Irresistible Temptation

No matter how badly they were injured in fierce battle, as long as they still had a breath left and had not died, they could recover at an astonishing speed.

Before long, they could throw themselves back into battle and display their formidable combat strength once more.

It had to be said that Zoan users possessed a natural advantage when it came to prolonged combat and recovery.

"Is anyone there? Anyone?"

A few more days passed, and they were already nearing the Devil's Triangle, where Gecko Moria was located.

Then, a voice called out from inside the ship's cabin.

"Oh?"

Ener looked over in surprise, then smiled. "Has someone finally reached their limit?"

After all, Mr. 2, Mr. 3, Miss Goldenweek, Mr. 5, Miss Valentine, Mr. 8 [Igaram], and Miss Wednesday [Nefertari D. Vivi] were still locked in the ship's cages.

Other than delivering food and water once a day, he had not paid them any attention at all.

Wasn't that precisely to make them speak up on their own?

So he turned to Gin, Lina, Zoro, and Nami. "Keep the ship on course. I'll go take a look."

With that, he entered the lowest level of the cabin.

Two enormous iron cages stood before Ener, men on one side and women on the other. His gaze swept across them one by one before finally settling on Vivi.

"Can you let us go?" To Ener's surprise, the one who spoke was Miss Valentine beside Vivi.

He had thought it would be Vivi!

He had not expected it to be Miss Valentine, but he did not dwell on it.

He merely asked with a hint of amusement, "Let you go? Why should I?"

Miss Valentine said, "I can join your crew, just like Gin under your command... wasn't he a pirate before too?"

"Oh?"

Ener could not help looking surprised. "You even know about his circumstances. Looks like you did put some effort into investigating me. Unfortunately, your investigation was far from thorough enough, which is why you suffered such a crushing defeat at our hands."

He glanced at the others again, then added, "It's not impossible for you to join me, but what can you offer to earn my trust?"

"Uh..." Miss Valentine was immediately stumped.

She froze where she stood.

His words also made everyone in the two iron cages frown.

If possible, who would want to be sent to Impel Down?

That was not a place fit for human beings.

Ener had already turned to leave.

"I can..." At that moment, Vivi beside Miss Valentine could no longer hold back and finally spoke.

Because she understood that if she did not speak now, she might truly lose her chance.

And she absolutely could not be sent to Impel Down, because there was still a kingdom waiting for her to save.

Igaram in the other cage wanted to stop her, but after opening his mouth, he immediately closed it again. He understood that there truly was no other way out of this situation.

Ener turned to Vivi, anticipation appearing in his eyes. "Oh? Then tell me, how can you earn my trust?"

"Whew..."

Vivi took a deep breath and tried her best to calm herself. "My real name is Nefertari D. Vivi. I am the princess of the Alabasta Kingdom, as well as its sole heir. If you release me, you will gain the friendship of all Alabasta. With Alabasta's strength, we can help you advance further in your career."

"What?"

Before Ener could say anything, Miss Valentine beside her widened her eyes in shock. She was not the only one; everyone else reacted the same way!

As Baroque Works' brains, Mr. 2 immediately sensed something unusual. "Then why did you join Baroque Works?"

Vivi turned to look at him.

Then she smiled bitterly. "Because I suspect that everything Alabasta is currently facing—the drought and the rebel army—was caused by one of the Shichibukai, Sir Crocodile. I joined Baroque Works because I suspected it was an organization established by Crocodile."

"Ah?!!!"

The expressions on Mr. 2, Mr. 3, Miss Goldenweek, Mr. 5, and Miss Valentine's faces were more spectacular than the last. They had never known that the true master behind Baroque Works was actually Crocodile, one of the Shichibukai.

After recovering from their shock, they could not help exchanging glances.

If they had learned this before, they would definitely have cheered. After all, the more powerful their boss was, the more beneficial it was for them.

But now...

As they looked at Ener, their hearts sank. The greater their backgrounds and the heavier their crimes, the worse it would be for captives like them.

Ener, however, laughed. "What you said is easy enough to verify. I just need to investigate it. So although it sounds absurd, it is highly credible.

I'll tentatively believe you, but... what do I get out of this?

He's a Shichibukai, and a Logia user at that. Going up against him would not be a wise choice."

At those words, Vivi's eyes immediately dimmed.

But Igaram's eyes lit up. Vivi had not caught the implication, but how could an old hand like him fail to understand?

"I am Igaram, captain of the Alabasta Kingdom's Royal Guard. To protect Princess Vivi and investigate Baroque Works' secrets, I infiltrated Baroque Works with Princess Vivi and became an undercover agent. As long as you release us, you will not need to confront Crocodile..."

At that, he held up two fingers. "Two hundred million Beli. The Alabasta Kingdom will pay you two hundred million Beli as compensation."

He added, "Her Highness is the Alabasta Kingdom's only heir. So you need not worry that we will go back on our word. Our princess is worth that price... and if you help us deal with Crocodile, the reward the Alabasta Kingdom offers will definitely exceed your imagination."

"Oh..."

Ener became interested. "Go on."

Igaram held up two fingers again. "There are two Devil Fruits in Alabasta's royal treasury. As long as you agree..."

Before he could finish, Ener cut him off. "Two Devil Fruits are not enough to make me confront Crocodile head-on. He is one of the Shichibukai."

Hearing that, Igaram gritted his teeth. "There is more, but it is too important. I can only tell you privately."

"Oh?"

To be honest, the fact that they could offer two Devil Fruits had already surprised Ener. He truly could not imagine what else the Alabasta Kingdom could produce that would be more tempting.

Still, he leaned closer. The others tactfully moved far away.

At last, Igaram whispered a few words into Ener's ear. As Ener listened, his eyes filled with wild delight. "Is what you said true?"

This far exceeded Ener's expectations. To him, it was even more tempting than Vivi, the princess.