Chapter 196: How Many Copper Coins Can Alabasta Have?

"Oh?"

Gao Wen turned his head, looking with slight surprise at Vivi, who was thirteen or fourteen years old before him.

The last girl who could remain calm in the face of a life-or-death crisis, assess the situation, and make the correct judgment was Gaza of Raven Port, who is now the de facto chief steward of Gao Wen's pirate crew.

Gao Wen immediately became interested:

"Tell me."

Vivi took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down; she raised her head and looked straight into Gao Wen's eyes:

"I want to hire you to drive out Crocodile, who is entrenched in Alabasta!"

"Although I do not know what that fellow is plotting, whether it is the Dancing Powder appearing within the Bastan Realm or the rebellions stirring up everywhere, his shadow is behind it all."

"If we let that fellow act as he pleases, it will cause—!"

"I refuse!"

Before Vivi could finish speaking, Gao Wen lost patience and shook his head in refusal.

Vivi immediately grew anxious:

"But you haven't even heard my conditions yet!"

"Alabasta, that poor backwater place covered in yellow sand, how many copper coins could it possibly have?!"

Vivi's face immediately flushed red; she pressed her lips tightly together and was unable to say a word for a moment.

Alabasta has a large standing army, and its military strength is considered extremely abundant among the neighboring countries, but this cannot change the fact that almost the entire Bastan Realm is covered by desert.

Endless yellow sand means extreme climate, as well as pitifully scarce arable land and water sources.

How difficult it is to survive on such land, Vivi, as a member of the royal family, sees clearly.

Every time she sees the common people struggling on the line of survival, she feels as if her heart is being cut by a knife.

It is even more so when she sees her father, King Cobra, exhausting himself for the entire country, cutting down on food and clothing, just to let the common people live a little better.

But even such a poor country cannot avoid being targeted by powerful pirates like Crocodile.

Although Crocodile is one of the Seven Warlords authorized by the World Government, possessing the so-called right to legitimate plunder.

Yet how could Vivi, as a member of the royal family, not know the danger of such a ruthless man?

And now...

Vivi raised her head and looked at Gao Wen.

If it were before today, the strongest pirate she had witnessed was Crocodile, who made people shudder with fear merely with his gaze and aura.

Then, just now, from the very first second he saw Gao Wen, she clearly realized that this man, who had no killing intent all over his body yet made Jabra unable to muster even a shred of resistance.

Is absolutely a existence capable of matching, or even surpassing, Crocodile!

As long as she could obtain Gao Wen's assistance, she could surely pull Alabasta out of the abyss!

Having realized this, how could Vivi be willing to give up like this?

She argued:

"But you just said you wanted to demand a ransom from my father..."

"I also said it was symbolic."

Gao Wen sighed.

He considered himself no good person, but under the condition of not harming his own interests, he did not mind lending a hand to these suffering people, just like in Cocoyasi of the East Blue and the Drum Kingdom.

But Alabasta is different.

This place is not only one of the member states of the World Government, but the royal family also carries the actual bloodline of the Celestial Dragons.

There is even an unclear and inexplicable relationship with Imu, the true ruler of this world hidden behind the Five Elders.

The matters involved within Alabasta are too complex.

Plus, the Poneglyph hidden underground in Alabasta; one small mistake could easily get one covered in trouble.

In fact, Gao Wen already knows the general content of that Poneglyph.

The content recorded on it can be said to be the most ruthless mockery of Crocodile, who in the early stages was determined to reach the peak using the power of Pluton.

Gao Wen had no desire to listen to Vivi speak further; he simply said indifferently:

"Internal strife among the Seven Warlords is not allowed."

"And Alabasta is not important enough to me for me to strip off the skin of the Seven Warlords just to intervene."

"So."

"I am sorry, I am not the destined person you are waiting for."

"Are you afraid?!"

Vivi gritted her teeth.

But all she heard was Gao Wen's voice gradually fading away.

"Boring provocation!"

Seeing this, Vivi wanted to say something more, but Miss Kalifa was already walking slowly from a distance, holding sea prism stone handcuffs.

For a moment, Vivi's eyes turned red, feeling an unspeakable unwillingness in her heart.

She knew clearly.

