"Well, those two sure know how to liven up the mood."
Sanji chuckled as he brought over tables, chairs, a stove, and a grill, setting up the equipment while asking Allen,
"What are your plans for the Devil Fruits? Are you going to give them to those brothers?"
"It depends. I had the seller ask the middleman to bring a Devil Fruit Encyclopedia. If the abilities aren't too bad, I'll just give them to those two," Allen sighed softly.
He casually lit a cigar, clamped it between his teeth, and sat down on a nearby chair.
If it was some garbage like a Mouse Fruit or a Rabbit Fruit, he wouldn't want to feed it to the brothers. But giving them something too top-tier would make Allen's heart ache a little.
He didn't want his brothers to be weak, but handing them top-tier powers felt like a bit of a waste—that perfectly summed up his current mood.
After all, logically speaking, it would be much more fitting to give any truly powerful fruits to Gin or Sanji.
...
Snow covered the branches of the fir trees, their needles drooping as if coated in white icing.
Inside a tree hollow, a sleeping squirrel was warmly nestled among a pile of hazelnuts, completely undisturbed by the cheerful laughter outside.
In the snow at the edge of the forest, Allen and the others gathered around the stove, warming their wine.
Sanji and the First Division crew members skillfully manned the nearby grills, continuously serving up sizzling, juicy steaks.
A large crowd of pirates surrounded them, drooling in eager anticipation.
Before long, the faint silhouette of a ship appeared on the vast, white sea, slowly approaching the island.
Allen glanced up, barely able to make out the pirate flag flying on the approaching vessel.
The seller wouldn't be showing up in person for this transaction. To ensure their own safety, they had commissioned a middleman to handle the trade.
Allen was no stranger to this middleman. It was the Donquixote Family, the arms syndicate that held the largest share of the underground weapons market.
Of course, the ones arriving weren't the core Donquixote Family members active in the New World, but rather a pirate crew serving under Doflamingo.
Out on the sea.
A man stood at the bow of the ship. He had long sky-blue hair, wore an open fur coat, and had a large kukri knife strapped to his waist.
"I see them, Bellamy."
"Big Knife" Sarkies smirked. He lowered his binoculars, kept one arm wrapped around the woman in his embrace, and glanced back.
"So that's them, huh? The pirate crew that had a massive brawl with Drake's gang a couple of days ago."
From behind, "Hyena" Bellamy stepped forward, his blue cape fluttering. He gazed toward the coast with a mocking look in his eyes and said,
"I was pretty surprised when I heard the news. I didn't expect to run into them today. Let's go, bring the ship in."
"Yes, sir!"
...
The Bellamy Pirates' ship slowly docked. Next to the massive *Vell*, their vessel looked like a mere child's toy.
The pirates on the island all looked over as several figures jumped down from the ship, followed by thirty or forty subordinates who gradually disembarked.
Bellamy brought along eight of his officers, both men and women. The group of nine walked toward Allen, passing through the scrutinizing gazes of the surrounding pirates.
"Hey, hey, hey, your subordinates are pretty intimidating. There's no need to stare at us like that, is there?"
Bellamy walked forward with a wide grin.
Allen didn't say anything, nor did he stand up. He simply offered a silent smile and said,
"Come sit down and let's talk. Try some of the meat our chef roasted. It's absolutely beyond anything you could imagine."
"Gahahaha, you're not too bad yourself! Then I won't hold back."
Bellamy let out an arrogant laugh, then stepped up and took a seat at the table. A cook brought over a plate loaded with chunks of meat and set it in front of him.
He skewered a piece of meat with his fork and took a massive bite. As he chewed, Bellamy suddenly froze, his expression changing drastically.
"This...! This is...!"
"You've gotta be kidding me!"
Bellamy yelled, his eyes wide as saucers.
Thinking something had gone wrong, Sarkies and the others behind him were startled and nearly drew their weapons.
A second later, however, they saw him staring excitedly at the meat on his plate as he shouted in disbelief,
"This roast is way too delicious, hey!"
"..."
Hearing this, Sarkies and the others breathed a sigh of relief, quickly followed by a wave of speechlessness.
*Seriously, man? We thought you were poisoned.*
*Getting all worked up over a piece of meat. I thought you were about to start a double-cross and I almost drew my blade, but you just end up screaming about how good it tastes.*
Sarkies grumbled inwardly.
"Hahahaha! I told you, didn't I? Sanji's cooking is world-class."
Allen threw his head back and laughed loudly, then turned to Bellamy. "Tell your men to come up too. There's plenty of meat, so don't be shy."
"Gahahaha! Then don't blame me for having a big appetite."
Bellamy laughed in response and waved to the people behind him.
"We can't just eat without drinking! Food this good needs to be paired with fine liquor. Sarkies, have the men bring over those two barrels of booze I've been saving!"
"Finally willing to drink them, huh? I've been craving those for a long time."
Sarkies licked his lips, his eyes burning with eagerness.
Soon, the liquor was brought up, and the delicious food was served.
This black market business meeting inexplicably turned into a wild banquet between two pirate crews.
"This is absolutely amazing!"
"Do you guys get to eat food this delicious every day? That's way too lucky!"
"Your booze isn't bad either, hahaha!"
The Nyaban Brothers and Bellamy's officers threw their arms around each other's shoulders, mingling together in a lively and boisterous atmosphere.
Amidst the surrounding gazes of admiration, Sanji wasted no time directly flirting with two of their single female crew members.
Allen and Bellamy cheerfully raised their glasses and drank together.
Nearby, Nami clenched her fists, closed her eyes, and said in exasperation,
"Hey, Allen, don't you think you guys forgot something important?"
Hearing this, Bellamy slapped his forehead in realization. "Oh, right! I was enjoying the food so much I almost forgot."
"Hey, Sarkies! Bring those two things over here."
"Oh! Coming, Bellamy."
Sarkies walked over with a smile, holding a wooden mug in one hand and keeping his other arm wrapped around a woman.
His face was flushed with drunkenness as he clumsily pulled an encyclopedia and two treasure chests from beneath his fur coat, handing them to Bellamy.
"Here you go. The Devil Fruits and the encyclopedia you asked for are all right here."
Bellamy placed the items on the table and grinned.
"We've already inspected the goods beforehand. As the middlemen, we guarantee there are no issues whatsoever. You can inspect them all you want."
"I trust the Donquixote Family's business reputation. Buchi, Sham, bring the money over."
Allen smiled and waved to the men behind him.
"Coming, Boss."
The Nyaban Brothers eagerly stepped forward carrying several black briefcases. They placed them on the table and popped them open, revealing cases packed full of neatly stacked Berries.
Bellamy didn't hide anything either, proceeding to open his chests to show the goods.
Two fruits covered in spiral patterns, shaped somewhat like animal heads, lay quietly inside.
He then pushed the thick encyclopedia over and said,
"This encyclopedia contains ability descriptions for the vast majority of fruits, but it only includes the visual appearances for a portion of them."
"Even so, this is the most comprehensive encyclopedia you can get your hands on in the market. A more complete version probably only exists in the hands of the World Government."
Bellamy explained, then flashed a smile. "I recognized them when I received the fruits from the seller. You're definitely not losing out on this trade."
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