In Lin Mo's memory, Law was supposed to be a cunning, cold, calm, and defiant type.
So what the hell was this?
This guy didn't even know his name and was already inviting him to join his crew?
Lin Mo replied, speechless, "I refuse."
Law was stunned for a moment and quickly said, "At least think about it. I'm being serious."
But Lin Mo maintained his stance. "I'm a traveler. I'm not interested in pirates."
"Traveler?" Law furrowed his brow. "If you're going to brush me off, can't you come up with a better excuse? A traveler? Seriously?"
Lin Mo gave him a sidelong glance and said coldly, "Brush you off? Why would I bother doing that to someone like you?"
With that, Lin Mo let out a small scoff and kept walking.
At the same time…
A system prompt sounded in his mind.
'Beep! You have rejected Surgeon of Death Trafalgar Law's invitation to join his crew. Check-in progress +20%. Current total progress: 30%. Reward: Master-level Palm Healing Technique unlocked.'
In that instant, advanced knowledge about the Palm Healing Technique flooded into Lin Mo's mind.
He froze in place for a second.
At that moment, Law's stomach growled again.
Lin Mo looked back at him.
Law, his face flushed red, turned away arrogantly. "What are you looking at? So you don't want to join. Big deal. It's not like I need you on my crew anyway."
Lin Mo chuckled, reached into his pocket—though really he was pulling from his system space—and tossed Law a pouch full of Berries.
Law caught it instinctively.
He looked down at it, scowled, and said with annoyance, "What's this? Are you looking down on me?"
"You're turning down free money? And you still want to be a pirate?"
Lin Mo sneered and turned back toward the exit of the ramen shop.
He had two reasons for giving Law money. First, since Law helped him make progress on his system check-in, he figured he might as well offer a token of thanks. Second, if Law was anything like Zoro or Pompadour-head, he might start clinging to him. Since the guy was hungry, ditching him at a ramen shop seemed the best move.
By the time Lin Mo stepped out of the ramen shop, night had fully fallen.
Drum Island was perpetually snowy, and the streets were already buried. Rather than stay out freezing in the wind, Lin Mo decided to return to his inn and get some rest.
So—
He didn't linger in town. On the way back, he stopped by a convenience store and bought all the liquor they had on the shelf before heading straight to his room.
Over the next two days, Lin Mo did very little outside. Apart from stepping out during mealtimes, he spent most of his time resting in the inn.
Finally, on the third day—
Feeling fully recharged, Lin Mo left early in the morning and began walking toward the iconic mountain range that gave Drum Island its name—those high peaks shaped like drums.
Snow and wind howled all around.
He walked steadily, one footprint at a time.
His destination: Chopper.
Based on his previous check-in experiences, he was sure the Drum Island task would be tied to Chopper in some way.
Chopper, after all, was just a young reindeer at this point—five years old.
His blue nose had always marked him as an outcast among his kind, often bullied by the herd. After accidentally eating the Human-Human Fruit, he was driven out entirely.
Yearning for companionship, Chopper tried to blend in with humans by taking on a humanoid form with the fruit's power.
But his transformation wasn't perfect—his blue nose remained—and humans labeled him a snow monster, a freak, just like the reindeer had. Some even shot at him.
Chopper never understood what he did wrong or who to blame. He just wanted friends, but was always called a monster.
No longer a deer, not truly a human—he lived in isolation, until he met Dr. Hiriluk.
Hiriluk was a quack who had spent the latter half of his life chasing the miracle of cherry blossoms. He never charged a single coin to treat people. Even though Drum Kingdom's royal decree had driven out all doctors, and the townsfolk were desperate, they still avoided Hiriluk's treatments.
Because all of his so-called miracle cures usually made people worse, not better.
At this point in time, Chopper likely hadn't met Hiriluk yet.
As Lin Mo walked—
Suddenly, from the snow-covered forest beside him, a white creature with a bear-like body and a rabbit's head leapt out—charging straight at him.
It was a Lapahn—a ferocious carnivore native to Drum Island. Lapahns rarely approached humans alone, preferring to hunt in packs.
This one was alone but aggressive, claws poised to strike Lin Mo—
Before he could react, a black shadow suddenly appeared, a flurry of blades flashing through the air. The Lapahn was struck down, collapsing barely a meter behind Lin Mo.
"Lin Mo, are you alright?" Law asked, panting.
Lin Mo paused and looked back.
Wait a second—had he ever told this guy his name?
Noticing his confusion, Law added, "The innkeeper where you're staying told me."
Lin Mo had written his name down at check-in. That nosy innkeeper…
Whatever. It didn't matter.
Lin Mo ignored Law and continued forward.
Law quickly followed, asking as he walked, "What the townsfolk said the other day—about you healing someone with some strange technique—was that true?"
Lin Mo didn't respond.
Law pressed on. "I came to Drum Island specifically to learn more advanced medicine. I'm really interested in the technique you used. Could you teach me?"
"No," Lin Mo said flatly, finally replying.
Law blinked, then scowled and kept walking beside him. "I know you don't have to teach me. But I have a reason I must learn more advanced medicine."
He placed a hand over his chest, his expression solemn. "I won't let someone important to me die again. If I'd had better medical skills back then, maybe Corazon wouldn't have died…"
As he spoke, Law's voice began to tremble.
The memory of Corazon dying before his eyes haunted him—every time he thought of it, he couldn't suppress the pain. Already frail, Law now looked even smaller and more alone, shivering in the cold, snow-laden wind.
It seemed like even a slightly stronger gust might knock him over.
Lin Mo gave no response.
He had nothing to say.
Even if he wanted to teach Law, it wouldn't matter.
The Palm Healing Technique required chakra, a type of energy that didn't exist in the bodies of people in the One Piece world.
So Law would never be able to learn it.
Lin Mo kept walking forward.
Law stared silently at his back, then hurried to catch up again. "Lin Mo, are you really not going to teach me any medical techniques?"
Lin Mo sighed, speechless. "Correct!"
Law frowned. "Why not?"
Just as the words left his mouth, the forest around them suddenly erupted with howling.
Several quick-moving shadows darted between the trees. In a flash, a whole pack of vicious-looking Lapahns surrounded them both.