Chapter 20

Just as Buggy is about to strike Nami, he suddenly collapses in pain, due to Luffy striking his lower body. Nami claims that the treasure is now hers, angering Buggy and provoking him to split into pieces and attack again. However, Luffy notices a flaw in Buggy's ability - while his body parts can fly, his feet remain on the ground. He distracts Buggy long enough for Nami to get away. As Buggy tries to reassemble his body to attack Luffy, he discovers that Nami has tied up his body parts, and he is only able to reassemble his limbs and his head. Luffy sends him flying with Gomu Gomu no Bazooka.

Charge of the Aspects

The Way of the Thief

Nami is being chased by Buggy's top half for stealing his treasure. Just as he is about to reach her, Luffy notices that his lower half has not moved at all, and kicks him between the legs. As Buggy hits the ground in pain, Luffy reminds him who he is fighting. Luffy tells Nami to abandon her treasures and run, but Nami refuses, claiming that since she stole it, the treasure is now hers. Buggy gets angry upon hearing this, but Nami reasons that she hasn't done anything bad enough to be told off by a pirate.

Buggy separates himself further, launching parts of himself at Nami. Luffy notices that his feet cannot fly and picks one of them up. As Buggy continues to chase Nami, Luffy tickles his foot and hits it on the ground, causing Buggy pain and discomfort and distracting him from attacking Nami. Nami swings the bag of treasure around to strike Buggy, but Buggy grabs the bag. With both of them refusing to let go, Buggy attempts to strike Nami with his knives. As he is poised to attack, Luffy kicks him in the head, knocking him into the bag and ripping it.

With Buggy momentarily incapacitated, Luffy grabs the map of the Grand Line. Buggy gets up and attempt to reform his body, but he realizes that he has only assembled with his hands, feet and head, since Nami has tied up the rest of his body parts. With Buggy realizing that he is defeated, Luffy lands a blow and sends him into the sky.

Mission 5

The true Eden Academy family interviews have begun, with an interviewer intimidating a child applicant with several questions. The child, unable to answer, stammers, and the family is dismissed from the room by the interviewers. The parents scold their child as they walk past Loid, who despite his stoic exterior, is actually nervous about the interview. Hearing his thoughts, Anya also gets nervous. The Forgers are then called into the interview room.

The interview commences with Walter Evans, who immediately asks Loid how he met Yor. Loid gives an embellished retelling of his actual meeting Yor at the tailor's shop, causing Yor to blush. Yor gets asked the same question, and she replies with Loid's good points. The first interviewer, Murdoch Swan, crudely asks Yor about her reasons for marrying a man with a child, to which Henry Henderson reprimands him. In his thoughts, Loid reveals that he has been listening to the previous interviews through a planted bug and notes that Murdoch enjoys disparaging the applicants' families due to his callous nature and recent divorce.

Avoiding the previous question, Walter continues by asking why the Forgers decided to apply to Eden Academy. Loid replies with the upstanding quality of the teaching staff at Eden Academy, hiding his true motive to approach Donovan Desmond, and Henry is satisfied with the response. Next, Walter focuses on Anya from the perspective of her parents, asking about her strengths and weaknesses. Loid responds with Anya's curiosity, wisdom, and intuition, and her weakness is her pickiness about food.

Yor is asked the same question, as well as about her parenting style towards Anya. Yor, having rehearsed the question with Loid, answers that she spoils Anya a bit and is learning to be strict with her for her sake. Walter picks up on Loid's earlier response about Anya's pickiness and asks about her cooking, clearly unexpected by Yor, who stammers in surprise. Loid cuts in to reveal he is responsible for most of the cooking in their home. Murdoch shames Yor for being unable to cook as a wife, causing Yor to look down in embarrassment. Loid defends Yor with her ability to clean the house and raise Anya, almost entering an argument with Murdoch until Yor placates him.

