As expected, Lieutenant General Kapp didn't make things difficult for me.

Rather,

With the thick nerves of the Monkey Family, he didn't care about such a small matter.

"Are you going to Windmill Village?

Sure. "

As his subordinates looked like they were about to catch their breath, Kapp picked his nose and nodded nonchalantly.

"Lieutenant General Kapp!"

A Navy general looked like he was about to faint. "You actually abducted that person's daughter on a voyage. Do you think our relationship with Admiral Akainu isn't bad enough?"

"What does it matter?" Kapp looked indifferent.

"Sakaski can think whatever he wants, right?"

"Please care a little, Lieutenant General Kapp!

Admiral Akainu already has a problem with us! "The Navy general's face was red with anxiety." If this goes on, your position — "

"Don't worry." Kapp waved his hand.

He patted the general's shoulder and laughed heartily.

"Young people need to have courage!

Don't be overcautious — look at this little girl, she even dared to run away from home and sneak onto a warship. "

I, who was suddenly shot, was speechless.

"Please don't randomly add drama for me, Lieutenant General Kapp?

Your subordinates are looking at me like they want to eat me?

I know it's embarrassing that you didn't notice me sneaking onto a warship twice, but you can't blame me — Quiet Hassan's card is just that buggy.

It's normal that you didn't notice!

But I couldn't say this out loud, so I could only lower my head.

I silently endured the needle-like gazes.

"Right,

I forgot to tell you. "

The AI tilted its head at me. "Ace has changed a lot compared to two years ago. Don't be too surprised when you see him."

"Huh?"

Because it was a little long ago, I couldn't remember some of the plot details clearly, so I didn't get what the AI meant.

Seeing my confused expression,

The AI kindly reminded him.

"Didn't he learn how to speak politely from Maginot to greet Redhead?" The AI wagged its tail. "Luffy is hopeless, but Ace is a good student.

You probably won't be able to recognize it once you see it. "

"How is this possible?"

I snorted in disbelief.

…

Alright.

The AI was right.

Why would I question artificial intelligence?

It's much smarter than me.

"Yo!

Long time no see. How have you been, Leah? "

Looking at the black-haired young man waving his hand and greeting me with a smile, I felt like my jaw was about to hit the ground.

"You, you, you are Ace?"

Who is this guy with a face full of smiles?

What about that violent and irritable brat?

Where was that super ferocious man who always had a black face as if everyone owed him 8 million?

What about that little bastard who would either throw a cold face or throw a punch at her whenever they met?

Where did the Ace I was familiar with go AHHHHHHH?!!!

I looked at Luffy in horror. It's only been two years, Luffy can't be …

"Leah, Leah!"

Luffy pounced over, but not at me. He pounced on the bag on my back and rummaged through it quickly.

"Where's the meat you said you would bring me, Leah!

Meat! "

Alright, Luffy is still that Luffy, I'm relieved.

"Luffy, come down, Leah is under you."

Ace reached out and pulled Luffy down from my bag and smiled at me. "I'm sorry, Leah, Luffy is too excited. When he heard that you were coming back, he started yelling a few days ago."

"It's okay …"

Ace was so polite that it made me uncomfortable. I scratched my head, trying to find the grumpiness from before on his face. However, I couldn't find any trace of it on his smiling face.

I could only turn the bag in front of me and use this action to hide my unnatural expression.

"Alright, alright, take your hand back. The meat is here."

It was much easier to talk to Luffy. I took out the big piece of ham that I had wrapped and threw it at Luffy's head.

Seeing him jumping for joy, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curl into a smile.

"You haven't eaten a sea king's ham, right?

I specially asked someone to get it for me. "

I had to thank the logistics lady at the Navy cafeteria. It was very difficult to get this outside. "It's all because of this. I didn't bring much of my own stuff.

This thing is really too big. "

The AI said faintly, "I was wondering why you only brought a few books this time. It turns out that you used your bag to carry this."

"Isn't that obvious?" I secretly rolled my eyes. "Can normal meat feed Luffy?"

Saying that, I glanced at Ace again. The friendly smile on his face made me even more uncomfortable. I subconsciously shrank back and hugged the bag in my arms tightly.

"That, that …" I felt my voice tremble as I spoke to the AI. "Ace, he … Isn't he too polite?

I don't think it's right … Even if … Even if you said that he learned manners from Maginot … Isn't he a bit too polite … "

He was so polite that it made me wonder if his favorability rating was reset to zero?!

Seeing that I was so flustered that I was about to start trembling, Ace suddenly laughed out loud. A naughty look appeared on his face, and the faint sense of distance between us instantly disappeared. It couldn't be helped even if it didn't disappear. This guy directly stretched out his hand and pulled me over to him?!

