Watching Caesar Clown standing there, changing his expression on his own yet making no inappropriate moves, Sherwin let out a regretful sigh inwardly.
Because if nothing unexpected happened, this time Caesar would use the "artificial giant" research project to swindle a massive amount of research funding from Big Mom.
Even if his main goal was still to tinker with that "Land of Death," in order to deal with Big Mom, Caesar would definitely, just like in the manga, capture a group of innocent children for human experimentation.
So just now, if Caesar had shown even the slightest hint of hostility toward them, Sherwin would have taken action immediately and killed him on the spot.
Unfortunately, Caesar was simply too greedy for his own life. He didn't reveal a single flaw for Sherwin to seize.
It seemed that the only option was to find a way to kill this guy after leaving Totto Land.
Sherwin wasn't overly disappointed at missing the chance to act. After all, Caesar own strength was mediocre. As long as his exact location was known, killing him would be easy enough.
It was just that by then, he would already be "one of Big Mom people," so when Sherwin made his move, he would have to be careful not to be discovered.
After all, they had already offended Kaido if possible, it was best not to provoke Big Mom as well…
Of course, if the Big Mom Pirates truly turned hostile toward them later on, then there would be no need to worry about such things anymore.
And looking on the bright side, killing Caesar outside Totto Land would also make it more convenient for Sherwin to use the Hunter knife to carry out "material carving."
Thinking of this, Sherwin sour mood caused by Caesar appearance improved slightly.
"Dear guests, please hurry along. The tea party is about to begin, and Mama doesn't like people being late."
Seeing that the conversation among Sherwin group had come to an end, Perospero immediately stepped forward to remind them.
"Oh—! We get to eat delicious sweets again, meow!"
(==)
Klee Meow immediately tugged on Sherwin ear and urged him, "Brother Sherwin, let hurry up and go up there and grab a good spot, meow!"
"If you don't mind, lick~ allow me to send everyone over,"
Perospero waved the candy cane in his hand. "Candy Escalator!"
A gigantic rotating escalator made entirely of candy appeared before everyone eyes.
The crystal-clear steps spiraled upward, leading straight to the top of the Cake Castle, and the steps themselves automatically climbed upward.
"No matter how many times I see it, this candy technology… it really looks like art!"
Morgans, who had already attended several tea parties and long since witnessed this trick, exclaimed with emotion.
Du Feld and Pieckro and the others, seeing it for the first time, were even more astonished.
On the contrary, the reactions of the Felynes were rather calm…
After all, compared to Klee Meow vividly lifelike flame summons and Shermie Meow lightning clones that were realistic enough to deceive even Observation Haki, this candy escalator was nothing special.
Riding the candy escalator all the way up, everyone soon arrived at the top of the Cake Castle.
Numerous round tables and chairs were arranged among various fairy-tale-like Homies, and several of BIG MOM children with food-related abilities were using their powers to entertain the guests.
"Ugh…"
Although she had already seen Charlotte Smoothie squeezing ability back when they landed on the juice-themed 100% Island, seeing her once again expressionlessly "turn" a human into a drink still made Shirahoshi let out an instinctive cry of distress.
Sherwin cast an indifferent glance at the guest who had ordered "human juice"…
Unfamiliar—he wasn't a character from the plot—and judging by the look on the other party face, they clearly weren't here to drink a beverage at all, but rather enjoyed watching others be dehydrated into human jerky during the process.
There really were a lot of psychopaths in the pirate world.
Sherwin sighed softly to himself, then gently patted Shirahoshi, saying nothing more.
Everything that needed to be warned had already been told to Shirahoshi long ago she just needed a bit more time to grow accustomed to the true nature of this world.
Skirting around the real "juicing demon," Charlotte Smoothie, Sherwin led the Felynes to a table that looked fairly acceptable and sat down, quietly waiting for the tea party to begin…
Well, with a whole bunch of little mischievous cats around them, it couldn't really be called "quiet."
"Brother Sherwin, Brother Sherwin! There are so many Homies here! Can Klee summon Dodo Bear too and let it play with them, meow?"
(==)
The little ragdoll tugged at Sherwin ear as she shouted.
After having multiple interactions with Prometheus, Klee Meow flame summon really had become more intelligent.
Although it was still in a rather "artificially dumb" state, at least there was a clear direction of improvement.
As for how she managed to do it…
"Klee doesn't know, meow! It just felt like doing it this way would work, and then it worked, meow!"
That was how the Spark Knight answered, anyway.
"Don't mess around. A lot of these Homies are made of cream and candy—once they're hit with fire, they'll all be ruined."
Sherwin picked up the noisy little troublemaker, and after a round of Azure Star Style · Felyne Massage Technique, Klee Meow immediately settled down, obediently sprawled across his lap and began to purr.
And then…
The other little furballs also started to make a ruckus.
"All right, all right, stop pretending. Line up properly and come one by one…"
Sherwin sighed helplessly and switched Klee Meow in his arms with Haibara Meow, who was just about to pour a potion into Shermie Meow mouth and then secretly drug the other guest teacups.
As for the cats he couldn't attend to for the moment, Robin—naturally blessed with the physique of a cat-petting saint—helped soothe them.
Morgans at the side also wanted to lend a hand, but his feathered wings were met with unanimous disdain from the cats. Instead, Stussy, a hidden CP agent, successfully managed to pet Klee Meow…
Don't be fooled by how easygoing Klee Meow usually looked. In reality, it wasn't easy for outsiders to touch her. By comparison, the other cats were actually easier to approach.
Only those who held a certain degree of goodwill toward the entire research team, and who wouldn't be disliked by the little ragdoll, were allowed to lay a hand on her.
Among Sherwin previous group of "blind dates," not to mention Charlotte Brûlée, that two-faced little spy—even the two half-merfolk failed to gain Klee Meow favor. So at least for now, Stussy attitude toward Sherwin and the others should be relatively friendly.
Of course, for a CP agent like Stussy, having goodwill didn't mean she wouldn't take action against them.
But Sherwin was still a Shichibukai at present, barely counting as being in a cooperative relationship with the World Government.
The only thing that really needed attention was probably Robin safety.
Amid everyone happily petting cats together, the tea party officially began.
"Thank you all for traveling such great distances to come here!"
Charlotte Linlin stepped before the crowd and welcomed them loudly. "No matter whether you look left or right! Everything you see is sweets! Eat as much as you can, drink as much as you can, and enjoy yourselves to your heart content!"
After the brief opening remarks, a chess-piece Homie walked out holding a photograph of Mother Carmel and placed it on the main table.
Sherwin looked at that photo, and a somewhat reckless thought suddenly arose in his mind—
If Big Mom were to learn Mother Carmel true identity, what kind of reaction would she have?