Seeing that Meiser didn't continue speaking, Galette breathed a sigh of relief.
That strange noise earlier must have come from her brother... Galette thought to herself.
If Meiser kept saying such things, there was no guarantee it wouldn't provoke her brother.
With Meiser's current strength... he absolutely couldn't be her brother's match.
And... if the two were to fight, things would escalate beyond repair—that wasn't something she wanted to see.
Katakuri had also guessed Galette's thoughts and silently sighed while sitting on the rooftop.
But as their mother's children, what could they do?
"By the way," Galette changed the subject, "how long will you be staying here?"
"Until the coating is finished."
"So about three to five days." Galette nodded. "Then... before you go to Fish-Man Island, could you take me around here?"
"Just think of it as time spent between friends~"
Galette regained her liveliness and blinked at Meiser. "You wouldn't refuse to have a beauty like me accompany you shopping, would you?"
"Just for being Lola's sister, I wouldn't refuse."
Since she was family to his friend, showing her around wasn't a problem.
Besides... this Galette really didn't give off any bad vibes.
She didn't carry the airs of a Four Emperors Crew member at all—in fact, she seemed quite approachable.
"Sure~"
Galette smiled, not resisting this reasoning.
As long as they spent time together, the distance between them would naturally shrink.
After all... her figure and looks were quite impressive.
"By the way, Galette," Meiser said, "the reason your mother wants me to marry into your family... is it because I'm a Ninja?"
"Yes."
Galette answered frankly. "That's part of it."
Perhaps worried Meiser might overthink it, she explained, "Meiser, this world is actually very cruel. Those without value don't even deserve attention."
"Only those with sufficient strength or talent receive more notice."
"And you... are such a person."
Galette didn't avoid the topic and spoke openly about it.
Because this was the truth!
In the world of pirates, it was just that brutal!
So Galette wasn't afraid to let Meiser know, directly and honestly stating the facts—her approach was all about sincerity.
Meiser nodded. It seemed that no matter which world it was, the law of the jungle remained unchanged.
Then, Meiser teased, "I thought you were just into looks."
"Your face is very attractive to me too," Galette said. "Otherwise, why do you think I said I liked you at first sight?"
She admitted she was a shallow person and really liked Meiser's face—there was nothing wrong with saying so.
As she spoke, Galette crossed her legs, as if deliberately showing off her meter-long legs.
"You're really honest."
"Please, I'm here to find myself a husband—of course I have to be honest." Galette said. "If I weren't sincere, how could I win your heart?"
"Hmm, straight to the point as always."
Galette rolled her eyes at Meiser—this guy was truly impossible to sway.
"By the way, could you tell me about your trip to Enies Lobby?" Galette asked curiously.
She had read in the papers about the Straw Hat Pirates causing chaos at Enies Lobby, but the details were sparse.
Galette could guess why—it was likely the World Government's doing, deliberately obscuring the truth.
"Ah, yeah," Meiser chuckled. "We did make quite a mess there."
"But why would you attack Enies Lobby?" Galette pressed.
Pirates usually avoided stirring up trouble in such places—after all, it was the World Government's pride and joy. Invading it could even draw the attention of a Marine Admiral.
"Because someone took our crewmate," Meiser replied. "So we went to take them back."
"That was the reason?"
Galette looked at Meiser in surprise. He'd actually challenged the World Government over something like that?
Just how strong were the bonds between them?
Most pirate crews would've abandoned a captured member by then.
This group... really was different.
"Yeah, and to wipe us out, they launched a Buster Call."
"A Buster Call?!" Galette gasped. "You survived a Buster Call unscathed?"
"More accurately, we crushed it."
Galette: "..."
Staring at Meiser's grinning face, Galette was utterly speechless.
What on earth had happened back then? The Straw Hat Pirates actually defeating a Buster Call... That was beyond anything she could've imagined.
But Galette didn't press further. Just as Meiser hadn't pried into the Charlotte Pirates' affairs, she couldn't ask for too many details either.
This... was their unspoken understanding.
After a brief silence, Galette muttered, "That's... impressive."
"Oh, Galette," Meiser suddenly perked up. "You mentioned your brother left to handle some business earlier... Was it Katakuri?"
"Yeah."
Galette nodded, not bothering to ask how he knew. Their arrival on the island had been anything but subtle, so Meiser could've easily heard about her brother from others.
"So when will he be back?" Meiser asked, his face lighting up with excitement.
Galette: "???"
What?
This guy had zero interest in her but was eager to see her brother?
