Eleven thousand eleven

[Side Quest Updated! Please help the little animals, Kaido and Newgate, set sail again!]
[Quest Reward (Kaido): Island Construction Score +5, Island Reputation +5]
[Quest Reward (Newgate): Island Construction Score +5, Island Reputation +5]

At daybreak, Liyue woke up automatically. As the screen lit up and transitioned from black to white, she sat up on her straw mat, only to find the two little animals already gone.

She glanced at the system notifications:
(Edward Newgate’s affinity for you +1.)
(Edward Newgate’s affinity for you +5.)
(Edward Newgate’s affinity for you +2.)
...
(Edward Newgate’s affinity for you +5. Current affinity: 46.)

In just one night, her affinity had increased by 14 points!
I knew I should listen to the character stories more!

Liyue was in high spirits. She left the campsite to look for the two animals on the island and found Kaido first, who was fiercely hammering at a tree.

"Thump! Thump! Thump!"

With three strikes, more effective than any axe in Animal Crossing, Liyue watched as the tree crashed to the ground and transformed into a pile of lumber. Behind Kaido, a stack of similar timber and felled stumps had already accumulated.

She looked at the stumps. "Are you planning to use these materials to build a ship?"
"That's right," Kaido replied.
"Do you know how to build a ship?"

Liyue’s question left Kaido speechless.

Liyue checked the game’s menu and found there really was a crafting option. She said excitedly, "I think I can do it."
"How about this: you help me gather materials, and I’ll help you build the ship."

Kaido looked at Liyue with skepticism but said, "...Fine. What materials do you need?"

—

When Edward Newgate dragged a pile of lumber over, Liyue was sitting near her straw mat, focused intently on her work, completely unaware of his arrival.

The morning forest air still held a chill. Feeling cold, Liyue had draped Newgate’s oversized cloak over her shoulders. Since Newgate stood over six meters tall, the cloak hung on the young girl like a giant blanket.

Newgate smiled as he walked into the camp, the girl still not noticing his approach.

She was weaving something with dried grass, her fingers dancing with a speed and dexterity that suggested she had practiced the craft a thousand times.

Pirates like Newgate and Kaido could fight on the front lines and had the strength to take on a hundred, but they were certainly not skilled at such delicate work. Newgate watched Liyue’s movements, feeling quite amazed, and paused for a while to observe.

"There isn’t any proper rope on this island, so I’ll have to make do with grass rope. Don't worry, I’ll weave it to be very strong; it won't let the wood fall apart," Liyue murmured to herself.

First, she wove the dried grass into a thin strand, then three, five, ten, and then twisted them over and over into a thick, sturdy rope. Her movements were fluid and pleasing to the eye. In this short time, Newgate watched as Liyue finished a long length of grass rope.

"What an extraordinary child," Newgate sighed.

Kaido arrived at the camp dragging more lumber. Hearing Newgate’s exclamation, he let out an annoyed grunt but did not object.

After watching for a short while, Liyue’s crafting reached the next stage. She picked up the wood Kaido had brought, and both of them watched her—they had never imagined Armament Haki could be used like this.

When Kaido fought Liyue before, he saw she had no intent to attack, and her defensive use of Armament Haki was abysmal. He had subconsciously categorized her as a character who was peaceful, sheltered from the world, and completely powerless.

Now, seeing her work, he realized she wasn't unskilled; it was just that her application of Haki was entirely different.

Liyue used her hand as a blade, her motions fast, accurate, and ruthless. With a swift "hand-blade" strike, the logs Kaido had brought were sliced into perfectly uniform planks.

—

Kaido’s weapon was a club, so he could only smash trees into whole logs; Newgate’s naginata allowed him to process wood a bit better, at least cutting it into chunks. But neither could compare to Liyue’s "hand-blade."

The wood Liyue processed was identical in length, width, and thickness, just like lumber produced by an industrial assembly line. Newgate couldn't help but praise, "Her application of Armament Haki and her control of force are approaching perfection. Even I might not be able to process wood to this level with my bare hands."

Kaido silently recalled what Liyue had said to him yesterday—
"I learned Haki from you."

Kaido had actually believed her. He thought she meant it literally—that after seeing someone use Haki once, she instantly grasped its core and mastered Observation and Armament Haki in seconds.

Now, seeing the proficiency of her Armament Haki, Kaido realized she must have meant something else: she had already known how to use it, but only for chopping wood. It was only when she saw Kaido use it to attack others that she had an epiphany and realized its new potential.

*At least she isn't truly clueless,* Kaido thought. *So there's no need to start from scratch...*

Newgate’s voice snapped Kaido out of his thoughts: "I am truly looking forward to seeing what kind of island she will build in the future."

