"Mama! Cain isn't an enemy! He's our family!"
Seeing the two of them suddenly clash, Katakuri's brows knitted tightly.
He instinctively took half a step forward, clearly unable to understand what exactly was going on.
"Stay where you are, Katakuri!"
Big Mom's voice carried a command, cold and forceful.
Their weapons were still colliding from a distance, yet a strange look had gathered on her face.
In truth, Big Mom understood this matter better than anyone.
Cain was supposedly her and Kaido's son?
What a joke!
In her eyes, Kaido had ultimately only been a brat still wet behind the ears.
Besides, they had not seen each other in decades.
Whether or not there had been that kind of relationship between her and Kaido was something she herself would obviously know.
In the end, Big Mom had only been suspicious of Cain's identity at first.
But after seeing Cain's performance in the Summit War with her own eyes, hearing Katakuri's description, and then discovering that he possessed the exact same Fish-Fish Fruit ability as Kaido, whether Cain was truly her child was no longer a question worth worrying over.
A fighter of such overwhelming strength was an extremely rare asset, whether for stabilizing Totto Land's rule or contending against the other Four Emperors in the future.
Therefore, Cain had to be her child!
"Not bad, brat. Let's see if you can take this one."
Big Mom grinned and shouted loudly.
"PROMETHEUS!"
"Yes, Mama!"
The little sun floating near the throne instantly transformed into a massive burning fireball and wrapped itself around Napoleon's blade.
Conqueror's Haki coated the blade as well, and a fierce pressure immediately spread outward.
Seeing this, Cain withdrew his weapon.
Dense Armament Haki wrapped around his right fist, and Conqueror's Haki coated it as well, his momentum not losing out in the slightest.
"Emperor Sword: Broken Blade!"
"Fist Bone Impact!"
Seeing Cain use the technique inherited from Garp, Big Mom's eyes flashed with surprise, but she did not panic.
She had already received information from Katakuri, so naturally, she had been on guard.
She suddenly placed Napoleon horizontally in front of her head and slashed fiercely down toward Cain's incoming fist.
A deafening clash of metal rang out.
The collision did not last long.
The two of them quickly separated using the force of the rebound, leaving deep cracks spreading across the ground beneath their feet.
At this moment, neither of them had used their full strength.
Otherwise, this great hall would have already been destroyed by the aftermath.
"MAMAMAMA! AS EXPECTED, YOU AND GARP FIGHT THE SAME WAY. GOOD THING I WAS PREPARED."
Big Mom laughed loudly.
"LOOKS LIKE HE TAUGHT YOU WELL. I REALLY SHOULD THANK HIM FOR RAISING SUCH A GOOD 'SON' FOR ME."
"Uh…"
Hearing this, Cain's face instantly filled with embarrassment, and the corner of his mouth stiffened in midair.
As if sensing the gazes around him, he turned his head and looked over.
The younger brothers and sisters who had followed Katakuri inside were all staring at him with bright, sparkling eyes.
Their gazes were full of curiosity and expectation, as if they had already accepted his identity by default.
Wasn't this obviously asking him to call her "Mama"?
Cain's throat moved.
He opened his mouth, but no matter what, he could not make that word come out.
If he said it, this would be completely different from how he addressed Katakuri and the others.
Those two syllables would mean he had completely joined the Big Mom Pirates.
But if he did not say it, he was here to ask for help in the first place. When living under someone else's roof, one had to lower their head.
Besides, there was no need to make the relationship between both sides too tense right now.
Just as he was struggling, Katakuri stepped forward and patted Cain on the shoulder, speaking in a deep voice.
"It's fine if you can't say it yet. One day, you'll get used to it. In any case, welcome home."
Cain raised his head and looked at Katakuri.
Even in this situation, he was still thinking about Cain's feelings.
As expected of the perfect older brother in everyone's hearts.
"KATAKURI-NII-SAN!"
The younger brothers and sisters behind him all called out one after another.
Big Mom looked at the scene before her and nodded in satisfaction before laughing loudly.
"KATAKURI, YOU DID WELL."
This was not only Big Mom's approval of him helping Cain escape that moment of hesitation, but also recognition of his accomplishment in successfully bringing Cain back to Totto Land.
Then Big Mom changed the subject, her gaze sweeping downward.
"Cain, I am very satisfied. And…"
"You must be Uta. Your singing is beautiful, and your strength doesn't seem weak either. That singing voice from earlier—was that your ability? My tea party is missing someone like you."
Her words were filled with greed.
Seeing this, Katakuri hurriedly explained to Cain,
"Calm down, Cain. Mama bears no ill will."
'Hey, hey, what part of this counts as no ill will? Her drool is practically about to spill out, and her expression is so dark it looks like she's about to chant a killing curse!'
Cain frantically complained inwardly, secretly tensing his body and preparing for battle.
However, things did not unfold as Cain imagined.
Big Mom did not attack.
She merely raised her hand and clapped.
The chess soldiers inside the castle hurried over at the sound, and the Charlotte Family members at the entrance also poured in one after another. In an instant, many figures flooded into the hall.
"KATAKURI, WHAT EXACTLY IS GOING ON?!"
As Cain shouted, a group of people surrounded him.
Some rubbed his head, some held his legs, and they directly lifted him high into the air.
Uta was also surrounded by several women. Their movements were not too rough as they steadily lifted her up as well.
Just like that, the two of them were carried into the air by the crowd.
"Don't worry. We won't hurt you. This is the special reception prepared for you."
Before the words had fully fallen, Cain and Uta were supported by the soldiers and the Charlotte Family members, then carried straight out of the hall.
Katakuri looked at the ruined hall.
It had already been in this state before, caused by Big Mom's craving fit.
Although Cain had caused a bit more damage this time, the palace was already under repair anyway, so no one would blame him for it.
However, when Katakuri saw the large hole in the ceiling, he suddenly remembered Jack the Drought, who had been sent flying earlier, and quickly asked Big Mom.
"Mama, what happened here before?"
"Kaido tried to make a move on Cain. The fish-man he sent spoke rudely, so Mama sent him flying," Perospero said as he walked out from the side.
"You were here."
Katakuri froze for a moment, then quickly asked further.
"I had only gone to help Mama prepare something," Perospero replied.
"Is the thing I mentioned ready?" Big Mom returned to the throne and looked toward Perospero as she asked.
"Rest assured, Mama. I have already had that important item delivered urgently. The recipient should receive it before the banquet begins."
Perospero bowed, then turned to Katakuri and said,
"Regarding the issue of Cain's bounty poster, we have been in dispute with the Beasts Pirates, which led to the situation just now. But it seems you already ran into that fellow. How is the situation now?"
"He is being held back by Kaido's daughter," Katakuri nodded and replied.
"Even she came? Perfect! Then I'll leave the matter with the Beasts to you, Katakuri."
The moment Big Mom finished speaking, she suddenly noticed that Napoleon above her head, along with the thundercloud Zeus and Prometheus, were all behaving very strangely.