"This is where Granny Nyon lives?" Merry looked around curiously. "The environment seems quite nice."
"Ahaha, it's passable," Granny Nyon chuckled.
After settling into a peaceful life, she had developed a fondness for gardening. Without realizing it, she had transformed her yard into its current state. Admittedly, such surroundings truly helped her relax both physically and mentally.
Setting aside her Serpent Cane, Granny Nyon said, "Have a seat."
Meiser nodded and sat on the sofa with Merry.
As for Luffy...
"Hey, Luffy!" Meiser stared dumbfounded at Luffy. "Why are you rummaging through someone else's fridge the moment you enter their house?!"
This had happened back at Sabaody Archipelago, and now it was happening again here. This guy had absolutely no sense of boundaries.
Granny Nyon was also taken aback—this kid really made himself at home.
"Huh?"
Luffy, already stuffing a sausage into his mouth, turned to Meiser. "But I'm really hungry..."
Having no idea how long he'd been asleep, he now felt absolutely famished.
Meiser facepalmed before apologetically looking at Granny Nyon. "Sorry about that, Granny. We'll pay for it."
"Ah, it's fine. Let him eat," Granny Nyon waved it off.
She figured the boy must have expended a lot of energy during his earlier treatment, hence the intense hunger. In that case, she might as well let him eat. After all... she wasn't so stingy as to begrudge him a little food. It wasn't like he could eat that much anyway.
Seeing Granny Nyon's expression, Meiser fell silent for a moment. This granny probably had no idea about Luffy's appetite... Well, he'd deal with that later.
"Let's begin," Granny Nyon said.
Understanding her meaning, Meiser wasted no time and placed two Den Den Mushi on the table.
"Huh? Why is this one white?" Merry stared curiously at the motionless snail on the table. It was her first time seeing a white Den Den Mushi.
"Wow, really?" Luffy also glanced over in surprise. "There are white Den Den Mushi too? Can you use them to make calls?"
"Yes," Meiser nodded. "When making a call, placing this White Transponder Snail next to a regular Den Den Mushi prevents eavesdropping."
As he spoke, Meiser dialed Shakky's number.
"Prevents eavesdropping..." Luffy tilted his head at Meiser, clearly not understanding. After pondering for a bit, he gave up and went back to stuffing his face.
Granny Nyon: "..."
This Straw Hat Boy really seemed like an idiot. Then again... it made sense. Only an idiot would eat something random and knock himself out.
"Buro buro buro~"
"Buro buro buro~"
"Buro buro buro~"
Click
"Hello?" Meiser said. "This is Meiser."
"Ara~ Little Meiser finally called," Shakky said with a smile.
"Meiser!"
"Meiser dear!"
"Meiser!"
Hearing three familiar voices, Meiser was stunned for a moment before bursting into laughter. "It's you guys! What are you doing at Shakky's place?"
"Ah, we were just worried about you," Hachi said, scratching his head. "So we came ashore with Rayleigh to check on you."
Without Rayleigh accompanying them, he wouldn't have dared to bring Camie back to the surface again. After all... he wasn't as strong as the Straw Hat Pirates.
Meiser felt a warmth in his heart upon hearing this and replied, "I see... Don't worry, we're fine."
"That's good to hear..."
"Where's Rayleigh?" Merry asked.
"Him?" Shakky tapped her cigarette ash. "After hearing you were still alive, he went back to your ship to continue the Coating."
According to Rayleigh, he wanted these guys to head straight for the New World as soon as they returned to Sabaody Archipelago. Before the Straw Hat Pirates came back, he could also help keep an eye on their ship.
"I see..." Merry nodded. In that case, they couldn't bring their ship over now—otherwise, Rayleigh's efforts would be wasted.
"Alright, let's get down to business," Shakky said. "Meiser, did you find Gloriosa?"
"Ah, yes—"
Before Meiser could finish, Granny Nyon very naturally took the Den Den Mushi and snapped, "You should call me 'big sister,' you little brat!"
Given their past relationship, there was nothing wrong with demanding to be called "big sister."
The moment she said this, Meiser and Merry were stunned. Even Luffy turned around in surprise, forgetting to eat his food.
"B-Big sister?!"
