"Miss Kaya?"
"Butler Klahadore?"
The burly man who had arrived at the villa's gate knocked on the door while loudly shouting, "Merry? Are you home? A young master needs your help!"
Hearing the continuous shouts from outside the door, the well-dressed man standing in front of the villa frowned slightly, then straightened his clothes and walked with elegant steps to the courtyard gate, opening it a crack. He said coldly, "Haven't I told you? Miss Kaya has not been well recently and needs to rest at home. If you keep shouting here, I'll throw you out!"
"Don't misunderstand, Butler Klahadore!"
The burly man said with a flattering smile, "It's not Miss Kaya I'm looking for, but This Young Master beside me. They need Merry to help design a ship!"
Klahadore, in his suit and tie, glanced at Ian, his expression grim. He said, "There are so many shipwrights in Syrup Village. You should find someone else. Merry needs to stay home and take care of the young lady!"
With that, Klahadore was about to close the door and send them away.
"One hundred million!"
Just as the door was about to close, Ian suddenly stepped forward, a smile on his face. He said, "As long as Merry helps draw the ship's design blueprints, This Young Master will give him one hundred million Berries. The cost of building the ship will be calculated separately!"
"If the ship is built to This Young Master's satisfaction, I will give another one hundred million Berries as a reward! Of course, if Butler Klahadore can help with this and persuade Merry to assist, This Young Master will not treat you unfairly either; I will personally give you fifty million Berries as compensation!"
"!!!!!"
Hearing the astronomical figures of compensation and rewards that Ian kept mentioning, both the muscular man who had led Ian here and Butler Klahadore standing inside the door had their pupils contract sharply.
The muscular man's reaction was the most exaggerated; after his pupils constricted, he said in disbelief, "How big of a ship is Milord planning to build? Just the design blueprints alone are worth so much!"
Although Butler Klahadore didn't show an overly exaggerated reaction, he was also deeply shocked by Ian's generosity.
His name wasn't Klahadore; his real name was Kuro, a pirate known as The Hundred Plans.
The reason he came to Syrup Village under the alias Klahadore and became Kaya's butler was to get his hands on Kaya's wealth, as she was a beautiful, rich woman.
Because Kaya's parents were once the wealthiest in Syrup Village, and after their deaths, they left all their property to Kaya.
However, compared to the lavish young master in front of him, Kaya, who inherited her parents' fortune and became the new wealthiest person in Syrup Village, seemed somewhat insignificant.
Just for Merry to draw a design blueprint, he was offering two hundred million Berries, and he himself would receive fifty million Berries just for agreeing to let Merry help. He couldn't imagine how much wealth This Young Master possessed.
One must know that even at his peak as a pirate, renowned in the East Blue, his highest bounty was only sixteen million Berries!
Such a fat sheep made it difficult for Kuro not to be tempted.
As long as he kept them here, had Merry design and build a ship for them, and then, when this group of people left, he could contact his former pirate crew members to ambush them. This way, even if This Young Master had an astonishing background, he wouldn't be able to trace it back to Kuro!
Thinking this, Kuro discreetly opened the door, then stepped forward and looked at Ian, sweeping away his previous gloomy expression. He said politely and gentlemanly, "How may I address you, sir?"
"My name is Nelona Ian, and I hail from the Oykot Kingdom!" Ian maintained a polite smile and explained, "I came to the East Blue with my female companions for a trip, but we encountered an accident which caused our ship to sink. Hearing that Syrup Village has many villagers who work as shipwrights, we came here for help!"
"Rest assured, sir, as long as the ship is built and I return safely to my homeland, there will certainly be a generous reward!"
"However, while the ship is being built, we will need to stay here for a period of time!"
The Oykot Kingdom is a country in the East Blue, and also one of the World Government's allied nations.
Ian didn't know about this country at first; the reason he could say it so smoothly was entirely because Anna, the maid beside him, was the princess of the Oykot Kingdom.
Of course, Ian brought up the Oykot Kingdom mainly to confuse Kuro, the pirate who went by the alias Klahadore, in front of him.
Kuro, once known by the alias The Hundred Plans, was famous in the East Blue. He even faked his death to deceive the Marine who pursued him back then, all for the sake of Kaya's family fortune. This proves that he not only possessed ruthless methods but was also a master of schemes.
Throughout the entire pirate world, most strong individuals disliked convoluted tactics; they were almost always straightforward, indifferent to life and death, and would fight if challenged. Those who engaged in schemes and trickery could be described as few and far between.
Now that a target who enjoyed playing dirty tricks was right in front of him, Ian naturally wouldn't miss this opportunity to play along with Kuro.
Although Ian appeared very polite and was astonishingly generous, Kuro still dared not be careless.
Especially the woman beside Ian, who wore her underwear over her clothes, a cape, and a newsboy cap. Even though she was suppressing her aura, her inherent noble temperament and contemptuous gaze made one inexplicably uneasy.
However, when Kuro's gaze swept over the other four equally distinguished women, he immediately relaxed from the pressure brought by the newsboy-capped woman.
Because he could be certain that, apart from the newsboy-capped woman, everyone else beside Ian was useless, merely for show.
He thus deduced the identity of Ian's group: Ian was most likely from a wealthy family in the Oykot Kingdom, perhaps even a noble. The woman in the newsboy cap was probably Ian's bodyguard and maid, while the other four attractive women were surely Ian's female companions.
Thinking this, Kuro said without a change in expression, "It's no problem for you to stay here. However, because the young lady is ill in bed, I hope everyone will remain quiet and not disturb her!"
Ian smiled and nodded, simultaneously tossing a money bag to Kuro. "These gold coins are for the cost of our stay during this period. Butler Klahadore, please accept them!"
Kuro didn't refuse; he took the money bag, turned sideways, and said very gentlemanly, "Please come in, everyone."
As soon as Ian and the others followed Kuro into the villa's living room, a bedroom door on the second floor suddenly opened, and then a figure emerged from the bedroom. It was the owner of this large house, Kaya, the beautiful and rich young lady of Syrup Village!
Kaya, with her shoulder-length short hair, wearing a light blue dress and plush slippers, looked at Ian and the others entering the living room with wide, surprised eyes. Due to her prolonged illness in bed, her already fair skin appeared even paler, and her sickly appearance evoked pity.
Just then, Ian, who had entered the living room, looked up to the second floor. The moment their gazes met, Kaya's beautiful eyes widened in surprise.
With sword-like brows and starry eyes, a face like polished jade, and an innate kingly demeanor in every gesture.
And that extremely aggressive gaze, once met, was impossible to forget.
After a brief two-second eye contact with Ian, a blush, unprecedented for Kaya, actually rose on her previously pale face. Her heartbeat suddenly accelerated, making her afraid to meet Ian's gaze again, and she shyly turned away.
However, she quickly realized that this was her own house and immediately turned back to Kuro, feigning composure. She said, "Klahadore, they are..."
"Audacious woman!"
Before Kaya could finish her sentence, Gunko, who was always by Ian's side, suddenly stepped forward and said coldly, "Standing on the second floor to greet noble guests, do you wish for Young Master to look up to you? Get down here this instant!"
Gunko's sudden outburst left Ian full of questions. He mechanically tilted his head, his facial muscles twitching as he said, "Gunko—"
"Ah..."
Gunko seemed to awaken from a dream and quickly bowed, saying, "My apologies, Young Master. Gunko couldn't hold back. Please punish me, Young Master."
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