Chapter 32
"Listen, George, stop trying to come inside the house. It isn't big enough for you to stay here. I made you a little place, didn't I? That is your place, and I don't come barging into it, do I?" I try to get George to back down as he tries to force his way inside of the house, his big head trying to fit through the doorway. I managed to keep pushing against his head and stop him from getting in because my home would not survive him.
It has been a while now since my run-in with Captain Nezumi, and I have adapted quite admirably to the situation if I do say so myself. I resumed my training though I don't always go all out since I need to fend for myself, and I can't risk being wiped out. My hunger is taken care of by the sea beside me, sometimes catching big bounties and occasionally coming home with only small fish. But I do not falter. On the contrary, I appreciate everything the ocean delivers to me, being grateful that it continually provides for me.
I source fruits for myself and George from the forests that surround my home, though I make sure to not take too many at a time and ration them out so we will not suddenly lose that resource altogether from overeating. George is obviously not happy with the situation since he wants to gorge himself on the fruits, and there isn't much I can do to stop him from going into the forests to get his own supply though he tends to struggle with that sometimes.
Overall, life has been just fine, it isn't a bad life, but it could definitely be better. One night it rained pretty heavily, a significant departure from the usually sunny and tropical vibe of the island, and it was that night that George came and barged through the front door while I was sleeping, breaking the front door. Needless to say, I had to let George sleep inside the house with me after I blocked the front door. It was not a good night for me.
After that, I immediately set out to the village and used the money I had hidden under my floorboards to buy some nails and other supplies. Then, I quickly crafted some new tools just like I did back on Troga, and I cut down some tries, and I fixed my door and boarded up the holes in my house. I also went and attached a little porch covering to the side of my house so George can sleep under it and not get wet, though he still doesn't like it.
"GET OUT!!" I grunt as I push with all my strength, and I manage to actually thrust him back outside, George not expecting my sudden burst of power. He stumbles backwards and away from my house, thankfully not breaking anything on the way though he does seem quite miffed at my actions.
"Greh..." Geroge spits out before turning around and walking towards the forest, probably going to go and get some of those delicious orange tangerines. I don't know where he gets them from since the fruit in the woods is entirely different, but I don't have time to focus on that. Instead, I am more caught up in what George just said, running outside of the house to catch up with him.
"Huh? What did you just say? That you didn't want to stay in this shithole anyway? How can you say that? Just look at this... place..." I point towards the house, trying to show it to him in all its glory, but my words fall off at the sight of it, George ignoring me to continue his walk away. I can't be bothered to stop him as I look at my house and the absolute state that it is in.
The shoddy makeshift door at the front barely covers the gap, and the porch to the side is standing up wonkily, looking like it will topple at any moment. There are multiple boards of wood nailed in all over the place, and the building as a whole generally looks weathered and broken down. So this is the place I have been living in? I didn't even realise it crumbling down around me, slowly falling into disgrace. As I look at it, I can't help but feel some physical pain as I am reminded of the vow that I made.
I remember clear as day looking at this place after I had discovered that it was a broken down place that the previous owner ticked Mummy Mee and Daddy Dee into buying. But the orphanage owners' spirit and feelings were true, and they purchased this thinking it was a good home for me to live in, and I vowed to make it into a fricking palace, which is why I went and bought that book.
But now that I stand here and look at this home which is in a worse state than ever, I can't help but feel angry at myself. I made a promise to improve and fix this place up, and I just forgot about it because I stopped having money given to me? Like a spoiled brat?
That is no reason to give up like a little scaredy cat, giving up at the first obstacle. If I am no longer having money given to me for absolutely nothing, then I will have to go out there and make some money in the village. I will find some jobs, multiple jobs, as many jobs as it takes, and I will start earning. Earning so that I can immediately begin to spend the money on equipment, tools and resources so I can start fixing this place up.
And if there is any left money over, then I suppose I can splurge on getting myself and George some good food. So, with my goal in mind, I skip morning fishing and training and head into town, adamant about ridding myself of my unemployed status.
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"Hey Detoro-Kun, how was business this afternoon?" Avaganda, the friendly old man that owns the bookstore, asks, walking in through the front door. I look up from the book I am reading about carpentry and give him a smile from my seat behind my desk.
"As usual, just some people coming in to read and some mothers buying some books for their children. Oh, though, that guy with the pinwheel in his hat came by again to pick up some books on navigation to add it to his village's bookstore." That guy was seriously peculiar. He would come by every once in a while saying that the books were stolen, and he came back to buy more. But instead of repurchasing the same books, he would get different ones each time. Strange, but I don't judge paying customers.