Murdoch, spiteful of the Forgers' beauty and perceived love, is now intent on tormenting the couple. Anya's telepathic abilities pick up on his hostility, and she becomes determined to do better in the interview. Walter moves on to question Anya, asking for her name and address. Anya fumbles through answering, mispronouncing her surname and address. Walter continues to ask questions that the Forgers have prepared for, allowing Anya to answer smoothly until Walter Evans asks about what she wants to do at Eden Academy. Anya forgets the answer and reads Loid's mind, who is thinking about his goal to approach Donovan Desmond and expose his plans, causing her to answer that she wants to "expose the secrets of the boss of the organization."

Loid hurriedly makes up an explanation for her odd answer, pleasing Henry, who asks if she knows the headmaster's name. Anya answers by reading Loid's mind again, though mispronouncing it. Henry asks about the efforts the headmaster has gone through, and Anya answers with a recounting of the training montage of yesterday's spy cartoon, shocking Henry with her perceived resolve. Walter questions Anya about her parents, particularly about Loid's job. Anya almost slips up saying "spy" but quickly continues with "psychiatrist" when Loid nearly hears her. Anya answers that Yor is nice but a little scary when asked about her.

Walter asks Anya to give Loid and Yor a score as her parents, to which she answers "a perfect 100 points" as she loves them and wants to be with them forever. Murdoch is scornful at her response, asking her to choose between her old mother and Yor in an attempt to provoke the family. Walter tries to chastise Murdoch for the embarrassing question, but Murdoch insists on the question. Loid attempts to request a different question with no success. Hearing Loid's thoughts about her real parents, Anya bursts into tears, calling for her mother.

Yor dashes to Anya's side to console her and says this is going too far. Loid tries to calm her down for the sake of the mission, but Murdoch continues to provoke the family, mocking Anya for crying over a trivial matter. Loid tries to convince himself to stay calm throughout Murdoch's provocations. As Yor takes an attacking stance in anger, Murdoch Swan mocks her for getting riled up, clearly enjoying himself. Now the last straw for Loid, he stands up and raises his fist toward Murdoch. Loid holds back and punches the table instead, causing his fist to bleed, and makes an excuse about a mosquito on the table.

Loid turns his back on the interviewers, excusing his family and preparing to leave. Loid shows disappointment at the educational philosophy of Eden Academy for belittling the feelings of children, which angers Murdoch. Henry reprimands Murdoch for his methods, causing Murdoch to threaten Henry with his father's influence. Recalling Loid's compliments of the teaching staff's quality, Henry approaches Murdoch and punches him in the face, restoring his pride as an Eden Academy educator.

At the Forger residence, the Forgers gloomily sit on the sofas, realizing they will likely be rejected from Eden Academy. Yor excuses herself to make tea for the family. As Loid chastises himself for being emotional during the mission, Anya shamefacedly apologizes for doing badly at the interview. Loid says she does not need to apologize and that she probably did not want to attend school anyway. Anya gets up and clings to Loid, saying she does want to go to school in the realization that if his mission fails, she will not be able to stay with Loid and Yor as a family. Yor, who is making tea in the kitchen, also realizes this but convinces herself that it would just cause an impediment to her work.

As Yor returns with the tea, Loid is honest about the likely negative results with Yor and Anya. Yor tries to remain optimistic, and Anya adds that Henry and Walter liked them. Loid, though his spy mindset insists on preparing for the worst, is influenced by Anya's desire to stay together forever and decides to celebrate their hard work. As the Forgers raise their teacups and toast to their future, they are interrupted by a family photo suddenly falling, signifying a bad omen.

Lancelot

Tales of Lancelot du Lac, the knight of the lake, have spread far and wide through the lands of men – and even unto the realms of the gods themselves. He is renowned as a peerless warrior and a courageous hero; the orphaned prince of a lost kingdom and ward of the Lady of the Lake herself. He serves at the right hand of King Arthur of Camelot, preeminent among the Knights of the Round Table. There are none among them whose deeds equal those of Lancelot, non who rival him as a swordsman or jouster.

