Across the Realms (A One Piece Fanfic: Trafalgar Law)

{ CHAPTER 74 }

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Vladimir hated the Chihaki clan. In fact, 'hate' is an understatement. He utterly despised them. 

He hated them so much that just the mention of their name made his blood boil, unpleasant memories flooding in his mind, and it would take all he had to resist scratching his palms from balling his fists too tight.

He didn't know if the circumstances were at fault or he was just born at the worst time, but even that idea did little in quelling his hatred for the clan.

Vlad was born during the Great War, between the Ancient Kingdom and the Union, and his family had fallen victim to the war after their island was used as a battlefield.

He could still recall the scene vividly. In the midst of the chaos, a house was blown away and killed his parents in the process. 

Vladimir, still 8 years old, could feel blood dripping from his face. It wasn't his.

With the sight of the corpses of his parents lying in front of him and on top of the debris, the boy couldn't utter a single world nor make up a single thought. 

With his scratched knee on the ground, Vlad slowly lifted his face and saw a man standing over the pile of broken cement. 

The man's hands were coated with black, and being the ignorant little kid he was at the time, Vlad didn't know why. Instead, there was only one thing that finally managed to form in his mind as he stared at the man who was the cause of the death of his parents.

'I'll kill you'.

•

Her hair was like the color of the moon and her name was Sharle. 

A few days after the battle, someone from the Union came to the island to pick up anyone or anything salvageable. Vladimir happened to be one of the few who survived. Among the survivors, there was a girl, who seemed to be around the same age as him and was from a different island. 

Vlad and the girl shared a room on the ship that was their convoy for a few days, before they reached headquarters. Unlike the others, the thing about the girl that first caught his attention wasn't her hair, but her eyes. Dull and lifeless, they were a great contrast to her bright-colored hair, but it was understandable, Vlad thought. Because she was also a victim of war. As his eyes bore into hers during their first meeting, Vlad could sympathize how her eyes looked like they have seen too much painful things, until at one point, she lost all hope. Hope that there was still something left in this world that can prove it wasn't as cruel as she thought it would be. 

Those who've seen war and blood being shed with their own eyes have something in them that separates them from those who haven't, and Vlad knew that both he and the girl didn't belong to the latter. 

For the first few days, things were silent between the two. It wasn't until Vlad offered her food he got from the kitchen one day that they finally started talking. 

"Strawberry?"

The girl lifted her eyes and focused on the reddish fruit in Vlad's hand, offering it to her. 

Shifting her gaze, she gave the boy a hesitating look, wondering whether he really was offering it to her even though it was completely obvious considering the fact that she was the only other one in the room. 

She slowly received the fruit into her hands and stared at it for a while, before eventually taking a bite. 

Vlad didn't move from his spot and gauged her reaction, because he thought maybe she would finally make a different expression other than being stoic and silent. She didn't. In fact, the girl kept on a straight face as she chewed.