Mad Emperor's Alliance Invitation

Big Mom is a mad emperor.

Aleus had no doubt about this. After a fierce battle that had just ended after three days and two nights, Big Mom had once again brought up the matter of being rejected. She wanted Aleus to become her ally.

After asking Aleus for his opinion on the title of "Pirate King" and receiving the sincere answer, "I'm not a pirate, so the Pirate King and all that... honestly, I have no interest!" Big Mom became even more enthusiastic about establishing a reliable alliance with Aleus through marriage.

To show her sincerity, Big Mom even invited Aleus aboard the Queen Mama Chantilly.

This was not a trap, but genuine sincerity.

Allowing Aleus to board the ship was not a signal to smash cups and have assassins rush out to chop Aleus into mincemeat. On the contrary, such an action was equivalent to entrusting the lives of most of Big Mom's children on the ship to Aleus.

At such close range, even with Big Mom's obstruction, Aleus was confident enough to kill more than half of Big Mom's children.

Entrusting the safety of her children to an enemy who had previously intended to kill them with the most brutal means, such an act could only mean that Big Mom's title of 'Mad Emperor' was truly well-deserved. However, Aleus had to admit that with such courage and boldness, Big Mom did not live up to the grand title of Pirate Emperor at all.

Mad, cruel, tyrannical, The outside world had countless negative descriptions for Big Mom, yet no one ever thought Big Mom was unworthy of the Four Emperors' seat. As the only woman among the Four Emperors, Big Mom had seized the throne of Pirate Emperor with her genuine strength.

Aleus wasn't very interested in marriage, but visiting the Queen Mama Chantilly was a good idea.

After all, the three-day and two-night battle had taken them more than three hundred kilometers away from Saiboy Island. Flying back with wings would be absolutely boring. So, Aleus readily accepted Big Mom's invitation and came aboard the Queen Mama Chantilly as a guest.

"Mamama!"

Big Mom laughed heartily.

Her joyful yet ferocious smile was like a back-and-forth between hell and purgatory.

She sat on a seat placed on the deck, large enough to accommodate her enormous body. Raising her thick, powerful arms, she extended a warm invitation to Aleus, who was sitting opposite her, "Prince Aleus, please enjoy yourselves! After three days and two nights of fighting, anyone would be hungry. Let's eat our fill before we discuss serious matters!"

As she said this, she had already picked up a pastry from the table and was swallowing it.

Due to the limitations of the kitchen space on the pirate ship, the desserts, though made as large as possible, were no bigger than a beef cow. In front of Big Mom, who was eight hundred and eighty centimeters tall, these cakes were no more than a single mouthful for her.

The chefs were working through the night, sending out a stream of various desserts, tarts, puddings, tiramisu, fruitcakes, ice cream, zabaglione... and many other things Aleus couldn't even name.

And, without exception, all the food served were desserts. Apart from desserts, there were no ordinary foods like meat or vegetables.

"This taste... delicious!!"

After two days and three nights of non-stop fighting, Aleus was indeed hungry. Although the desserts on the table looked so sweet they made his scalp tingle, after tasting one, the flavor was truly excellent. Even the chefs in his own royal palace could only barely reach this level with their most skillful desserts.

Protected by the Hogyoku, Aleus didn't worry about Big Mom playing any tricks with the food. He immediately began to taste the culinary skills of the chefs of the Big Mom Pirates without any reservation.

Speaking of which, the renowned chef troupe of the Big Mom Pirates was also famous in the New World!

Across a large, long table, Big Mom and Aleus sat at opposite ends.

The two of them cleared the desserts on the table like a whirlwind. Well, saying "the two of them," Big Mom actually consumed ninety-nine percent of it, while Aleus ate about one percent. However, even that one percent was enough to make Aleus feel like he wouldn't touch any more desserts for a considerable time in the future.

Sweets, as expected, should only be tasted occasionally.

Taking a sip of water to remove the cloying sweetness from his mouth, Aleus glanced at Big Mom, who was still engrossed in eating. He soon shifted his gaze to the other members of the Charlotte Family on deck, such as Charlotte Katakuri, who was leaning against the ship's railing.