For was it not Lancelot who rescued Arthur's bride, Guinevere, from the king of the Summer Country? Was it not Lancelot who rescued his fellow-knight Bedivere from beneath the spears of the enemy? Was it not Lancelot who bested the witch-princess Camille, and forced her to surrender her castle and kingdom? All this and more has Lancelot accomplished. He has bested the enemies of Camelot, both mortal and otherwise. He has slain giants and dragons. He has even faced the dark sorceries of Morgan Le Fay, and emerged unscathed. Such is the valor of Lancelot du Lac.

But those are not the only tales of Lancelot. There are other stories – darker ones. They whisper of his ferocity, his sheer savagery in battle; not eagerness of a knight, but the blood-hunger of berserker born. Some say that Lancelot is not as pure as he pretends. That a shadow rests upon him...and that there is treachery in his soul.

But these tales are few and far between, and only the most cynical or dark-hearted find truth in them. For everyone else, the name of Lancelot is synonymous with heroism. And his time to join the battle has come.

Warchief of the Horde

The former slave known as Thrall brought unity to the Horde, turning ravagers into architects and securing a future for his people.

"Thrall" was the moniker bestowed on the young orc Go'el in his first home - an internment camp created to keep the orc prisoners of the Second War from ever threatening Azeroth again - and the name could not be less fitting. When Go'el escaped his prison, he traveled in search of not just aimless freedom but his roots, eventually finding wisdom in the shamanic beliefs of his ancestors.

Thrall's shamanism guided his actions as he re-formed the Horde, becoming its warchief and leading his people to settle in an arid land that he called Durotar, in honor of his father, Durotan. Thrall led the Horde through a seemingly unceasing series of trials: the lifting of the demonic blood-curse that had tainted the orcs, a Burning Legion attack on Mount Hyjal, and the fall of the dreaded Lich King. When Deathwing returned and shattered the world, Thrall stepped down from his role as the Horde's warchief, instead joining the Earthen Ring, a powerful shamanic group, in an attempt to put the elements to rest and stop the Destroyer. Thrall chose Garrosh Hellscream as his successor, a decision he came to regret when the ruthlessness of the new warchief was aimed at other members of the Horde.

Part 5

Smokywood Pastures Presents: A Smokywood Pastures Presentation of A Winter Veil Carol, brought to you by Graccu’s Mincemeat Fruitcake—Timelessly Preserved! “She who controls the fruitcake controls the world!” Narrated by Smokywood Pastures’ own Guchie Jinglepocket.

Hello once again everyone, and may your Winter Veil be replete with gifts from Greatfather Winter and delectable Smokywood Pastures delights. I’m your narrator, Smokywood’s own Guchie Jinglepocket, and it’s been a real pleasure for you to have me tell you the tale of Forsaken financier Ebonizer Scrounge.

Now that the last of our three spirits has paid Scrounge a visit, it’s time to see if he’s had a change of heart, learned a lesson, or shows signs of increased brand affinity for Smokywood Pastures products.

Scrounge was still slightly dizzy, as one typically is after being forcefully shifted through space and time. The world was no longer wibbly-wobbly, but he definitely was. He sat hard on the corner of his bed and stared at his once pristine piles of glittering gold, now scattered across his bed and floor.

“Well, that trip was a waste of time,” he said to himself.

The clock in his bedroom began to chime four in the morning. Way too early for him to be up and about—not because he was losing any sleep; it was simply a matter of principal. Proper financiers don’t go haring about at all hours of the night. It simply isn’t done.

But then again, Smokywood Pastures is open for business 24 hours a day. Surely he could get this whole rotting business done with and move on with his life. He was certain there was a moral to be learned from what the spirits had shown him, but aside from some marketing ploy by Smokywood Pastures and some bird called Pepe, he wasn’t sure what it could be. So he sat and thought.

And thought.

And thought.

At last, an itch of an idea crawled through his brain. At least, he thought it was an idea. He had been dewormed not that long ago, so it couldn’t be that again so soon.

“Alright! You win!” he shouted into the air.

