[U.T] Ch 34: True Love?!

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After stepping into Luen's room, Kaya looked visibly nervous.

Luen gave her a gentle smile and half-closed the door, leaving it slightly ajar instead of shutting it completely.

That simple gesture seemed to ease Kaya's tension a lot.

"So, Kaya—what did you want to talk to me about?" Luen sat across from her, his voice soft and friendly.

"Um… aren't you going to eat something?" Kaya asked, still a little nervous, using the topic of food to ease the awkwardness in the air.

"Of course I'll eat." Luen chuckled, half amused.

He wasn't really hungry at the moment, but he didn't want to waste the effort Kaya had gone through. With his enhanced physique (Deep Purple), eating another meal wasn't a big deal—he could digest it easily, even if he was already full.

Watching him dig into the food she brought, Kaya's eyes lit up with a bright smile.

"Thanks for the meal." After finishing every last bite, Luen let out a small breath.

His enhanced body might have incredible digestion, but it still took time to process food—especially after today's back-to-back meals.

Usopp had treated them earlier, and now with this late-night supper, Luen had definitely gone over his usual limit. Even his stomach had its limits, after all.

"You guys are heading out tomorrow, right?" Kaya had finally calmed her emotions, and once she saw Luen finish eating, she asked.

"Yeah, we're setting sail again—headed for the Grand Line." Luen smiled.

"The Grand Line… what's it like there?" Kaya's eyes sparkled with curiosity.

She'd been sickly since childhood—forget the sea, even walking for any real distance was difficult for her.

"Well… the magnetic fields, weather, currents, and winds there are all chaotic. Even figuring out where you are can be hard. There are islands of constant snow and ice, and others where it storms year-round.

And above the clouds—there are even sky islands…" Luen smiled as he watched her expression grow more and more fascinated while he described the wonders of the Grand Line.

In the East Blue, hardly anyone knew more about the Grand Line than Luen—thanks to his knowledge of the story.

Of course, he hadn't personally experienced it yet, and he was just as excited about the upcoming journey as anyone else.

As Luen described it all in vivid detail, Kaya couldn't help but gasp in amazement now and then.

It felt different from Usopp's tall tales—somehow, she just knew Luen was telling the truth. A girl's intuition, maybe.

"It's incredible… the ocean really is so vast," Kaya whispered as she stared out the window. Even though it was getting late, the glimmer of the sea could still be seen in the distance, her delicate face full of longing.

"Too bad… I'll never get to see it for myself."

A trace of sorrow appeared on her face—frail and soft, making her seem all the more pitiable.

"That's not necessarily true." Luen's voice was quiet as he looked at her.

"Huh?!" Kaya looked at him, wide-eyed.

"But… I can't even walk far without feeling exhausted…" She looked down at her weak body, biting her lip.

"You've heard of Devil Fruits, right? Treasures of the sea?" Luen said, casually bringing up the topic.

"Devil Fruits? Aren't those just a myth?" Kaya blinked.

"Luffy ate one. And if you ate a Zoan-type Devil Fruit—an animal-type—your body would get stronger and healthier." Luen smiled.

Kaya's condition was purely due to being born physically weak, plus Kuro's little schemes, not some rare incurable disease.

Unlike Law, who needed the Op-Op Fruit to treat Amber Lead Syndrome, what Kaya needed was simply a body that could support her.

A single Zoan-type Devil Fruit could fix that. Sure, in the East Blue they were almost impossible to find—but in the Grand Line? Zoan-types were practically common.

And for Luen, getting one would be a piece of cake.

Thanks to the Ultimate Trait System, Luen could convert Devil Fruits into traits, steal them, and even give those traits to others.

Just like how Blackbeard hunted down Devil Fruit users to build his own crew, Luen could do the same—but even better.

Of course, once someone else received a Devil Fruit trait, they'd become a user too—and that came with the usual drawback: losing the ability to swim. That's just the tradeoff.

Unlike Luen, who thanks to his system, could use Devil Fruit powers without any of the downsides.

...

"But… even if Devil Fruits are real, there's no way I'd ever get the chance to eat one…" Kaya's eyes lit up for a moment, only to dim again.

"How about this—next time we meet, I'll give you a Devil Fruit. Sound good?" Luen smiled.

"!!!"

Kaya looked at him, stunned, unable to believe what she just heard.

"Luen… that's way too precious of a gift…"

She didn't even know how to respond.

"To me, it's not a big deal. And besides—you already gave me something in return, didn't you?

A girl's kindness… to me, that's worth more than any Devil Fruit." Luen glanced over at the food cart and smiled warmly.

"…."

Kaya bit her lip and stared at him in a daze.

How could something as simple as a few dishes compare to a legendary treasure like a Devil Fruit?

She had always been sickly—stuck inside her room, killing time with books. As a teenage girl, it was only natural she'd enjoy romance novels.

Those stories of a girl's destined prince, appearing out of nowhere to rescue her—they always filled her heart with longing.

Especially for someone like her, who couldn't even walk freely outside, those tales were more than just fiction—they were dreams.

But then, it really happened.

Luen had literally fallen from the sky, defeated Kuro, and saved her—along with everyone else.

When they first met, Kaya had shouted at Luen, thinking he was falsely accusing Klahadore of being a pirate.

But Luen didn't get angry. Instead, he gave her a warm smile.

And then he saved her.

That smile… it stayed in her mind long after, even when she was resting.

She had never been in love before—so she didn't know if this was what love felt like.

But it was completely different from how she felt around Usopp.

Usopp was a good friend, and she knew what friendship felt like.

But this? This feeling she had toward Luen—it wasn't friendship.

She wanted to know everything about him. She wanted to talk with him more.

She wanted to bring him more food if he was hungry.

Even just watching him eat made her smile.

This… this really did feel like the kind of love she read about in books.

She once read that the moment two people meet, it's already decided whether they'll just be friends—or something more.

Knowing Luen would be leaving tomorrow made Kaya want to spend just a little more time talking with him tonight.

And after seeing how much he ate today, she worried he might be hungry again—so she came.

"We have a promise now." Luen looked at her and held out his pinky with a gentle smile.

"…Yeah." Kaya's face turned slightly red.

She softly hooked her pinky with his—just the touch of his finger made her heart skip a beat, and she shyly lowered her gaze.

In that moment, Kaya knew for sure—

This was true love.

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