Mia nodded, then quickly shook her head.
In the Gray Terminal, the rarest thing was food. The scavengers who lived there without producing anything themselves were constantly on the brink of starvation.
Su Xiao pulled out a few compressed biscuits from inside his coat—his emergency rations.
He had already scouted the area. There was a forest not far from the Gray Terminal, and since he had a gun, he wouldn't need to worry about finding food.
Mia timidly took one of the biscuits. She had never seen this kind of food before.
Under Su Xiao's guidance, Mia peeled open the packaging and cautiously took a bite.
"It's delicious~."
Starving all day, the girl began devouring it ravenously.
"Your name's Mia, right? Take me out of here, and these biscuits are all yours."
Having finished the biscuit in her hand, Mia stared at the others Su Xiao held, gulping visibly.
"Okay… but you can't hurt me."
Su Xiao didn't reply. Instead, he climbed out of the dilapidated house. The slightly-recovered Mia quickly followed.
"Where are you going? You're not from the Gray Terminal, are you?"
Su Xiao suddenly stopped walking. A cold glint flashed in his eyes. He threw one of the biscuits to the ground and crushed it underfoot.
"Take me out of here. Don't ask anything else."
If Mia made any suspicious move, Su Xiao's hand—which had never left his gun—would aim straight at her forehead.
Startled by his actions, Mia took a few steps back.
"O-Okay…"
Not daring to speak again, Mia walked quickly ahead.
"Take me to the entrance of the Goa Kingdom."
Su Xiao stayed alert, scanning his surroundings. Here and there, ragged vagrants with vicious eyes stared at him. But once they noticed the gun in his hand, their greedy expressions quickly faded.
Recalling what he had learned from the anime, Su Xiao began planning his next move.
The so-called "Gray Terminal" was essentially a massive landfill. The Goa Kingdom dumped a large amount of garbage outside its walls, creating this hellish place.
The hostile vagrants Su Xiao had seen were once citizens of the Goa Kingdom—either criminals or people who had offended nobles and were exiled.
The garbage emitted toxic green smoke as it decomposed, constantly poisoning the inhabitants of the Gray Terminal.
Su Xiao's own health had dropped from 100% to 98% just from exposure.
There were no doctors here, no food, and crime and disease were rampant. This was a lawless place where power was everything.
With Mia leading the way, Su Xiao soon arrived at a tall wall.
Built of black stone, the wall loomed overhead. A small city gate came into view.
"This is as far as I can take you. The Goa Kingdom has strict laws—vagrants are forbidden from entering. If they're caught, they're executed."
Although she spoke to Su Xiao, Mia's eyes were locked on the remaining biscuits in his hand.
Tossing them to her, Su Xiao ignored her further. Mia immediately ran off—she'd only helped him because of the food.
The side gate of the Goa Kingdom stood wide open, with a few guards posted nearby.
This gate was used specifically for dumping garbage.
Although the guards appeared lazy, there was a deadly sharpness in their eyes. They were clearly used to killing desperate vagrants trying to sneak in.
Su Xiao hid nearby, not rushing in. He was waiting for an opportunity.
Fighting those guards head-on was impossible. The physical prowess of people in the One Piece world was freakishly high—Mia had recovered quickly from a heavy blow, making Su Xiao extremely cautious.
He guessed that each of those guards probably had stats above ten—maybe even higher.
An hour passed. Then two. By the third hour, it was midday. The temperature soared, and the weather turned sweltering. Finally, Su Xiao saw his chance.
A cart full of garbage rolled out of the city. The stench was unbearable, and the guards instinctively backed away, not even glancing at the cart.
"Do you need to inspect it, sirs?" the cart driver asked nervously, having halted the cart.
"Get out of here. It stinks," one guard said, waving him away impatiently.
Su Xiao's eyes lit up. He quickly followed the garbage cart.
Once they were deep into the trash heaps, the driver stopped at an empty spot and began unloading the waste. He was no longer the timid man he had been at the gate—there was now a dagger at his waist. In the Gray Terminal, it was survival of the fittest.
Lighting a cigarette to block the smell, the driver began shoveling the filth off the cart.
As the driver worked, Su Xiao crept up behind him like a cat. But just as he was about to knock the man out, he stepped on a shattered glass cup.
Crack.
The driver flinched.
Su Xiao cursed silently. The deep garbage made the ground soft—he hadn't noticed the glass underfoot.
But with things already in motion, there was no turning back. Su Xiao lunged.
The driver reacted instantly, pulling the dagger from his waist and stabbing at Su Xiao. The look in his eyes made it clear—he intended to kill.
Su Xiao's gaze turned ice-cold. In this world, it was kill or be killed. Mercy to an enemy was cruelty to oneself.
He raised his flintlock pistol and aimed it at the man's head.
A normal person would freeze at gunpoint. But not this man—he charged in even faster.
Without hesitation, Su Xiao pulled the trigger.
The hammer struck the flint, creating sparks. Gunpowder ignited, the sealed chamber exploded with force, and a lead bullet blasted forward with smoke and flame.
Bang!
The gunshot echoed. A pungent smell of gunpowder filled the air. The bullet pierced the driver's skull, and the man was thrown back two meters, his body twitching twice before going still.
[You have killed a Black-Market Merchant]
[Your talent 'Soul Devourer' has activated: Permanently gained 5 Mana. Current Mana: 65.]
[You have obtained a Treasure Chest (White).]
[First kill detected. Storage Space unlocked (2 cubic meters). Storage Space can be upgraded with Paradise Coins upon return.]
So this wasn't just a cart driver—it was a black market merchant, using his position as a cover for illicit dealings in the Gray Terminal.
A small, white, hand-sized treasure chest floated above the body.
Su Xiao reached out and picked it up. Though small, it was surprisingly heavy.
[Treasure Chest (White) – Open? Yes / No]
Su Xiao didn't open it right away. He stored it, along with the old flintlock pistol, in his new storage space.
With a thought, the pistol reappeared in his hand. This new storage ability was incredibly useful. If he used it well, it would greatly improve his odds of survival.
This wasn't a safe place. He didn't want to risk opening the chest and having it emit a blinding light—it would expose his position. His top priority was infiltrating the Goa Kingdom's capital city.
He stripped off his own clothes and put on the black-market merchant's.
After a moment's hesitation, Su Xiao threw himself into the nearby filthy water, letting the stench cover him. His clothes and face were now soaked in grime, obscuring his appearance.
Sitting at the front of the cart, Su Xiao awkwardly guided the horses toward the city gate.
In his hand was the dagger the merchant had carried—but this dagger wasn't quite what he had expected.
(End of Chapter)