The Going rry slowly sailed along the winding river into the interior of Whiskey Peak.
The scene on both banks left the Straw Hat crew astonished.
The monster Usopp had speculated about, hidden in the mist, did not appear.
On either side of the river stood rows of peculiarly shaped buildings, arranged in neat order.
Even more surprising was that at this mont, every window of these buildings was wide open, with people crowding the balconies, doorways, and even rooftops.
And all of them were smiling, enthusiastic people.
"Welco!"
"Welco to the welcoming town of Whiskey Peak!"
"Long live the brave souls of the sea!"
Cheers, applause, and whistles rose and fell like waves crashing from both shores.
So waved colorful flags, others scattered flower petals, and so tapped on barrel lids to create a lively rhythm.
Lufia's eyes instantly lit up.
She bounced to the bow of the ship, placed her hands on her hips, raised her head, and loudly announced to the residents on the shore:
"Yay! Ralph and I won the bet! This really is a town that welcos pirates!"
After saying this, she energetically waved to the shore:
"Hello there—!"
The response from the shore grew even more fervent.
In truth, Lufia and Ralph weren't the only winners of the bet.
At the critical mont, Nami, the Cat Burglar, had also "switched sides."
Seeing Ralph's confident expression, her keen senses picked up a whiff of so "sche."
Ralph was never one to take a loss.
If he said there would be a welcoming ceremony here, then perhaps... there really would be.
Thus, the result of the bet was:
Lufia, Ralph, and Nami erged victorious.
Ralph simply smiled.
To him, this bet was just a small joke.
The slight increase in favorability gained from Lufia was negligible, not even triggering the system's notification sound.
But Nami wouldn't let this opportunity slip by.
She pulled out her little notebook, carefully recorded the debts of the three, and wore a fox-like grin:
"Sanji owes three thousand Berries, Usopp three thousand, Zoro... hmm, let's make it five thousand for Zoro, since you glared at ."
"When did I glare at you?"
Zoro asked, looking at Nami.
"Right now!"
Zoro: "..."
The ship slowly docked.
The welcoming crowd by the shore grew even larger.
At least a hundred people had gathered at the pier, each face beaming with sincere smiles.
Usopp's fear dissipated amidst the waves of cheers.
"Did the people of this town have their lives saved by pirates? Pirates seem like heroes in their hearts!!"
He even found an explanation for the villagers' unusual behavior.
Sanji, too, was captivated by the many young and beautiful girls, entering a heart-eyed, infatuated state.
A man with a peculiar appearance stepped forward.
He had a long face, a large mouth, and long hair styled into curls, looking both comical and sowhat dignified.
"Aiya ya~"
He spread his arms and said in an exaggerated tone:
"Welco, everyone! I am the mayor, Igaram!"
"I hope our enthusiasm hasn't startled you all. This is the town famous for its brewing and music—Whiskey Peak!"
The crowd behind him promptly raised their glasses and cheered in unison.
Igaram continued:
"We have our proud, fine wines. I wonder if our guests have any thrilling adventure stories to share? We hope you'll honor us with the opportunity to host a feast in your honor!"
The mont he finished speaking—
"We'd be delighted to accept your hospitality!"
Three voices spoke in unison.
Lufia, Sanji, and Usopp all had stars in their eyes.
Lufia was thinking: A feast! at!
Sanji was thinking: A feast! Beautiful won!
Usopp was thinking: A feast! A chance to spin so tales!
The Straw Hat Pirates' usual routine had always been:
Arrive at a place → Encounter trouble → Beat up the enemies → Throw a feast to celebrate.
This was the first ti they were having a feast imdiately upon arriving at a new place, without any fighting first.
When sothing seems off, there must be a reason.
But that wasn't sothing Lufia needed to worry about.
Her principles were simple:
If there's at, eat it! If there's alcohol, drink it! If there's dancing, dance! If there's a feast, join it!
As for whether there might be a trap?
As ntioned before, that wasn't sothing Lufia needed to consider.
She just had to charge forward with everyone in tow!
Thus, the Straw Hat Pirates naturally split into two factions.
The wholehearted participants: Lufia, Sanji, Usopp.
The go-along-to-get-along faction: Ralph, Nami, Zoro.
At least on the surface, they all blended right in with the residents of Whiskey Peak.
The feast was held in a wooden house in the center of town.
Long tables were arranged in circle after circle, piled high with roasted ats, seafood, fruits, and all sorts of delicacies with unpronounceable nas.
Barrels of alcohol were stacked into small mountains, and the air was filled with the aroma of malt and grapes.
Usopp had long since stopped boasting about his "eight thousand followers" legend.
He now had more realistic material to work with.
"So, back on Gold Island, we found the legendary treasure of the great Pirate Woonan!"
Usopp stood on a table, gesturing animatedly,
"The guy fighting us for the treasure was wearing golden armor that was completely impervious to blades and bullets! But guess what?"
The surrounding residents perked up their ears.
"The Great Warrior of the Sea — Captain Usopp!"
Usopp pointed his thumb at his own chest,
"One shot! Just one gunpowder star blasted a huge hole right through that golden armor!"
"Wow—!"
Exclamations of amazent rose all around.
"And then there was Arlong Park!"
Usopp grew more and more excited as he spoke,
"That Fish-man Arlong had dozens of vicious Fish-n under his command! But our Straw Hat Pirates... sent just ! Just one person! And I sent them all flying!"
"One person against dozens?"
"That's incredible!"
"As expected of Captain Usopp!"
The flattery went straight to Usopp's head.
He continued embellishing, even bringing out the story of Clockwork Island, making it sound incredibly perilous and epic.
anwhile, Lufia truly lived up to the phrase "eating her fill."
She occupied three long tables all by herself, with a mountain of empty plates piled in front of her.
Cooks served dishes in an assembly line—roast pigs, roast cows, whole roasted sheep... anything that could be roasted was brought before her.
"How many is that now?"
One cook asked, wiping sweat from his brow.
"Seventh whole roast pig, fifth whole roast cow, and... countless roast chickens."
Another cook panted,
"How can she eat so much?"
"Next—"
Before he could finish, another whole roast sheep was devoured by Lufia.
Three hours later, the first cook in charge of cooking collapsed from exhaustion.
"Switch! Switch!"
Mayor Igaram commanded, wiping cold sweat from his forehead.
Lufia's belly gradually swelled, her face beaming with a blissful smile.
And seeing Lufia so happy, a smile blood on Ralph's face as well.
His own woman had been knocked up by a group of n, and several of them were even exhausted to the point of collapse...
He watched it happen, and was still laughing...
It felt a bit strange!
Ralph told himself, this was a shonen manga!
Shaking off the ssy thoughts, Ralph joined the drinking ga!
Fortunately, he had advanced drinking skills, otherwise, what if he got drunk!
Hmm... that would be even weirder!
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