Chapter 1: If It's Not Exactly Smooth Sailing, It's at Least Not a Total Failure
Chapter 1: If It's Not Exactly Smooth Sailing, It's at Least Not a Total Failure
East Blue, within the Kingdom of Oykot.
In a campsite nestled in the mountains.
A man wearing a thin shirt and linen pants, with a bounty poster in hand, compared the girl in front of him to the description and asked, "Is it you?"
The girl had golden curly hair, fair skin, and a delicate appearance. She wore an elaborate dress with tight sleeves and a wide skirt, and the lace at her chest accentuated her delicate neck. Even without any gold or silver jewelry, she looked like a young noblewoman.
The kind with big, golden curls.
The girl's eyes were icy, and her tone even colder: "No."
"This is you," Sag confirmed.
The girl glared at him angrily. "You know it's me, so why ask?"
Sag grinned, revealing his gapped teeth. "We've encountered five groups of mountain bandits along the way. Business is finally picking up!"
In response, the girl just glared at Sag with pure hatred. If looks could kill, they would have perished together long ago.
"Don't bother struggling," Sag said as he patted the elegant pearl-handled rapier hanging from his cloth belt. "You're my first client, so I have to take precautions against any unforeseen circumstances."
As he spoke, he pointed a finger at the girl's forehead, and her legs automatically started moving, walking in a certain direction without her control.
This caused the girl's eyes to show a hint of despair. She never imagined that someone could achieve such a level of control over another person.
Not only had he instantly disarmed her, but with just a finger, he had also taken away her ability to move, and now she was being controlled like a puppet.
"Don't you, as a strong person, have any dreams? Why would you want to be a slave to money?" the girl shouted.
"Cut the crap," Sag interrupted, waving his hand dismissively. "Money is great, and everyone works for it. I earn my keep with my skills and abilities. As for dreams..."
His expression darkened, and he grit his teeth as he continued, "I do have one! My dream is to own a piece of land, farm and fish leisurely, and live out the rest of my miserable life in this godforsaken world in peace and quiet!"
Norton Sag, 22 years old, had lived in this world for all his life. For the past two months, he had been a bounty hunter.
And this world was none other than the world of One Piece.
A world of extreme danger, where either massive beasts or fierce sea kings lurked, not to mention the ruthless and notorious pirates who ruled the seas.
It was also a world filled with twists and turns.
Sag considered himself unlucky to have transmigrated into this world, but since he was here, he might as well make the most of it.
Fortunately, he found himself in the East Blue, where the average bounty was less than three million, making it relatively safer than other seas.
What was even better was that he had brought with him an overpowered 'cheat'—the 'North Star Fist' or 'Hokuto Shinken'—a deadly martial art from his previous world.
With this style of martial arts, Sag could traverse the East Blue without fear.
While Sag had no interest in stirring up trouble in the vast ocean, he found the idea of becoming a wealthy landlord quite appealing.
He envisioned owning a vast estate, having many people rely on him for their livelihood, hiring secretaries and lackeys, and living a life of luxury and leisure, occasionally flexing his authority or indulging in entertainment.
Just thinking about it made his heart flutter with excitement.
Initially, Sag wanted to follow in his adoptive father's footsteps and start as a farmer, claiming a large plot of land and becoming the 'Farming King'!
Unfortunately, his efforts yielded no results.
If farming didn't work out, perhaps fishing would be his calling.
The sea was abundant with fish, and even a child could scoop them up with their bare hands. He could become the 'Fishing King' and amass a fortune!
But the weather had other plans, and he faced frequent air raids that ruined his fishing endeavors.
Perhaps a more adventurous path was his destiny.
The vast ocean provided ample opportunities for trade, and there were countless merchants plying their goods. He could accumulate wealth by becoming a merchant himself!
However, misfortune struck again, and his ship sank along with his cargo.
When the honest path didn't work out, he decided to explore the seedier side of things.
He tried his hand at being an 'Opera King' but encountered strict curfews and restrictions.
Then he became a 'Bodyguard King,' only to have his employer go bankrupt.
Venturing into mercenary work, he became the 'Mercenary King,' only to have his plans foiled by a century-long peace treaty!
Ever since the peaceful passing of his adoptive father, who had led a quiet life as a farmer, Sag's life had been anything but smooth sailing. If nothing else, he could at least say that he had tried and failed at numerous endeavors.
Now, Sag was attempting to become the 'Bounty King'—a bounty hunter.
It was the year 1520 in the Sea Round Calendar, twenty-two years after the death of the Pirate King, and the age of pirates was at its peak!
With pirates as common as pebbles on the road, and bounties ranging from tens of thousands to millions of berries, the path of a bounty hunter seemed promising.
But he couldn't find a single one!
From a few thousand to several million berries, whether mountain bandits or sea pirates, he couldn't track down any of them!
Damn it!
Why was it that others could stumble upon someone with a bounty of eight million berries like Westley?
Wait, what was that guy's name again?
He couldn't quite remember.
Not only was Sag unable to find any bounties, but his luck also seemed to be exceptionally bad.