I was pulled into his arms with a dumbfounded expression. My back leaned against the young man's muscular chest. I could feel the boy's slightly hot body temperature and the vibration of his chest through his clothes.

Ace pinched my face and removed the creepy polite smile from before. He clenched his teeth and laughed while pulling my face hard.

"You, still, know, to, come, back?"

"Eh?" I was dumbfounded. "It hurts. Ace, what are you doing!"

"Didn't you say you would come back in two years?" Ace pulled even harder. "You're half a year later than the agreed time, you bastard!"

I finally understood why he was angry. "Hey, hey, hey!

I didn't want to either!

You don't know how scary that bastard old man is. It was super hard to sneak out from under his nose!

It wasn't easy for me to find this opportunity. I risked my life to come out! "

"Then why didn't you send a letter for the past two years?!"

"I sent a letter to you two from the Navy headquarters?

Don't you know that Marivan Doe's communications are monitored?

Do you want your identity to be found out and then dragged to the Volcano Lava BBQ by that bastard old man? "

"What's a Volcano Lava BBQ?"

Ace finally let go of his hand and took a step back with his hands on his hips. "Alright, I'll reluctantly let you go."

"Tsk." I rubbed my red cheeks and kicked him angrily. "You bastard, you were trying to scare me on purpose, weren't you?!"

This brat clearly knows that I have mild social phobia (Of course, Ace doesn't know this term). He knows that I'm afraid of meeting strangers, so he purposely used a polite attitude to scare me. He must be happy to see me at a loss, right?

Bully!

Super bad!

Bad guy!

"This is punishment."

Ace put his hand on my shoulder with a smile and put all his weight on me. "It's your fault for not keeping your promise. I thought you wouldn't come back."

By not coming back, does he mean that I 'can't come back' or that I 'don't want to come back'?

Ace didn't say, and I didn't ask.

It's not like I can't understand his worries. They are future pirates, and I am the daughter of a Navy general. Two years is too long for a child. It's long enough for childhood playmates to forget their promise. It's long enough for a child to give up on an inappropriate friendship.

If it was Luffy, he definitely wouldn't have this kind of worry. I believe that during this time, he never doubted for a second whether I would come back or not. He was waiting for me wholeheartedly … I promised to bring him meat → _ →

But Ace is different. He is sensitive and has low self-esteem, so he has a deep-rooted distrust of people.

It's normal for him to have this kind of conjecture.

Still, I elbowed him hard in the stomach and dropped my shoulders to let him fall off me.

"You're so heavy …" I complained, but I couldn't help but smile. "Seriously, I already said that I would risk my life to come back for the two of you.

Although it's a little late, I still came back in one piece, didn't I? "

… Although I'm not sure if I can survive after I go back.

I shook my head to shake Admiral Akainu's face out of my mind. I don't want to think about him on a happy day. _ (: з 」 ∠) _

"Mm." Ace smiled and opened his arms to hug me. "Welcome back, Leah."

[Portcas D. Ace's Favorability: 1, received Claw of Chaos x5]

[Portcas D. Ace's Favorability: 5, received Claw of Chaos x10]

[Portcas D. Ace's Favorability: 10, received Claw of Chaos x20]

I ignored the AI's notification and hugged Ace back. I could feel the boy's body heat making my face burn.

"… I'm back."

On the side, Luffy finally finished eating half of the Sea King Ham. Seeing the two of us hugging each other, he immediately jumped up. With the remaining half of the ham in his mouth, he rushed over and hugged us tightly.

"What are you doing? I want a hug too! I want a hug too!"

"Hey!

Luffy, your hands are covered in oil!

It's all rubbed up! "

"You little bastard!

Don't use my skirt to wipe your face! "

Clang! Clang! Clang! Ace and I punched Luffy from both sides, leaving two bumps on his head.

I put my hands on my hips and looked at Luffy. When I came back to reality, Ace and I looked at each other and suddenly laughed.

Luffy squatted on the ground and hugged his head. He looked at me and then at Ace. Although he didn't know what happened, he still chuckled.

The familiar atmosphere returned.

The three of us were the same as before.

I was sure that Ace was still the same Ace. He hadn't changed at all.

"So, Leah."

Ace pressed down on his cowboy hat and gave me a familiar smile. "Let me see how much you've improved in the past two years!"

— Mm, familiar. It was a warlike smile that he would only show when he had to drag me into a duel.

Please stop being a straight guy, Ace. You won't get a girlfriend if you continue like this.

I also smiled and switched to the Ruler – Martha card. Then, I clashed the two gauntlets together, making a clanging sound.

"Sure." I showed an eager expression. "Let me see how much stronger the two of you have become."