Wait a minute...
Studying Meiser's enthusiastic expression, Galette's face twisted into one of hesitant realization.
"What's wrong?"
"You... don't tell me you're into men?"
Meiser: "..."
Struck dumb, Meiser gaped at Galette in disbelief.
"What kind of idea is that?!"
Had he said something misleading?
How could she possibly think he liked men?!
No way—this needed immediate clarification!
"A gorgeous woman like me is standing right here, yet you're more interested in my brother... What else am I supposed to think?"
"That's not it at all!" Meiser groaned. "I just want to fight him!"
Galette breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this—so it wasn't like that after all.
Then, she asked curiously, "Why?"
"Because your brother's Haki is really strong," Meiser grinned. "I'd love to spar with someone that skilled."
The moment these words left his mouth, a certain brother-in-law's eyes instantly lit up, his whole body practically vibrating with excitement.
This was a perfectly justifiable reason to beat the guy up!!
But before he could act, his Observation Haki picked up Galette's words, and his expression immediately turned exasperated.
This girl...
Katakuri sighed helplessly, suddenly struck by the feeling that... a grown daughter was no longer her family's to keep.
"Let's save the fighting for another time," Galette said. She could understand Meiser wanting to test his skills against her brother.
But... if her brother showed up now, Meiser would definitely get pummeled.
After all... Big Brother Katakuri was the leader of the Sweet Four Generals!
His strength was unparalleled, far beyond what Meiser could handle at this point. If they fought, it would most likely be a one-sided beatdown.
So it was better to drop it.
"No, I really want to—"
Before Meiser could finish, Galette cut him off. "My brother isn't here."
Meiser opened his mouth but ultimately sighed in resignation. "Fine."
If the man wasn't even here, there was no point pushing it. It wasn't like he could kidnap Galette and demand Katakuri come to ransom her.
If he hadn't known the truth, he might have considered it. But... now that he understood why she was here, he couldn't do that.
At the end of the day, she was Lola's sister.
Seeing that Meiser had dropped the subject, Galette relaxed and smiled. "How about we go shopping?"
Noticing his hesitation, she pressed, "Come on~"
"Alright, sure."
Meiser stood up. "Let's go. Maybe we'll run into some other Supernovas while we're at it."
Galette couldn't help but sigh at his words.
This guy... even now, he couldn't stop thinking about picking fights?
What a... driven man!
"Hey, Zoro!"
Meiser turned and called out to Zoro in the distance. "We're heading out for a bit. Wanna come?"
Hearing this, Zoro stood up, but before he could respond, he noticed the woman behind Meiser suddenly change expression.
Her smile vanished in an instant, replaced by a blank stare directed straight at him.
Her face practically screamed: Could the third wheel please get lost?!
She hadn't even brought her own brother along!
Zoro: "???"
"Huh?"
Noticing Zoro's odd reaction, Meiser turned back to glance at Galette, only to find her still smiling warmly, looking perfectly friendly.
Zoro: "..."
The speed at which women change expressions... truly puts me to shame...
After silently complaining to himself, Zoro said, "You two go ahead. I'll head back to the ship."
Now that he'd confirmed this woman wasn't a threat, there was no need to stick with Meiser.
After all, Meiser wasn't a kid.
And... he had zero interest in being a third wheel.
"Not going, huh..." Meiser nodded and said, "Alright, got it."
"You do remember where our ship is, right?"
"Of course I remember. How could I forget something so important?" Zoro replied.
Their ship was docked at Tree No. 1—there was no way he'd get lost.
With that thought, Zoro strode off without looking back, saying, "I'm heading out. See you on the ship."
"Alright, be careful on the way."
After watching Zoro leave, Meiser turned to Galette and said, "Let's go take a look around. I haven't had the chance to explore here yet."
"Okay~"
With slightly flushed cheeks, Galette took Meiser's hand and led him away.
Come to think of it... this was her first time going on a date with a man.
"Ah..." A certain brother-in-law hiding in the shadows sighed quietly. It seemed he'd have to keep lurking a while longer.
"Whew—"
"With this much stuff, we're set for a while," Sanji said, wiping sweat from his brow.
This time, they'd bought several million Berries' worth of supplies—more than enough to last them a long time.
"If Merry or Meiser had come with us, we could've bought even more," Franky remarked.
"It's fine, this is plenty."
The supplies they'd purchased were more than enough to last them until the next island, even with Luffy's bottomless stomach.
Besides... they still had that giant Sea King they hadn't eaten yet.
