Chapter 17 Koya's ChoiceThe next day, the sun shone brightly, but the atmosphere in the villa was somewhat awkward.
Kaya woke up early, her cheeks burning as she recalled Luffy's words, "You're mine now."
Kaya went downstairs with a mixture of shyness and anticipation, only to find Luffy's attitude towards her completely different from the night before.
Luffy still ate at the same table with her, but he spoke very little, and his gaze rarely lingered on her. He spent most of his time discussing flight paths with Nami or listening to Nojiko talk about herbs.
That coldness and distance gradually cooled Kaya's initial excitement, turning into an indescribable sense of loss and unease.
Did he...regret it? Or was he just comforting her last night?
During lunch, Nojiko "casually" mentioned:
"Speaking of which, Nami, the navigator on Luffy's ship, is also his woman.
Our captain seems cold, but he really values his own people."
These words stung Kaya like a small thorn. She tightened her grip on her fork, looked down at the food on her plate, and suddenly lost her appetite.
So… he wasn't only special to her. Nami was so beautiful and lively, Nojiko was gentle and capable, and what about her? A sickly and useless young lady…
[System Notification: Kaya's favorability has decreased to 55/100. She is feeling disappointed due to noticing the host's cold attitude.]
In the afternoon, Kaya sat alone on the swing in the garden, gazing absently at the distant sea.
Luffy found her.
"I'm leaving," Luffy said bluntly, his tone as indifferent as if he were simply stating that tomorrow's weather would be nice.
Kaya abruptly looked up, her blue eyes instantly brimming with tears, her voice trembling: "Leave? You're leaving Syrup Village?"
Luffy nodded: "I'm a pirate, I won't stay in one place forever."
Kaya's heart clenched.
Luffy was leaving…like a gust of wind, he came to save her life, stirred her heart, and then was leaving.
A profound sense of loss and panic gripped Kaya, making it almost impossible for her to breathe.
Luffy looked at her instantly pale face and continued, "Your illness stems from weakness and emotional turmoil. Staying confined in this house will only worsen it. The outside world is vast; perhaps there's a cure."
A glimmer of light appeared in Kaya's eyes.
Luffy looked at her: "If you're willing, you can come with me."
She could…go with him? Leave this home that held memories of loneliness and betrayal, and head to the vast, unknown sea? Kaya's heart pounded violently, fear and longing intertwined.
Luffy's next words calmed her down a bit: "But you need to think carefully. Coming with me means saying goodbye to your peaceful life. We might encounter storms, or even... never come back."
Kaya fell silent.
She looked at Luffy, at this powerful and mysterious young man.
Going with Luffy meant an uncertain future, fraught with danger, and he might only see her as a decorative object.
Staying behind? Staying in this empty house, continuing a life coveted by others?
Kaya remembered the occasional glint in Nojiko's eyes when she spoke of the sea, Nami's passion for sailing, Luffy's effortless crushing of enemies... An unprecedented longing overwhelmed her fear.
Kaya bit her lip, her eyes shifting from confusion to determination: "I want to see the outside world. Here... I have no family left."
Her parents died young, and her only remaining relative, the butler, was a demon plotting to kill her.
This home held no warmth left for her.
[System Notification: Kaya's favorability has decreased and stabilized at 50/100]
[A balance has been achieved between her aspirations for the future, her determination to escape the current situation, and her awareness that she is "not unique."]
[Kaya's condition meets the harvesting conditions. 24-hour countdown begins.]
Luffy nodded slightly inwardly.
Excellent, her favorability has precisely dropped and stabilized at 50 points.
A slight fear of the unknown and an expectation that Luffy can take her away each account for half of her favorability.
Just then, hurried footsteps sounded outside the villa.
"Kaya! Kaya, you can't go with him!" Usopp rushed in, panting, his long nose red with excitement, his face filled with panic and anger.
Usopp had somehow heard the news.
Seeing Kaya and Luffy standing so close, he became even more frantic, pointing at Luffy and shouting:
"Kaya! He's a pirate! A bad guy! You can't believe him! He's definitely lying to you!"
Kaya frowned, stepping in front of Luffy, her petite frame conveying a firm resolve:
"Usopp, calm down! Luffy saved me! He's not a bad guy!"
