Chapter 1: Pay Up!

In the year 1510 of the Marine Calendar, in the Kingdom of Goa, Windmill Village.

"Hey! Lin Zhi, is the fried rice ready today?"

A little brat kicked open the wooden door of the restaurant and swaggered in.

The little brat was wearing a short-sleeved shirt with a cross pattern and bright red shorts. He was thin and small, with short black hair.

His arrogant and reckless attitude was evident on his still childish face, which was oddly endearing despite the contradiction.

This little brat was the grandson of the Marine hero Garp, Monkey D. Luffy.

At the restaurant's front desk, a handsome man in a light blue short-sleeved shirt put down his crossed legs from the table.

Lin Zhi walked past a few neatly arranged tables, his head aching as he scolded the young Luffy:

"Luffy, how many times have I told you? This is a restaurant where you need to pay for your meals, not your home."

Luffy patted his chest and promised with a carefree attitude, "Don't worry, I'll take care of all the dishes today!"

At that moment, he didn't have the scar under his right eye that would later symbolize his pirate courage.

"... You said the same thing yesterday, but you ended up going to rob a bird's nest after eating," Lin Zhi said, spreading his hands in exasperation, his words filled with deep resentment. "Not only did you run off, but you also brought the red-feathered bird that guards the nest to my restaurant, causing chaos!"

Upon hearing this, the arrogant Luffy lost his confidence, his face drooping, and he pouted.

He started acting like a spoiled brat.

After a few seconds of thought, Luffy lifted his head and said with a carefree laugh, "When I become a great pirate like Shanks, I'll definitely pay you back!"

"You, a little brat who can't even get bird eggs, will probably just get beaten up as a pirate," Lin Zhi chuckled.

"You bastard! How dare you look down on my dream!!"

Luffy's teeth turned into jagged lines, and he clenched his fists, looking furious.

Lin Zhi then brought a glass of juice to his table, "Here, have some juice."

Luffy immediately beamed, drank the juice in one go, and smiled brightly, "Hehe, thanks, you're actually pretty nice."

"Cost: 50 berries."

"Damn, that's so expensive!!!"

In the end, Lin Zhi couldn't resist Luffy's persistent pleading and went to the kitchen to fry a plate of rice for him.

After devouring it like a whirlwind, Luffy vanished, off to play somewhere else.

Lin Zhi, of course, wouldn't really hold a grudge against this little rascal. He chuckled and sat back at the front desk of the restaurant.

It was already dusk, and the gentle rays of the setting sun filtered through the half-open wooden door, adding a soft, hazy glow to the empty restaurant.

Lin Zhi casually sipped a cold cola, looking out at the pirate-world-style street, lost in thought.

It had been a year since he had been transported to the world of One Piece. From his initial confusion and helplessness, he had now settled in Windmill Village, where he had become a restaurant owner accepted by the villagers thanks to his cooking skills from his home planet.

He had once thought about making a name for himself in this world of pirates with his knowledge of the One Piece universe, but he lacked the courage to drift in a barrel like Luffy or the luck to meet a three-sword user like Zoro right from the start.

In the world of pirates, strength was paramount. Relying solely on his foresight to stand out among the powerful pirates was a daunting task.

Recalling the many hardships he had faced, Lin Zhi couldn't help but sigh softly.

"Based on the restaurant's current earnings, even with the money I've borrowed, it will still take over a month to save up 3 million berries for the wish."

Indeed, as a穿越者 (穿越者 means "穿越者" in Chinese, which can be translated as "transmigrator" or "穿越者" in English, but in this context, it refers to someone who has been transported to another world), although he didn't have a simple and straightforward system like a status panel, he did have a unique "cheat."

It was a wishing well in his mind, and as long as he met certain conditions, he could summon powerful beings from other worlds!

The condition to summon his first partner was 3 million berries.

Thinking about the powerful partner he would have in a month, a look of anticipation appeared on Lin Zhi's handsome face.

At that time, he might be able to leave Windmill Village and begin his grand adventure in the world of pirates!

As he was lost in thought, three carpenters wearing tank tops entered the restaurant.

"Boss, we're starving after a day's work. Do you have any new dishes today? Bring them out quickly!"

The carpenters found a corner table and sat down, clearly regular customers.

"Turns out you guessed right. I did create a new dish today—braised monster bird meat," Lin Zhi said with a smile, standing up from the front desk. After learning that the customers wanted to try it, he went to the kitchen to prepare it.

A few minutes later, he brought out a plate of braised bird meat, along with white rice and a few side dishes.

"Smells great!" The three carpenters stared at the bird meat, drooling.

"Try it. It was caught yesterday, and the meat is definitely fresh and tender," Lin Zhi said with a smile.

"Let's dig in!"

The carpenters eagerly picked up pieces of bird meat and put them in their mouths, immediately showing satisfied and happy expressions, feeling all their fatigue from the day melt away!

In reality, the dishes Lin Zhi made weren't top-notch in his homeland, but they were quite good in the world of pirates.

