Tesoro had been won over.
It was not merely because of that battle, in which he had been utterly suppressed and crushed from beginning to end.
It was also because of the dream he had never forgotten deep in his heart, through all the decades from his youth to his present success.
What gave the Celestial Dragons the right to stand above everyone else from birth? What gave them the right to buy anything they wanted?
What gave them the right to take away the girl he had once loved?
Inside the splendid, luxurious restaurant, servers bustled back and forth with all manner of delicacies. River and his companions sat around a table with Tesoro.
The atmosphere was quiet but peaceful, without the earlier hostility or palpable urge to fight.
Only the clinking of knives, forks, and spoons against dishes could be heard. Everyone had their heads down, eating with gusto.
Plates were piled high in front of Ace. Then, with a thud, his head dropped onto the table, and he began snoring, a bubble swelling from his nostril.
"He...?!"
Tesoro looked up at Ace in astonishment, confusion crossing his face.
"Don't mind him. It's a habit of his."
River smiled.
Cavendish ate in silence, looking rather speechless as he watched Ace beside him. Over the past few days, the man had fallen asleep in the middle of eating many times.
It often made him wonder whether the famous Fire Fist Ace had developed high blood sugar from eating too much.
"Is that so?"
Tesoro nodded, then looked at the newspapers beside him.
The stack was fairly thick. Quite a lot seemed to have happened while he was unconscious. The topmost paper was the latest, and its story concerned the Dressrosa Kingdom.
He's already made his move?
*He took islands