"Shakky is—"
Meiser wisely shut his mouth before finishing his sentence. He noticed the Den Den Mushi's expression had changed—and it looked... kind of terrifying.
"Wait, just how old is Shakky?" Meiser wondered silently.
At that moment, intense curiosity welled up inside him. But... reason told him not to ask. Absolutely not. Otherwise, he'd definitely get beaten up the next time he saw Shakky.
"You talk too much," Shakky said expressionlessly.
"S-So scary...!"
Hachi, Camie, and the others huddled together, trembling in fear as they stared at Shakky, who was radiating an intimidating aura.
Why had she suddenly become so terrifying? Was it because of what Granny Nyon had just said?
"What I said was—"
Before Granny Nyon could finish, Shakky cut her off. "Keep spouting nonsense, and I'll spill all your dirty little secrets from back then."
A dangerous glint flashed in Shakky's eyes.
Granny Nyon: "..."
Shakky's words instantly silenced her. After a pause, Granny Nyon forced an awkward laugh and said, "I was just joking earlier. Shakky is actually very young."
This was directed at Meiser and the others.
Though... it didn't sound very convincing.
Still, now wasn't the time to argue—that would only invite trouble.
Clearing his throat, Meiser said, "Right, got it."
"Alright, let's get down to business," Shakky said seriously. "They're good friends of mine, so... I hope you can help them out."
This statement confirmed what Meiser had said earlier—he indeed had a very good relationship with Shakky.
Upon confirming this information, Granny Nyon secretly sighed in relief. At the very least... they weren't enemies.
But soon, another problem arose—she wasn't the empress anymore!
Thinking this, Granny Nyon said, "Shakky, I'm retired now. There's only so much I can do."
"You should know that well enough."
All she could do was try her best to protect these three in front of Hancock.
As for whether Hancock would listen... well, she could only do her part and leave the rest to fate.
"Hancock might listen to you," Shakky said.
Granny Nyon sighed helplessly. That little brat might not necessarily heed her words. But since things had come to this, she couldn't refuse any longer.
"Fine, I understand," Granny Nyon replied.
"Good, I'm counting on you!"
Click—
Looking at the disconnected Den Den Mushi, Shakky rubbed her temples with a headache. Hopefully, Granny Nyon could help Xiao Meiser.
Shaking her head, Shakky glanced at the three trembling figures on the sofa and gave them a gentle smile. "What's wrong with you all?"
"Ah, haha, we're just a little cold, that's all."
"Right, Hachi?"
"Y-yeah!!"
Seeing how afraid they were of her, Shakky felt a bit helpless. It wasn't like she would do anything to these kids.
Just then, the door was kicked open, and a group of young pirates swaggered in, their expressions full of arrogance.
"Hmph, the Rip-off Bar?" the leader sneered. "Let's see what the fuss is about."
"Oh my~"
"Some punching bags delivered right to our doorstep~"
"Huh?"
The young pirate was momentarily confused, not understanding what she meant.
"Hey, boss! It's a Merfolk!"
"Look, there's a Merfolk and a Fish-man!"
The group stared excitedly at Camie and Hachi on the sofa, their eyes practically turning into Berries symbols. If they could capture them and sell them at an auction... they'd make a fortune!
"Ahahaha! Looks like we're hitting the jackpot this time!"
"Boys, grab them!"
"Right!"
At that moment, the door behind them suddenly slammed shut with a loud BANG!, startling the pirates.
They instinctively turned around and immediately noticed Shakky standing by the entrance, freezing in shock.
"Y-you... weren't you just behind the counter?!"
How had she appeared at the door in an instant?
"Teehee, that's not important," Shakky said with a 'gentle' smile. "Gentlemen, since you've come to my humble establishment, you should at least order something to drink."
The pirate leader hesitated. Though wary of her speed, his greed for money overpowered his unease. After all, we're talking about millions of Berries here!!!
At this thought, the leading pirate said, "I don't know who you are, but... right now our Rooster Fire Pirate Crew has business to attend to. If you don't want to die, you'd better scram back to—"
Before he could finish, he was overwhelmed by an overwhelmingly terrifying killing intent, instantly forcing him to swallow his words.
"Th-then... let's have a drink."