If not for satisfying the villagers' taste buds and his friendly demeanor, how could he, as an outsider, have gained their acceptance in just a year?

"Do you need any drinks? I can get them from Makino's place," Lin Zhi asked casually.

Makino's bar, where the Red-Haired Pirates often drank, was right across from the restaurant.

His restaurant didn't sell drinks, as he didn't want to undermine Makino's business, despite the potential profit.

Of course, part of the reason was that Makino's bar had a good relationship with the Red-Haired Pirates.

Over time, Lin Zhi and Makino's bar had developed a good relationship, and the Red-Haired Pirates would occasionally come to his restaurant for meals and drinks when they returned from their voyages.

Bang!

Just as the carpenters were about to answer, the restaurant door was kicked open violently.

"Drinks? I'm thirsty, so bring a few crates over!"

Looking over, they saw a group of bandits in white shirts and bandanas file in.

The leader was a man in a brown coat, with a long sword at his waist, a lecherous and arrogant expression on his face.

Under the watchful eyes of the three carpenters, the bandit Sig, with a cunning look, walked up to Lin Zhi with a swagger.

"The cost of the drinks will be the interest on the 800,000 berries I lent you. What do you think, my dear Lin Zhi boss?"

Lin Zhi looked calmly at the bandit king, Sig, who was known for his arrogance.

"You just lent me the money a few days ago, and now you want to collect interest?"

The situation dated back a week. To quickly summon a partner and avoid wasting time in Windmill Village, he had taken a risk and borrowed money from the local bandits.

If he could borrow 1 million berries, plus the money he had borrowed from the villagers, he could gather the 3 million berries needed for the wish and start the summoning process.

However, even with the restaurant as collateral, he only managed to borrow 800,000 berries from Sig, which meant he needed to wait another month to save the remaining 200,000 berries.

Of course, the Red-Haired Pirates, who were currently based in Windmill Village, might have been a better choice for borrowing money, but Lin Zhi didn't ask Shanks.

The reason was simple: borrowing from the terrifying Shanks and his crew meant he would have to pay it back.

"I want to collect the interest early. What do you have to say about that?" Sig looked at Lin Zhi with disdain.

The bandits had lent him money because of the high interest, and this gave them a pretext to eat for free and cause trouble without worrying about their bounties increasing.

After all, Lin Zhi owed them the money!

"I won't pay you interest until the agreed time," Lin Zhi said calmly, much to Sig's surprise.

"Boy, do you know who you're talking to?"

Sig's mocking smile slowly faded, and his eyes turned dark and terrifying.

He sneered and turned to his subordinates, "Smash this place up and teach this guy a lesson!"

"Understood, boss!"

The bandits immediately understood and began smashing the tables and chairs in the restaurant, a common occurrence for these ruthless and cold-blooded bandits.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

The sound of wooden tables and chairs being smashed filled the air, and the once clean and tidy restaurant was quickly in disarray.

The three carpenters, who had been eating there, fled in panic, running out of the restaurant along the edge of the corner.

Seeing the bandits' wanton destruction, Lin Zhi's eyes turned cold.

In the bandits' amused gazes, he turned and picked up the nearest wooden chair.

Sig, with his hand on his sword, was about to make the fool who dared to attack him bleed, but Lin Zhi unexpectedly lifted the chair and smashed it on the ground in front of him.

The sharp sound made the bandits, who were wreaking havoc, pause in surprise.

"Smash it! Why aren't you smashing it? Smash the whole restaurant if you can!"

"Threatening me, huh? Keep smashing! I'll just close the business and not pay the money!"

Lin Zhi's handsome face was filled with anger and hysteria as he shouted at Sig.

Sig was taken aback by this unexpected move, his half-drawn sword hanging in the air.

"What are you doing? Trying to threaten me?" His voice was chilling.

"You're threatening yourself! I rely on this restaurant to make money. If you destroy everything, how can I do business?!"

Lin Zhi stepped forward fearlessly, "Enough talk. If you want my life, take it. We'll be even."

Indeed, this restaurant was his only source of income. If it was destroyed, where would he get the money to pay back the debt?

Sig finally realized that his usual tactics of burning, killing, and destroying didn't work on this debtor.

If he killed this guy, the 800,000 berries he lent would be lost!

After some thought, the best option was to let Lin Zhi continue running the restaurant.

For a moment, Sig regretted lending the money for the high interest!

"Fine, you better have the money next month, or you're dead!"

Weighing the pros and cons, Sig decided to compromise, sheathing his sword and turning to leave with his subordinates.

"Wait!" Lin Zhi suddenly called out.

"What now?" Sig turned back, his eyes even colder.

Lin Zhi, knowing that the debtor was the boss, pointed to the broken tables and chairs on the ground and said calmly,

"Pay up."

The Windmill Village arc is written to introduce the intelligent Aquaria to those who haven't read "KonoSuba." Those who have read it can skim through it. Apologies for the length and pacing.

(End of Chapter)