Lucas Moore remembered now.
Wasn't this the same question Zoro had asked him back in Shimotsuki Village?
Without giving it much thought, he responded to Sanji with the same words he'd used back then: "Less than half a day."
"Huh?!" Sanji's eyes widened in disbelief, nearly dropping the wine bottle in his arms. "You've gotta be kidding! You managed to match that old man in just half a day?"
"Believe it or not," Lucas answered in the same dismissive tone, brushing Sanji off.
Sanji blinked, hesitated, then caught up with Lucas, who hadn't stopped walking. "It's hard to believe, but... you really don't seem like you're lying. Lucas, how did you train your legs like that? Can you teach me?"
Lucas could almost see the mission progress bar beckoning.
But the restaurant was too crowded. It wasn't the right time to offer Sanji a one-on-one lesson.
"Find me tonight."
With that, he headed straight toward the restaurant's main entrance.
Sanji didn't follow. His arms clutched the bottle a little tighter, and his body began to tremble slightly not with fear, but excitement.
"He's going to teach me. That's what he meant, right? Amazing! I'll train hard. I swear I will!"
"Hey, kid!" a nearby customer, growing impatient, shouted from his table, "Isn't that wine in your hand what I ordered?"
Snapping back to reality, Sanji turned with a wide grin. "Yes, coming right up!"
He popped the cork off the bottle and began to pour.
Only... nothing came out.
After a moment of confusion, he suddenly remembered Lucas had emptied the entire bottle into his wine gourd just a moment ago...
Lucas stepped onto the main deck outside the first floor of Baratie.
The supply ship that had been moored next to his little sailboat had, at some point, been replaced by a navy warship.
Standing on its deck now
Was Garp.
Seeing Lucas exit Baratie, Garp grinned and called out, "Heading off, kid?"
Lucas didn't bother to answer. He hopped onto his sailboat, untied the ropes, and steered toward the direction of the Calm Belt.
He wasn't planning on leaving Baratie just yet.
He simply wanted to get in some sparring practice with sea kings and maybe bring one back as a thank-you gift.
Back at the dojo, he'd never freeloaded. He always brought back game as a way of repaying kindness.
As Lucas sailed away, Garp immediately ordered a smaller military vessel to be lowered. He jumped aboard and followed.
He kept a steady fifty-meter distance between them.
At first, he didn't notice anything unusual.
But after nearly thirty minutes of sailing, a realization struck him.
"Hey, kid! Do you even know what lies ahead?" Garp shouted toward Lucas's back.
No response.
Garp sped up, closing the gap, and called again, "You're almost at the Calm Belt! Once your boat drifts in, it'll be dead in the water. Don't go any farther!"
Still no response.
Lucas just kept sailing.
Garp scratched his head and suddenly burst out laughing. "There are loads of sea kings in the Calm Belt even in the waters around it. With that scrawny little body of yours, you won't even make a good toothpick! Hahahaha..."
Just as his laughter subsided
The water ahead of them began to bubble violently, followed by a rolling swell of waves that rocked both of their small boats.
From the center of the turmoil emerged a massive sea monkey, screeching as it brought a giant palm down toward both of them.
"Lucas, stand back!" Garp bared his teeth in a grin, his expression suddenly serious.
Lucas chuckled lightly and gestured for Garp to go ahead.
With a mighty leap, Garp launched himself off his boat, clenched his fist, and smashed it squarely into the sea monkey's forehead.
In a blinding flash
The sea monkey's eyes bulged. A beat later, it went limp and crashed into the ocean with a thunderous splash.
Water sprayed everywhere.
Just then
Behind them, the sea split again, this time revealing a giant sea king shaped like a toad.
"Damn it! Kid, look out!" Garp shouted.
He was too far away to help.
The monstrous toad opened its rancid maw, unleashing a thick, blood-dark red tongue lined with barbed spikes. It whipped straight toward Lucas.
Lucas glanced at it coolly.
He didn't panic. He simply unsheathed Tōyako and casually swung his blade.
The tongue stopped cold, barely half a centimeter from his face.
No roar. No scream.
The toad's head dropped from its body the moment Lucas re-sheathed his sword at his waist.
Garp stared in stunned silence.
Just as Lucas turned his back and prepared to continue sailing
From the severed mouth of the toad's head, a pitch-black needle more than three meters long shot toward him at breakneck speed.
Garp opened his mouth to shout a warning
But before he could say a word, Lucas tilted his head slightly, and the venom-tipped needle zipped past his cheek, missing by less than half a centimeter, before splashing harmlessly into the sea.
Garp's jaw dropped.
This kid didn't just match Red-Leg Zeff in legwork. His swordsmanship was top-notch too. And now it was clear he'd mastered Observation Haki to a high degree as well.
With strength like that, it was no wonder he dared to sail alone across the sea.
A natural-born talent. It would be a waste if he didn't join the navy.
Grinning even wider now, Garp leapt off his larger ship and landed right on Lucas's tiny boat.
"Kid! Join the navy! I can make you even stronger," Garp said brightly.
"Get back to your own ship," Lucas replied with distaste.
"I'm not going anywhere until you agree! Haha, don't underestimate my persistence. Say yes, and I'll hop right back."
"No."
"Don't be so hasty. Being a marine has its perks. You won't even have to follow orders from the higher-ups. With me backing you, you can do whatever you want. No one will dare touch you."
He sounds serious this time.
Lucas gave him a calm, unflinching look.
And repeated the same answer. "Not interested."
"Oh, come on, don't be so cold." Garp exaggerated a look of heartbreak. "I really do want to recruit you, y'know."
"No need," Lucas said firmly. "I won't risk my life to uphold some abstract idea of justice. I don't want to rely on anyone to grow stronger. All I want is to live as a free traveler. Nothing more. The navy's way of life doesn't suit me. Say whatever you want it won't change anything. Don't waste your time on me."
Garp had wanted to sweet-talk him with a few more tempting offers, but the look in Lucas's eyes made him stop short.
That unwavering resolve.
"Geez," Garp muttered, feigning regret. "Not joining the navy is your loss, you know."
Lucas simply smiled without replying.
At that moment, the system's notification chimed in his mind.
"Ding! You've refused an invitation from the Navy Hero, Garp. Sign-in progress +10%. Current total progress: 50%. Reward: Armament Haki +1 level. Current Armament Haki: Lv3."
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