blogombal 16: Only half a ton
16: Only half a ton
The sea breeze, carrying fragments of ore, swept across the surface, and the exposed dark red veins of the hematite ore gleamed coldly in the sunlight.
After a hearty meal, Newgate leaned against his anchor, which was wrapped with iron chains, and looked at Oro.
The exchange just now filled him with curiosity about this boy who was six years younger than him. He wanted to see how this kid would turn the deserted island into the treasure mine he was talking about.
Oro crouched down, his fingertips brushing across the ground.
Tiny pieces of gold drifted from his sleeve, transforming into countless nano-sized gold threads the moment they touched the ground, like living mycelium swirls that burrowed deep into the soil.
These gold threads can not only sense the distribution of gold elements, but also transmit the outline of underground mineral veins to Auro via vibration, which can be understood as a real-time drawn three-dimensional mineral map.
"To the southwest, eighty meters underground, there is a high-density gold vein, as well as some copper-iron ore and lapis lazuli, and a small amount of sea stone fragments scattered in various places."
Oro stood up, clapped his hands, and said in a calm tone as if he were saying, "The weather is nice today."
Newgate raised an eyebrow. Eighty meters underground, even if there is minerals, how do you dig them out?
However, the next second he was glad he hadn't said it out loud.
As soon as Oro raised his hand and snapped his fingers, a slight hum suddenly came from the ground, and countless tiny golden rays of light emerged from the ground around him.
That's gold element that Oro extracted from the soil and ore, and it's currently flowing towards the center, guided by the gold thread.
"This is……"
Newgate took two steps forward, his eyes wide like saucers. Didn't the Devil Fruit encyclopedia say that the Gold-Gold Fruit can only allow the user to manipulate gold that they have touched?
Lingling excitedly ran to Auro's side, squatted down and stared at the emerging golden light. She reached out to grab it, but Gails gently pulled her back: "Don't touch it, it'll burn you."
No sooner had he finished speaking than a large bulge suddenly appeared on the ground, followed by a "whoosh" as a large amount of glittering gold gushed out of the soil like a fountain!
Sunlight shone on the gold, reflecting a dazzling light, even turning the distant waves on the sea golden.
"Wow--!!"
Lingling could no longer contain herself and jumped up to cheer. She casually tossed the giant axe aside and gestured with her hands in front of the pile of gold.
"So much gold! More than the village's entire treasury!"
Gails' eyes widened as well. Although she knew Oro was very powerful, she had never seen him control so much gold at once. Her light golden braids swayed gently in the sea breeze, and her face was full of surprise.
"Olog, how much is that?"
Oro did not answer immediately, until he sensed that the concentration of gold elements deep in the ore vein began to decrease, then he raised his hand to recall all the gold threads.
At this moment, the golden fountain on the ground has sprayed two or three meters high, each jet shining with a bright luster, without the slightest impurity.
These were purified using his Devil Fruit powers, making them far purer than the gold available on the market.
"About half a ton."
Oro’s nonchalant tone struck Newgate like a thunderbolt.
He strode forward and reached out to touch the golden fountain. The silky texture on his fingertips told him that this was not an illusion.
Newgate's Adam's apple trembled slightly. In all his years at sea, he had never seen even the wealthiest pirate crews produce so much gold.
And this young man in front of us actually dug up half a ton after only standing there for a short while?
"you……"
Newgate opened his mouth, a thousand words unspoken, but in the end, they all boiled down to one exclamation: "Your Devil Fruit ability is simply developed to a monstrous level."
Oro smiled and did not deny it.
"This gold..."
Newgate's gaze seemed fixed on the golden fountain. He thought of his experiences over the years, of his hometown, and his expression grew increasingly complex.
Oro saw Newgate's performance and understood that the empty promises made before were far less impressive than what he was seeing now.
Half a ton of gold, a two- or three-meter-high gold fountain, within easy reach.
"Back to the topic of supplies."
Oro changed the subject, looking at Newgate's dilapidated stern ship, where the two unconscious crew members were lying on the deck, clearly knocked unconscious by the clash of Conqueror's Haki.
"Are your supplies running low?"
Newgate closed his eyes tightly, then turned to look at Oro, nodded, and said with a hint of helplessness:
"We've been chasing those pirates for almost half a month. We only have one bucket of fresh water left, and all we have left is a flatbread that's hard enough to be used as a shield."
"Gails, thank you for your help."
Oro looked at the giant girl beside him.
Gails understood, and with a flick of her right hand, white bread and dried meat instantly appeared. She then lightly tapped a stone, which immediately transformed into a large bucket filled with sweet, fresh water.
Lingling also came over, carrying a large jar of honey, and reluctantly handed it to Newgate:
"Here, take this! Gails says honey keeps for a long time, so you can spread it on bread when you're hungry! But I have a condition! I want to fight you next time!"
Newgate took the honey jar, a warm feeling welling up inside him.
Having sailed the seas for so many years and witnessed countless acts of treachery among pirates, this was the first time he had encountered someone who would proactively provide supplies to their opponent right after a fight.
"you……"
Newgate took a deep breath, turned and walked toward his wrecked ship, rummaged through the cabin and pulled out a yellowed parchment, then strode back to Oro and handed it to him.
"This is for you."
Oro took the parchment, unfolded it, and saw that it was an old nautical chart.
The parchment has some wear on the edges, indicating that it has been used for a long time, and the shipping routes in the edge of the New World are clearly marked on it.
Especially near the Red Line, a route was circled in red ink, with the words "Warm Current Path, Avoid Sea Kings" written next to it.
"These are the drawings I made over the past few years as I traveled to the edges of the new world."
Newgate's tone turned serious as he pointed to the location marked "Mermaid Island" on the nautical chart.
"The Mermaid Island beneath the Red Line has been quite turbulent lately."
"Mermaid Island?"
Gails leaned closer to look; Oro had previously told her that they would enter the first half of the Grand Line from Fish-Man Island.
"Um."
Newgate nodded, his brow furrowing: "The mermaids and fishmen are having a big fight."
"The fish-men think the mermaids have taken over the best coral reefs in the shallows, while the mermaids think the fish-men are too fierce and have scared away passing merchant ships."
"In addition, the slave-catching teams over there have become increasingly arrogant in recent years..."
"Anyway, it's best to stay away from Mermaid Island during this period. If you have to go, take the warm current route, where there are fewer conflicts."
Oro ran his fingertips along the warm current route on the nautical chart. With this chart, he could undoubtedly save a lot of trouble.
He looked up at Newgate, his expression sincere: "Thanks."
"You're welcome."
Newgate waved his hand, then grinned, revealing his signature white mustache: "You guys gave me supplies, I can't just take them for nothing."
His tone became more forthright: "In this sea area on the edge of the New World, if you encounter ordinary pirates causing trouble, just mention my name, Edward Newgate, and most of them will understand."
"But if I run into a tough opponent, I'll still have to rely on my fists. After all, I'm not that famous yet, guralalala."
Oro smiled upon hearing this. Newgate's generous and sentimental nature was no different from his future self.
He put away the nautical chart and nodded to Newgate: "I've got it."
"Then I'll be going now!"
Newgate picked up a pile of food and water and walked towards his wrecked boat. After taking a couple of steps, he turned back and nodded to Auroron.
"Next time we meet, I'll definitely beat you! And don't forget the ton of gold!"
"Of course, we'll wait and see."
Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.
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