias and I are walking with. Move aside; you're blocking our way!"

Lucas's face reddened with anger. "You Qinghai people, do you know who I am? I'm Lucas! How dare you come near Yuli? I'll make sure you regret it!"

With that, Lucas drew a dagger and lunged at Arias.

As Lucas's guards unsheathed their swords, a flash of black light appeared. Lucas's head fell to the ground, followed quickly by the heads of his five guards.

"Ah!!!" Yuli screamed at the sight of Lucas's decapitated body.

"B-brother Arias, is he... dead?"

Arias, stepping over Lucas's body, replied coolly, "If his head fell off, he's definitely dead. Let's keep moving. Why are you so stunned?"

Yuli, terrified but determined, carefully stepped around Lucas's body and hurried to Arias, grabbing his sleeve. Her voice trembled, "Brother Arias, Lucas is the son of Birka Island's owner. If he finds out, he will kill you!"

Arias nodded casually. "Don't worry about it. The island owner is not a threat."

The plot seemed predictably dramatic, but with his strength, Arias was more than capable of handling it. The current island owner was no match for him. If necessary, he could simply relocate Birka.

"It's fine. He was just a scumbag," Arias said reassuringly. He then added, "Do you want to become the island owner?"

"Eh?"

Yuli looked puzzled. The topic seemed unrelated to their current situation.

"If you want, I can make you the island owner!" Arias continued.

Initially, this had been a casual remark, but Arias realized it could be a practical solution. Finding the Thunder Fruit on his own might take too long. If Yuli were the island owner, she could mobilize more people to help search, speeding up the process.

"Are you interested in the position?" Arias asked.