"Huh?!"
The other underlings exchanged confused glances at their boss. Wasn't this shift in tone a bit too sudden?
Wait... was their boss... actually scared?
"Good. Then one cup of Blood Rose for each of you."
"Th-the... price?"
"Of course... your lives!" Shakky's expression turned cold.
Since they had seen that Camie was Merfolk... they wouldn't be leaving here alive!
There were some things she didn't want to see happen a second time!
Meanwhile, after hanging up the Den Den Mushi, Granny Nyon fell into deep thought, lost in contemplation.
Meiser didn't disturb her, instead taking out some food for the Den Den Mushi to eat.
These were extremely valuable treasures—they couldn't go hungry.
"This little guy is so cute," Merry said. "Can I feed it?"
"Sure."
Meiser reached out and ruffled Merry's head. "If you like it, you can keep it with you for now."
"Yay!"
Watching Merry's cheerful expression, Meiser couldn't help but smile as well.
Then, he turned to Granny Nyon, who had snapped out of her thoughts. "Shall we discuss the next steps now?"
"Mm, go ahead." Granny Nyon rubbed her face before asking, "What do you need my help with? Is it about leaving this island?"
Hearing her words, Luffy immediately perked up. "Granny, you'll help us leave?!"
If she was willing to help them escape, that would be perfect.
"W-well..." Granny Nyon hesitated awkwardly. "That depends on whether Hancock agrees. I can't make decisions about the Kuja Ship."
Luffy: ???
Luffy stared at Granny Nyon, utterly baffled. If she couldn't help them leave... why had she said that in the first place?
"Granny Nyon, that's not what I wanted to discuss," Meiser said seriously. "Do you have a Eternal Log Pose to Marine Headquarters here?"
"Why go to Marine Headquarters?" Merry asked, puzzled.
"Hey, Meiser, we need to return to Sabaody Archipelago!" Luffy interjected.
Why would they go to some Marine Headquarters? Right now, they had to regroup with their crew at Sabaody!
"Luffy, take a look at this." Meiser placed the newspaper announcing Fire Fist Ace's impending execution on the table. "Fire Fist Ace is your brother, right?"
"He's about to be publicly executed by the Marines!"
"Wh-what?!"
Luffy, who had been eating, froze in shock, his sausage dropping to the floor unnoticed.
Then, in a panic, he rushed over and grabbed the newspaper. Though he couldn't read much, he understood the headline clearly:
(Fire Fist Ace to Be Publicly Executed at Marine Headquarters!)
After seeing it clearly, Luffy immediately panicked.
"Hey, Meiser, what do we do?!" Luffy looked at Meiser with a frantic expression. "Ace is my brother!!"
"Luffy's brother?!"
Merry also panicked. A public execution... did that mean he was going to die?
If Luffy's brother died, Luffy would surely be devastated!
Granny Nyon, on the other hand, gave Luffy a strange look. She hadn't expected the person about to be publicly executed to be the Straw Hat Boy's brother... It was truly surprising.
"That's right, Ace is my brother!" Luffy said anxiously. "What do we do? What do we do?"
"No... I have to save him!"
Though reuniting with his crew was urgent... if his brother died because he didn't go to Marine Headquarters to rescue him, he would never forgive himself!
"Meiser, hurry, let's go to Marine Headquarters!!"
"We don't have a Eternal Log Pose for Marine Headquarters," Meiser said helplessly. "Only with a Log Pose can we find Marine Headquarters."
After speaking, Meiser glanced at Granny Nyon and said, "So... Granny Nyon, what's your answer?"
If they had a Eternal Log Pose for Marine Headquarters, things would be much easier.
Granny Nyon looked at Luffy, then at Meiser, and sighed.
"Ah... Kid, come with me. I'll take you to Hancock."
"She probably has that thing, but—you'd better prepare yourself!"
Meiser was taken aback. Prepare himself?
Was it because he was a man?
Thinking this, he nodded. "Alright, I understand."
Though he didn't know what kind of person this Hancock was, if she had it, he'd take it by force if necessary!
"Good, then let's go," Granny Nyon said.
This kid had killed a Celestial Dragon—maybe he really could persuade Hancock after all.
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