Two days later.
Cain got his hands on the latest issue of the World Economy News Paper.
The moment his eyes landed on the article about him and Uta, his pupils shrank sharply.
Then—
"LAW! YAMATO! LET GO OF ME! I'M NOT STOPPING UNTIL I BUTCHER THAT BASTARD TODAY! NO, KILLING HIM WOULD BE TOO MERCIFUL. I'M GOING TO ROAST HIM MEDIUM-WELL!"
Cain struggled so hard that the veins in his neck bulged.
Yamato stood in front of him, desperately bracing her kanabo against him, while Law and the crew tugged at his arms from behind.
Even then, they could barely hold him back, and they were nearly dragged into the sea along with him.
All of them felt utterly helpless.
They had already been forced to go to Totto Land because of Cain and Uta's situation, and now, on top of that, he was about to create another whole pile of trouble for no reason.
"What's the point of rushing over now? The paper's already been out for a day. That guy has probably run off long ago," Law patiently advised him.
"Besides, what's the difference between roasting him medium-well and killing him? Wouldn't that still be letting him off easy?"
"Isn't there still you? You can keep the remaining twenty percent alive for me! Damn it, Morgans! You'd better wait for me!"
Cain ripped the newspaper to shreds in one motion, his roar shaking the deck until it buzzed.
But in the next second, Uta's voice floated over from a little farther away as she spoke into a video Den Den Mushi.
"Everyone, you must defeat the evil dragon and come save me!"
The Den Den Mushi hung up with a click.
Cain's roar stopped dead.
He froze in place.
A few seconds later, he wilted and crouched in the corner, drawing circles on the wooden planks with his fingertip, the tip of his nose turning red.
"Even Uta said that…"
His muttering voice sounded both wronged and lost.
"I just wanted to be the knight-prince protecting the princess. How did I become the evil dragon who kidnapped her?"
Law held his forehead and sighed.
Yamato also commented that Cain looked exactly like Ace had before.
The crew all turned their faces away, their shoulders trembling as they held back laughter.
Even Bepo covered his mouth, the tips of his ears twitching lightly.
"THAT'S ENOUGH, BEPO!" Cain shouted repeatedly.
It was one thing for everyone else to laugh, but what was going on with Bepo?
And where had that prince outfit come from?!
There shouldn't have been anything like that on the ship!
"Ah, sumimasen!"
Bepo immediately admitted his mistake and apologized, his attitude sincere.
Most likely because he apologized so often in daily life, he had become this practiced at it.
Cain did not really take it to heart and forgave Bepo on the spot.
At that moment, Uta walked over as well. She raised a hand to rub Cain's head, then pinched his chin and smiled.
"A prince may have wives and concubines, but an evil dragon only has one princess. And you are the evil dragon who belongs only to me."
She said the words "only to me" especially slowly, her final syllable lifting lightly.
This, this, this, this wasn't right, was it?
He was supposed to be the male lead.
Shouldn't he be the one winning Uta over?
How had he ended up being won over by her instead?
Uta looked way too cool like this. Could she really pull off any style?
No, wait.
If things kept going like this, wouldn't he become the one underneath?
Cain suddenly clutched his head and jumped up. He grabbed Uta's hand, his face full of helplessness.
"Aaah, seriously, Uta, at least let me do some boyfriend-like things, okay? Why are you the one saying all the romantic lines? And you just had to say something that hit me right in the…"
His final word came out extremely quietly, as soft as a mosquito's buzz.
The moment Cain finished speaking, he immediately turned his head and glared fiercely at Law and the others.
His expression made it very clear that certain things had better not be spread around.
Then he saw Law and the others all looking in the same direction.
"Tch. A bounty of 2.3 billion, and in the end, this is all you amount to? Getting tied down by a woman. Heh."
A cold sneer suddenly came from the side.
Cain instantly turned his head and shouted angrily,
"WHO SAID THAT?!"
His gaze swept over, and only then did he see another ship floating on the nearby sea.
The Fire Tank Pirates.
The one who had spoken just now was their captain, the West Blue mafia godfather, Capone Bege.
Judging from the situation, they had clearly just entered the New World as well.
Everyone knew that pirates who entered the New World had only three paths: join one of the Four Emperors and serve under them, become one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, or directly challenge the Four Emperors.
Just as Law's target was Beasts Kaido, Capone Bege's target was Big Mom.
In that sense, their route happened to align with Cain's group.
On top of that, Law's submarine saved them the trouble of coating and had directly crossed beneath Fish-Man Island.
Its speed was far beyond an ordinary ship, and since it had been submerged and traveling through the night, running into them now was understandable.
Law and the others moved as if they were about to attack, but Cain quickly stopped them and stared closely at Bege.
After giving Uta a reassuring look, he jumped straight onto Bege's ship.
In an instant, everyone aboard aimed their guns at him.
Cain did not care at all and spoke directly.
"What did you just say?"
Bege's face remained cold as he repeated himself.
"I said, a bounty of 2.3 billion, and in the end, this is all you amount to? Getting tied down by a woman… heh."
Capone Bege was a ruthless man who intended to go after one of the Four Emperors.
Even facing Cain, who had a bounty of 2.3 billion, he showed no fear at all. Instead, he spoke with an air of superiority.
Cain was not especially angry.
Thinking about the situation Bege was going to face in Totto Land, he could not help but laugh.
The corner of his mouth curled into a wicked smile.
"I hope you'll still be able to say that in the future. ⌓⌣⌓"
"Hey, brat. What's with that expression?"
Bege's voice sank slightly, but he still restrained his temper and got straight to the point.
"The outside world says you're part of the Charlotte Family. Is that true or not?"
"I wouldn't know. They're the ones who recognized me on their own. What, do you want to join them? Should I introduce you?"
Cain had already seen through Capone Bege's intentions.
Thinking of how harmonious Bege and Chiffon would become as husband and wife in the end, then remembering the mockery Bege had just thrown at him, Cain's smile grew even wider. ⌓⌣⌓
A thought suddenly popped into his mind.
Why not just take Bege over this time and match him up with Chiffon directly?
Oh, wait.
How many couples had he helped bring together by now?
Could it be that his pink color was not only because of his hair and Devil Fruit ability, but also because he had a bit of Cupid mixed in?
As he thought that, Cain violently shook his head.
At that moment, Capone Bege had already given his answer.
The crew members around him all raised their rocket launchers and guns, aiming them at Cain.
"You agreed too easily. Did you really think I was some naïve little brat?"
"But you are just a brat. At least you speak honestly enough. I'll give you one chance! Tell me, what's your real goal in agreeing so easily?"
First he drew weapons and put up his guard, then pretended to loosen his stance and give Cain a chance.
It established authority while showing "generosity."
A good tactic.
Cain tugged the corner of his mouth into a smile and answered offhandedly,
"I'm here to arrange a marriage for you. Believe it?"
"I do." Capone Bege answered decisively.
Cain, on the other hand, froze.
"What? You accepted that way too easily."
"Totto Land is a country maintained through blood ties. If I want to accomplish something there, I've long since prepared myself to make sacrifices."
Bege's voice held no emotion at all, as if he were speaking about something entirely unimportant.
"Don't make marriage sound so tragic!"
Cain rolled his eyes, his tone full of blunt exasperation.
"It's marriage! It's two people getting together and living sweetly with each other, not you walking to the execution platform! The way you're saying it makes it sound like you're marching off to die. That's ridiculous!"
Bege did not even lift his eyelids.
"Marriage is just a means to achieve an objective. There's nothing sweet about it, and there won't be any feelings involved."
Cain's mouth twitched.
'Do you want me to tell your future wife that?'
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