One Piece Quest Fruit - Chapter 34
After dealing with all the enemies, Eust finally tended to the sword wound on his left shoulder, inflicted by the dangerous move of their leader, Desli.
Quick Draw, or Iai Slash, is a technique where the user attacks the enemy in the instant they draw their sword, aiming to defeat the opponent swiftly. Those highly skilled in this technique have terrifying attack speeds.
Eust had previously thought the pirate world didn’t emphasize techniques much, but this encounter proved him wrong and left him injured. What a harsh lesson!
Luckily, Desli’s Quick Draw was not well-practiced, and his overall swordsmanship and physical abilities were inferior to Eust’s. After executing the Quick Draw, Desli needed time to recover, which allowed Eust to seize the opportunity and win the fight.
Had Desli been more proficient with his Quick Draw or invested more in basic swordsmanship and physical training, Eust would have struggled to fend off subsequent attacks after getting injured, potentially leading to his defeat.
But there were no “what ifs” in reality, so Desli died, and Eust lived.
Such is the brutal reality.
As Eust covered his wound to stop the bleeding, Lila and Sunny rushed over. Sunny fetched bandages and medicine from the mission space while Lila began treating Eust’s wound.
“Meow, Eust, how are you feeling? You kept fighting despite the injury and lost a lot of blood. Are you sure you won’t pass out from blood loss? And why didn’t you call me to deal with them?” Sunny asked with concern.
“Eust, are you okay? I was so worried about you!” Lila said while tending to his wound.
“Lila, Sunny, don’t worry. I dodged the vital areas. It’s just a flesh wound and will heal in a few days.”
“Really, why did it escalate so quickly to a fight where you got hurt?” Lila muttered.
“Lila, this is how it is at sea. Conflicts arise over the smallest things, often leading to life-and-death struggles. In this case, they wanted my sword. Even if I hadn’t taught them a lesson for trying to steal it, they would have returned to rob me because valuable items like my sword are very tempting.”
“My sword, the Tigress Blade, is a valuable long sword worth tens of thousands of Berries. Its value alone would attract them, and for a swordsman, a fine sword is even more alluring.”
“Their leader was also a swordsman, possibly motivated by greed or the desire to possess my sword. But in the end, greed was his downfall.”
As Eust spoke, Lila finished bandaging his wound.
“All done. Eust, you mustn’t move too much, or the wound will worsen.”
“Meow, I don’t want Eust’s injury to get worse either.”
“Now we need to clean up the battlefield. Lila, help me out. We’ll have to face situations like this eventually. Are you afraid of dead bodies?” Eust aimed to boost Lila’s courage.
“Eust, I want to help too. I won’t back down.”
“Lila, do you think adventuring at sea is a game? If you’re prepared to face death, a few corpses shouldn’t scare you.”
“Okay then!”
“Lila, you don’t need to do the dirty work. Just watch from the side.”
After some cleaning up, they dug a pit and buried the bodies. Eust took care of the battlefield, cleaned up traces, collected spoils, and dealt with the aftermath, which took a considerable amount of time. By the time they were done, it was late.
Eust hadn’t expected the thief’s boss to know Quick Draw. He had underestimated them.
Dueling with others is indeed the best way to gain combat experience. This duel had taught Eust a lot, ensuring he would be more cautious in future battles.
Eust realized why experienced fighters often start with probing attacks before unleashing their full power later. Probing is essential to avoid nasty surprises.
Had he probed Desli’s abilities first, he might have evaded the Quick Draw entirely, preventing his injury.
Returning to the inn, Lila seemed more relaxed, while Sunny remained calm, seemingly unaffected by the recent battle.
For Lila, the battle might have been a shock. Imagining and experiencing it are two different things.
“Lila, why don’t you rest first? My wound is bandaged, so don’t worry. A good night’s sleep will help you recover. Sea warriors often face such situations. If you’re hungry, you can order dinner to your room or have some of Sunny’s prepared food.”
“Also, Lila, remember that battles are often brutal. It’s kill or be killed. Never let your guard down during a fight, and sometimes you might need to be cold-blooded.”
“Yes, Eust, I know. You can’t show mercy or relax your vigilance in battle. I just wasn’t used to it yet, and I was really worried about you. Seeing you injured made me very anxious. Thankfully, you quickly subdued him.”
“Meow, I was worried about Eust too. Why didn’t you call for my help?”
“Uh, the situation was urgent. Once I gauged his ability, I suppressed him quickly and didn’t need Sunny’s help.”
“Meow, alright then.”
“Eust, can Sunny stay with me tonight?”
“Uh, you’ll have to ask Sunny.”
“Sunny will agree for sure, but it often sticks with you, so I wanted your opinion.”
“Meow, who said I’d agree? I like Lila, and I don’t mind being with her occasionally, but I prefer staying with Eust.”
The sudden silence was awkward.
Neither Eust nor Lila expected Sunny, who was also close to Lila, to say such a thing. Sunny was just being honest, but it left Lila feeling awkward.
Poor Lila confidently trusting Sunny, only to be “betrayed.”
“Hehe, Sunny is just speaking its mind. Lila, don’t mind it. Such a cute little cat, of course, you’ll forgive it.”
“Meow, what does ‘speaking its mind’ mean? But don’t underestimate me because I look cute. Even Eust fears my cat claw attack. I’m very strong.”
“Yes, Sunny is very strong. I’m also afraid of your cat claw attack.”
“Uh, it’s lucky Sunny is a cute white cat. If it were another color, I wouldn’t know whether to forgive it.”
“But I feel a bit cold tonight. Can I stay here for the night? I’ll sleep on the floor.”
“Uh, Lila, are you scared?”
“I’m not scared! I just don’t want to have nightmares. Oops, I didn’t mean to say that.”
“Haha, so you’re scared of nightmares, Lila!”
“Eust, I’m not talking to you anymore. Sunny, let’s ignore Eust, okay?”
“Meow, why? I don’t want to ignore Eust.”
“Haha, Sunny is so cute, unlike some people.”
Become a Patron to read chapters ahead of public release and support me 😉
Read up to 40 chapters ahead on p atreon.
