Chapter 117: Taking a Teacher
"Oh, you've got some skill!" Rayleigh let out a burp, his drunken eyes hazy as he looked at Ian. He raised his sleeve to wipe the wine stains from his beard and said, "Still standing after all that..."
Ian was in the midst of a strong dizzy spell and couldn't speak for a moment, so he could only glare hatefully at Rayleigh.
However, this look made Rayleigh misunderstand. He walked over, lifted his leg, and kicked Ian right in the face.
The force of that kick was really heavy. Ian felt his vision go dark and immediately passed out.
Rayleigh crouched down, picked up Ian's Enma sword, and drew it from its sheath. Looking at the glinting cold light, he couldn't help but smile and say, "What a fine sword!"
Unlike Ian's Ice Tear Stone, the Enma sword was a manifested item, so Rayleigh could touch it. However, if the Enma sword got too far from Ian, it would automatically disappear and return to his side.
Rayleigh picked up Ian's sword, gave it a light swing, and cut open the sack on the ground. The mother and daughter were finally able to see the light again. The mother, terrified, hugged her daughter and looked at Rayleigh with a mix of fear and confusion.
"Go home!" Rayleigh said with a smile. "From now on, when you go out, try to avoid deserted places."
The mother then realized that she and her daughter had been rescued. With tears streaming down her face, she repeatedly thanked Rayleigh, then pulled her daughter and quickly left the alley.
Only then did Rayleigh crouch down and start searching the two big men. He pulled out two wallets, opened them, and with a look of disgust, tossed them aside—there was no money inside at all.
Then he walked over and started patting Ian down.
As he searched, he pulled out a bank check from Ian's pocket. When he saw the number on it, even Rayleigh was stunned.
"So many zeros!" Rayleigh took off his glasses, rubbed his blurry, drunken eyes, and counted: "One, two, three, four, five... Oh, over eighty million! This kid is actually this rich?"
It was only then that Rayleigh realized he might have beaten up the wrong person. If a human trafficker had that much money, why would they still be doing this kind of work?
So Rayleigh picked up Ian's sword, bent down, hoisted Ian over his shoulder, and left the scene...
..............................
When Ian slowly came to, he saw Rayleigh sitting by a campfire, drinking wine and grilling fish to eat.
It was already dark! He had been unconscious for that long!?
Seeing Ian sit up, Rayleigh smiled at him and said, "Awake?"
Ian was furious and shouted at him, "Why did you attack me!? I'm not with those guys!"
At this point, he didn't care anymore. Even if the other person was a legendary figure, so what? He had taken an unexplained blast of Conqueror's Haki and a kick to the face. Ian could still feel his face tingling!
Rayleigh laughed heartily and said, "Sorry, sorry! This old man was drunk earlier! Besides, you're fine, aren't you? A young man like you won't hold a grudge against an old man like me, right?"
"You...!" Ian felt a headache coming on. In truth, he could only yell a bit. Facing Rayleigh, there wasn't much he could do. It wasn't like he could actually pick a fight with him!
Don't be ridiculous. Could he even win?
Fuming, he walked over, sat down next to Rayleigh, snatched the grilled fish from him, and started eating it fiercely, as if venting his dissatisfaction this way.
"Leave some for me!" Rayleigh quickly said. "That's this old man's dinner!"
Rayleigh's cooking wasn't great either. After a few bites, Ian couldn't eat anymore and casually handed it back to Rayleigh.
He thought Rayleigh wouldn't eat something he had bitten, but to his surprise, Rayleigh didn't mind at all and started gnawing on it.
How to put it... Combined with his scruffy appearance, Rayleigh at this moment really gave off a feeling of decadence...
Ian wondered if this was the effect of Pirate King Roger's death on him...
Ian silently watched him finish the grilled fish bit by bit. After Rayleigh let out a burp, Ian finally spoke: "You knocked me out. Don't you think you should make it up to me?"
Rayleigh spread his hands and said, "How do you want me to make it up? I'm completely broke!"
"You should be pretty strong, right?" Ian said, rubbing his chin. "How about you teach me some physical combat and Haki?"
Even though he knew the person in front of him was Rayleigh, Ian couldn't directly call out his name. Aunt Shakky had mentioned him to Ian but hadn't told him Rayleigh's name, so Ian couldn't just say it. Fortunately, even though he had been kicked by Rayleigh, it served as an opportunity to make a request of him.
Rayleigh was a bit surprised and said, "You know what Haki is?"
"A little," Ian nodded.
"You want me to be your teacher?" Rayleigh laughed heartily. "That's not easy!"
