Chapter 16: Garen's Devoted Admirer

“Clear distinction between good and evil, measured in all actions!”
“Truly a knight of justice without equal!”
The young reporter had somehow already made his way to Garen’s side, speaking in a tone filled with reverence:
“Lord Garen, greetings!”
He addressed Garen with the name he’d heard earlier from Nami, then bowed respectfully and introduced himself:
“I am Michael Wallace, a field reporter for the East Sea Daily.”
“Wallace, eh...”
Garen’s expression turned peculiar. “That sounds like a man chasing big headlines.”
Wallace’s eyes lit up. “Lord Garen, your insight is indeed sharp as a torch!”
“To report earth-shaking news is the lifelong dream I pursue!”
Wallace’s words were sincere and full of praise, leaving Garen unsure where to put his large face.
Having just escaped from the jaws of death, Wallace had already tidied up his appearance, which had been twisted by fear; though he still wore traces of dust and his golden hair was slightly disheveled, he carried himself with the poise of an elegant gentleman.
To be flattered by such a person was a strange feeling, indeed.
But Wallace’s admiration had not yet ended.
He gazed at the pirate corpses hanging from the dock’s flagpoles and spoke with heartfelt emotion:
“Sir Knight, not only are you wise and valorous, you also treat money as dirt!”
“To deter these pirate scoundrels, you willingly forgo such a rich reward.”
“What?”
Nami, who had been silently sulking nearby, suddenly perked up, her beautiful eyes flashing a golden glow of money.
She caught a keyword in Wallace’s praise that touched her soul:
“Money? Where?”
Wallace pointed at the steel blade already hung from the flagpole and said casually:
“Miss, you didn’t know? Turning in the head of that steel blade can fetch a bounty of ten million Berries!”
“What? Ten million Berries?”
This time, it was Garen who cried out in surprise.
Garen still didn’t know the purchasing power of this currency, but the staggering figure of ten million surely meant an end to his days of depending on free meals to survive.
Nami and Garen exchanged a glance, and in that silent meeting of eyes, an unspoken consensus was instantly formed.
Moments later...
“Ahem...”
Garen stepped forward and spoke to the busy middle-aged sheriff stringing up corpses:
“I’ve thought it over. This is a public place with people coming and going...”
“The steel blade’s death is too unsightly, it may ruin the city’s appearance.”
“Let’s take him down.”
Another flurry of activity...
Garen dragged back the corpse of the steel blade, whose eyes were still open in death, and excitedly asked Wallace:
“Where do I go to exchange this bounty?”
“Uh...”
Wallace looked a bit awkward, but answered earnestly:
“Ten million Berries is no small sum. Only a Navy branch of sufficient scale can redeem it.”
“Although there’s a qualifying Navy branch nearby, considering all circumstances...”
“I’d recommend you sail a bit farther and redeem your bounty at Loguetown, where the Navy headquarters’ forces are stationed.”
Loguetown was far, and with a Navy base nearby, going the extra distance to redeem the bounty didn’t seem wise.
But as a reporter familiar with East Sea’s situation, Wallace knew well what those so-called Navy branches were like.

