Welcoming Them Outside the City

Shyarly snapped, "You're just using us as free entertainers, aren't you?"

"Give it your best!" Miming took Queen Otohime's hand, ignoring Shyarly's tirade.

"Rest assured, Lord Miming!" Queen Otohime gripped his hand tightly. "We'll give it everything we've got! So who are these honored guests?"

"The Nefertari Royal Family of the great power, the Alabasta Kingdom!" Miming was more solemn than ever. He had even put on an imposing coat embroidered with dragons and a crown, looking every inch a king.

"Wow!" Queen Otohime perked up. Support from a great power would surely help their cause.

When King Cobra's procession entered Mary Geoise, the entire city erupted with excitement.

The Gorosei personally went outside the city to welcome him, a gesture signifying that all the Celestial Dragons welcomed the Nefertari Family back to the Holy Land. Only with their arrival could the twenty kings who had created the world be gathered there once more.

The grand welcoming party escorted King Cobra and Princess Vivi straight into Pangaea Castle. The doors to the throne room stood wide open, and bells rang twenty-one times throughout the city—the World Government's highest honor for a visiting king.

"Though the Nefertari Family does not reside in the Holy Land, the weapon your ancestor left behind still stands before the throne, symbolizing an eternal oath." The Gorosei made an earnest appeal. "Take up residence in Mary Geoise, King Cobra!"

"I'm sorry, but I can't accept such a generous invitation for now." King Cobra smiled. "Alabasta is in peril. As its king, I cannot abandon my people. Perhaps when Vivi is grown, I'll be able to come to the Holy Land with my mind at ease."

"We will always look forward to your arrival, King Cobra." The Gorosei sighed, knowing it was no easy decision for him.