"Then what do you want me to do?" Ian quickly asked. Such an opportunity had finally appeared, and it would be a shame to let it slip.
Rayleigh scratched his head a bit sheepishly and said, "Well... I like to gamble a bit, but I've been cleaned out lately..."
Ian suddenly realized something and reached into his pocket, only to find that his check was gone.
"You have it, don't you?" Ian said helplessly. "Even if you want tuition, you can't take all my money!"
Rayleigh pulled out Ian's check, handed it back to him, and said with a smile, "Don't worry, I was just keeping it safe for you!"
Ian took the check, looked at it, but instead of putting it away, he held it out to Rayleigh, knelt down, and said, "I sincerely want to learn from you as my teacher. Please accept me! If you need tuition, I'll give you however much it costs!"
Money could be earned again, but opportunities came only once. Ian couldn't let this one slip by.
"..." Rayleigh didn't take the check. He just stared at Ian.
After a long while, Rayleigh said somewhat wearily, "Forget it. Put it away."
"You... you don't want to take me on?" Ian asked in surprise.
"I'm old. I'm living in seclusion now, and I don't want to be a teacher anymore," Rayleigh said, taking a swig from his bottle.
The reason he had told Ian earlier that he was broke was just to get some money out of him. But Ian's kneeling and his tone had shown that he genuinely wanted to become Rayleigh's disciple. Under these circumstances, Rayleigh couldn't bring himself to deceive him.
Hearing this, Ian was stunned. This was a result he had never expected.
Damn it, why was the treatment between people so different!? In the future, even when Luffy had no intention of becoming a disciple, this old man would swim across the Calm Belt to take him on. But when it came to him, sincerely begging to be a disciple, Rayleigh refused instead?
Of course, thinking that was one thing, Ian still knelt respectfully and said, "I beg you!"
It wasn't that Ian was groveling, but he understood that having a good mentor was the greatest asset in life. Relying on self-exploration would always limit one's achievements, even with his card system.
Rayleigh didn't speak. Ian continued kneeling until after a long time, Rayleigh finally said, "You really want to be my disciple?"
"Yes!" Ian replied.
"Alright then, I can try to teach you for a while," Rayleigh said. "But whether you can learn depends on your comprehension. If you're too slow-witted, don't blame me!"
He agreed! Rayleigh really agreed!?
Suppressing the joy in his heart, Ian looked up and said, "Please rest assured, Teacher. I will work hard!"
Indeed, the word "hard work" wasn't a big deal for Ian. In fact, when he was practicing swordsmanship in Shimotsuki Village, he had already worked very hard. He knew that his body's talent was ordinary, and if he didn't put in the effort, he would truly fade into obscurity.
"Don't call me Teacher. Just call me Rayleigh," he said. "This is Grove 34. Come here tomorrow morning."
"Okay! I'll be on time!" Ian said.
Seeing Rayleigh wave his hand at him, Ian understood that he probably wanted to rest, so he took his leave and departed.
It was already dark, and he couldn't withdraw the money, so Ian could only head back. Along the way, he pondered the meaning behind Rayleigh's words.
It was clear that Rayleigh didn't seem to want a true formal disciple. He might have just been planning to give Ian some casual guidance out of sincerity, which was why he had changed his tune later. This might also have included some guilt for mistakenly hurting Ian. But regardless, Ian had managed to seize this opportunity.
Rayleigh was a figure from the era of Pirate King Roger. The only ones on his level were probably Zephyr, Sengoku, and Garp. To receive guidance from someone like him was a blessing for Ian!
Rayleigh specialized in swordsmanship, physical combat, and Haki—all three of which suited Ian perfectly.
After returning to the base at Grove 16, there was nothing else to do, so Ian just briefed Hogkin and the others and went to bed early.
The next morning, at around five o'clock, Ian got up and headed straight for Grove 34, picking up breakfast on the way.
When he arrived, Rayleigh was still sound asleep. He had set up a tent there like an ordinary homeless person. Ian didn't dare disturb him and sat cross-legged on the ground, waiting for him to wake up.
He sat there for two or three hours. Rayleigh slept for a long time, but when he got up and saw Ian, he wasn't surprised. Someone like him, even while asleep, was aware of everything happening around him.
Seeing no trace of impatience on Ian's face, Rayleigh didn't say anything but was quite satisfied. So he said to him, "You're here!"
Ian respectfully handed over the breakfast. Rayleigh took it and felt that it was still warm—Ian had been keeping it warm against his chest.
"You're thoughtful," Rayleigh nodded at him, then quickly finished the breakfast in a few bites. He said to Ian, "Let's begin. We'll spar first so I can gauge your strength."