Kaido glanced at Newgate, couldn't be bothered to respond, and turned away to continue searching for lumber.

Newgate, however, stopped chopping trees. Seemingly inspired by Liyue’s new approach to Armament Haki, he sat down, picked up a piece of wood, and attempted to carve it using his own Haki.

—

Kaido watched Liyue work, then went back to smashing trees with his club, constantly supplying her with logs. After several trips, Liyue remained absorbed in her craft.

Newgate sat on the other side, not helping to gather materials, still focused on experimenting with his Haki on a wooden block. Every time Kaido returned, he glared at Newgate.

*On such a huge island, Liyue is working, and I’m working. Two minors are working hard, and you, an adult, are just slacking off! You’re even wasting the wood I brought back! What’s the point of a high bounty? Pirates really aren't reliable!*

Kaido glared at Newgate again, but Newgate didn't notice, still fiddling with his wooden block toy.

"Hey," Kaido couldn't help but call out.
Newgate acted as if he hadn't heard.
"Hey!" Kaido complained.

It was Liyue who snapped out of it first.

—

Crafting items in a base-building game is simple. If a player like Liyue were actually thrown onto a desert island, she probably wouldn't last three days; but as the game’s protagonist, she was naturally strong, clever, able to climb trees to pick fruit, and capable of digging for bugs to eat.

Kaido placed the wood before Liyue, she accepted the materials, and selected the item she wanted to craft. With a light tap of a button, the wood transformed into a construction component. As for how she managed to turn a large tree into lumber while empty-handed and without tools—there was no need to worry about that. It was a game world; just ignore the details, *it just works!*

Liyue was addicted to crafting—which, specifically, meant constantly pressing buttons on her controller. She played with gusto, determined to hoard 999 units of lumber.

But her focus didn't last long before the game gave a notification.

Kaido: "Hey."
Kaido: "Hey!"

Liyue thought something had happened and quickly exited the crafting mode. As soon as she did, she saw even more system notifications:

(Kaido’s affinity for you +2. Current affinity: 67.)
(Edward Newgate’s affinity for you +3. Current affinity: 52.)
(Kaido’s affinity for you +1. Current affinity: 68.)
(Edward Newgate’s affinity for you +1. Current affinity: 53.)
(Armament Haki proficiency +1)
(Armament Haki proficiency +1)
...

Liyue was full of question marks.
...What did I do? I think I was just doing some crafting? And why did my Armament Haki proficiency go up?

Liyue looked at Kaido, confused. Kaido seemed to choke for a moment and quickly turned to Newgate: "Hey, stop slacking off—"

Newgate raised his hand, showing off a small gadget like Doraemon: "It's finished!"

The white bear placed the object he had been tinkering with for so long in front of Liyue. It was a small wooden bed.

"How is it? My craftsmanship should be pretty decent, right?"

The white bear looked subtly proud, though after saying that, he began to ponder: "It seems a bit simple..."

Liyue felt flattered by the gift from the little animal.

[Congratulations! You have obtained an SR-grade item: (Brand New Wooden Bed)!]
[Description: A bed infused with a trace amount of Armament Haki. Usually, people infuse Haki into weapons, but you have it in a bed—doesn't that sound cool just hearing it? If you're ever lacking a suitable weapon, this bed can barely be used for that purpose as well.]
[Effect: Although it is a wooden bed, it is extremely sturdy. Attacks are difficult to take effect on it, and it will not rot due to rain or insect damage.]

*Shocking! Can you actually infuse Armament Haki into a bed?*

Liyue touched the wooden bed frame and walked around it several times. *A little animal gave me a gift!*

"Thank you! White Bear!!"

Liyue hadn't cared about her living situation before; as long as she had a straw mat to recover health, that was enough. But looking at the gift, she felt that having only a bed in the forest looked too out of place. She had to quickly build a wooden cabin to match the bed.

"I love this gift!"

Liyue hugged the white bear—definitely not because she wanted to take the opportunity to cuddle with something fluffy.

"Gurararara!"

The white bear stroked Liyue’s head with his thick paw: "Don't mention it."

Liyue let go of the white bear and saw Kaido glaring at them. Thinking she shouldn't show favoritism, she hugged the little bull as well, ignoring his fierce expression—which seemed to make his face turn bright red with steam coming out of his ears—and said to Kaido:

"Thank you, too, hardworking little bull!"

The little bull looked very angry, though it wasn't clear what he was angry about: "I don't need your thanks! I just want the ship to be built so we can leave!" He added, as if realizing something: "Also, I am not a bull!!"

"Okay, little bull! Thank you, little bull!"

Kaido gritted his teeth and raised his club, and Liyue dodged in a hurry. Amidst the chaos, the white bear Newgate’s relaxed laughter echoed.