When Taro, the iron straight man, and Benz, the pirate native version of the titanium alloy straight man, got together to try and figure out a girl's mind, the result could only be self-inflicted humiliation!
The two stared blankly at each other for a long time, completely clueless.
In the end, Benz proved to be the better man; he quickly stopped caring about the issue and excitedly began showing Taro the results of his recent Devil Fruit Ability development.
"Taro, look!"
With a wave of his hand, a seed fell onto the rooftop and quickly grew into a lush plant.
Immediately afterward, he pulled out a small cloth bag, grabbed a handful of sand from it, and sprinkled it on the roots of the plant.
"You already noticed the Plant Monitoring Ability from before. That was inspired by what you told me about plant photosynthesis, using the plant's stomata when it breathes to act as eyes and ears."
"Now look at this..."
Benz pointed to the roots of the plant. Taro looked over and saw the sand sinking down at a visible speed.
After only a moment, a pile of white crystalline solids emerged.
Taro reached out and ground some between his fingers.
"This...?"
"This is that thing you told me about, the main component of sand—that'Silicon'!" Benz was highly excited.
"The stuff used to make glass!"
"Silicon Dioxide! Plant decomposition?" Taro froze for a moment, then slapped Benz hard on the waist.
"Benz, you're a damn genius!"
"Hiss!" Benz was nearly knocked flying by Taro's slap. He staggered two steps and rubbed his waist.
"Taro, your strength seems to have grown a lot again!"
Taro gave an apologetic smile, "My bad, I got too excited and couldn't control myself!"
Holy crap, the change in Benz's ability proved that knowledge from his previous life could also influence the direction of Devil Fruit Ability development!
Learning truly is useful!
The more he thought about it, the more excited he became. Benz's plants now had the ability to decompose and produce high-purity silicon dioxide, which meant they could build another glass factory, providing many more jobs.
And the basic knowledge he had barely managed to retain from his teachers also seemed to have found a use!
"Benz, I have things to do. Don't let anyone disturb me!"
With that, Taro quickly returned to his office, pulled out a notebook, and began writing furiously.
He stayed in the office writing for several days. Besides the next phase of the Special Zone's development plan and the new glass factory project,
he mostly recorded knowledge from his previous life—whether it was math, physics, chemistry, history, geography, or biology. Everything he could remember, he wrote down, filling several notebooks.
Only after finishing all this did Taro stretch. Supported by Internal Energy, he had managed to stay awake for days, but now that he suddenly stopped, physical aches and pains instantly overwhelmed him.
However, his spirit was still highly energized. He put away the notebooks containing the knowledge, picked up the remaining documents, and opened the door.
"Huh, what are you all doing here?"
As soon as Taro opened the door, he froze. Outside the door stood Vivi, and even Igaram, Pell, and Chaka.
Then, when he saw Cobra sitting in a wheelchair, he immediately felt the urge to close the door again.
Bringing the whole Family along—they must be here to call him to account, right?
"Uh, King Cobra, you're here too! Heh, heheh!" Taro gave two dry laughs.
Cobra seemed unaware that the wedding had been canceled, or perhaps he was unconcerned. In any case, he wasn't as awkward as Taro. He chuckled merrily, his tone carrying a hint of teasing,
"Well, I heard my grand administrator has been staying in the office without sleep for five days, so I was very interested in coming to see him!"
"Why, aren't you going to invite me in first?"
Taro scratched his head and laughed, "How could I? Please, come in!"
Cobra looked at the wine bottles scattered all over the floor and frowned.
"Have you just been drinking these past few days?"
Taro waved his hand dismissively, "It's fine, I have a high tolerance for hunger!"
Cobra stared at Taro for a moment, then turned his head and spoke to Igaram and the other two standing guard at the door,
"Igaram, go prepare some food for Taro!"
Igaram and the others understood immediately, closed the door, and left.
Cobra reached out and took the documents from Taro's hand, quietly flipping through them. Noticing Taro constantly shifting his shoulders, he finally said,
"Vivi, help Taro massage his shoulders!"
Since entering, Vivi had seen the words 'Special Zone Development Plan Phase Three' written on the title page of the documents, and her eyes instantly reddened.
She also noticed Taro's unusual state; how could she not guess what he had been doing for the past few days? Her heart grew even more touched, and upon hearing Cobra's words, she walked over without hesitation.
Taro's body stiffened, and he tried to dodge. Just as he was about to speak, Cobra spoke again,
"Since I became ill, Vivi often helps me with massages. She has very good technique, try it!"
This time, Taro didn't dodge again, 'enjoying' Vivi's massage technique as if sitting on pins and needles.
"King Cobra, Vivi and I...!"
"Wait until I finish reading these!" Cobra interrupted Taro without looking up.
Fortunately, Cobra, who was highly proficient in political affairs, found these documents easy to read. After about ten minutes, he was mostly finished.
"Taro, I was very happy when I heard Vivi was going to get engaged to you!"
The old king looked at Taro with a smile, then raised his gaze slightly toward Vivi.
"I feel very reassured entrusting Vivi to you!"
Taro was a little bewildered. "King Cobra, you should already know...!"
"Cough, cough!"
Cobra coughed twice, interrupting Taro.
"I know! Just let me finish talking...!"
"Vivi is the sole heir of the Nefeltari Royal Family and the Thirteenth King of Alabasta. That fact cannot be changed!"
"In less than two years, the World Conference will be held. At that time, as the royal heir, Vivi must accompany me to Marijoa...!"
At this point, Cobra's gaze became incredibly firm. He looked back and forth between Taro and Vivi for a long time.
"Therefore, I hope, if possible, that Alabasta can welcome the next generation's heir!"
"Cough, cough!"
Now it was Taro's turn to cough violently. He stared at Cobra, dumbfounded.
Then, he realized that Vivi's hand on his shoulder had only stiffened for an instant, clearly having anticipated Cobra's statement, making him even more stunned.
Holy crap, it's messed up, everything is messed up!
This isn't right, Cobra!
In the original work, you never pulled a stunt like this!
Taro jumped to his feet in surprise. "King Cobra, are you kidding me?"
Cobra, however, showed no sign of joking; his expression remained serious.
"Taro, Vivi knows more than I expected! This is the responsibility of my Nefeltari Family!"
Taro fell silent. Vivi knowing more than she did in the original work was clearly due to Taro's interference.
To give birth before the World Conference starts...
Doesn't that mean she needs to get pregnant within the next few months?
Cough, cough, Vivi is only 16! Isn't this forcing me to act like a beast?
"King Cobra, I absolutely cannot agree to this!"
Taro sternly refused.
"If you insist on going through with this, I will have no choice but to find a way to prevent the World Conference from being held!"
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