"But sir, that place won't let poor people in."
Little Wolf took one look at the three of them dressed so strangely and felt they did not look like rich people at all.
"Don't worry, we've got plenty of money. Right, Buggy?" Bai Chuan said.
"Hmph. I don't have money." Buggy turned his head away, refusing no matter what to spend his own.
"Buggy, this is a major contribution. Think about it. If the captain finds out about this, he'll definitely reward us. When that time comes, won't you have as much money as you want?"
The moment he heard that, Buggy's eyes practically turned into Beli. "But we're clear in advance. I'm only taking out part of it. I'm not giving more than that."
"Relax. I won't make you take out more," Bai Chuan said.
The four of them followed Little Wolf onto a very lively street. People flowed back and forth, and every kind of shop you could imagine was there.
They tightened the scarves on their heads, afraid the wind would blow them loose and expose their faces.
"We're here, sir. This is the place."
Little Wolf pointed at a dazzling, gold-and-jade building.
"Whoa. This casino's something else. They're running it out in the open like this?" Bai Chuan and the other two could not help but feel a small shock at seeing a building like that for the first time.
"This place has a license. It's a legal venue," Little Wolf explained. "I heard the owner is a noble from the royal capital."
"A noble, huh. No wonder they're loaded," Bai Chuan muttered.
His impression of nobles in the One Piece world was terrible, mainly because of the Celestial Dragons and Sabo's family in the Goa Kingdom.
"Alright, we don't need you anymore. You can go," Bai Chuan said.
"Really, sir?"
"What, you don't want to leave? If you don't want to, then stay here."
"N-no, sir. I'm leaving right now!"
Little Wolf bolted instantly, turning left and right. In just a few seconds, he disappeared from their sight.
"Am I really that scary?" Bai Chuan asked Shanks and Buggy. "Was he seriously in that much of a rush? He even ran out of his shoes."
Within their line of sight, a single shoe stood there all alone. Then someone kicked it, and it drifted farther and farther away.
"Alright, let's go in. If the vice-captain isn't here, we'll have to think of another way," Bai Chuan said.
When the four of them reached the entrance, two men in black with sunglasses raised their hands and blocked them.
"Please present proof of your assets or an item that can verify your identity."
The man spoke like an emotionless machine, with no tone at all.
"Buggy, you're up," Bai Chuan said, stepping back to give Buggy the spotlight.
"Damn it. They only remember I exist when it's about money," Buggy cursed silently.
To him, money was like flesh on his body. Every time he spent even one bit, it felt like someone shaved a slice off him.
After stalling and dragging his feet for a long time, Buggy finally pulled out a single Beli coin.
Bai Chuan and the other two covered their foreheads, as if to say they did not know this guy.
The two guards also had dark expressions. Was he messing with them? No, this was not just messing with them. This was outright humiliation.
"Big brothers, please don't be angry. I'll get you money right now," Bai Chuan hurriedly said as he stepped forward, noticing the guards were about to explode.
"Then hurry."
"Yes, big brother."
"Shanks, hold Buggy down for me," Bai Chuan said.
"Got it!" Shanks immediately locked Buggy from behind.
"Hey! What are you doing? Let go of me!" Buggy yelled.
"Hehe. Don't worry. It'll be over soon," Bai Chuan said.
Bai Chuan reached out with his evil hands and rummaged around Buggy's body. He found two pouches of money, plus several bills.
In the eyes of a thief, Buggy was a perfect fat sheep.
Bai Chuan pulled out both pouches and showed them to the two guards. "How about it, is this enough?"
"It's enough. Please enter."
The two guards opened the door for them. The moment they stepped inside, it felt like two completely different worlds compared to outside.
"May I ask what you need?" The instant they entered, a hostess walked over and asked politely.
Even though the four of them looked strange, in the eyes of the staff they were just four fat sheep ready to be slaughtered. Nobody came here without spending money.
"Take us to the casino," Bai Chuan said.
"Certainly. Please follow me."
As soon as she heard "casino," the hostess's eyes practically lit up. Her service attitude became even better. The fastest place to burn money here was, without question, the casino.
The five of them walked down a staircase. Even though this place was legal, they still liked putting the casino in the basement.
Here, Bai Chuan saw all kinds of gambling equipment.
"Sir, you can exchange for chips over here. Please come with me."
Bai Chuan turned to the others. "Anything you want to play?"
"I don't," Buggy said first. Spending his own money and gambling was unacceptable.
"Me neither," Kather·Lynn said. As a princess of a kingdom, whatever she wanted to play, she could play elsewhere.
"I want to try," Shanks said.
The moment Shanks spoke, Buggy nearly popped his eyes out. "Bastard, you're spending my money!"
"Then exchange 10,00010,000 Beli worth of chips for him," Bai Chuan said calmly, as if 10,00010,000 Beli was not money at all.
"Anyway, it's not my money."
The hostess's mouth twitched, and her smile stiffened.
10,00010,000 Beli might be a lot in some poor places, but here it was nothing. You could even say 10,00010,000 Beli was not enough to qualify to enter.
"I seriously don't know what those two guards at the door are doing," she complained inwardly.
"Alright then, sir. Please wait a moment."
No matter how unhappy she felt, she still had to keep up appearances and fulfill the customer's request.
Otherwise, if they filed a complaint, the punishment would be harsh.
Very quickly, 10,00010,000 Beli worth of chips was brought over. There were only ten pieces, meaning each chip was worth 1,0001,000 Beli.
"Alright, you can go. If we need anything, we'll call you again," Bai Chuan said.
"Of course. I wish you a happy time and an enjoyable experience."
After delivering her professional lines with a fake smile, she left quickly as well.
"Am I really that scary? Why is she leaving so fast too? I'm not going to eat her," Bai Chuan said, confused.
"Maybe she thinks you're too stingy. There's no oil to squeeze out of you at all," Shanks replied.
"Is that so? It's my first time here. I don't know the rules," Bai Chuan said.
"That doesn't seem related to whether it's your first time," Shanks said.
Kather·Lynn added mercilessly, "This has nothing to do with being new. Your nature is stingy."
/-\
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