Hina felt out of place.
When Dier pulled the Female Captain into the cabin, Robin didn't bat an eye, but Hina thought Dier must be truly desperate.
Now the two were speaking the same word in unison, yet she hadn't even heard of it before.
"Hina is superfluous."
"No, you just arrived later than us."
Dier picked up a napkin to wipe his mouth and explained:
"The Poneglyphs are indestructible stone tablets inscribed with ancient text recording various information."
"As for why we're so excited..."
"Can I tell her?"
He cast an inquiring glance at Robin.
After all, this concerned Robin's privacy, and he wouldn't disclose it without her consent.
"You may not."
Robin shook her head, rejecting Dier's request, then suddenly linked arms with Hina.
"If anyone should tell her, it should be me."
Hina's expression shifted from disappointment to delight.
The two young women stood shoulder to shoulder, heads bowed as they whispered about past stories.
Dier tactfully picked up his plate and left the room.
He still hadn't eaten his fill.
"Si-sir, would you like to order more?"
A waiter from further away immediately jogged over, forcing a smile:
"The kitchen is working hard, your ten set meals will be ready shortly."
This gentleman was a big spender.
Thud!
The two-meter-tall white-haired man placed a hand on his shoulder, his broad smile disarmingly friendly,
"Friend, do you trust me?"
The waiter didn't quite understand the meaning behind these words, but could only agree:
"Of course, of course! Our service philosophy is absolute trust in our customers!"
"Good, then take me to the kitchen. I'm going to fight them to the death!"
Before long, furious shouts erupted from the restaurant kitchen.
A hungry customer had chased them into the kitchen?!
This was nothing short of utter humiliation for the chefs.
The rookie prepping ingredients made afterimages with his knife, the chopping board thundering under his blows.
The pastry chef wished he could breathe fire to bypass the slow ovens.
The wok master brandished his Qilin Arm, wielding a spatula with the majesty of a treasured blade.
The plating chef was temporarily fired—there was no need for presentation when dishes went straight from pan to mouth.
Dier accepted everything without complaint, standing at the kitchen doorway devouring food like an insatiable mountain god overlooking his tireless culinary worshippers.
...
"Burp~"
He let out a satisfied belch, clasped his hands together with sincere gratitude:
"I'm full now, thanks for the meal!"
His damaged eardrums had healed, his depleted stamina restored.
This meal had been thoroughly satisfying.
Hearing this, the panting chefs beamed as if they'd won a great battle:
"Hahaha! We did it!!"
"Now you've seen a chef's endurance, kid!"
"Nobody leaves my wok hungry!"
Dier smirked, bowed deeply, then stepped around the mountain of empty plates and left without looking back.
That bow wasn't gratitude—it was apology for dining and dashing.
The money he carried couldn't possibly cover this feast.
"I'll have Bege come settle the bill later."
"And that Female Captain... might as well have Bege take her too. Come to think of it, does Bege have a thing for that body type?"
Musing over such trivial matters, Dier hurried back to the private room to collect the two women before making their escape.
As soon as he pushed the door open, he heard Hina's furious voice.
"Bombarding a refugee ship?! Is that Marine a mad dog?!"
"Hina hates him!"
Having just heard the tragedy of Ohara, she immediately developed a strong dislike for the Marine Vice Admiral who ordered the bombardment.
Her disgust extended to the entire Marine organization.
"And here I thought the Marines stood for justice! To think they'd do something like this!!"
"Alright, time to get moving. We still need to find an inn."
Dier stepped forward, picked up the Den Den Mushi, tucked it into his coat, and quickly led the two women out of the shop.
As for whether the Marines were good or bad?
He didn't want to comment much, but he didn't think the Marines had a bright future.
"Hina, maybe you should consider taking up boxing for a couple years. It might have surprising effects."
"Hina refuses."
Under the moonlight, the three of them jogged away down the street.
Arriving at another street, they paid 20,000 Belly and got a luxurious suite with private bathrooms and two bedrooms.
Their long experience on the run had made Dier and Robin develop habits—sleeping as close as possible for quick escapes when needed.
When they had the means, a luxury suite; moderate conditions meant two rooms close together; when desperate, they'd squeeze into one bed.
Now the three sat cross-legged in the living room, discussing their plan of action.
They would definitely go.
History was Robin's dream.
But how to get there was still a question.
"The general location is here!"
Robin's face flushed as she drew a circle on the nautical chart with a pen.
The book they'd bought earlier was just a children's storybook and didn't specify the exact location.
Its author was said to have already set sail to continue gathering material.
Moreover, the nautical chart also didn't mark this nameless island.
Robin could only estimate a rough area based on due east direction and three days' travel.
There were no other islands near the circled area, and the small island they were currently on was the closest to it.
"Tomorrow we'll take a ship to this island first, then transfer from there to this one..."
Route A passed the left side of the circular area, Route B the right, Route C the top...
They would keep transferring ships and crisscross the area until they found the nameless island.
"No need for such trouble."
Dier waved his hand, dismissing Robin's proposal.
While safe, it was slow and time-consuming.
"Tomorrow we'll hijack a slightly larger cargo ship and head straight for that sea area for a carpet search."
Unlike passenger ships, cargo ships didn't have as many people needing Hypnosis.
This time was different from last—back then they'd chosen a small cargo ship easy to hijack for a quick getaway.
This time, as long as they boarded, with a few extra days, he could use Hypnosis to fully control the ship.
If the crew were all married women, one day might suffice.
"But how will we land? Didn't the book say the island's natives refuse outsiders?"
"Hina wonders."
"Well, we'll figure it out when we get there. We'll think of something."
Dier stood up and stretched, walking briskly toward the bedroom.
He'd been missing the soft bed for a while now.
"Goodnight, you two should rest early too."
Click~
The door closed.
Hina couldn't help but yawn, feeling somewhat sleepy.
Though she hadn't exerted much effort—most of the time she'd just hung onto Dier like an accessory.
But mental fatigue was unavoidable.
Encountering a monstrous Sea Cow, fleeing in a small boat, being bound by chains, enduring the pursuit of frenzied townsfolk, and hijacking a cargo ship with a Black Gun.
Within forty-eight hours, she had experienced a series of extraordinary events.
Now that everything had finally settled, all she wanted was a good night's sleep.
"Robin, stop staring. Come on, let's go take a bath."