"Lord Reddy, I apologize for my earlier rudeness."
Pudding put on a well-behaved demeanor and apologized to Reddy again, promising to do her best as a qualified tour guide to show Reddy around Whole Cake Island.
At the same time, she subtly hinted that this was a special treatment only Reddy could enjoy.
Reddy smiled without responding.
Big Mom's deliberate goodwill did not surprise him.
From the moment he received the invitation to the tea party, Reddy had already guessed Big Mom's intentions.
Her goal was undoubtedly the genetic technology he possessed.
Additionally, he had already demonstrated sufficient strength and officially earned Big Mom's recognition.
Now that he had Big Mom's tacit permission to tour the island, it was no longer strange.
Pudding led Reddy around the streets, feeling quite pleased with herself.
Everything had gone exactly as her brother Katakuri predicted.
Her earlier actions made her realize that Reddy had an unusually high tolerance for children. While diligently acting as a tour guide, her eyes darted around, searching for an opportunity to activate her Devil Fruit ability.
At the moment, however, Reddy wasn't paying much attention to Pudding. Instead, he was carefully observing the people on the street.
The ecosystem of Whole Cake Island—or rather, the entire Totto Land—was indeed something he could learn from.
The residents here did not seem overly afraid of the Big Mom Pirates.
The chess soldier patrol squads, whose presence had been reinforced due to the upcoming tea party, even received warm greetings from some of the residents.
Even Pudding, Big Mom's own daughter, was not seen as an unapproachable princess in the eyes of the residents. Instead, she was treated more like a neighbor's little girl.
Watching a cheerful middle-aged man greet Pudding, Reddy fell into thought.
He could tell that the residents' current mental state was not a temporary act but genuine happiness.
Big Mom provided them with a strong sense of security, freedom from food shortages, and even jobs so relaxed that they would make civilians from other kingdoms green with envy.
"Pudding-chan, would you like to see a magic trick?"
After leaving the relatively bustling street, Reddy called out to Pudding with a smile.
"Mm-hmm!"
Earlier, Reddy had just smiled without saying much, and she had exhausted all her ideas on how to close the distance between them.
Now that Reddy was taking the initiative, she immediately nodded eagerly, though she didn't understand why he was suddenly being so enthusiastic.
Reddy grinned and snapped his fingers.
Another Reddy appeared out of thin air in front of them.
Pudding was both shocked and delighted.
So this man was indeed a Devil Fruit user!
At this moment, she really wanted to immediately report this confirmed important intel to her brother Katakuri.
But she held back.
Because of her three-eyed heritage, she had been mocked as a monster by other children since childhood, and even some of her siblings kept their distance.
As a result, she developed a malicious personality unbefitting her age. Her well-behaved appearance was just a facade.
The only one who treated all siblings equally, Katakuri, was the best brother in her eyes, and she was willing to do her part for him.
However, she felt that merely confirming this important intel was far from enough.
"Are you a Devil Fruit user?"
Pudding looked up at Reddy with admiration, having already prepared her script. She just needed Reddy to respond so she could extract more information.
"Of course not."
Reddy shrugged with a smile.
Pudding was stunned and instinctively looked at the newly appeared clone.
"Remember?"
Reddy gestured for Pudding to step forward and verify it herself. "I said this was just a magic trick."
"Can I?"
Pudding's eyes lit up.
Right.
If she tested it herself, wouldn't everything become clear?
So she eagerly stepped forward and tentatively reached out to touch the clone's arm. Her eyes immediately widened.
This texture… it had to be real!
Pudding turned back to Reddy in confusion, her eyes asking why this clone, which was clearly real, was being called an illusionary magic trick.
Reddy gave a devilish smile.
At least, that was how Pudding saw it.
The clone raised its right hand the moment she turned her head and silently touched her shoulder.
Tap!
A soft sound followed as a doll in a princess dress fell to the ground.
"You liar!"
Pudding realized she had been tricked and gritted her teeth in anger, but to her horror, she found she could no longer speak. At the same time, Reddy seemed to grow larger and larger in her vision.
"What use is an idol's image to me?"
Reddy smiled, picked up the doll that was once Pudding, and weighed it in his hand.
Now he had figured it out.
Whether it was an open frontal hunt or a sneaky ambush, his goal remained the same.
To obtain useful genetic samples!
The construction of his ideal world had only just begun. Why trouble himself by adding more obstacles to an already thorny path?
The clone he had summoned earlier was naturally one infused with the powers of the Hobi Hobi no Mi.
There was no need for top-tier tools, so the energy consumption was low.
While creating this tool, he also discovered something interesting.
The Hobi Hobi no Mi could lock the user's physique, freezing it at the moment they ate the fruit.
Clones could be adjusted in age, physique, and other aspects when created.
The same applied to clones made from Reddy's own genes. However, when integrating the Hobi Hobi no Mi's powers, he accidentally discovered that specific gene sequences on the clone's DNA strands had been locked.
They could neither be extracted nor modified!
This led Reddy to wonder: If a user of the Ato Ato no Mi or the Toshi Toshi no Mi activated their abilities, could they alter the physique of a Hobi Hobi no Mi user?
This was a very interesting topic.
Reddy retracted the clone and carried the Pudding doll out of town.
The Hobi Hobi no Mi's ability could erase the victim's existence in every sense.
The commotion here was noticeable, but all the residents who witnessed it only remembered Reddy summoning a clone in public, completely forgetting Pudding's existence.
The surveillance system on Whole Cake Island was nearly perfect.
The Homies created by Big Mom were everywhere, forming an almost flawless monitoring network.
However, it had no effect on Reddy.
As he neared the edge of town, Reddy turned past a house made of chocolate, and a door suddenly opened in the air before him.
Reddy and Pyo passed each other as he stepped through the door.
Soon, the door disappeared.
Pyo walked past the chocolate house without expression, continuing forward under the watchful eyes of the Homies.
...
"MAMAMAMA… Katakuri!"
Big Mom grinned fiercely as she stared at Katakuri. "Is everything arranged with Dr. Reddy?"
"Mother!"
Katakuri frowned, vaguely feeling like he had forgotten something very important, but he couldn't recall what it was. Hearing Big Mom's question, he quickly composed himself and answered truthfully, "Dr. Reddy is currently touring the island. If he makes any suspicious moves, the Homies will report back immediately."
"Good!"
Big Mom was very satisfied with the efficiency of her most valued son.
Gathering all the races of the world was her dream.
The Lineage Factor technology Reddy possessed was undoubtedly the best way to achieve that dream.
The battle in the East Blue had already proven that achieving this goal through brute force would be difficult.
Thus, she placed great importance on this tea party.
"Mother…"
Katakuri finally voiced his concern. "Delaying the tea party is not a good idea. Please let me assist my brother in capturing the intruder on Whole Cake Island as soon as possible."
"But what about Dr. Reddy…"
Big Mom hesitated. Even she felt an inexplicable unease about Reddy touring the island.
Therefore, Katakuri's mission was of utmost importance and could not be compromised for minor gains.
Katakuri replied honestly, "Brulee is already monitoring all the mirrors on the island in the Mirror World. If he appears in front of any mirror, Brulee will detect it immediately and sound the alarm."
Simply monitoring Reddy would not be enough to prevent him from causing trouble on the island.
The best solution was to hold the tea party on schedule and not give Reddy too much time.
Big Mom was convinced. She stood up with a fierce grin. "Then go, Katakuri! I hope to present evidence at the tea party that will silence the Marines!"