Blake looked at Usopp in front of him with great interest, his tone unreadable: "Oh? You want to earn some extra money?"
"Alright! I'm here to find Kaya, do you know where her house is?"
"Miss Kaya?"
Usopp, who had been enthusiastically promoting himself, instantly froze, his smile stiffening. He almost instinctively took half a step back:
"You... what do you want with Miss Kaya?"
Seeing Usopp adopt a defensive stance, Blake couldn't help but find it somewhat amusing.
However, he wasn't in the habit of explaining himself much, so he said indifferently:
"That's none of your business. You just need to lead the way."
"Can you? Or can't you?"
Seeing Blake's suddenly haughty demeanor, Usopp couldn't help but gulp and retreated a few more steps.
But he still forced himself to suppress his fear and continued to ask:
"If... if you don't tell me your purpose, I will never take you to Miss Kaya!"
His voice trembled, and his legs shook uncontrollably, but he still stood in front of Blake, feigning composure.
Blake chuckled and shook his head.
The Straw Hats were indeed different.
Even if they were afraid, there was still a certain persistence within them, even if that persistence seemed somewhat ridiculous in the current situation.
Blake's initial thought of sending this guy under Aramaki's command, so he could have a father-son duel with Yasopp later, gradually faded.
A feeling of displeasure became increasingly clear in his heart.
He didn't genuinely need Usopp to lead the way.
This was just a village; finding the residence of a wealthy young lady here was as easy as pie.
Usopp, on the other hand, was just a moment ago a guide trying to earn a "small reward," but the next moment, he became as if facing a formidable enemy because of the name Kaya.
Although Blake couldn't quite put his finger on what was going on, he inexplicably felt a little uncomfortable.
"Hmph..."
Blake snorted coldly and stepped forward, continuing:
"In that case, forget it."
With that, he ignored Usopp, who was still stunned standing there, and walked straight past him towards the village.
"Stop!"
It wasn't until Blake and his group had passed him again that Usopp suddenly yelled as if waking from a dream, chasing after Blake.
Blake, however, didn't bother with the clueless kid and continued forward.
Usopp grew anxious, convinced that this group harbored ill intentions towards Miss Kaya.
But Blake and the others were much faster than him, so Usopp could only pursue them relentlessly from behind.
In his haste, he frantically picked up a stone from the ground and threw it towards Blake.
As expected of the descendant of a master sniper, in this world that valued bloodlines, Usopp's stone-throwing naturally had an innate accuracy.
The stone cut a swift arc through the air, its target clearly the fishbowls (helmets) on Blake's head, symbolizing his status.
Blake didn't even turn his head. Just as the stone was about to hit the fishbowls (helmets), a hand appeared from behind, catching the stone firmly in his palm:
"Your Highness..."
Koala threw the stone aside, looking at Usopp with an unpleasant expression.
Blake turned his head, his face devoid of the playful or intrigued expressions he had earlier.
His face was ashen, and his previous interest in Usopp had completely vanished.
"Should I kill him?"
Blake pondered for a moment.
Normally, Usopp's attack on a World Nobles would undoubtedly be punishable by extreme penalty.
But Blake was not considering face or rules at this moment, but weighing the pros and cons.
Killing Usopp would undoubtedly deprive the Straw Hats of an important fighting force.
Although this guy's fighting will wasn't strong, he did play an important role in some events.
He had already messed with the Revolutionary Army; did he really want to weaken the Straw Hats' forces now?
According to Blake's plan, he should at least weaken the God's Knights first, and then consider weakening the Straw Hats, to maintain the balance between the two.
However, he certainly couldn't just let this go. Blake whispered an order:
"Koala, teach this ignorant kid a lesson!"
"Yes, Your Highness!"
Koala instantly vanished from her spot, and the next moment, she was standing in front of Usopp.
She lifted her right leg, clad in a small leather shoe, and kicked him away.
Usopp flew in a beautiful arc and crashed into the sea.
Blake glanced at Koala, knowing she hadn't used her full strength in that kick.
Perhaps it was her inherently kind nature, or perhaps she didn't take Usopp seriously, or maybe she didn't want to personally kill a child.
However, it couldn't be entirely called holding back.
From Blake's perspective, whether Usopp survived was still uncertain.
If it were an ordinary person, even with Koala holding back, they would certainly not survive now.
But Usopp was, after all, a member of the Straw Hats, so he would most likely crawl out of the sea.
Blake turned around and continued walking towards Shells Town.
Forget it, that's enough. Anyway, he didn't have a strong desire to kill Usopp.
However, Blake's primary target had changed.
Usopp made him very uncomfortable, so he would go to his house first and capture Banchina.
Well, actually, Blake's controlling tendencies had flared up again.
Among all the married women in the original story, Sanji's mother should be the most beautiful.
However, this was a character without even a name, so Blake wasn't very interested in her.
Next were Kozuki Toki, Olvia, Ginny, and Scarlett, all of whom he had already captured and brought onto his ship.
As for Banchina and Otohime... they would have to wait a bit.
Otohime was one of the few women in this world who showed signs of aging relatively early, already looking somewhat old in her thirties.
Banchina, on the other hand, had her looks affected by that nose.
She was clearly a gentle and sweet character like Stella, but she had a somewhat abrupt nose.
Blake hadn't originally known when Banchina had died.
However, from the fact that Usopp hadn't started lying yet, it seemed she should still be alive.
Coupled with this guy's offense towards him, Blake decided — since he's already here!
Even if she's not useful after being brought back, like the mermaid Aida kept in the manor, she can't stay here!
He's just that willful!
At that time, Usopp, who wouldn't know exactly who his enemy was, would definitely come to hate the Celestial Dragons as a group.
Then—
If you want to kill me... then hate me! Detest me! And live on ugly!
This might ignite Usopp's fighting spirit, allowing him to play a greater role in the great cause of overthrowing Imu, and also make things a bit easier for Blake.
As he pondered, Blake had already used Observation Haki to locate Banchina.
Blake didn't knock on the door; he walked directly into the yard.
Somewhat unexpectedly, Banchina was not bedridden; she was currently watering flowers in the yard.
Blake couldn't help but exclaim:
"It seems I've arrived quite early."
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