3 Chapter 3
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Chapter 3
Title: So Close...
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"Okay, so this is the kitchen." Said Doser, having to crouch down to enter the kitchen which was filled with only two chefs. They were cooking something that smelled delicious, honestly, anything food-related smelled delicious right about now. "Oy! Rosie, Crock, I got ya a new helping hand. Say hello to the new cabin boy Max."
I looked at the two chefs and smile, giving them a small wave. One of them was an older obese woman with a tall cook's hat, the other was a wild-looking man with jagged teeth. He seemed to belong more in the jungle than a kitchen.
The man walked towards me with a confident stride and said. "Hello there? Do you like my teeth?"
I thought about my answer for a split second. My brain was a little distracted by the smell of the food. But I was able to keep my thoughts straight at the moment.
"Yeah… they seem cool," my answer came out a little unsure, but the man didn't seem to mind.
"Damn right they are!" He declared, showing me a smile that made me wonder how his face doesn't split in two from such a huge smile. "Welcome to the Amelia Pirates. If anyone says anything to you, just come to me. I will kill them for you."
"Oy! Ugly teeth, don't say something stupid like that!" Shouted the obese woman cook, she had the traces of a smug smile on her face. "Killing a fellow crew member? Amelia will skin you alive if ya do that?"
"It's a figure of speech you old hag!" The wild-looking man yelled back, annoyed at his fellow cook.
Doser put his hand on my shoulder and said. "Well, don't worry about them. The woman is Rosie and the guy with the jagged teeth is Crock. They are nice once you get to know them."
"Thanks, Doser, I owe you one," I nodded at him and tried to distract my mind from blanking out at the smell of the food.
He smiled and nodded back, and walked away, having to crouch again to get out. His body being around twice the size of a normal human seems to be a detriment as much as it is an asset.
After arguing with Rosie, Crock came to me with a happy smile. "Hey kid, you seem hungry. Want some food?"
I nodded at him as he took out a couple of plates of food full of meat and rice, it was piled so high up that I thought it would fall over. I gobbled both up very fast, and for the first time in a while... my stomach was full. Tears almost of happiness almost flew out of my eyes.
Hunger was truly a terrible thing. I now felt full of energy and I could feel the cheeks that used to be sunken in fill up again.
"Excuse me, Crock, where are the bathrooms?" I asked him and he pointed to the side where the hallway which I just came in from was.
"Go right, two doors down," he gave me the directions and I immediately walked away.
….
After arriving at the bathrooms, I saw that they were relatively clean. Surprising for a group of pirates. The bathrooms looked like public bathrooms and even had a couple of showers in the corners.
I had no idea how the technology in this world even worked so I just went towards the sinks and looked at myself in the mirror.
My appearance was very different from my first life. Now I had slightly spiky dark brown hair that seemed almost black, and innocent-looking wide brown eyes. Judging by my appearance alone, I would say that I am around fifteen?… probably.
Maybe my young looks were the reason captain Amelia even considered taking me in. That woman was quite hard to read and her expressions never changed, ever since she met me the only look she had ranged from cold to extreme cold.
Still, though, I should learn as much as I could about this ship, what place I was, and at what time I was at. Getting a general idea of my location was preferable since planning some things would be beneficial to ensuring my survival in this world.
I didn't intend to spend the rest of my life stuck in this ship. I was gonna have to get my own Pirate Crew in the future… or join the marines. Depending on which time I was at, the options were limitless.
Trying to measure how tall I was without a tape measure proved to be harder than guessing my age.
In the end, though, I seemed to be around 165 cm (5.4 feet). Not that tall, but it didn't matter too much as my body is still young. Height had also never been a deciding factor of power in One Piece. I was bound to grow taller and stronger with age after training.
In my Bear Hybrid form, I was two times the size of a normal human, I will probably grow bigger in that form too. Still though, seeing myself go from human to bear hybrid was quite amazing.
….
I spent till dinner time getting familiar with my new body, showering, and exploring around a little.
Also, I got informed of what my duties would be on the ship. Washing plates, mopping the ship, putting the weights back in place in the gym.
I must say, this ship is really big, though it seems like most crew members slept on the same floor in a hammock. There are surprisingly a lot of fun things one can do here, like go to the gym, play poker, and many other things. Seems like Amelia has put a lot of work on the ship to keep the crew entertained.
All of this was being observed and memorized in case I get my ship. Crew morale was the most important thing.
"Oh, you are the new guy?" Asked a shirtless man as he sat down next to me.
"Hey there, new guy." Said another man as he sat opposite of me in the cafeteria. This ship was surprisingly organized for a pirate vessel.
Even the people don't seem to be half bad. Tomorrow I plan to start training in the gym too during my break hours… which are whenever I want to rest and don't have anything to do.
In the cafeteria, the captain is drinking a glass of wine and eating with elegance. She changed her hook with a fork that she put in the place of her hook.
She looks around the room and finally her gaze lands on me. Her cold blue eye made me nervous every time I looked at it.
In the end, though, I turn back to my food and keep eating.
"By the way guys, where do you plan to go next?" I ask them while trying to be as unsuspecting as possible. "Also can I borrow some money for new clothes?"
"I will lend you some for 400% interest," said the man next to me with a greedy smile.
"No, I don't want it then," I told him, I guess I will be one of the shirtless guys now. "But still, do you know an island with cheap clothes?"
"Swallow Island," he said. "That place has a bunch of cheap clothes. We are also going to Spider Miles, that place has pretty cheap stuff too, mostly weapons though."
"Hmmm… I see," I mumbled while filling myself with as much food as I could. "Then I should also get a weapon for myself, now that I am a pirate."
I still had no idea what island he was talking about or where we are currently. "What about the captain, what is her dream?"
The man shrugs. "Dunno, but if you are trying to woo her with your charms. I wouldn't try that, she will castrate you."
I nod at him with a trace of fear on my face, it wasn't the plan anyway, so it doesn't matter. Still though, what other questions should I ask to get what I want.
"Didn't something big happen once in Spider Miles?" I ask him, seemingly just trying to make some conversation.
"Hm?" The pirate seems confused for a little bit, but then he smiled and shrugged. "Oh yeah! I remember now, that place used to be under the Heavenly Demon, Dofflamingo."
Shiiiit… which Blue was Dofflamingo from? I know that it isn't East Blue, that is a shame as I would have been able to get some good crewmates.
I play with my fingers and I land at number nineteen, then I decide to say. "Yeah, nowadays even when the pirate era started nineteen years ago seems like forever."
"To you it does brat. To us, it seemed like it was yesterday." Says the man as he smiles. "You are too young, you weren't even born before Gold Roger's era."
"Uhuh…" I nod at him, an absent look appears in my eyes.
Damn, I am around three years before canon starts. That is if the man didn't just say so because he himself doesn't remember how many years ago Roger died. Still, though, it seems like I don't have a lot of time. Three years… I need to start preparing now.
I should start learning how to use my fruit now and become as efficient as I could with it.
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