Nostalgic Old Man

It was then, when he turned around, that he saw something that made him raise his eyebrows. It was a bar named "Bar Gold Roger" that caused Luffy to raise his eyebrows curiously.

He decided to investigate the bar and walked inside. The bar was completely empty and old. There was dust everywhere, the chairs were overturned on the tables, and there were cobwebs everywhere.

The only person there was a short old man sitting at one of the tables with a skull in front of him along with two glasses of liquor, one for him and one for the skull.

"Excuse me, do you work here?" Luffy asked as he walked in. "The sign outside says this place is called Gold Roger. How did this bar get that name?" Luffy asked again before the boy could answer his first question.

The man stared at Luffy through his sunglasses with calculating eyes before he answered.

"Scram," he said in a grumpy voice. "This is no place for a kid like you," he said, causing Luffy's brows to twitch. "We're closed for good starting today anyway," he said as he poured himself a drink.

"You're going broke?" Luffy asked as he walked over and sat down on one of the barstools.

"I'm not broke; I decided to close it myself," he said before placing the liquor bottle on the table in front of him. "I'm retiring," he said again with a sigh.

"Sorry, I was just curious about the name," Luffy said before he took out his own glass along with a bottle of whiskey and poured himself a drink.

"I'm looking for the execution platform, but I'm lost." "Can you tell me the way?" asked Luffy before his eyes focused on the skull on the table. The skull looked like a human skull but was too big for human size.

"I have a better question: Where did you get that skull from?" he asked.

"Killer Giant, one of the most feared villains to haunt the waters of the Grand Line," said the old man before tipping his glass against the skull. "He sent hundreds of pirates to the grave in his lifetime, but it only took one strike for Gold Roger to defeat the giant once and for all," he said with a smile that caused Luffy's eyes to widen.

"Gold Roger killed him?" Luffy asked in a surprised voice. The man threw his hands in the air earlier and shouted.

"With lightning speed!" the old man shouted before lowering his hand. "I'm telling you, Killer Giant is known for wielding his massive sword, but it doesn't matter; the whole fight was over before he could even raise his sword," he said, causing Luffy to grin widely as he listened to the story about his idol.

"And here is the scar that killed him," he said, pointing to the hole in the skull. "Killer Giant is a terrible piece of humanity, but he declared in his dying breath, "Gold Roger, I take off my hat for you." "You will forever be the Pirate King," said the old man, causing Luffy to get goosebumps and spreading a wide grin across his face.

"Excellent, tell me more," said Luffy in an excited voice.

"Eric Dowd, the one known as the king; Silver Silver, the greatest shooter in the world; the Grounds Brothers brothers, they are all famous for their strength, the indestructible demon that everyone fears, but not Gold Roger," he said with a sigh breath before looking down.

"No one wants to hear my story anymore," he said in a sad voice. Luffy's whole body shivered with joy.

"I want to hear them; tell me more," said Luffy excitedly. His usual calm and serious demeanor disappeared and was replaced with that of a child.

"Don't rush," said the old man, swirling his liquor. "Gold Roger, he was the only person I knew then, and probably still is, who wasn't afraid to enter the Grand Line," he said, looking down at his drink.

"Back then, the Grand Line was a mysterious place. Ships that chose to sail there were never heard of again. It was a cruel sea that people feared, so few people dared to approach. "Gold Roger came here the day before he sailed for the Grand Line and drank here until the bar supplies ran dry before leaving the next morning as if he were going for a walk," said the old man.

Luffy could barely contain all the pleasure he had just heard from the old man's story. "Then, when I heard he had conquered the Grand Line, I wasn't surprised." I was happy that he was the one who conquered the evil sea. On this day 22 years ago, Gold Roger died on that platform, and that's when it all started, which is called the "Great Pirate Era," where everyone with ships claims to be pirates. "But look at this once great city; I bet you can't find real pirates, only cowards and scum," he said before taking a sip of his drink.

Luffy also took a sip of his drink before he could regain control of his emotions and speak.

"I couldn't say it better myself," he said, agreeing with the old man's conclusion about the Great Pirate Era.

"The men who were brave enough to enter the Grand Line have all disappeared from these waters. "There are no real pirates left in the world; that's why I closed the bar," said the old man with a sad look in his eyes.

"I'm going to the Grand Line," Luffy said, causing the old man's eyes to widen. "Or rather, back to the Grand Line," she said, causing the man's eyes to widen even more in surprise.

"Gold Roger is the perfect example of what a pirate should be." That's why I went to the Grand Line, found One Piece, and became the Pirate King! Luffy proclaimed, causing a look of acknowledgement to flash across the old man's eyes.

"Those are quite big words," he said while looking at Luffy. "Especially since you're in this bar,"

"I'm only saying what I believe," Luffy said, causing the old man to laugh.

"Young man, if there are still people like you out there, should I close this bar?" he asked Luffy.

"I don't know; maybe it's just me," he replied. The old man got up from his seat and started walking towards Luffy.

"That's right, maybe it's just you," he said as he walked up to Luffy with a big grin on his face. "Then let's have a drink; I haven't been in this good mood in a while," he said before walking behind the bar.

"I only drink whiskey," said Luffy as he turned from his chair to face the old man. The man chuckled before taking out two glasses of whiskey.

"How about this?" he said as he set the glass down on the table. "Let's raise our glasses and drink to the immortal Pirate King," he said as he took off his hat. Luffy smiled and took off his hat as well before he spoke.

"Cheers to the Pirate King," said Luffy as he cheered with the old man before they downed glasses of whiskey.