The sunlight was faint, and the sky was clear and crisp.
After a day and a night of sailing, the two arrived at the island on a tranquil morning.
Shells Town.
This was the first island Luffy landed on after setting sail in the anime, the domain of Marine Colonel 'Axe-Hand' Monka, and also the island where Zoro first appeared in the original story.
If all went as expected, Zoro was about to suffer.
"I've brought you to this island, so why are you still stopping me? Can't find your way?"
At the port dock, a man with three swords at his waist was frowning, staring impatiently at a woman blocking his path.
This commotion attracted the attention of many people at the dock.
Both of them were too striking in appearance.
One looked like trouble, exuding an aura of 'don't mess with me,' while the other was breathtakingly beautiful, making many seafaring men's eyes glaze over.
It was hard to imagine two such different people disembarking from the same ship.
Under the gaze of many eyes, the exquisitely beautiful woman spoke in an ethereal, pleasant voice:
"I'm hungry."
"Huh?" Zoro's eyes widened, as if he had heard something absurd. "If you're hungry, go find a restaurant and eat!"
"I don't have money."
"What does your lack of money have to do with me?"
Silas blinked, tilting her head slightly. "Can't you treat me to a meal, for the sake of our journey together?"
"Why should I treat you to a meal after bringing you to this island..."
Zoro subconsciously wanted to refuse, but he couldn't stand her expectant gaze. He stopped mid-sentence and sighed:
"Fine, let's go."
Although he appeared annoyed, Zoro had to admit that during their two days together, he didn't actually dislike the woman.
However, he had already made up his mind to ditch her after this meal.
No matter what, traveling with a woman was simply too troublesome.
"As expected..." Walking behind Zoro, out of his sight, Silas's eyes curved slightly, revealing a cunning smile.
For her, who had read the original story, manipulating Zoro was incredibly easy.
This Pirate Hunter appeared cold on the surface, but he was a typical softy who wouldn't yield to force, especially when facing women and children. He would almost never refuse most of their reasonable requests.
However, he was definitely thinking of ditching her after this meal.
"Heh, it won't be that easy."
...Five minutes later.
Inside a restaurant named "Foodfoo."
"One plate of grilled meat, one fresh fish soup, two portions of egg fried rice, one bottle of rum... Your meals are all here, esteemed guests!"
A well-built young woman with a headscarf placed plate after plate of food on Silas and Zoro's table.
Beside her was a little girl helping her carry dishes, who seemed to be her daughter.
A key character from the original story.
Silas thanked the woman, her gaze lingering on the little girl for a moment before moving on.
In the original story, Zoro killed Monka's son's pet wolf to protect this little girl.
To avoid implicating the girl's family, he made a wager with Monka's son—if he could endure a month without food or water while tied up, the matter would be settled.
"Can a person really go a month without food or water?"
She wasn't sure if Zoro could last a month.
But she remembered that in the original story, before Luffy arrived at this island, Zoro had already lasted nine days.
Nine days without food or water was completely inhuman, and then after eating a rice ball, he immediately recovered his fighting strength and caused a ruckus at the Marine base with Luffy.
He's practically not human.
"Hey! What are you spacing out for? If you don't eat, I'll finish it all!"
Zoro swallowed his food in large bites, then looked up to see Silas hadn't touched her food at all, so he couldn't help but ask.
This woman, ever since he met her, would occasionally space out, lost in thought.
"Hmm..." Silas snapped back, speared a piece of grilled meat with her fork, put it in her mouth, and after chewing, slowly said:
"I was thinking, can you survive a month without food or water?"
"Huh?" Zoro was momentarily stunned by her words, almost choking. After taking a sip of soup, he grumbled:
"I'm not a monster. I'd definitely be dead if I went a month without food or water!"
This guy, what kind of questions is he asking!
...After eating, the two parted ways at the restaurant entrance.
Zoro was accustomed to traveling alone, and he believed that Silas was already part of some pirate crew, which was naturally at odds with his identity as a Pirate Hunter, so there was no need to continue traveling together.
However, before parting, perhaps out of camaraderie from their journey, he uncharacteristically said a few extra words:
"Hey, just by looking at you, I can tell you're a noble young lady who hasn't been out for long. You need to understand, the sea... is very dangerous! Don't just get killed by someone easily."
"But you can also rest assured, if something really happens to you, and I happen to be quite free, I'll avenge you on the way."
After speaking, he turned around and walked away in the opposite direction from Silas, without looking back.
However—
Just as he rounded the corner of half a street, he suddenly stopped, a vein throbbing on his forehead.
"Hey..."
He spun around abruptly, only to see the ice-blue haired woman maintaining a perfect distance, following him about three meters behind like a nimble cat.
Seeing him turn around, she casually tilted her head, and the bell in her hair jingled with a crisp "ding-a-ling" sound.
"How long are you going to follow me?" he asked through gritted teeth.
"Hmm? Are you asking me?" Silas feigned confusion, looking around as if she had just noticed Zoro's question.
Suddenly.
Her pupils suddenly constricted. This was her body's instinct giving an early warning, wanting to act on its own, but she forcibly controlled her body.
Because a long sword had already been drawn, Zoro took a sudden step forward, shielding Silas behind him with one hand, while with the other, he slashed the air like a crescent moon!
Swish!
Blood splattered, accompanied by a mournful wail, and a massive body suddenly recoiled, crashing to the ground, leaving a long trail of blood.
"This is..." Silas followed the fallen behemoth with her gaze, only to see it was a wolf, with thick fur, sharp fangs and claws, and a dog-like build.
A panicked expression suddenly flashed in her eyes.
This isn't right!
A wild wolf wouldn't appear out of nowhere on the street. It was most likely Helmeppo's wolf, but why would it attack her? Shouldn't it be the little girl in the restaurant?
If so, wouldn't the plot be ruined? Would Zoro still agree to the wager with Helmeppo for her sake?
"Hey, hey, hey! You savage, where did you come from, how could you kill my precious pet!"
Passersby kept their distance, as if they had seen something more terrifying than a wolf, but their eyes held more disgust.
A guy who walked with an arrogant swagger, with a center-parted hairstyle, looking like the foolish son of a wealthy landlord, came striding over aggressively.
His scrawny build naturally couldn't be described as "aggressive," but he was followed by a large squad of Marines carrying guns.
Only two people on this island could travel with so many Marines: Monka and Monka's son. This person was clearly Monka's son—Helmeppo.