Across the seas, there were said to be lands of little people, lands of giants, and even lands of Fishmen, half-human and half-fish…
Sitting on a log, Noland the Liar, with his long nose and chestnut hair, grinned broadly as he excitedly told stories to the villagers gathered around him.
"The people living in the land of little folk are very small, only about twenty centimeters tall, and they are incredibly fast…"
"Wow!!!"
The children and villagers listened in awe, their eyes wide with wonder at Noland's vivid storytelling.
A child wearing a straw hat jumped up eagerly, smiling brightly.
"Mr. Noland! I want to hear a story about giants!"
"Giants?" Noland chuckled warmly. He glanced at the familiar straw hat and nodded.
"Haha, good! Then I'll tell you the story of the giants next. Before I landed on their island, I never thought anyone could grow so tall! Their height is greater than even the tallest trees in our jungle…"
…
Noland's tales were captivating, but whether they were truth or fiction was uncertain. Many villagers doubted him, whispering that his fantastical adventures were nothing but fabrications.
"How could there be people only twenty centimeters tall, or giants over twenty meters?" they scoffed.
One villager laughed, "If anyone in this world is over twenty meters tall, I'll eat my cooking pot!"
…
When Noland returned from another voyage, the villagers greeted him cheerfully.
"Mr. Noland! Welcome back! What wonderful stories have you brought us this time?"
But instead of lingering with the villagers, Noland hurried straight to the palace.
Standing before the King, who wore a golden crown and sat with three swords at his side, Noland bowed.
"Your Majesty, please hear me out. On an island in the Grand Line, I saw mountains of gold!"
"Mountains of gold?" The Three-Sword King stared at him in disbelief, exchanging glances with his Finance Minister — a stern-faced man with golden eyes and a curled mustache. Greed shimmered in both their eyes.
The King burst into laughter. "Very well! To verify your words, I shall lead two thousand soldiers myself and journey with you to that island!"
"It would be my honor, Your Majesty," Noland replied with a respectful bow.
…
Several ships set sail, braving the violent storms of the Grand Line. Their vessels, including one resembling the Going Merry, pushed forward against hurricanes and towering waves.
They fought sea beasts and treacherous currents. Many soldiers perished, leaving only a hundred survivors when they finally reached the supposed Golden Island.
But instead of gold, the island held only wild jungle and thick weeds.
"You dare deceive me, Noland!" the furious King roared.
"No, Your Majesty! I swear the gold was here!" Noland pleaded desperately.
"Still lying?" The King ordered his men to bind him. "You will be known as Noland the Liar, mocked by the whole world for your deceit!"
…
Back in the kingdom, Noland was sentenced to death. Even as he knelt on the execution platform, tied and surrounded by jeering crowds, he did not falter.
"Six years ago, I saw the great Golden City on Jaya Island! It exists! The Gold City truly exists!"
But the people mocked him. Rotten eggs and vegetables rained upon him as they shouted in unison:
"Liar! Liar! Liar!"
A scholar who had sailed with Noland stood as witness. With calm lies, he denied Noland's tales. "No, none of it was true. We never saw such wonders."
The crowd erupted in anger, branding Noland a deceiver.
Before the blade ended his life, Noland muttered weakly, "The mountains of gold… they must have sunk into the sea."
Yet his words fell on deaf ears. To the world, he was nothing but Noland the Liar.
…
…
"Hmm?"
The Straw Hats stirred awake, confusion written on their faces. It felt as though they had lived an absurd dream, each playing a role in Noland's tragic tale.
A gentle voice lingered in Sanji's ears, as though kissing his childhood memory:
"Sanji… Mama will always love you."
He sat silently, shaken.
Then a cold, commanding voice cut through their thoughts.
"Awake?"
They turned, startled. A majestic Ice Throne loomed before them, and upon it sat Shirogai Yamikuro, his expression sharp and unyielding.
"So, you've already heard the story of Noland the Liar?"
The Straw Hats exchanged uneasy glances.
"Why is Shirogai acting so strange? Why isn't he smiling?"
…
Mock Town.
"So, was there a gas explosion just now? Did we all inhale something toxic and start hallucinating?"
The pirates who survived the tavern's earlier chaos gathered in another bar, still unsettled.
The overwhelming surge of Shirogai's unrestrained Conqueror's Haki had been far too much for their minds to handle. It warped their thoughts, forcing them to forget the crushing pressure and the sheer destructive aura that Shirogai Yamikuro's power had unleashed.
Now, ignorant and shaken, the pirates drowned themselves in heavy drinks, numbing their nerves with alcohol.
"This damn weather, it even snows here!"
"Speaking of which, those fools are no different from the descendants of Noland. Day after day they keep fishing along the coast, dreaming they'll uncover some so-called mountain of gold."
Sarquiss, the Vice Captain of the Bellamy Pirates, let out a harsh laugh as he reminisced.
"We grew up in North Blue, listening to tales about Noland the Liar. The grown-ups always warned us—if you lie, you'll end up executed just like him."
He sneered. "And now his descendants, even after more than four hundred years, are still desperate enough to search for gold here?"
Bellamy, who had briefly blacked out from the weight of Shirogai's Haoshoku Haki, scoffed after regaining himself.
"Hahahaha! Do those idiots think that if they stumble across a single grain of gold and drag it back, they'll be able to wash away their ancestor's shame?"
Bellamy leaned back, grinning mockingly as he spat out his words with disdain.
"What pathetic fools."
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