One Piece: My Crew is from Other World-Chapter 667: The Four Gather!

Chapter 667: The Four Gather!

By now, Ryuunosuke had already led the two into the forest.

The woods here had the same effect as those strange trees they encountered on God’s Island.

They blocked perception.

Sensing, Observation Haki, even the subtle awareness of presence, it all felt muffled and cut off, as if the forest itself swallowed information.

In that moment, Ryuunosuke confirmed what Brook and Keshia had said earlier.

Even if someone lived on this island, if they were forbidden to enter this forest, they might not know what was happening deeper inside.

"Rustle..."

"Hm?"

A sudden stir came from the grass not far away.

Ryuunosuke’s gaze snapped over instantly, locking onto the source of the sound.

"Big brother, there are people over here!" Luffy shouted.

The moment those words left his mouth, both Sabo and Ryuunosuke felt a wave of secondhand embarrassment.

This idiot.

The noise had already been loud enough that anyone with ears could tell someone was there.

And Luffy still had to announce it like a town crier.

"Big brother, did you not hear me?" Luffy asked, genuinely confused.

"I already said there are people over there. Why aren’t you guys making a move?"

To Luffy, once you found the enemy, you punched first and asked questions later. Simple.

"Fire Fist!"

A familiar voice rang out, and a huge blue white flame came spiraling through the air.

It twisted like a drill, carrying terrifying impact and destructive force.

"Fire Fist?!"

"Ace!"

"Big brother, it’s Ace... hahaha..." Luffy said excitedly, even as Ryuunosuke grabbed him to stop him from rushing forward.

Hearing Luffy’s voice, Ryuunosuke nearly wanted to throw him off a cliff. 𝗳𝚛𝗲𝕖𝚠𝚎𝚋𝗻𝗼𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝚘𝐦

He always ran his mouth at the worst possible time.

"Big brother!"

"Sabo, Luffy!"

"I’m here!"

"Hey hey..."

Ace rode the blaze like a path beneath his feet and charged straight toward them.

It had to be said, Ace’s strength had improved considerably compared to before.

"Ace, why are you here?" Ryuunosuke asked directly.

"You’re the captain of the Whitebeard Pirates now. You’ve got a mountain of things to handle."

"And Blackbeard’s already got his eyes on the Whitebeard Pirates."

"Aren’t you worried your home will get raided the moment you leave?"

Ace froze for a beat, then threw his head back.

"Hahaha..."

"Since big brother already knows, you’ve definitely made arrangements."

"I believe in my big brother, and I believe in my partners!"

"Hahahaha!"

As he laughed, he scratched the back of his head, the old familiar carefree grin back on his face.

Looking at him like that, Ryuunosuke felt a strange ache in his chest.

It really had been a long time since he’d seen Ace like this.

When Ryuunosuke first set sail, Ace was already a famous pirate, powerful enough that the name Fire Fist shook the seas.

Back then, Ace still wasn’t as strong as Ryuunosuke, but he could stand beside him and fight freely.

Then the Dragon Hunter Pirates grew.

They grew until they could take direct action against the World Government.

After that, their paths crossed less and less.

Later, because of Whitebeard’s choice, Ace carried guilt toward Ryuunosuke.

Their conversations became stiff and awkward.

But now, somehow, it felt like that weight had loosened.

"You little brat..." Ryuunosuke muttered.

"Alright. What are you doing here?"

"Are you planning to join us on this trip?"

"This is the Guardians’ territory."

"What we might face isn’t some Lilith projection."

"It’s the real Lilith."

Ryuunosuke stared at Ace, genuinely puzzled.

Ace showing up like this was not part of any expectation.

If anything, it felt like he had been waiting inside the forest before they even entered.

"The three of you are going in together and leaving me outside alone," Ace said bluntly.

"Do you think that’s appropriate?"

"I want to go too."

Hearing that, Ryuunosuke was left speechless, caught between amusement and exasperation.

Since when did Ace become as brainless as Luffy?

Luffy and the others had begged to come because they wanted to fight beside Ryuunosuke.

But what they were walking into was not some casual battle.

Even Ryuunosuke could die if he made a mistake.

The reason he only brought Sabo and Luffy in was not because he expected them to be useful in a fight.

It was because they were his brothers.

If they stayed outside, someone could take them hostage and use them against him.

That would be far harder to deal with.

Most of the others did not have that kind of value as leverage unless they had special identities.

So bringing Sabo and Luffy was about risk management, not strength.

And now Ace had inserted himself into that risk.

It gave Ryuunosuke a headache.

They were not hunting treasure.

They were confronting one of the greatest enemies in the world.

"...Fine. I get it." Ryuunosuke rubbed his face, helpless.

"Since you’re already here, we go together."

Now that Ace had shown up, sending him back would not make things safer anyway.

If anything, leaving him alone might be even worse.

Soon, the group emerged from the forest.

Ahead stood a massive ancient tree.

Beneath it sat a huge stone platform.

"Captain Ryuunosuke, you’ve arrived," Lilith said.

She was already waiting there, as if she had been waiting for quite a while.

It had to be said, the message Lilith was trying to deliver earlier had been cut off by Jay.

But even so, it still counted as a success.

She had hooked Ryuunosuke’s attention.

And once his attention was caught, he would definitely come find her.

"Then I’m coming up," Ryuunosuke said, leading the three toward the platform.

"Are you Lilith?" Ace suddenly stepped forward and spoke directly.

"My father... please take care of him."

Ace’s manners, even now, were almost painfully proper.

"Jeff’s son?" Lilith said, looking him over.

"You have the same passion and sense of justice as your father."

"I only asked Jeff to do me a favor. I never took care of anything."

After that brief courtesy, Lilith turned her gaze back to Ryuunosuke.

Ryuunosuke sat down on the ground without ceremony, smiling faintly.

"I think you have something to tell me."

"What you didn’t finish saying before, say it now."

Lilith’s expression remained calm.

Her answer came immediately.

"Because I want to live."

Faced with certain death, the simplest and most necessary choice any living being makes is to survive, right?"

Ryuunosuke froze.

He had expected some deeper reason, some elaborate calculation.

But what Lilith gave him was the simplest reason imaginable.

And strangely, it was the easiest one to accept.

Compared to twisting logic and hidden motives, this was clean.

Convincing.

Because it was honest enough to be ugly.

.....

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