The moon shone bright, casting cold light across the quiet town.
"I never said anything about a princess." Igaram gritted his teeth, glaring resentfully at Laina and the others.
"You bastards!!"
From a distance came a furious shout. Everyone turned—Luffy, hair bristling with anger.
"They treated us to food, and you guys went and beat them all up!"
"Sanji and Zoro are new, fine, but Laina—you didn't even stop them!"
Laina's face instantly darkened. "…Seriously?"
"So damn dense!" Igaram muttered from where he lay on the ground, speechless at this so-called 30 million–Berry captain.
Even outsiders couldn't watch this without cringing.
"Damn it! You're all gonna learn the rules of this ship right now!!" Luffy charged forward in a fury, flip-flops slapping the street.
"The rules of this ship?" Laina sighed at Luffy's cluelessness. "And who's the one who doesn't understand rules here?"
Duang! Duang!
"You idiot!!"
Nami's fists came down hard. Luffy immediately curled on the ground, clutching his head.
Laina and the others could only offer awkward smiles.
Because on this ship, the real rule was simple: Nami ruled all.
Meek toward outsiders, but an iron fist for her crewmates—she was the tyrant aboard the Merry.
"Alright, enough. Back to business." Laina lit a cigarette, crouched down, and asked Igaram,
"That 'princess' you yelled about—that's her, right?"
He pointed toward Vivi, still unconscious where she'd been knocked out. "Spit it out clearly. Or I'll feed you to the fish right now."
"Wait!" Igaram shouted quickly. "Killing us won't benefit you! I want to commission you for a mission. If you succeed, you'll be richly rewarded!"
"Oooh~" Nami perked up instantly. She tugged her shorts and crouched down, studying him with keen interest. "Let's hear it."
Grinding his teeth, Igaram finally began explaining his request.
The group listened silently.
Pirates burned, looted, and plundered, sure—but many also took on missions like mercenaries.
Legal or illegal, it didn't matter. For many crews, paid jobs were as important as robbery. After all, nobles had plenty of dirty work to outsource.
"The princess of Alabasta!?"
When Igaram finished, everyone—except Laina—was visibly shocked.
"Oi! That's a superpower nation!"
"And last I read, that country's caught in a civil war," Nami added, remembering her newspapers. "What's a princess doing out here?"
"That's none of your concern. Knowing too much will only get you killed."
"So our task," Laina summarized, "is to escort you back to Alabasta, yeah?"
He walked over to Vivi. "How long until the Log Pose here resets?"
"One day is enough," Igaram answered.
"What do you think, Luffy? Should we take the job?" Nami rubbed her hands together gleefully.
"A princess of a superpower nation! The commission fee should be… 1 billion Berries!"
"What!?" Igaram yelped. "Impossible! I don't have that authority. Payment will have to be negotiated with the royal family once she's safely home."
Laina, standing beside Vivi, knew the truth. Cobra had already sold off nearly everything valuable to support his starving people. The king himself lived on meager meals. There was no way they could produce a billion.
"Alright then!" Luffy shouted suddenly, grinning ear to ear. "We'll take the job!"
Laina crouched down, grabbed a handful of Vivi's sky-blue hair, and patted her cheek.
"Wake up, little delinquent."
Vivi's eyes fluttered open. Still dazed, she scowled at him. "Damn you!"
"Relax. No need to look so righteous."
They quickly explained the situation to her. Not long after, the crew dispersed.
The Straw Hats returned to the Going Merry to sleep, leaving Vivi and Igaram behind in the street.
"…Will this really be okay, Igaram?" Vivi asked, worry flickering in her eyes.
Igaram's face hardened, his composure as captain of the Royal Guard restored. "You saw their strength, Princess. But more importantly…"
He glanced at the unconscious Baroque Works agents lying all around.
"They didn't kill a single one. Even in a fight, they respected the debt of one meal. That tells me what kind of people they are."
"I see… If you say so, I trust you. So tomorrow, we set sail with them?" Vivi pushed herself up.
But Igaram shook his head. "No. You'll go with them. I'll take another route."
"Why!?"
"I saw an Unlucky Agent earlier," he said grimly. "Word will reach the boss quickly. I'll leave tonight, draw attention away, and buy you time."
"Igaram, wait—!"
"No, Princess!" His voice was sharp, final. "The state of our kingdom leaves no room for hesitation. You know what must be done."
"…I understand." Vivi bit her lip, reluctant but resigned.
The next day at noon, the sun blazed high over the port. The Merry rested calmly at the docks.
On deck, undead hawks perched on the lookout post, while Laina trained with Zoro in the cabin's back room as usual.
"Time to go, everyone!" Luffy called cheerfully from the bow, hugging the Merry's sheep figurehead.
The undead raised anchor, and the ship drifted slowly from the harbor.
Everyone went about their usual routines. The only difference was that the ship had gained a princess—and her emergency ration, the duck Karoo.
"Are you sure this is okay?" Vivi rested a hand on Karoo's head, looking around uneasily.
It seemed no one even cared that there was a princess aboard. Despite her being the key client of their mission, she felt like a complete ghost on this ship.
…Except Sanji.
"Lunch is ready, everyone!" Sanji sang, emerging from the kitchen. He immediately latched onto Vivi, doting on her.
"Food! Food!" Luffy dashed upstairs at once.
Laina set down his weights and followed Zoro into the dining hall.
They all gathered around the table, devouring Sanji's cooking. By contrast, Vivi and Karoo sat quietly in the corner, awkward and stiff.
"Nami," Laina asked, "our next stop is Little Garden, right?" He couldn't quite recall if there was another island before it.
Ever since entering the Grand Line, he'd been burning with impatience to meet the Red Ogre and Blue Ogre.
"Yeah, Little Garden," Nami confirmed, having reviewed their course before departure.
"Little Garden?!" Luffy's eyes lit up. "Sounds amazing! Hehehe."
"It should be beautiful," Nami added, hopeful.
Laina knew her excitement wouldn't last long.
"Elbaf's warriors are famous even in the New World. No way the captains of the Giant Warrior Pirates don't have Haki," he mused inwardly.
Meanwhile, in Alabasta—Rain Dinners.
In a lavish, extravagant room, a man stood before a massive window, a cigar clamped between his teeth.
Clack… clack… High heels echoed across the marble floor.
"You're back, Miss All Sunday," the man's deep voice rumbled as a black-haired woman entered.
"One of our bases at the start of the Grand Line has been destroyed. The Unlucky Agents reported back."
She laid two photos on the desk—one of Vivi, one of Luffy.
"Mr. 5 caught only a decoy. The real Princess Vivi has already departed with the Straw Hat Pirates."
"And?" the man asked again, voice low and dangerous.
"Their next stop is Little Garden. Mr. 5 and Mr. 3 are already en route."
"And if they fail again?" His tone sharpened with displeasure.
"I've sent Mr. 2 as well. He'll clean up and execute those useless pawns if necessary."
"As expected of Miss All Sunday. Efficient as always."
Crocodile's mouth curled into a shadowed grin.