The orange grove wasn't far from Genzo's home, and the three children arrived there in just over ten minutes.
"Bell-mère, we're here!" Nami shouted as soon as she reached the entrance of the grove.
"Bell-mère, Lynn's injury is all healed, so he's here to help too!" Nojiko added.
The three children ran into the grove and finally saw Bell-mère busy at work.
Hearing Nami and Nojiko's voices, Bell-mère paused what she was doing.
"Why are you here, kid? Your name is Lynn, right? Are you really healed? Why are you running around with them?" Bell-mère asked seriously, eyeing Lynn.
It was impossible for a child to recover so quickly after falling from such a height into the sea, so she was a little annoyed.
Seeing Bell-mère's stern look, a warm feeling surfaced in Lynn's heart. She was truly a good person.
Noticing Bell-mère's displeasure, Nami and Nojiko immediately stood aside, not daring to speak up for Lynn.
"Uh... Bell-mère, I came because I'm really fine. If you don't believe me, you can check," Lynn said, shrinking his neck slightly.
The main reason was that Bell-mère's gaze was intimidating. Though she was kind, she was strict when it came to raising kids.
Nojiko and Nami often got scolded—or at least scared—by Bell-mère. Though she never actually hurt them, her tone could be harsh.
Without a word, Bell-mère put down her tools, removed Lynn's shirt, and unwrapped the bandages to check if he was lying.
Within seconds, she ran her hands over his torso, carefully pressing against his ribs.
She had treated his wounds yesterday and was sure that several bones had been broken.
"Strange… It really does seem healed. That's impossible…" Bell-mère muttered, frowning in confusion.
"I know why, Bell-mère! Lynn recovered so fast because he ate a Devil Fruit!" Before Lynn could respond, Nami blurted it out first.
"A Devil Fruit?"
"Lynn, how did you get a Devil Fruit? Oh! No wonder you fell from the sky yesterday! Did you eat a Zoan-type that lets you fly?" Bell-mère suddenly realized.
"Uh… yeah, I fell because I wasn't very good at using it yet. Thank you for saving me, Bell-mère." Lynn bowed slightly.
"So that's how it is… No wonder. But the one who saved you was Genzo, not me. He saw you fall into the sea and jumped in right away." Bell-mère smiled.
"Yes! Nami told me. I'll make sure to repay Genzo in the future!" Lynn said earnestly.
He wasn't someone who forgot kindness. Both Genzo and Bell-mère were good people—otherwise, Cocoyasi Village wouldn't have trusted Genzo as their sheriff.
"It's fine. From now on, you, Nami, and Nojiko just take care of yourselves. Oh, by the way, since you flew here, does that mean you have to fly back?" Bell-mère asked.
"I know the answer to that!" Nami quickly interrupted. "Bell-mère, Lynn can't go back. His house was raided by pirates, and they stole 3 billion Berries from him!" She gave Lynn a sneaky wink.
Lynn's face darkened. Couldn't this girl come up with a better story?
"Three billion Berries?"
"You poor thing… Just stay here from now on. Nami and Nojiko will have an extra playmate." Bell-mère was shocked at first but quickly composed herself. She had been a Marine, after all.
Then she pulled Lynn into a warm hug, as if to comfort him.
"Uh… Bell-mère… I'm fine. I've moved on already. From now on, I'll take care of Nami and Nojiko too!" Lynn said awkwardly.
The main issue was that he was completely buried in Bell-mère's embrace, making it hard to breathe.
"That's good. From now on, we're family. Well, let's get to work. The sooner we finish, the sooner we can go back. I'll make something special for Lynn today!" Bell-mère let go, relieved to see he had truly moved on.
"Yeah!!"
"Work first, then eat lots of meat!" Nami cheered, already looking forward to dinner.
The three children got to work—some weeding, some bagging, some picking ripe fruit.
"Be careful, Nami!"
"Nojiko, you too! And Lynn, your injuries just healed, so take it easy, alright?" Bell-mère reminded them.
"Got it~"
"Okay, Bell-mère~"
"I understand, Bell-mère~" the three kids responded.
Bell-mère smiled, feeling reassured as she watched them. She glanced at Lynn again, making sure he was keeping up with the work.
Earlier, she had been concerned—someone from a family with 3 billion Berries might not be used to manual labor.
But seeing Lynn working without complaint, Bell-mère smiled knowingly and resumed picking oranges.
That afternoon, Genzo arrived. As the village sheriff, he didn't tend to the orchard, but whenever he had free time, he came to help.
This time, he just brought lunch. After getting some details about Lynn, he left to resume patrolling.
Since he was the only sheriff in the village, he couldn't be away too long.
Pinch!
"Bell-mère, I feel like Genzo-san looks at you a little differently," Lynn whispered.
"Lynn, don't say things like that, or I won't make you anything tasty tonight!" Bell-mère pretended to be angry.
She wasn't dense—of course, she knew what Genzo was thinking. But right now, she had bigger things to focus on than romance.
"Okay, okay! I won't say anything, Bell-mère. Don't be mad," Lynn quickly backed off and focused on weeding again.
At that moment, Nami crept up beside him and whispered, "Lynn, Nojiko and I both know Genzo likes Bell-mère. We just don't know why she keeps rejecting him."
"Nami! I heard that!!" Bell-mère's voice rang out.
Nami yelped and instantly distanced herself from Lynn, pretending to work diligently.
Bell-mère sighed, a helpless look flashing across her face before she shook her head and got back to work.