Usopp wouldn't listen. His only focus was the fact that Kaya was leaving with someone else, which threw him into a panic:
"Saved you? That was just a tactic he used to get close to you!"
"I grew up with you, I'm the one who truly cares for you! Kaya, stay, I'll protect you!"
Luffy calmly watched the farce unfold, even taking a half-step back, giving the stage entirely to Usopp.
Kaya looked at Usopp's agitated and contorted face, feeling a pang of pity, but mostly helplessness.
Kaya took a deep breath, her tone as gentle as possible yet firm: "Usopp, thank you for your companionship all these years, but Luffy, he..."
Usopp almost shouted it out, tears welling in his eyes:
"He what he said! Kaya! I love you! I've always loved you! Don't go, stay, I'll protect you!"
Finally, he said it.
These words, buried deep in Usopp's heart for years, burst forth in this moment of despair.
The scene fell silent for a moment.
Luffy finally moved. He stepped forward, his gaze landing on Usopp, a gaze as cold as a knife, easily stripping away all of Usopp's bluff.
"What will you use to protect her?" Luffy's voice wasn't loud, but it struck Usopp's heart like a hammer blow.
Usopp choked, "I...I..."
Luffy continued, his tone as calm as a statement of fact: "Kuro has been undercover for three years, and you didn't know a thing. Where were you when the Cat Brothers attacked? You couldn't even sense the danger around you, you couldn't even protect yourself."
Luffy looked at Kaya, then back at Usopp, saying each word clearly, "What right do you have to talk about protecting her?"
Every word was like a whip lashing at Usopp.
Usopp's face flushed red. He wanted to retort, to say that he could boast, tell stories, and use a slingshot...
But looking into Luffy's calm eyes, all the words stuck in his throat.
Yes, in the face of real danger, how laughable his so-called skills were.
Luffy delivered the final blow: "Kaya, come with me. I can take her to see the real world, I can help her live, and I might even cure her illness.
And you? Usopp, what can you give her?"
Usopp was completely stunned, as if all his strength had been drained away, and he staggered back a step.
He looked at Kaya. Kaya's eyes held concern and reluctance, but none of the light he had hoped for.
Her gaze was mostly fixed on the straw-hatted boy beside her.
Usopp understood. In the face of reality, his flowery lies and insignificant affection were worthless.
"I...I..."
Usopp's tears finally fell. He turned abruptly and stumbled out of the villa, even tripping at the door in his panic.
Usopp got up again and ran off without looking back, not even hearing the children calling "Captain Usopp" behind him.
Kaya watched Usopp's disheveled retreating figure, a pang of pain shooting through her heart. After all, he was her childhood friend.
"He's actually a good person," Kaya whispered, her voice tinged with apology.
Luffy reached out and gently put his arm around her shoulder, pulling her closer. "I know, but he's too weak."
Weakness, in this world, is the original sin.
Unable to protect himself, and even less able to protect those he wanted to protect.
Kaya leaned against his not-so-broad shoulder, feeling the reassuring strength in him, and the last trace of hesitation in her heart vanished.
She looked up at Luffy's sharply defined jawline and said softly but firmly, "I will become stronger."
Luffy looked down, meeting her clear yet determined blue eyes, and gently stroked her soft blonde hair.
"Mm."
Night, in Luffy's room.
Nami finished washing up, drying her wet hair with a towel as she walked over to Luffy, her tone dripping with jealousy, like she'd just eaten a whole lemon:
"Got another one? Happy now?"
Luffy opened his eyes at her words and looked at Nami.
Her orange hair was still dripping wet, her cheeks flushed from the heat, and her lips were slightly pouting. She was clearly jealous, but she pretended not to care.
Luffy suddenly found it amusing: "Jealous?"
Nami blushed and threw the towel at him: "Who, who's jealous! You can take as many as you want, it's none of my business!"
Luffy caught the towel, tossed it aside, then reached out and pulled the still-arguing Nami into his arms, lowering his head to silence her incessant chatter.
"Ugh…!" Nami struggled symbolically for a moment.
Afterwards, Nami leaned against him, slightly panting, her cheeks flushed.
Luffy's chin rested on the top of her head, his deep voice whispering in her ear:
"You'll always be number one."
Nami stiffened slightly, then hugged him tighter, burying her burning face in his chest, mumbling indistinctly, "Always saying nice things..."
But the arms around Luffy's waist tightened even more.