"Yeah, you're right."
As he spoke, Franky glanced up at the bubbles overhead and sighed. "Too bad these Bubble Cars are useless outside this place. They'd make great transportation otherwise."
Honestly, he really liked the Bubble Cars here, but since the bubbles depended on the local environment, there wasn't much he could do about it.
"Didn't Miss Camie say they work on Fish-Man Island too?" Sanji pointed out. "If you like it that much, why not just buy one when we returned the rental?"
"Only an idiot would buy this thing," Franky said, rolling his eyes. "I could build this junk myself—it's just the bubbles that are the problem."
What he wanted wasn't just to use it on Fish-Man Island—he wanted it to work everywhere else too.
But sadly, that wasn't possible.
"Well, tough luck then," Sanji said, shrugging. "If nothing else, you could at least enjoy it while you're here."
"Nah, let's wait for that Coating Craftsman to show up first," Franky waved him off.
He was really looking forward to meeting that old man—after all... he was the Pirate King's vice-captain!!
"Speaking of which... why hasn't that old man arrived yet?" Sanji wondered, looking toward the shore. "It's been over an hour..."
They hadn't taken that long shopping, so why hadn't the old man shown up yet?
Had something gone wrong?
But that didn't make sense—someone of his caliber would definitely make a scene if he got into a fight, so the odds of that were slim.
"Just be patient," Franky said. "Maybe something came up."
"We've got three or four days to wait anyway—what's another hour or two?"
As a shipwright, Franky had plenty of patience.
After all... many times, they needed to spend long hours shaping a piece of wood into the desired form.
This process was extremely tedious, and without sufficient patience, perfection was impossible.
One could say that good shipwrights never lacked patience.
"Alright."
Sanji sighed helplessly. What else could he say?
Just then, the ship's Den Den Mushi suddenly rang, immediately grabbing both of their attention.
"Buro buro buro~"
"Buro buro buro~"
"Buro buro buro~"
"Den Den Mushi?"
Franky frowned. "Who could it be?"
"Probably Nami and the others!" Sanji grinned as he ran over, adding, "No one else has the habit of carrying a Den Den Mushi."
Click
After answering, Sanji spoke, "Hello, this is Sanji. Is that Na—"
"Sanji!!!"
"Huh?"
Sanji glanced at the Den Den Mushi's expression and saw Chopper—who was crying. Had something terrible happened?
"Sanji, is that you?"
"It's me, Chopper," Sanji replied. "What's going on?"
"It's bad, really bad!"
"Chopper, stop crying first. Calm down and tell me properly."
After forcefully sucking back his snot, Chopper stammered, "Sanji... Camie and Merry are missing..."
"Hachi said they were kidnapped by slave traders! What do we do now?"
Crack!
Franky and Sanji froze as if struck by lightning, their faces filled with disbelief.
Their little Merry and Camie... kidnapped by slave traders?!
Sanji's veins bulged on his forehead. What the hell were Luffy and the others doing?! How could they let this happen under their watch?!
"If we don't find them... they'll be slaves for life!"
"Sanji!!"
Listening to Chopper's sobbing, Sanji took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing his rage.
He knew this wasn't the time to lose his temper. The priority was finding them.
"Where are you now?"
"At Sabaody Park. I'm using the No. 5 public Den Den Mushi."
"Got it. Stay put and wait for us," Sanji ordered. "I'll call the Flying Fish Riders right away."
Without hesitation, he hung up.
"Damn, what a mess," Franky muttered, frowning. "To think they'd get snatched by slave traders..."
"With Luffy—a man with a 420 million Berries bounty—around, they still dared to strike... These traffickers have some nerve."
Sanji didn't respond. Instead, he dialed the Flying Fish Riders' number.
"Hello?"
"It's me," Sanji said darkly. "Where are you?"
"Ah~"
"Black Leg-sama!" Duval laughed. "We're just out shopp—"
"Cut the chatter. Get to me now," Sanji interrupted. "I need your help."
Though Sanji's tone was sharp, Duval didn't take offense and chuckled, "Got it. Give me your location."
"Dock 41."
"Understood~"
Glancing at the disconnected Den Den Mushi, Duval furrowed his brows. He could tell the other party's voice had been frantic...
Perhaps something bad had happened.
Thinking this, Duval declared: "Listen up, men! Black Leg needs our help. What do we do?!"
"Through fire and water!"
"Well said!" Duval waved his hand grandly. "Rosy Life Riders, move out!"
"Yes, Handsome!"
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