In the second week, Pablo decided to understand Tom before approaching him.
Approaching soone without knowing them is the fastest way to fail.
---
He noticed in the first days that Tom walked through the factory in a certain way.
He did not stop at the workers who talked too much. He passed by them quickly and continued.
But he stopped at those who worked quietly and with high productivity.
He stood for a few seconds, observed, nodded, and continued.
That was what Tom respected: production, not talk.
He also noticed that Tom drank his coffee at the sa ti every morning, ten minutes before the belt started. He stood alone in the back corner of the factory.
No one approached him at that ti.
Ti he wanted for himself.
He also noticed that Tom could not tolerate repeated mistakes. The first mistake he overlooked, the second he warned, the third he punished.
A clear system in his head.
---
At the end of the second week, Pablo understood Tom enough.
A practical man who wanted the factory to run smoothly and wanted good numbers at the end of the month.
He did not care who you were as long as you gave him what he wanted.
---
Pablo began in the third week.
First thing: work.
He noticeably increased his speed in front of the belt when Tom was around. His hands moved faster than everyone else's. The sorting was precise, and the production was higher.
Tom noticed this on the second day.
He passed by him and stopped for a few seconds as usual.
He did not say anything, but he noticed.
That was enough in the beginning.
---
On the fourth day of the third week, Pablo approached Tom at a ti other than his coffee ti.
He found him reviewing papers beside his small desk.
"I have an observation about the third line."
Tom raised his head.
"Speak."
"The fruit that arrives in the blue boxes needs more ti for sorting because its size is irregular. If we arrange the blue boxes at the beginning of the shift when energy is high, production will increase."
Tom looked at him.
He did not expect this from a fourteen-year-old sorting worker.
"Where did you get this?"
"I observe."
Tom paused for a second, then nodded.
"I'll try it."
---
The next day, Tom arranged the blue boxes at the beginning of the shift.
Production did indeed increase.
When Tom passed by Pablo at the end of the day, he looked at him with a different look.
He did not say anything.
But the look was enough.
---
On a night of the third week, Pablo was wandering in the back area of the factory district when he saw sothing.
A worker from the factory, a large man nad Rava, ca out of a small door carrying a bag.
Pablo stopped in the shadows.
He walked quickly toward a side alley.
Pablo followed him from a distance.
Rava reached a man waiting for him in the alley and gave him the bag.
The man opened it and examined its contents.
Fruit.
He gave him money, and each of them left in a different direction.
The factory was relatively lenient about taking fruit out, but lenient if you were taking it to your family or eating it yourself. Taking it out to sell it... he did not think they would like that.
---
The next morning, Pablo waited until Tom was alone in his back corner.
He approached him.
"I have sothing you need to know."
Tom raised his eyes from his coffee cup.
"Rava takes fruit out the back door and sells it outside. Almost every night."
Tom was silent.
His eyes did not change, but sothing moved behind them.
"How do you know?"
"I saw it myself."
"Why are you telling ?"
Pablo looked at him directly.
"Because I want you to know that I will be your eyes and ears in this factory."
Tom was silent for long seconds.
Then he took a sip of his coffee.
"I'll rember this."
---
At the end of the month, payday ca.
The workers stood in a line in front of a small office. Each took their envelope and walked.
When Pablo reached his turn and opened his envelope, he found a full thirty thousand.
His first real salary in this world.
He stood for a second looking at it.
Thirty thousand in a month.
In Verona, he would have needed two months to gather this amount by all his thods combined.
He closed the envelope and continued walking.
---
On the way back, he stopped at a food vendor he knew.
He bought at, eggs, milk, and so protein-rich vegetables.
More than he had bought since arriving in Naraka.
He looked at his thin body in the reflection of a shop window.
This body needed real fuel if he wanted to grow and beco strong.
Thirty thousand monthly was enough for good food, rent, and saving what remained.
---
At night, Marco paid the rent in full as promised.
"Four thousand five hundred." He handed it to him with obvious pride. "As I said."
Pablo took it.
"Good."
They sat and ate together. This ti Pablo brought better food than usual.
Marco looked at him with surprised eyes.
"Your salary?"
"Yes."
"You spent a lot on food."
"Investnt."
Marco laughed and did not understand, but he ate happily.
---
After Marco slept, Pablo went out as usual.
But this ti he did not wander through the inner streets.
He walked toward the edge of the island.
The road took him ten minutes.
He reached the rocky edge where Naraka ended and the sea began.
He stood alone in the darkness.
The sea was calm, and the night was clean. Many stars in the sky and slow waves breaking on the rocks below him.
And behind his back, Naraka glowed.
Factory lights that did not stop even at night. A faint noise reached him from the bars. Smoke coming out of chimneys.
An island that never sleeps.
He looked at the horizon.
Sowhere out there, the greatest pirate this world had ever known would soon be executed.
Gold Roger.
The man who reached the end of the world and saw what no one had seen.
He would not die afraid. He would die laughing.
And with his final words, he would set a fire in the hearts of millions.
Pablo stood looking at the horizon for a long ti.
This world was about to change in a way no one but him knew.
The Great Age of Pirates would begin.
Thousands would leave everything and take to the seas.
But he was not one of them.
He did not want to be a pirate chased by the Marines and living in chaos.
He wanted to rise.
Any way, any place, whatever the price.
This world does not respect the weak.
And he would not remain weak.
He turned his back to the sea and walked back toward the lights of Naraka.
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