Because the world government and Navy headquarters had weak control at the grassroots level, local Navy branches actually became independent kingdoms ruled by local officers—a phenomenon not unlike the regional guard system of the Ming Dynasty.
With unchecked power, nine out of ten regional Navy officers became corrupt, greedy, and tyrannical local emperors.
Any experienced pirate hunter would never risk exchanging bounties at these black shops bearing the Navy’s name; even if they were strong enough to avoid being robbed, corrupt officers might frame them for attacking the Navy and force them into becoming pirates.
“Loguetown?”
Garen wasn’t yet aware of this social backdrop, but the familiar name piqued his interest:
“Is that the Loguetown where the Pirate King met his end?”
“The very same Loguetown!”
Nami quietly moved closer to Garen, smiling gently:
“You don’t know the route, do you?”
“Don’t worry, I’m the best navigator in the East Sea!”
As she spoke, Miss Nami’s eyes were fixed fiercely on the corpse Garen held—or rather, on the ten million Berries.
Her smile became all the more genuine, her large eyes curving into two shallow crescent moons:
“If you hire me to guide you, my rates are very reasonable...”
“Only four million—no, five million Berries will do!”
“......”
Garen turned his head quietly. “Can’t afford it. No money!”
“I don’t care!”
Nami, undeterred by the mess, grabbed the steel blade’s corpse by the hem and insisted:
“I helped out just now too. I deserve half that money!”
“Half?”
Garen replied flatly:
“You only helped make things harder for me...”
“You!”
Nami puffed up her cheeks angrily into round ping-pong balls.
Truthfully, she owed her survival to Garen’s intervention, so she couldn’t refute him on that point.
But after a few seconds, her eyes grew soft and tender.
Nami gently brushed aside her slightly messy orange hair, displaying her feminine allure to the fullest, and even her voice turned delicate and sweet:
“Sir Knight, I could be the ‘Lady Knight’ you seek...”
“Enough!”
“I don’t even know you!”
Having been played several times already, Garen ignored her act:
“Besides, I can’t even afford food—what use is a wife?!”
After this exchange between two greedy souls...
Wallace’s gaze toward Garen grew ever more peculiar.
His facial muscles trembled slightly, betraying a faint collapse of faith.
“Ahem...”
Garen grew uneasy under Wallace’s stare.
He put on a large face and lied without blinking:
“Wallace...”
“Do you think I’m collecting this bounty because I covet wealth and luxury?”
“Ah?”
Wallace’s expression froze, and his reverence for Garen instantly deepened:
“Could it be that you have more profound motives, Lord Garen?”
“Exactly...”
Garen’s demeanor suddenly became solemn and devout, as noble as a saint:

“True justice is to see the wicked punished as they deserve, and the good rewarded as they ought.”
“Indeed...”
Wallace nodded in agreement.
But Garen’s sermon was not finished.
He cleared his throat and continued gravely:
“Wallace, let me tell you two little stories about the distinction between righteousness and profit.”
“In a distant land called Lu, there was a great merchant named Duanmu Ci Zigong.”
“His teacher was the famed sage Confucius Qiu Zhongni...”
Garen imitated his high school literature teacher, telling Wallace the stories of ‘Zigong Redeems the Prisoner’ and ‘Zilu Receives the Ox’ with clarity and depth.
Wallace was instantly captivated by these concise, meaningful tales.
He looked at Garen with even greater reverence than before, and, filled with emotion, took out his notebook to record Garen’s words of wisdom:
“I never expected...”
Wallace exclaimed, tears brimming in his eyes:
“Lord Garen, you are not only a moral exemplar, but a giant of thought!”
“No!”
“I am but a child collecting shells by the shore, blessed to stand on the shoulders of giants.”
Garen quoted another famous saying, feigning deep reflection:
“The petty speak of profit, the noble of virtue.”
“But to practice great benevolence, one must value both virtue and profit.”
“I exchange the steel blade’s head for the bounty not for money, but to walk the path of justice!”
So, Lord Garen was this great after all!
A knight aloof from worldly corruption, yet willing to bear insult and stain himself with the stench of money, all for the sake of righteousness!
Wallace was now choked with emotion, hurriedly recording Garen’s noble deeds in his notebook.
He regarded the knight before him as a moral paragon, already drafting a long article in his mind for the report.
Nami watched this from the side, twitching at the corners of her mouth...
She wanted to crack open this young reporter’s skull and see just how much water he had in his brain...
When Wallace had finished scribbling down all his notes, he looked up again at Garen with admiration:
“It was my shallow thinking that made me mistake you for a greedy commoner!”
“No matter...”
Garen, now accustomed to spouting famous quotes before Wallace, replied: “To recognize and correct one’s mistakes is the greatest good.”
“I apologize!”
Wallace bowed sincerely, then took a sheet of paper from his pocket and tore it into pieces in front of Garen and Nami.
“What are you doing?”
Garen asked, puzzled.
Wallace tossed the shredded paper aside and spoke with deep reverence:
“I was blinded earlier and misjudged Lord Garen.”
“I had intended to repay your lifesaving kindness with a check for one million Berries.”
“Now I realize, that would be an insult to your noble character!”
“A check?”
Garen was stunned.
“One million Berries?”
Nami clenched her fists.
The two exchanged a glance, both feeling a pang of regret in perfect sync.