Baratie

While sailing at sea, besides tsunamis, sea beasts, and pirates, there was also the matter of food and fresh water to worry about.

Still, food and water could at least be dealt with using dry bread and cold water. With the storage bag, there was no need to worry about that.

Calling it sailing was a stretch; it was more like drifting. At least for now, it was like an old madam rowing without oars—all depending on the waves.

Duen thought of Hawkeye Mihawk. In the original story, that guy had crossed the Grand Line and drifted all the way to East Blue by himself in pursuit...

Hmm... perhaps there was a slim chance that his sailing skills were actually excellent.

Still, he must have been overturned by waves at some point, right? Just imagining him dragging his soaking-wet body out of the water and climbing back onto his "Western coffin," then sitting there indifferently and maintaining the bearing of the world's greatest swordsman...

The thought was strangely hilarious.

Time passed quickly. Under Nami's precise judgment of the currents and wind direction, the fishing boat sailed steadily onward.

Half a day later, they successfully arrived at Baratie.

Quite a few ships had docked nearby as well. Groups of guests stepped down from their decks and entered the restaurant, while several raggedly dressed fellows were thrown out by the chefs inside.

Standing on the fishing boat, Nami looked happily at the sea vessel before them, which resembled a strange giant fish. "So this is Baratie. I heard it's a high-class restaurant. Duen, looks like you'll be treating me again!"

"Hey, don't say that like it's only natural..."

"What does it matter? You're my boss, after all."

"I... I'm your boss now?"

After tying the fishing boat to a wooden post beside Baratie with hemp rope, the two chatted as they headed into the restaurant.

The restaurant was quite lively, filled with waves of conversation and laughter.

The two found an empty table and sat down. A waiter soon approached them—no, more precisely, a chef.

The blond, curly-browed sous-chef Sanji, dressed in a black suit, came over in quick little steps like a hunting dog that had caught the scent of prey, his nose twitching. Then he gave Nami a gentlemanly bow. "Beautiful miss, what would you like to order? Perhaps... my vibrant and sincere heart?"

Faced with such enthusiasm from Sanji, Nami was briefly at a loss for words and could only smile awkwardly.

"I have the menu." Duen smoothly cut in, flipping through the menu in his hands. "Also, please don't strike up conversations with my employee without permission."

Sanji gave Duen a cold sidelong glance, then immediately turned his head back, a princely smile once again appearing on his face. "Beautiful miss, it would be best to fire a boss like this. If you don't mind, please allow me to pay your salary."

Nami's eyes lit up. "Really?!"

"Forget it. You're just a cook—you can't afford her salary." Duen was actually telling the truth.

Negative Emotion Value from Sanji +555...

Sanji immediately turned his head back. The blond hair covering the left side of his face fluttered in a breeze from who knew where, revealing his right eye, where an inexplicable flame seemed to ignite. "You bastard, are you looking down on cooks?"

Duen shook his head. "No, no, no, don't misunderstand me. I'm not looking down on chefs... I'm only looking down on you."

Negative Emotion Value from Sanji +555...

"What gives you the right to look down on me?!" The fire in Sanji's right eye burned even fiercer.

Duen said solemnly, "Because the moment I saw you, I felt that you possessed a gentlemanly, elegant air like that of a prince. And look at you—you're so handsome and dashing, radiating the mature charm of a man..."

"Hm?"

Sanji's anger immediately vanished. He was even momentarily stunned, somewhat confused by Duen's sudden praise. Still, he had to admit that even though the other party was a man, the flattery felt rather good. He even began to feel that it made perfect sense.

Duen continued, "But you probably don't have much savings right now... and you're single too, aren't you?"

Negative Emotion Value from Sanji +777...

Pfft! Pfft!

Sanji felt as though two knives had suddenly stabbed into his chest. The pain pierced his heart, and even his expression seemed to grow far more dejected.

He lit a thin cigarette and put on an unconcerned expression, as though trying to persuade himself. "I'm not one of those vulgar people who only care about money... Besides, finding a partner isn't something to be done recklessly. It should be considered carefully."

Duen sighed regretfully. "That's really a shame. I was originally thinking of introducing you to a few unbelievably beautiful women. I even brought their pin-up photos, but..."

"Pin-up photos!"

Sanji's eyes lit up. He immediately looked at Duen excitedly, white vapor blasting from his nostrils like an enraged bull. "Hurry up and let me see what they look like!"

"You really want to see them? But... I'm afraid your heart might not be able to take it."

"It's fine, I can take it!" Sanji declared confidently.

"Since you insist." Duen took out Alvida's and Dadan's Pin-up Photo from the storage bag and handed them over.

Sanji eagerly accepted the two photos. The moment he looked at them, his entire body froze as though he had been turned to stone.

Negative Emotion Value from Sanji +555...

Then, tears streaming down his face, he dropped to his knees and pounded the ground. "What kind of terrifying creatures are these?! My eyes! My eyes can't see anymore!"

Duen said, "How did a young guy like you go blind so early...?"

"Isn't it because of you?!" Sanji raised his head and glared at Duen through gritted teeth, crumpling the pin-up photos in his hand into a ball.

After pondering for two seconds, Duen took out Kokoro's photo as well. "I gave you the wrong ones just now. How about this? I've got another pin-up photo of a mermaid here. Consider it compensation for your emotional distress."

"A mermaid?"

Sanji instinctively accepted the photo Duen handed him and looked down at it.

The instant he saw the figure in the photo, cracks appeared across the heart of a youth yearning for beauty, a heart wrapped in colorful dreams. Then it shattered mercilessly.

Negative Emotion Value from Sanji +666...

"That isn't a mermaid at all! I refuse to believe something like this..." Sanji wailed as he knelt on the floor.

"Sanji, what the hell are you doing?! Don't think being the sous-chef means you can do whatever you want!"

Seeing the commotion over here, the gourd-headed chef Patty feared it would affect the other customers' dining experience. Apologizing as he went, he dragged the utterly broken Sanji away.

"What a strange chef..." A drop of cold sweat rolled down Nami's temple.

"Yeah, but that kind of strange is what counts as normal."

Duen picked up the crumpled pin-up photos, thinking they might come in handy someday, and silently put them back into the bag.

Afterward, another chef acting as a waiter came over, took Duen's order slip, and went to prepare the dishes.