Boa Hancock lifted her head to look at the sharply styled, confident woman before her. The effortless poise and self-assurance radiating from Shakky filled Hancock's eyes with envy. She clutched the hem of her clothes, summoned her courage, and asked in a trembling voice, "E-excuse me… are you the former queen of Amazon Lily, Queen Shakky? I saw your portrait on the island. You look exactly the same…"
Shakky's expression softened into a gentle smile. She stepped forward and stroked Hancock's head. The warmth of her touch instantly relaxed the girl. "Not bad, kid. Didn't expect you to recognize me. Looks like the younger generation back on Amazon Lily have been paying attention," she said with a chuckle. "But I abdicated a long time ago. The current queen should be Gloriosa. You must have met her on the island, right?"
Hancock nodded hard, all obedience, most of her earlier tension gone.
Shakky drew back her hand, planted one arm on her hip, and gave a brisk nod, her eyes turning resolute. "In that case, you'll stay here. I was your queen once. When people from Amazon Lily get into trouble, how could I just sit back and watch? From now on, you'll train here with me and Rayleigh. No one's going to bully you again."
Rayleigh watched her decisive stance and could only shake his head with a helpless sigh, a flicker of fond indulgence in his eyes. This place was clearly her territory; he didn't really have a say.
Seeing everything settled, Shiro grinned in satisfaction and waved. "Then I'll leave them in your care. With you two around, I can relax."
Then he remembered the urgent matter still weighing on him and quickly added, "Rayleigh-sensei, Shakky, I've still got something important to take care of. I have to rush back to Mary Geoise, so I'll be going. Next time I'll stay and drink with you properly!"
With that, he activated the Paw-Paw Fruit again. A push of his palm, and an invisible force wrapped around him, launching him from the bar in an instant.
"This kid… always in such a rush. I barely get a few words in before he bolts," Rayleigh muttered, his right hand frozen mid-gesture as he stared at the spot where Shiro had vanished. He had wanted to talk a bit about training, but the boy was already gone. His grumble carried nothing but affection.
Meanwhile, inside a lavish Celestial Dragon mansion in Mary Geoise, the air stank of blood. Jinbei stood in the center of the room, having just finished a "lesson in virtue" on the bloated, pig-faced Celestial Dragon, who now lay sprawled on the floor, wailing in agony.
"Talk. Are you going to talk or not? Where are you keeping Tiger?"
Every punch Jinbei threw landed full force as he roared the question, fury blazing in his eyes. The thought of what Fisher Tiger might be enduring made it impossible for him to stay calm.
The Celestial Dragon wept and sniveled, blood and snot smearing his face until he looked utterly pitiful. Every time he tried to open his mouth, another fist crashed down, leaving him with no chance to form words—only choked groans of pain.
Eventually, when the man was barely clinging to life—breathing in more slowly than he was breathing out—Jinbei finally stopped. He hesitated, worried that if he hit even once more, he might accidentally beat the information right out of him forever.
"Why's this guy so stubborn? Even in this state he still won't talk?" Jinbei crouched down, rubbing his chin, brows knitted tight in confusion.
The Celestial Dragon, gasping for breath, summoned the last of his strength. "Y-you… you never let me… talk… You just kept hitting me… How was I supposed to say anything…?" he wheezed.
"Huh? That's what happened?"
Jinbei froze, scratched his head, and thought back. It did seem like he'd been swinging nonstop without giving the man a single opening. A moment later, realization dawned, and he slapped his thigh. "My bad. I got too worked up. I was so focused on saving Tiger that I forgot to pull back. That was my fault. You feeling better now? Can you talk?"
The Celestial Dragon felt a powerful urge to die on the spot. He had never met such an unreasonable fish-man.
After resting for over a minute, he finally managed to lift his head and rasp, "Th-that… Fisher Tiger… he's probably at the auction house… They're putting him up for sale… all the Celestial Dragons are waiting to bid…"
"Where is this auction house? Give me the exact location."
Jinbei's expression hardened, his eyes turning razor-sharp as he trembled with barely restrained urgency.
"N-northeast… about two kilometers from here… the tallest white building… that's the one…"
The Celestial Dragon's trembling hand pointed weakly toward the northeast. His voice faded as he spoke and his arm fell limp when he finished.
"Got it. If I'd known you'd talk this fast, I wouldn't have had to 'educate' you so much. What a waste of effort. You Celestial Dragons really have something wrong in the head—you don't tell the truth until you've been beaten senseless."
Jinbei stood and brushed the dust from his clothes, grumbling without the slightest politeness. The Celestial Dragon's chest heaved; one breath caught wrong, and his eyes rolled back as he fainted dead away.
Just then, Shiro appeared in the doorway in a blur of motion. Having rushed back with the Paw-Paw Fruit, he took one look around the room and called out urgently, "Well? Jinbei, did you find out where Tiger is? Where are they keeping him?"
"I did. They've got him at an auction house about two kilometers from here. He's probably being put up for sale right now."
Jinbei turned and nodded to him, then glanced at the unconscious pig-like noble, hesitating. "Captain, this swine of a Celestial Dragon is out cold. What should we do with him? Leaving him alive might cause trouble later."
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