We at Smokywood Pastures are pretty sure he meant us, but we didn’t want to get ahead of ourselves. We’re still paying out legal fees related to the last time we presumed.

Scrounge hurried to his window and pushed against it hard, trying to dislodge years of rust. The hinges groaned against his efforts—or was that noise coming from him? It’s hard to tell when one is undead.

The windows flew open with a crash, and he began to scan the streets for a likely victim.

“You there!” he called to a draenei standing near a mailbox. “Hellooooo,” he called again, but there was no response. The fellow seemed to be just staring into nothing. Odd.

He spotted gnome nearby and yelled for him instead. “Hey you!”

“Who you calling ‘Hey you!’?” the very put-out gnome replied. “You can’t just go around calling people ‘Hey you!’ and get away with it.”

“Well, I don’t know what else to call you.”

“You could call me Wembly, you know.”

“I didn’t know you were called Wembly,” answered Scrounge.

“Well, now you do. Is there something I can do for you?” the gnome asked him.

“Yes. Yes, I believe you can. I’ve had a very bad night with some commercial spirits.”

Speaking of commercials—we have one last sponsored message for you, just in time to help you haul home all those wonderful presents!

Need something to put other somethings in? Behold the mighty messenger bag! It holds both large AND small rocks, paper, and stuff in general. Yes, it’s a great stuff holder and carrier. It even has a strap so you can have someone carry it for you! Don’t delay—get this great stuff holder for your Winter Veil haul now!

“Oh, yes sir, I know the type,” said the gnome. “Advertising apparitions got my uncle Willemm last year ’round this time. Those Smokywood Pastures types are persistent aren’t they?”

“Yes,” said Scrounge. “Yes, they are. So look, I really don’t want to have to do anything myself and really just want to get this over with. Might I give you some gold and you can go buy everything from their catalog—twice? No, wait . . . make that 12 times over. You’ll need to deliver one portion to my nephew and another to Bob Bigheart.”

“Oh yes, I know that one,” replied the gnome. “Dwarf what adopted an ogre. I expect it’ll eat him someday.”

“Yes, well I’m trying to avoid that,” grumbled Scrounge as he tossed a large sack of gold down to the gnome, who caught it with his cranium. He went down briefly, but gnomes are hard-headed creatures, and he was back up in a flash.

“Take some of the cheese and sausage and whatnot home to the family, and the rest just give to whoever you wish,” said Scrounge. “Just make sure you sign them up for a Smokywood Pastures catalog. I really don’t want to have to go through this nonsense again next year.”

“Er . . . I’m not entirely sure what to say,” the gnome replied, his heart filled simultaneously with mild gratitude and the urge to hurl a fruitcake at Scrounge’s rotten head.

“Yes yes, happy Winter Veil to you, too,” Scrounge said. And as he shut the window, he swore he heard the sound of carolers singing a soon-to-be-classic holiday jingle. “Buy so-o-o-ome,” their angelic voices proclaimed. “Ooooooor eeellllllse!”

Our tale has ended, and thankfully our message reached Scrounge in the end despite last-minute marketing-budget cuts. After further negotiations, along with a legally binding contract with Smokywood Pastures for 12 full catalog purchases each year, I’m happy to say that Ebonizer Scrounge is a changed Forsaken. No more will he hoard all of the delicious Graccu’s Mincemeat Fruitcake for himself. Instead he will share it with those less fortunate . . . or face the consequences.

We hope you’ve enjoyed our tale, and we hope even more that you’ve come to truly appreciate the delights of Smokywood Pastures. Don’t forget that Greatfather Winter has left presents under the trees around Azeroth, so go get yours now—and may the rest of your Winter Veil be a profitable one.

Oda Eiichiro

Now then. Are you ready? It'll come out. Finally, One Piece Volume 1!! The release date is Christmas!! There are bonus pages.

さあ。用意はいいですか？出ますよ。とうとうワンピース第1巻!!発売日はクリスマス!!おまけページあるよ

Chapter 21