"Finally!"
After ordering all 80 dishes and trying every last one, everyone felt as if they'd come back to life after spending days being ruled by fish.
It had to be said: the food made by the automatic cooking machine was far beyond what any of them could manage.
"By the way, where are we now?"
After clearing the table, the well-fed crew gathered around it to discuss their progress.
Nerl, their navigator, took out a map of North Blue and spread it across the table, pointing out their location.
Since they were still out at sea with no landmarks nearby, Nerl could only estimate their position.
"Our ultimate goal is to enter the Grand Line. To get there from one of the four seas, we need to pass through Reverse Mountain, which is right here.
"At our current speed, it'll take about ten more days to reach Reverse Mountain."
"But although we stocked up on plenty of supplies in Spiders Mill, based on how much we're using, they'll last us twenty days at most."
"We're using them up that quickly?"
"They could've lasted a little over thirty days. This is based on my latest calculations."
Nerl glanced at the automatic cooking machine by the kitchen wall, then added, "With the dream machine Grey just built, we'll probably use up even more over the next few days. In other words, our supplies might not even last twenty days."
"Ahahaha! What can we do? The food's too delicious!"
At Nerl's words, everyone burst out laughing, filling the room with cheer.
"So our plan to charge straight into the Grand Line is out."
"Before we enter the Grand Line, we'll need to restock. It's the most dangerous stretch of sea in the world, and no one knows what we might run into. We need to make sure we have enough supplies."
"Then should we resupply at Horgus Town? It's the town closest to the Grand Line, so we'd have the most supplies aboard when we enter."
"No. The Marines and the Shichibukai must have considered that too. They might be waiting there to catch us in a trap."
Rod stood and traced a finger across the map.
"Our destination is here!"
"Tiger Shark Island!"
Nia murmured as she looked at the spot Rod pointed to.
"Isn't that an outlaw territory?"
Tiger Shark Island was notorious throughout North Blue as a lawless place.
It wasn't under the jurisdiction of any Marine branch, nor was it controlled by any country or faction. The fragile order there was maintained by the unspoken rules of the underworld.
"Exactly. That's why neither the Marines nor the Shichibukai will expect us to go somewhere like that. Besides, it'll take nearly a day longer to get to Reverse Mountain from there than it would from Horgus Town."
"Once we get there, we won't stay long. We'll resupply as quickly as possible, then head straight for the Grand Line."
"In that case, I'll modify the storeroom so our food lasts longer."
"Boss Rod!"
Pekoms suddenly rushed in, his face alight with excitement.
After they'd finished eating, he'd volunteered to keep watch and observe the sea.
"It's a wanted poster!"
"We've got bounties!"
"Whoa!"
Everyone perked up at the newspaper and wanted posters Pekoms held up.
Even ordinary people in this world were fascinated by wanted posters and loved discussing the bounties on different pirates—so naturally, the crew, who had chosen to become pirates themselves, were even more excited.
Smack!
Without drawing it out, Pekoms slapped several wanted posters onto the table. Everyone leaned in to look, even Law, who usually played it cool.
"First up, Boss Rod! Mad Blade Rod, bounty: 71 million berries! As expected of Boss Rod! A bounty like that on your first poster is incredible. You're one of the greatest pirates in all of North Blue!"
The wanted poster showed Rod carrying Bastille's Shark Cutter. At just over two meters tall and carrying a sawlike blade more than four meters long, he certainly looked imposing.
As for the photo Colonel Baro had taken earlier, it hadn't been used for the poster out of respect for Rear Admiral Bastille's reputation.
Except...
"Who gave me that stupid nickname? It sounds so lame!"
Rod flew into a rage. "Mad Blade Rod" sounded like some nobody, no different from those other guys with big cleavers.
"Black Spear Nerl, bounty: 44 million berries!"
"That one's not bad! And who took the photo? How did they make me look so handsome?"
The wanted poster showed Nerl holding his black spear in an aiming pose. His green eyes were sharp, a striking contrast to his handsome, gentle features. He looked incredibly cool.
"Death Surgeon Law, bounty: 42 million berries."
Law's wanted poster photo was unremarkable, just a close-up of his face.
"Catwoman Nia, bounty: 28 million berries."
"They got a great shot!"
Looking at her own dashing pose on the wanted poster, Nia nodded with satisfaction.
"That's everyone."
After showing off the crew's wanted posters, Pekoms suddenly looked dejected.
"I didn't get a bounty. They didn't even mention me in the article..."
"Waaah, am I not even worth putting a bounty on?"
Shakky hugged Pekoms, and the two wailed together.
"The bear didn't get one either..."
Bepo was about to join them in a tearful embrace when he suddenly noticed another wanted poster beneath the newspaper. The photo on it was unmistakably his.
"The bear got a bounty too!"
Excitedly picking up his own poster, Bepo spun around happily, then deliberately crouched in front of Pekoms and Shakky to show it off.
"Look, look! The bear's wanted poster!"
Shakky glanced at it. It showed Bepo in a "White Crane Spreads Its Wings" pose. She sank into despair once more.
"How come even Bepo got one, but I didn't?"
"Huh? Wait..."
Shakky's dejection lasted a second before she suddenly caught on and looked at Bepo's poster again.
"Bounty: 200 berries!!"
"What did you say?!"
Bepo stared in shock. He flipped over his poster and looked more closely, his heart shattering in an instant.
"Why is the bear's bounty only 200 berries?!"
"Hahahaha, Bepo, your bounty probably isn't even enough to cover the printing costs."
"Sorry."
Bepo apologized out of habit, then began to whimper again.
"Waaah... The bear fought bravely too."
Thanks to reader 20190822191225428 for the monthly ticket, and thanks to Old Cui Toneri for the tip!
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