"Good, good. Well, here you are. Good work today, Detoro. I am sorry I can't pay you more, but we barely get by as-"
"It is fine. After all, you are letting me read all the books I want and even letting me borrow a couple to take home with me free of charge. See ya later, Jiji." I cut him off, running out of the store with a couple of books tucked away in my satchel, hurrying to my next job.
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"ORRAA, BRAT! FETCH ME SOME TWO BY FOURS AND A COUPLE EIGHT BY TENS. WE NEED TO GET THIS FINISHED RIGHT NOW, OR WE ONLY GET PAID HALF FOR IT!!" Bob yells out from his workstation, his tone rough and unfriendly. I don't mind it, though. That is just how he is. I quickly run over to pick up the planks of wood and run them over to him, we need to get this order finished quick, or it sells for half, which means I will be getting paid less as well.
"GOOD. NOW YOU GO AND WORK ON FINISHING THOSE DOORS. WHEN YOU ARE DONE WITH THOSE, GO HELP SCOOP AND ROLEY." The boss of this little woodworking workshop orders, unable to control the level of his voice. It is just how he is, and that is fine.
I quickly run to my own workstation and pick up my tools to get to work, ready to use my skills to build these doors.
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"Alright, Detoro-Kun. Make sure to keep striking the piece of metal as hard as you can but maintain control all the while. We are shaping the metal at the same time as we are making it stronger. The heat from the forge allows us to mould the metal into what we want," Pietri, the guy in charge of this blacksmith, instructs as I stand over the sweltering piece of metal that is blasting me with waves of intense heat.
My black leather safety-clad hand smashes my tough hammer onto the metal, strengthening it and giving it shape, following the instructions of my boss. I had to work quite hard for this opportunity to finally gain the trust needed to let me begin learning about blacksmithing.
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"Alright, boy, you got everything you need? Remember to pack some extra clothes as well, for when you get seasick?" One of the guys I will be joining on the ship asks condescendingly, smirking down at me because of my smaller size and age.
I ignore him as I walk up onto the fishing boat to join the rest of the guys here that will all be working together to capture a whole lot of fish to sell wholesale, and I should be getting a good payday for my assistance.
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*BOOM* *BOOM*
"GET BACK HERE!!" I hear someone scream from the depths of the forest after those two gunshots, so I quickly stop my training exercises to look in that direction and prepare myself for whatever is heading my way, taking a stance and facing the forest's ominous depths.
Which is why I am so surprised when George suddenly jumps out of the tree line, looking like he has just run a mile and looking insanely panicked. But his eyes light up when he sees me, and He quickly sprints towards me and then skids to a spot behind me, peeking over my shoulder and watching the forest warily.
Seeing him act in such an out-of-the-ordinary way, I quickly focus my gaze ahead, readying myself to face whatever it was that has George so spooked. And again, my expectations are overturned when a woman steps out of the darkness, toting a shotgun and smoking a cigarette, glaring in my direction, or more accurately, at George, who is hiding behind me.
She wears a short-sleeved green checkered shirt that has MACE written across the chest of it in dark green letters, dark blue jeans and some brown sandals with a thick platform. She is light-skinned with blue eyes, but the thing that sticks out the most by far is her hairstyle. Her pale pink/red/maroon hair is shaved on the sides, leaving some fuzz. However, there is a thin strip across the top of her head connecting the bangs sitting atop her forehead and the three ponytails on the back of her head. Completing the look are two thick strands of hair growing just atop the sides of her face.
"Oi, brat. Is that your gorilla?" She questions, holding the shotgun over her shoulder and pinning me with her stare.
"I suppose it is. So why are you chasing after it?" I question stepping out of my stance since she isn't pointing the gun at us. Though I keep a keen eye on her, ready to move at the slightest act by her.
"This dumbass Gorilla has been sneaking onto my property and stealing the tangerines from my trees. Mine and my girls' livelihood depend on the sales of those fruits, and your gorilla has been robbing them from us." I chance a look behind me to see George clutching a single juicy-looking tangerine in his hand, which makes me grit my teeth in a grimace. I was wondering where he was getting these things, and unfortunately, I too, have been eating and enjoying them.
"I see... What is your name?" I ask, snatching the tangerine from George's grasp despite his protests and chucking it across the way to the woman who catches it with her free hand.
"... It's Bellemere." She says as I turn around and begin to walk into my still under construction house.
"Bellemere-San, I am Amarillo Detoro. I apologise for George. Now, how much do I owe you?" Unfortunately, my renovations will have to be put on hold for a while, just enough so that I can reimburse this woman for all the trouble myself and George have caused her.
And I was so close to getting done with the gutters and the drainage system.
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