Zeff

In the Baratie restaurant's kitchen,

"Old geezer, why did you hit me so hard today?!"

Sanji was still complaining about Zeff as he rubbed the huge bump on his head. Though Zeff had often disciplined him before, he had never hit him this hard. This time, it felt like the old man had put in extra force.

Before long, Zeff entered the kitchen as well.

"Old geezer..."

The moment Sanji saw him, he was about to complain to his face, but Zeff cut him off before he could get the words out.

"Brat, remember this: don't provoke that table of guests again. Until they leave, stay obediently in the kitchen. Don't go out again!"

Zeff warned him with a stern expression, his face more grave than ever. Sanji fell silent. He had never seen the old geezer this nervous before. He could tell that this was a genuine warning, not the usual empty threat.

Could those guests be someone special? Or did they have some extraordinary status?

Sanji asked in confusion,

"Old geezer, do you know those guests?"

Zeff did not answer. He merely stared fixedly at him with his clouded old eyes.

The brat had no idea that he had just brushed past death!

Zeff knew the guests at that table—or rather, he knew one of them. When Sanji had been thrown out of the restaurant, Zeff had actually come out from the kitchen and witnessed it with his own eyes.

At first, he had not thought much of it. He assumed it was simply another customer who could no longer tolerate the brat's harassment. But when he saw the face of the person who had acted, he was utterly stunned, as though he had seen a ghost. That face stirred memories from decades ago, and a name rose