Just as he captured a pirate, he found out they didn't have a bounty and let them go, only to discover later that a bounty had been issued for them, missing out on the reward that went to another bounty hunter.
What was going on with this world?!
It was infuriating!
Sag had practically tried every profession except becoming a pirate or joining the Navy.
Sag scratched his head, now full of white hair, and pulled out a stack of bounty posters from his belt. At the top was a poster featuring a long-nosed, purple-skinned creature with a bounty of 20,000,000 berries.
"If it weren't for this bounty, I might have given up the bounty hunter profession."
The bounty featured Arlong, the fish-man with the highest bounty in the East Blue, a whopping 20,000,000 berries!
"Once I take you in for the reward, I'll have enough money to hire people to go to the Conomi Islands. Then, with this bunch, I'll be a tycoon!" Sag chuckled.
While he couldn't find pirates roaming the vast ocean, he could track down those with lairs, like the Evil Dragon Pirate Crew.
Aside from Arlong, who had a bounty of 20,000,000 berries, there was also Bondo, the fish-man with an 8,000,000 berry bounty; Kuroobi, the fish-man with a 9,000,000 berry bounty; and Choo, the fish-man with a 5,500,000 berry bounty, totaling more than 40,000,000 berries.
How could he, Sag, be so unlucky as to not even catch a single one of them?
With this money, he could buy several villages in the East Blue and fulfill his dream.
"Originally, I didn't plan to capture you,"
Sag said, "But I had no choice. I don't know how to sail, and the ships I wanted to board refused to go to the Conomi Islands. So, I decided to come to the Kingdom of Oykot instead, and that's when I saw you."
All the ships he approached refused to go to the Conomi Islands, and the one he ended up working on by mopping the floors only managed to get halfway there before it ran aground.
By the way,
As that ship was docking, it had the misfortune of running aground and sank halfway.
Initially, he wanted to head directly south to the Conomi Islands, but as luck would have it, he happened to see a wanted poster on a utility pole within the kingdom's borders, and it was for this woman, with a bounty of 1,000,000 berries.
To be honest, Sag didn't hold much hope for this. He rarely encountered these wanted criminals who roamed from place to place, and even when he did, it was more of a lucky coincidence. So, when he accepted this task, he merely harbored a sliver of wishful thinking.
He figured he might as well try his luck and kill two birds with one stone. On his way, he encountered five waves of mountain bandits, none of whom had bounties. But the last wave of mountain bandits happened to have seen this woman, and Sag, following the scent, found his way to her!
What a great start!
I, Sag, am not that unlucky after all!
This career of mine has just gotten its second wind!
"What's your surname?" Sag asked with a grin, feeling rather pleased.
The wanted poster for this woman didn't have a name, only a photo and the bounty amount.
She was actually quite strong, and as soon as she saw him, she took action. Her swordsmanship was swift, but unfortunately for her, Sag was faster, and he struck a secret pressure point, rendering her unable to resist.
The girl didn't say anything and just glared at him furiously.
"Don't be so uncooperative. After all, this is a memorable first time. Tell me your name, and I'll collect your body later and burn some paper money for you during festivals," Sag said.
The girl glared daggers at Sag, but then she seemed to think of something, and her expression darkened as she lowered her head in silence. After a while, she spoke in a low voice, "Bienelda, Lily."
"Bienelda? That sounds familiar, like I've heard it somewhere before."
Sag stroked his chin, deep in thought.
"It's written under your bounty poster." The girl said.
Sag took out the girl's wanted poster. Although it didn't have a name, there was a small line of text below the bounty amount, which he read for a while, nodding from time to time, before turning to face the girl solemnly.
"I can't read."
"..."
The atmosphere became quite awkward.
A gentle breeze blew by, adding to the already uncomfortable silence.
The girl's temples throbbed, and she shouted, "If you can't read, why were you looking at it so intently?!"
Being questioned like this by the girl, Sag also blushed, feeling embarrassed, and subconsciously turned his head away.
This wasn't really his fault.
After all, an adult's learning ability naturally declines and becomes more solidified. In his previous life, he was just an ordinary office worker, so how could he suddenly become a genius just because he transmigrated?
Moreover, the script of this world was a mix of English, Japanese, and some strange Roman letters, along with completely unrecognizable symbols. Aside from a few letters and numbers that he could understand, the rest might as well have been gibberish to him.
Who could understand this mess? He didn't have the opportunity to learn when he first transmigrated.
"Well, my adoptive father was a vagrant, you know?" Sag explained with an awkward smile.
What is a vagrant? It's someone who appears out of nowhere, with no clear origins.
Lily forcefully suppressed her anger and said, "Below it, it says that the bounty is issued by the Bienelda family of the Oykot royalty. Anyone who captures this person can go to the royal city to claim the reward."
"Right! Bienelda, I did hear that name when I arrived. It is indeed the royalty of this place."
Sag struck his right fist into his left palm, his expression one of realization, but then he suddenly recalled something and asked, "Hmm? Aren't you the leader of the mountain bandits?"
The girl's face turned bright red as she shouted, "I am royalty! I'm the princess of the Oykot Kingdom, not some mountain bandit!!!"
(End of Chapter)
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