Cawww—
A giant silver eagle soared in the azure sky, letting out a long, melodious cry.
"Looks like we've arrived... Whiskey Peak!"
Cross sat cross-legged on the back of the giant silver eagle, gazing into the distance at the island shrouded in mist, allowing the whistling strong winds to make his coat flap vigorously.
Suddenly, the sky drastically changed. The previously sunny sky instantly turned gloomy, as if the heavens had changed their mood. The temperature in the air plummeted, and soon, large snowflakes began to fall.
"Such irritating weather!" Cross muttered in displeasure, reaching out to pat the silver giant eagle beneath him, urging it to speed up.
Although this kind of weather was nothing to his physique, the sudden drop in temperature still made him slightly uncomfortable. Before long, Cross passed through the mist surrounding the island and clearly saw the giant cactus-like mountains on the island, covered in numerous thorns.
However, he knew that those "cactus thorns" were actually pirate graves.
Because this was one of the islands closest to Reverse Mountain, many bounty hunters gathered here, targeting the rookie pirates who had just entered the Grand Line. These bounty hunters formed a welcoming town for pirates, so many young, inexperienced pirates, upon stepping into the Grand Line, became prey for the bounty hunters before they even understood the situation.
Cross then followed the island's inland river, flying deeper into the island. Soon, he saw large areas of houses on both banks.
"What's that?"
"A bird?! No, it's an eagle!"
"Are you kidding? How can there be such a huge eagle!"
"Wait, someone's sitting on it!"
"..."
In Whiskey Town, many people looked surprised when they saw a giant silver eagle flying overhead.
Cawww—
The silver giant eagle cried out, rapidly descending from the sky and landing steadily on an open space by the shore. Its enormous wings stirred up strong currents that kicked up swirling dust.
"We're here, we're here...!" Cross flipped off the silver giant eagle, curiously surveying his surroundings and the crowd that had run out from the town to gather around.
"Marine... cough, cough, cough~ Marine, what are you doing here?"
At this moment, a bald man in a blue shirt, capris, and flip-flops emerged from the crowd. He glared fiercely at Cross, and just as he was about to speak, he was choked by the swirling dust, coughing several times before recovering.
"I remember there's some kind of grape juice here, like wine. Get me a cup, plus thirty servings of food!" Cross glanced at the man, then strode towards the nearest building.
"Oh... okay, it'll be ready soon..."
Before he could finish, the bald man suddenly reacted, snarling with annoyance, "What nonsense are you talking about, Marine?! Who can eat thirty servings of food?! And there's no grape juice here! Damn it, what are you even here for?!"
Clang—
Clack clack~
Instantly, the surrounding people's faces showed anger, and they all pulled out hidden weapons from their bodies—short knives, daggers, pistols, crossbows—all aimed at Cross.
"Hah—yawn—" Cross looked at the people before him without changing his expression. He let out a long, weary yawn, then raised a hand to wipe away the tears from the corner of his eyes, speaking in a flat tone, "Attacking a Marine is a serious crime. Do you hyena-like bounty hunters want to die?"
"Marine, you..."
"Stop talking, Paul, look at this newspaper!"
The bald man was furious and about to curse, but he was stopped by a companion behind him who handed him a newspaper.
"Hm?!"
The bald man named Paul froze for a moment, then lowered his head to look at the photo in the newspaper, and then carefully read its contents. He then looked up and scrutinized Cross in front of him.
Hiss—
The next second, he sharply drew a cold breath, quickly turned around, and frantically yelled at the crowd behind him, "Damn it, put away your weapons! Chef, quickly prepare thirty servings of food, use the best ingredients! And bring a barrel of grape juice, make sure it's the best-tasting one!"
With that, Paul scurried over to Cross, his face fawning and ingratiating. "Welcome, Commander Cross, to Whiskey Town! Our grape juice here is made from the finest grapes; it definitely won't disappoint you!" He continued, "I'm Paul, the mayor of Whiskey Peak. By the way, what brings you to our humble little place? Is there anything we can help you with...?"
"Less talk, lead the way!"
"It was my mistake for speaking so much! I'll hit myself! I'll hit myself! Please, this way!"
Cross waved his hand dismissively, which made Paul tremble. He quickly slapped his own mouth a few times and then walked ahead to lead Cross.
The surrounding bounty hunters, passing the same newspaper among themselves, quickly realized Cross's identity. They then hastily put away their weapons, all displaying ingratiating smiles.
A young Commander from Marine Headquarters!
He had arrested and killed great pirates with bounties over 100,000,000 Berries!
The man known as the 'Star of the Marines' to the outside world!
Whiskey Peak was located at the edge of the Grand Line, and the bounty hunters staying here were merely a group of hyenas who only dared to resort to underhanded tactics. So, to them, Cross was undoubtedly a truly important figure.
Cross didn't care about these bounty hunters, whose expressions changed faster than a dog's. He directly followed Paul into a house.
Based on his understanding, at this point in time, Crocodile, who was in the Alabasta Kingdom, should have only recently formed Baroque Works, and his sphere of influence had not yet extended to Whiskey Peak. Therefore, the bounty hunters here did not yet belong to Baroque Works.
At this moment, Paul enthusiastically wiped down a chair and table for Cross, then invited him to sit. He then loudly addressed his companions at the door: "Tell the chef to hurry up! Don't keep Commander Cross waiting!"
Thump—
Next, someone carried an oak barrel and placed it on the ground. When the stopper was removed, a clear fragrance of grapes wafted out.
Cross sniffed the grape aroma in the air and nodded in satisfaction, saying, "Nice, better than the grape juice I drank in the North Blue and the Sabaody Archipelago!"
"As long as you're satisfied!"
Paul grinned ingratiatingly, picked up the oak barrel from the ground, and personally poured Cross a full glass of purplish-red grape juice.
Soon after, lobster macaroni, braised pork ribs, fruit salad, seafood fried rice... a series of various dishes were brought out and placed on the large round table in front of Cross.
Cross was quite pleased with their attitude, so he picked up his silver knife and fork and began to heartily feast.
Quickly, with the crisp sounds of cutlery clattering against plates, empty dishes piled up, leaving the onlookers dumbfounded.
"That's fifteen servings of food already!"
"His stomach isn't even visibly getting bigger. Where's all the food going? Is he a monster?"
"Oh no, the chef passed out from exhaustion!"
"..."
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