This time, once she was sent back to Alabasta, even her father, who was infinitely indulgent towards her, would absolutely not let her act so recklessly again.

The tragedy she had seen in Erumalu appeared before her eyes once more.

That city, which was once an oasis, has now been swallowed by drought and desert; the reason behind it was Crocodile's abuse of the Dancing Powder.

Concentrating a large amount of rain in Wang Cheng, causing surrounding cities to see not a drop of rain for years; the number of people who died from this was undoubtedly astronomical.

Is this the end?

This country...

Vivi turned around and saw Jabra and the others, who had been controlled as well.

For a moment, her heart turned to ash.

Before this farce could even unfold, Gao Wen, Xiang Keluo, and Akin forcibly suppressed it with absolute power.

Zoro curled his lip, feeling utterly dispirited for a moment:

"So in the end, there wasn't even a single worthy opponent?!"

"Boring."

He slowly sheathed his three swords, let out a yawn, then turned and left; seeing the crisis averted, the others gradually returned to the cabin.

To them, what happened tonight was far less important than their own cultivation.

Only Sanji, watching Vivi's figure, felt his heartbeat slow by a single beat.

"Princess!"

"Knight!"

The next day.

When Igaram awoke, he felt indescribable agony all over his body.

Even though he was not a doctor, he could tell that many of the bones in his body had shattered.

Igaram forced himself to rise despite the excruciating pain all over his body, looking around in a daze.

Only then did he realize that at some point he had entered the cabin, and his wounds had already been bandaged.

But the first thing that came to his mind was not his own safety, but Vivi.

"Princess?!"

"Are you alright?!"

Igaram's tone was filled with panic and urgency.

After all, given the situation last night, even someone as formidable as Jabra had no power to resist Gao Wen.

What fate would befall Vivi, now without protection?!

"I'm fine."

"Igaram, I'm fine!"

As a familiar figure appeared, the cabin door was pushed open.

Igaram saw Vivi's figure; seeing the young woman's smile, he let out a long breath.

Yet in the very next instant, Igaram's heart rose again.

For he saw the smile on Vivi's face, and beneath that smile, the forced effort and the tears that had not yet dried.

"Vivi... Princess?!"

"What happened?"

"If those pirates acted recklessly, even if I had to die, I would—!"

"I'm fine."

Vivi shook her head, pressing her lips tightly together:

"The Gao Wen Pirates have decided to escort us back to Alabasta. We are returning to Arubana. We... we are going home."

For Igaram, this should have been good news, yet at this moment he felt as though a fishbone were stuck in his throat.

Even as tolerant as Cobra, he could absolutely not allow Vivi to act recklessly a second time.

Therefore, returning to the capital Arubana of Alabasta meant that Vivi's plan to save the country had completely collapsed; this nation would, before long, fall entirely under Crocodile's control.

"We... we can start over."

"As long as you are still here, we still have the possibility of defeating Crocodile!"

"Mm."

Vivi forced out a reply.

The cabin fell into a long silence.

It was only when a knocking sound appeared that this silence was broken.

Bang!

Bang!

Bang!

"Who is it?"

Vivi turned her head.

She saw a slender figure with golden hair, carrying a bowl of thick soup and several pieces of bread, walking in; the rich aroma instantly filled the entire room.

Vivi's nose twitched instinctively; her stomach, uncooperative, let out a few growls. She immediately turned completely red:

"You are the one from last night..."

"Sanji. My name is Sanji, the chef on this ship."

Sanji bowed to Vivi, a faint smile appearing on his face:

"You need to eat your fill before you have the strength to think of anything else, don't you?!"

Igaram, his face full of wariness, instinctively reached out to block Vivi, looking at Sanji with complete caution.

"How could we possibly let the Princess eat food provided by a man of unknown origin?!"

"If you don't want to die, get out!"

The violent movement caused his wounds to burst open, and dark red blood seeped faintly from beneath the bandages.

Cold sweat instantly broke out on Ikaram's forehead, yet he still struggled to stand and block the way in front of Vivi, only to be forcefully pushed back onto the hospital bed by Vivi in the next instant.

"Ikaram, he has no ill intentions. If he did, we wouldn't be alive right now."

"But..."

