Chapter 1: The Boy from Eight Hundred Years Ago
Whoosh!
The sailors pulled the sails taut as the howling wind filled them, whistling sharply in the air. On deck, a couple clung to each other, their faces heavy with guilt as they left this land behind.
"Have a safe trip!"
A little girl sat by the shore, wearing a pink dress spotted with dots and her hair tied into two pink braids. A large backpack lay at her side, stuffed with candies and cakes. She munched happily, legs swinging back and forth.
"Wow, delicious!"
Each swing of her legs shook the ground beneath her.
Her name was Charlotte Linlin. Only five years old, but with an appetite so enormous it could one day spiral into a madness of hunger. Her parents knew this—and abandoned her here. They could no longer support her, nor bear the destruction her hunger-driven tantrums could cause.
The sea breeze blew steadily. Linlin hummed a tune as she snacked until dusk. By the time the golden afterglow of the sun stretched long shadows across the beach, her backpack was empty.
She touched her stomach.
It growled.
Her parents were gone. They weren't coming back.
"Gurgle~"
Her stomach protested louder. Impatient, Linlin swung her legs harder, each thud sending tremors through the ground. The last rays of sunlight bled into the horizon, marking the fall of night.
Then—
"Huh?"
Linlin blinked. Out over the waves, a boy suddenly appeared in the sky. Out of nowhere—just there. He plummeted into the sea with a splash.
Linlin tilted her head. She didn't care why a stranger had dropped from the heavens. What mattered was that he had a bulging backpack.
And it smelled like food.
Excited, she jumped into the sea with a thunderous splash. The waves surged, scattering schools of fish in panic.
Meanwhile, Harold Roy struggled in the freezing currents. He fought upward, lungs burning, when suddenly a massive figure dove into the water after him. His eyes widened. If that giant landed on him, he'd be crushed!
He kicked sideways frantically.
"Puff! Crash!"
Roy burst out of the sea, gasping, and stumbled onto the shore. The icy wind bit into his soaked body like knives.
"Damn, so cold… who was that?" he muttered, teeth chattering, staring at the looming shadow beneath the waves.
"Puff! Crash!"
Linlin surfaced next, vaulting onto the beach in a spray of seawater. A wall of waves rolled with her, splashing over Roy's face.
"Pft—cold!" Roy sputtered, wiping seawater from his eyes.
"Patta, patta~"
Fish flopped helplessly on the sand, tossed ashore by the waves.
Roy wasted no time. He gathered the unlucky fish, cleaned them, and set them on a makeshift fire. Soon, the scent of grilled fish filled the air.
…
Crack.
The moon hung dim in the sky, veiled by drifting clouds. Waves boomed against the island while the wind howled bitterly.
Roy huddled near his fire behind a rocky outcrop, grilling fish. He handed one to Linlin, who sat beside him.
"Hey, hey, your fish is so tasty! Do you have more?" She swallowed hers in one bite, licking her lips eagerly.
"Yeah," Roy replied, passing her another, all while scanning the beach.
He was calm despite the chaos. He knew where he was—and when.
Harold Roy had first arrived in the One Piece world 800 years in the past, near the end of the Blank Century. That was when he received his "golden finger." But it came with a curse.
[Warning: Host body entangled with the rules of time and space. Chaos detected! Intimacy points required to suppress the effect. Without suppression, uncontrolled transmigration will occur. Severe cases may cause assimilation into time and space itself.
Next chaotic transfer: 30 minutes.]
The voice still rang in his head.
Time itself had latched onto his body, dragging him unwillingly across eras. One moment he stood on the edge of history; the next, chaos hurled him forward to this island.
And fate had dropped him before Charlotte Linlin—five years old, freshly abandoned by her parents on Elbaf's shore.
"Is it good?" Roy asked, watching the giant girl happily chew.
"Mmm! Delicious!" Linlin's legs thumped the earth again, rattling the ground.
She was massive. Adorable—but terrifying.
"Here, I've got more." Roy rummaged through his soaked bag, pulling out a soggy biscuit. His eyes flicked to the last fish roasting over the fire. "Ugh… wet."
He sighed. "Forget it. Fish it is."
Linlin's stomach rumbled like thunder. She stared at his backpack, drooling.
"W-Would you… like more?"
"Here." Roy quickly offered the biscuit. The last thing he needed was for a ravenous young Linlin to snap and eat him instead.
Linlin's eyes lit up. "Thank you! You're my favorite friend!" She snatched the pack, tilted it upside down, and poured every crumb and scrap straight into her mouth.
In moments, the bag was empty.
"…I'm your friend?" Roy asked with a faint smile.
"Of course!" Linlin chirped, her huge body shaking with joy.
---
[Charlotte Linlin]
[Relationship: New Friend]
[Intimacy Value: 40]
[Intimacy Points: 0]
[Friendship established! Reward: +50 Intimacy Points.]
Roy's eyes gleamed. Incredible—BIG MOM herself, and at just five years old, he had befriended her.
[Requirement: Reach 60 Intimacy with Linlin to unlock Talent Card Copy option.]
The system's voice echoed again, and phantom gray cards shimmered in Roy's vision, aligned with the grinning girl before him.