Chapter 3: Ryuen Wakes Up, Where Is This?

The next morning. Ryuen slowly woke up. He slowly opened his eyes, and his blurry vision gradually became clear. "So I didn't die, who saved me?" Ryuen asked with his dry lips. "Ah~" "You're awake? Genzo went out, he asked me to take care of you." A somewhat young and clear voice reached Ryuen's ears. Ryuen immediately knew it was a little girl's voice. He looked in the direction of the voice. A cute little girl, about eight or nine years old, with orange hair and holding a book, appeared in front of him. Isn't this young Nami? Young Nami! "Hi... I'm Ryuen. Can you tell me your name?" Ryuen looked at the little Nami who came close to him, and for some reason, his cheeks suddenly turned a bit red. Ryuen would never admit he was shy! He just thought of how Nami would look when she grew up! Grown-up Nami! Who could refuse grown-up Nami! "So your name is Ryuen, I'm Nami." "By the way, how did you fall from the sky yesterday? If it weren't for Bellemere and Genzo, you might have drowned in the sea." Nami asked sweetly. "Huh?" "Well... well, Nami, do you know about devil fruits?" Ryuen scratched his head, not knowing how to explain this to Nami. After all, for ordinary people, devil fruits are too unbelievable. "Devil fruits? What are those? Are they fruits that devils eat? Are there really devils?" Nami's big eyes sparkled with curiosity. It was the first time she heard of such a magical thing, and her little head was full of questions. "Um... how should I put it, Nami, can you get me a glass of water first? I'm really thirsty, I'll explain it to you after I drink." Ryuen licked his dry lips and said softly. Since coming to this place, he hadn't had a drop of water (sea water doesn't count!). "Oh, okay, wait a moment." Nami agreed obediently, gently placed the book in her hand next to Ryuen, and then turned to walk to the table. The table was a bit high for her, she had to stand on tiptoe to reach the kettle. Ryuen quietly watched Nami's busy little figure, feeling a warm current in his heart, and his originally tense mood gradually relaxed. Looking at the cute Nami in front of him, Ryuen's mouth curved into a smile, and he felt especially happy. He glanced at Nami's book, it was about weather, indeed top navigators start working hard from a young age! "Here's the water, drink up." Nami handed a glass of water to Ryuen, then stood beside him, waiting for Ryuen to explain. "Thank you, Nami." Ryuen said politely, took the glass, and drank the water in a few gulps. The slightly warm water flowed into his mouth and down his throat, Ryuen finally felt alive again, though the process was a bit intense. "I've finished drinking, now I'll tell you what devil fruits are." "Mm mm mm, Ryuen, go ahead~" Ryuen organized his thoughts and then said, "Devil Fruits are called treasures of the sea. They are the embodiment of sea demons. After eating one, you get different abilities, but as a price, the sea will hate you, and you'll not be able to swim anymore. But because eating a Devil Fruit gives you great power, many people on the sea want to get one! And each Devil Fruit costs at least 100 million Berries!" "One... one hundred million Berries???" Little Nami showed an unbelievable expression when she heard 100 million Berries. Her mouth opened wide, as if she could fit an egg in it. She was stunned, her eyes wide open, looking like they were about to pop out. Then, her originally cute big eyes immediately turned into the shape of Berries, shining with greed. Next, Nami seemed to be attracted by an invisible force, tightly grabbing Ryuen's arm, and asked excitedly, "Ryuen, did you just say you also ate a Devil Fruit? Is that true?" One hundred million Berries! She had never seen so many Berries in her life. Now, in her eyes, Ryuen was no longer just a person, but a gold mountain worth 100 million Berries! Ryuen was stunned seeing Nami like this. It turned out that Nami's greedy nature was developed from a young age! "(⊙o⊙)...Yes, I ate a Devil Fruit that allows me to fly, so I fell from the sky." Ryuen looked at little Nami's expression at this moment and suddenly felt a bit panicked. Little Nami wouldn't want to sell me for Berries now, would she? "Cool!" "Ryuen, one hundred million Berries, you just ate it like that." Little Nami let go of Ryuen's arm, and her eyes gradually returned to normal. However, her heart was filled with emotions she couldn't accept. One hundred million Berries, that was a huge fortune! "Actually... actually, the one I ate might not just be worth 100 million Berries. It might be worth 3 billion Berries." At this moment, Ryuen said nonchalantly. "What!!!" "Three billion Berries!!!???" The loud shout echoed through the sky, deafening, and Ryuen felt that the entire Cocoyasi Village heard her voice. Little Nami's eyes were wider than copper bells, and her mouth formed a big "O" shape. Her face was full of disbelief and extreme shock, and her body started to tremble uncontrollably. "(⊙o⊙)...Nami, calm down, it's just 3 billion Berries, it's no big deal." Just kidding, that's a mythical beast type, not to mention 3 billion, even 30 billion he would eat! But when Nami heard Ryuen's words, it felt like a knife stabbing her weak heart. "Uwaa~~" "Three billion Berries, you actually ate three billion Berries!" Nami couldn't take it anymore and suddenly burst into tears, crying sadly with tears streaming down. "Ah this~~" "Nami, don't cry, 3 billion Berries is nothing. I'll take you to earn more Berries in the future. I know a place with a lot of gold, I guarantee it's more than 3 billion!" Ryuen said with a slightly mysterious look. "Really?" "Gold? You're not lying to me? That's thirty billion Berries! Where can you find so much gold?" Nami's crying stopped immediately, and she grabbed Ryuen's shoulders excitedly. "Of course, and I'm sure there's more gold there than thirty billion Berries!" Ryuen was stunned for a moment but quickly assured her. "Great! Ryuen, you better not be lying to me!" Nami was very happy, her cute little face getting close to Ryuen's. "Nami, what's going on? What's this about thirty billion Berries?" At this moment, the door was suddenly opened, and Nojiko rushed in, looking worried. She had heard Nami's voice from the orange grove, so Bellemere had sent her back to check.