"Hey, Powder Minister."

Aleus got up and walked over.

"Is there anything you need, Prince Aleus?"

Katakuri asked calmly.

Given the undisguised intention of alliance that Mother had shown towards Aleus, coupled with Aleus's strength, Katakuri already showed him sufficient respect.

Of course, this man, known as the head of the Three Sweet Commanders, did not let down his guard. Mother could invite Aleus aboard with a broad mind, but that didn't mean she truly considered him a guest. His Observation Haki was fully active, constantly predicting Aleus's next move.

"Charlotte Katakuri... with a bounty exceeding one billion Belly, your head is unusually valuable!"

As soon as this provocative greeting was uttered, the members of the Charlotte Family, who had been on edge, immediately drew their swords and weapons. Blades and gun muzzles were all aimed at Aleus. If Katakuri hadn't raised his hand to stop his impetuous younger siblings, someone might have already opened fire.

"Damn Prince, are you looking for another fight?"

Charlotte Oven, who had a fiery temper, glared at Aleus. He was a Paramecia-type Heat-Heat Fruit user, the Yellow Minister of the Totland Kingdom. In addition, he shared a triple birth with Katakuri and Charlotte Daifuku.

The bond between brothers made him unable to tolerate Aleus's provocation towards Katakuri.

"Oven, don't be rash. Don't forget Mother's will."

Katakuri reached out and placed a hand on his brother's shoulder.

The words "Mother's will" caused the most hot-tempered Yellow Minister to calm down.

After calming his somewhat short-tempered sibling, the leader of the Sweet Commanders glared at Aleus and said in a deep voice, "Prince Aleus, you are Mother's guest, but please don't forget that Totland does not unconditionally tolerate bothersome guests!"

His resounding reply brought a look of excitement to the faces of the surrounding Charlotte Family members.

If not for the terrifying scene of Aleus and Mother's battle still vivid in their minds, it wouldn't have been impossible to immediately open fire and eliminate the foul-mouthed guest Aleus. Honestly, there weren't many with good tempers in the Big Mom Pirates; most were ruthless.

"Charlotte Katakuri, you truly are the pillar of the Big Mom Pirates. If it weren't for your bloodline... someone like you is truly someone I'd want to recruit! And... I apologize, my joke just now was excessive."

Aleus said with a smiling apology.

Although everyone could see that there wasn't a shred of sincerity in the Black Prince's apology.

But no one pressed for more.

To be honest, they hadn't expected this young monster, who could contend with Mother, to apologize. After Katakuri delivered his harsh words, he was already preparing to find a way to move past the incident. Now, with Aleus apologizing, even without any sincerity, he had already given Katakuri plenty of face.

The law of the New World where the strong are respected, was vividly displayed in this short verbal conflict.

If Aleus hadn't fought a three-day, two-night draw with Big Mom, the Charlotte Family members would have long since attacked him for daring to provoke Katakuri. But now, because Aleus had displayed Yonko-level combat power, even if Aleus maliciously provoked them, they wouldn't dare to attack him first without suffering substantial harm.

After all, not to mention the consequences of provoking a monster like Aleus with Yonko-level combat power, just consider if they were to disrupt Mother's plan.

Even as her children, they would absolutely not have a good outcome. Their sister, Charlotte Lola, ranked twenty-third among all daughters and the former Crème Brûlée Minister of Totland, had escaped from Totland after refusing a marriage proposal from the prince of the world's strongest nation, the Kingdom of Elbaf.

She remained Mother's deep-seated hatred to this day.

It was only Lola's good fortune that she had completely disappeared for these years. Otherwise, if Mother knew her whereabouts, she wouldn't even be able to get a quick death.

"Prince Aleus, the chefs are preparing a special celebratory meal for you. Please have a seat and wait a moment?" Charlotte Brulee, Big Mom's ninth daughter and the Crème Brûlée Minister of Totland, spoke to ease the atmosphere.

This beauty, who was nearly forty but looked only in her twenties, broke the stiff atmosphere with a smile.

"A special meal? Although I ate quite a bit earlier, I will look forward to it."

