Chapter 283: Vision

Chapter 283: Chapter 283: Vision

Kuzan rushed forward and waved his hands, suddenly unleashing two blasts of icy air. Although he didn’t form actual ice blades, the bone-chilling cold instantly made the soldiers freeze, their skin stinging from the frost.

"Who is it?!"

"Kid! You’re looking for death!"

Both startled and enraged, the soldiers momentarily let go of the family and turned to pounce on this uninvited guest who wore a mask and emitted a cold aura.

Although Kuzan had almost zero combat skills, he easily handled the men by relying on the defensive advantage of his Logia Elementization.

The squad leader, blustering but inwardly weak, threw out a few threats before leading his subordinates away, scrambling and crawling.

"Huff... huff..." Kuzan panted heavily, watching the soldiers flee. His small face under the mask was flushed with excitement.

A strong sense of achievement welled up in his heart—by his own strength, he had done something he had wanted to do but never had before. He had stopped an injustice and protected the weak!

He turned around, looking expectantly at the family he had "saved," hoping to see grateful smiles and hear words of thanks.

However, what he saw was an even deeper sense of despair and fear than before.

The old woman who had just been beaten was now slumped on the ground, her eyes hollow as if her world had collapsed.

The thin man clutched his aching stomach, his face showing not gratitude, but a pale mask of terror.

And the woman who had been hiding behind the door earlier now rushed out. Instead of thanking Kuzan, she broke down and questioned him in a tearful voice:

"You... why did you hit them?! Do you know what you’ve done?! They... they’ll come back! They’ll come back with more people! They’ll take our whole family away! We’re finished... it’s all over!!!"

Kuzan felt as if he had been struck by lightning. The smile under his mask instantly froze, and he stood there in a daze. He hadn’t expected this reaction at all. He had clearly helped them!

At this moment, the beaten old man struggled to stand up, pulling back the hysterical woman and stopping her with a raspy voice: "Shut up! Stop talking!"

Then, he turned to the stunned Kuzan, his clouded eyes filled with complex and indescribable emotions. Ultimately, he bowed and spoke in an extremely humble tone:

"Thank... thank you, little... little hero. You... you should leave quickly. This... this has nothing to do with you."

Kuzan felt a cold chill surge from the soles of his feet to the top of his head, colder than any chill his freezing ability could produce. He opened his mouth but didn’t know what to say.

Just then, a tall figure silently appeared beside him, blocking part of the sunlight. It was Charlotte Linlin.

She spoke calmly, "Old man, I apologize. My kid is young and impetuous, and he has caused you trouble."

Seeing Charlotte Linlin, especially sensing her extraordinary size and aura, the old man was too terrified to even look up, waving his hands repeatedly:

"No, I wouldn’t dare... it’s, it’s us..."

The old man spoke incoherently, clearly regarding Charlotte Linlin as an even more terrifying figure.

Charlotte Linlin ignored their fear and went straight to the point: "I’m looking for someone. Is there a child named ’Kuma’ around here? He’s about ten years old, but much taller than a normal adult."

Hearing the name ’Kuma,’ the old man’s body trembled violently. He looked up, a flash of vigilance in his eyes, and subconsciously asked back:

"Why... why are you looking for Kuma? He... he’s a good kid, he hasn’t caused any trouble..."

Charlotte Linlin’s Observation Haki sensed the deep concern and protectiveness in the old man’s words.

She understood; it seemed Kuma was here, and this family might be close to him, or at least sympathetic to him.

She softened her tone and explained, "Don’t worry, I’m not here to cause him trouble. By seniority, I’m considered a new elder he recognized outside. It was thanks to my... ’help’ that he was able to return here safely."

The old man scrutinized Charlotte Linlin, then looked at the masked Kuzan beside her, who was clearly young and had just "helped" them. He felt that such a person likely had no need to lie to a commoner like him.

Especially a "parent" who could raise a child who would "stand up against injustice"—perhaps... they really weren’t bad people?

After a moment of hesitation, the old man finally lowered his voice and pointed in a direction: "Follow this road to the west, go out of town, and near the foot of the northern mountain... there’s an Abandoned Church."

"Thanks." Charlotte Linlin noted the information and didn’t stay any longer. She pulled the still-dazed Kuzan and turned to leave this place of strife filled with despair and fear.

After walking for a while and distancing themselves from the family, Kuzan seemed to come to his senses. He took off his stifling mask, his small face filled with confusion, grievance, and bewilderment, as he subconsciously looked at the tall "father" beside him.

"otousan..." Kuzan, who had subconsciously started treating Charlotte Linlin as his father, asked her:

"Did... did I do something wrong? Why did they... why did they seem even more afraid? I clearly drove away the bad guys..."

Charlotte Linlin looked down at him and reached out to rub his messy curly hair vigorously. Her tone was no longer as playful as before:

"You’re not wrong, Kuzan. Your heart, which wants to help the weak, is not wrong."

Kuzan looked up, a faint light shining in his eyes.

"However," Charlotte Linlin’s tone shifted as her purple eyes reflected the gloomy sky of the Sorbet Kingdom in the distance,

"You didn’t see far enough, and you didn’t think deeply enough. You only saw the bullying in front of you and thought of throwing a punch to stop it, but you didn’t think about what they would face after you left."

"For them, those soldiers represent more than just a few individuals; they represent an ’Order’ and ’Power’ that they cannot resist.

You drove these few away today, but more might come tomorrow, and their methods might be even harsher. Your ’help’ very likely became a catalyst that accelerated their disaster.

That is why that woman questioned you in despair, and why the old man fearfully told you to leave quickly."

As Kuzan listened, the light in his eyes dimmed. He lowered his head, looking at his hands which still held a trace of cold air, and murmured:

"Then... then what should I do? Should I just watch? otousan, was I wrong?"

"I said, you’re not wrong." Charlotte Linlin stopped her pace, her massive palm pressing down on Kuzan’s thin shoulder, her gaze calm yet profound.

"What was wrong was the method, the timing, and the lack of consideration. To truly ’help’ someone, sometimes you need more than just fists; you need the strength to bear the consequences, the wisdom to change the status quo, or... at least to understand who the real perpetrator is!"

Just like back then, it was that old man who wanted to steal her sword, but the one who truly caused it all was her son, a Navy Vice Admiral; the Marines at God Valley were merely executors, while the true source of violence was those Celestial Dragons.

Only by solving the source of the problem can the problem be truly resolved.

She looked at Kuzan’s half-comprehending eyes, the corners of her mouth curling slightly:

"After this, let your father here teach you properly how to ’handle’ such things—in our Pirate way, or rather, the way of the strong."

Kuzan stared blankly at her. For the first time, he felt an emotion he had never experienced before from this She-devil who "forced" him to call her Papa, always teased him, and made him owe a ten-billion-berry debt: a sense of reliance on an omnipotent father.

Subconsciously, the "father-son" relationship, which had been established out of fear and situational pressure, seemed to gain an indescribable bond at this moment.

He nodded and responded in a low voice, "Mhm."

Charlotte Linlin said no more. Following the direction the old man pointed, she led Kuzan toward the west side of the town.

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