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Chapter 91 - Chapter 91

In the silent waters of the Calm Belt, near Amazon Lily, Noah—a vessel almost the same size as the island itself—lay quietly at anchor. The Fish-Man Island, which had been hovering over Marineford, had also been brought here by Adrian.

Inside the banquet hall of Empress's palace, Adrian, Boa Hancock, and Shirahoshi were seated together. The surrounding tables were filled with cadres and warriors from the Kingdom, all smiling and celebrating the triumphant return of Adrian and his crew. The male members—Bullet, Shiryu, and Van Augur—were not among them. They had consciously chosen to stay on the big ship, feasting on food and drink. Anyone with an ounce of sense could see the relationship between the Empress and Adrian, and no one wanted to offend their boss's future wife at a time like this.

"Wow, Sister Hancock, you're so beautiful. I wish I could be as beautiful as you," Shirahoshi gushed, having been captivated by the Empress's unique cold, arrogant, and peerlessly glamorous aura. Like a starstruck fan, she kept her eyes glued to the Empress, full of undisguised envy, completely oblivious to her own stunning beauty.

"Little Shirahoshi, your beauty is no less than mine. I'm sure in a few years, my title as the world's most beautiful woman will pass to you," the Empress said with a soft smile, her brows full of affection for this innocent "little" sister.

A sudden silence fell over the banquet hall.

"Did those words really come from our Empress?"

"Oh my God, Empress actually praised someone else?"

"Although Princess Shirahoshi is definitely a beauty, this is the first time in my life I've seen her compliment anyone but Lord Adrian."

"That's right, especially if it's another woman…"

Even the Empress's two younger sisters, Marigold and Sandersonia, were utterly bewildered. They knew their sister's temperament best. Aside from Adrian, she wouldn't compliment anyone, and she would even turn others into stone if they looked at her more than once. What was wrong with her today?

They would never guess the reason for the Empress's abnormal behavior. Adrian had secretly revealed Shirahoshi's true identity as Poseidon to her. Without him needing to say another word, the Empress's eyes, which were originally full of vigilance and a sense of crisis, immediately softened. The active "Harem Leader" buff started working instantly. Though I feel so jealous, how can I refuse such a simple, cute, and girl who has such a great influence on Adrian's future plans? My Lord, as a reward for me being so well-behaved, please have a baby with me!

Just as the Empress, in her "child-craving maniac" state, was holding her hot cheeks and replaying a scene of her marriage with Adrian in her mind, a stubborn little figure suddenly jumped in front of her.

"Girl! I absolutely disagree with bringing Amazon Lily to the New World! It's a chaotic place full of powerful enemies. If anything goes wrong, we could all be wiped out!" Gloriosa, holding her snake stick, jumped onto the table and pointed it at Adrian. "You defied the Marines and the World Government in front of the whole world because of this man… Snake Girl, you've been blinded by love! If you continue to act so recklessly, this kingdom will be destroyed because of you!"

"You bastard! You show no respect to a him!" The Empress, who had been shy and gentle as a maiden just a second ago, transformed into a raging tyrant. She grabbed Gloriosa's hair, lifted her roughly in front of her, and snarled, "You dare to use such a casual address as 'this man' to refer to Mr. Adrian? It's a capital offense! I have already given the Kingdom of Amazon Lily to Lord Adrian as a token of my marriage proposal. Even if it is destroyed because of this, I'll have no regrets!"

"Ah?!" Even Adrian was dumbfounded. He stared at the Empress. When did you propose to me?

"Ha ha ha ha ha ha… I'm so embarrassed! What do I do?! I accidentally said what was on my mind!" Seeing Adrian's gaze, the Empress's tyrannical aura vanished, and she couldn't even say a full sentence as she held her cheeks. Will Lord Adrian blame me for making my own decisions? Will he throw me into limbo? Will he dislike how small this island is? Damn it, it's all this dead old woman's fault! She made me embarrass myself in front of my Lord! Get lost, old hag! The Empress raised her foot, intending to kick old hag away.

"Hancock, stop!" Adrian's voice suddenly rang out.

Whoosh!

The Empress's kick stopped just inches from Granny Gloriosa's face. The gust of wind from her foot blew the old woman's hair into a frenzy.

"Gulp…" Granny, who had just narrowly escaped death, swallowed hard. That was so close. I almost died right there.

"Grandma, please don't worry. The New World is dangerous, but I will definitely protect Hancock and this Island," Adrian said with a solemn expression.

"I… I know," the old woman stammered, overwhelmed by his absolute confidence.

"I will definitely protect Hancock and the Island…"

"I'll protect Hancock…"

"Protect Hancock…"

The Empress's head spun. Suddenly, only she and Adrian were in her world, and the scene in front of her transformed into an auditorium. Is this… is this a marriage proposal? Haha! I suddenly feel it's very hard to breathe. Lord Adrian, would you please give me mouth-to-mouth resuscitation?

"Lord Adrian, your… your bounty has been announced!!" Betty, the Empress's newest little follower, suddenly ran in, holding a newspaper aloft.

"Hm?" Adrian took a look and immediately chuckled. "The World Government was quick to respond. They issued the bounty so fast, but… it's only 3 billion? Are they looking down on me?"

Hiss!

Everyone in the banquet hall gasped. A 3 billion bounty, and he still thinks they're looking down on him? Doesn't he know maths?

"Unexpectedly… 3 billion Berries?" Gloriosa was so shocked that she fell directly off the table. Even though the World Government and Marines hadn't publicly named him, this bounty alone was enough to make Adrian the top person just below the Yonko's. 

However, it wasn't just Adrian's bounty that had skyrocketed. The bounties of the few people who had fought with him also increased.

[Douglas Bullet, bounty of 1.5 billion Berries!]

[Portgas D. Ace, 1.35 billion Berries!]

[Shiryu of the Rain, 650 million Berries!]

[Boa Hancock, bounty of 580 million Berries!]

[Bello Betty, 333 million Berries!]

[Van Augur, 264 million Berries!]

Adding Adrian's 3 billion, their combined bounties reached a staggering 7.6 billion—a proper Four Emperors crew.

"My lord, my… my bounty has exceeded 300 million Berries…" Betty's little face was flushed with both excitement and fear. Before, her bounty was 0, the same as Adrian's. Now it was even higher than Combatant Van Augur's, and she was naturally overwhelmed.

"It seems the World Government has noticed your great potential," Adrian said with a smile. Betty's Devil Fruit had shown a surprising performance at the end of the Summit War. It was normal for it to attract attention. 

"My potential?" Being praised by Adrian made Betty's heart swell with happiness. But in front of the peerless beauties like the Empress and Shirahoshi, she, with her "mediocre" appearance, consciously retreated to the back.

"It's over, it's over! The Snake Princess's bounty has increased by 500 million! This is a devastating disaster…" After reading the newspaper, Granny Gloriosa collapsed to the ground, terrified by the bounties.

"Huh?" Just as everyone was still reeling from the massive bounties, Adrian's gaze caught Blackbeard's name on another page.

[Marshall D. Teach, 1.222 billion Berries!]

His lips curved into a slight smile. Blackbeard's bounty was more than a billion lower than in the original story.

At the same time, as Adrian was laughing, Blackbeard and his crew were aboard their ship, fleeing towards the New World, working desperately to brainwash the members of the Whitebeard Pirates he had rescued.

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