Aleus nodded with a smile.

His brief, unpleasant exchange with Katakuri was enough for him to realize that the Totland Kingdom, built by Big Mom with blood ties as its foundation, was indeed unusually united. Poaching talent was simply too difficult.

"Well! This is actually within expectations."

The idea of poaching talent was just an unreliable, sudden whim, something to be considered a post-meal digestive exercise. Rather than failure, it would have been more troublesome if it had actually succeeded! Another fierce battle with Big Mom? Sorry, he didn't want to continue such a desperate fight where victory was nowhere in sight for now.

In his fight with Big Mom, he could currently only achieve a draw.

"May I ask, Prince Aleus, you have another younger brother, don't you?"

Charlotte Brulee led Aleus back to his seat and suddenly asked.

"..."

Aleus did not answer immediately.

His gaze did not linger on the beauty before him but instead turned to Big Mom, who had slowed her eating pace.

"My younger brother is only six years old this year."

"Mamama! If marriage is too early, you can always get engaged first!" Big Mom held a piece of chocolate cake, devouring it in large mouthfuls, while not forgetting to let out a cheerful, booming laugh. "My youngest daughter, Anana, although only three years old, will definitely be a beauty in the future. She'd be a perfect match for Prince Aleus's younger brother."

"A six-year-old and a three-year-old? Isn't that... a bit too young?"

Aleus was almost moved by Big Mom's tenacious spirit of not giving up.

Seeing that he stubbornly refused the marriage alliance, she had set her sights on his six-year-old brother.

"It's just a political marriage; age doesn't matter. As long as your interests and mine don't conflict, there's no problem. Prince Aleus, you are not a pirate, nor are you interested in the Pirate King. Therefore, we have no conflicting interests whatsoever.

We can completely form an alliance and take down Kaido, Red-Haired, or even Whitebeard. By then, I will become the Pirate King, and Prince Aleus's kingdom will become a great kingdom that will share the New World equally with Totland. Isn't this a fine future! Hahahahahahahahaha!!!!"

Big Mom opened her abyss-like mouth and once again extended an invitation to ally with Aleus. Her expectant laughter echoed through the deck, lingering for a long time.

As one of the four Pirate Emperors of the New World, Big Mom had always felt that there were too many Pirate Emperors. It was to the point that, despite being a Pirate Emperor, her title wasn't as resounding as the Pirate King. Therefore, she had been seeking powerful means, the power to eliminate the other three Pirate Emperors.

Previously, when the prince of Elbaf, the world's strongest kingdom, fell in love with her daughter Lola, Big Mom was ecstatic. If she could have brought the giant warriors of Elbaf under her command, she probably would have become the sole Pirate Emperor of the New World by now.

Unfortunately, there are no "ifs" in life.

The reality was that her daughter had rejected the proposal and even escaped from Totland, completely shattering her future plans and rekindling animosity with the giants.

And now, with the appearance of Aleus, she saw new possibilities.

As she said, Aleus was not a pirate and would not compete with her for the glory of the Pirate King. There were no irreconcilable conflicts of interest between them, and they could completely form an alliance to dominate the New World. At least, that was how beautiful her envisioned future blueprint was.

On the deck, the Charlotte Family members, the chefs and Homies moving about, all looked at Aleus, awaiting his response.

"An alliance?"

Aleus lowered his head and pondered for a moment, then raised it again, saying with a bright smile:

"I'm sorry, I don't see any benefit for me in an alliance. As for dominating the New World, I don't have such plans for now!"

The words fell silent, leaving only the sound of the sea breeze and the tide on the deck.

Big Mom's pleasant smile gradually twisted into a ferocious grin, like an evil spirit tearing through a human mask to reveal its terrifying true form. Just as the Charlotte Family's children waited with trembling hearts for Mother to unleash her furious wrath, the ferocious smile slowly smoothed out.

In front of Aleus, her anger wouldn't change his will; it would only further highlight Aleus's power.

"I will look forward to you changing your mind, Aleus... Prince!!"

"You'll understand sooner or later. Strength will ignite a person's ambition. Even if you truly have no ambition, others will force you to develop one."