"He, no, Mr. Sanji is right. Only when full do we have the strength to think of other things."

Vivi raised her hand to wipe the tear tracks from the corners of her eyes, and her gaze regained its original sparkle:

"We haven't lost yet. There is still hope."

In the midst of her words.

She reached out, took the tray from Sanji's hand, gave half the food to Ikaram, then sat aside and swallowed the bread in her hand.

As the thick soup entered her mouth, Vivi's breath halted at that very moment:

"Delicious!"

"Mixed with mushrooms, beef, and lemon, a combination that should clash, yet it's unexpectedly... very unique!"

"Exactly."

The hunger in his stomach and the delicious food before him made him temporarily forget his guard, and he couldn't help but devour it heartily.

Seeing this, Ikaram on the side was slightly stunned, then looked at Sanji, and simply gave up thinking, starting to eat in big mouthfuls.

Sanji stood aside, silently watching this scene, smoking lightly.

A few minutes later.

The food on the tray was swept clean by Vivi; she let out a long breath, turned her head to look at Sanji, and asked:

"Why help us?"

"We should be enemies, and just last night, I still wanted to take your heads."

"Enemies?"

Sanji smiled faintly:

"In the Captain's eyes, an enemy must at least be on the level of a Warlord, a Yonko, or an Admiral of the Marines."

"Although saying this might be hurtful, you aren't much of a trouble."

Such blunt words made Vivi's face turn pale, yet she was powerless to refute, for she knew Sanji spoke the truth.

Sanji continued:

"As a chef, I cannot let people on the ship go hungry."

"Speaking of which..."

In the midst of his words.

Sanji looked at Vivi.

Last night he had overheard the conversation between Vivi and Gao Wen, and just now standing outside the door, he barely managed to hear the conversation between Vivi and Ikaram, basically reconstructing Vivi's experience.

A princess who was single-mindedly trying to save her country, somewhat reckless, but brave.

For such a person, Sanji held respect in his heart.

And when the other party was a princess who, though young, was already growing into her beauty, visibly beautiful, this respect would be super-doubled.

"If you want to persuade the Captain to act, it is not impossible."

Vivi's eyes lit up, as if she had grabbed a lifeline:

"What method?"

"Mr. Sanji, if you can tell me, I will do anything you ask?"

"Even go on a date with you?!"

Sanji's nostrils flared; Ikaram on the side was slightly stunned, then instantly turned red, and directly slammed the menu in his hand onto Sanji's face:

"As expected!"

"This guy had ulterior motives from the very beginning!"

Vivi did not hesitate for a second, her eyes firm as she said:

"No problem!"

"My Lady Vivi..."

Ikaram's movement froze instantly; he turned his head to look at Sanji, a flash of humiliation passing through his eyes.

"Well~"

Sanji took a handkerchief from his pocket, wiped the soup from his face, then turned to look at Vivi and said seriously:

"Although Captain Gao Wen seems somewhat unapproachable, his heart is kinder than anyone else's."

"Everyone on this ship knows this very well, from Raven Port to Cocoyasi and even to Drum Kingdom..."

"As long as he sees the suffering of the locals and witnesses the common people struggling to survive, he will act."

"After all, he is a man who was the Knight Commander of the Kingdom; even though he has set sail and lost that status, those principles are still carved into his conduct."

Vivi was stunned; what appeared in her mind was the scene of Gao Wen instantly killing Jabra last night, and the image of him unapproachably rejecting her directly.

She pressed her lips tightly together:

"That kind of guy... how could he be a knight recognized by the Kingdom?! Compassion, kindness, integrity... which one does he possess?"

"I..."

"Miss Vivi!"

Sanji's voice cooled down:

"If anyone else on this ship heard these words, the question you should be considering is how to survive in their hands."

"No one on this ship may insult Captain Gao Wen, not even a Princess of a World Government affiliate nation."

"Forget it. I shouldn't have taken it upon myself to come."

Sanji bent down to pick up the plates from the floor, gathered the leftover scraps from the two of them, and turned to leave.

Vivi watched his retreating back, a look of apology surfacing in her eyes:

"Mr. Sanji, a deal's a deal—I agree to—and—!"

"That kind of thing was obviously a lie."

Sanji waved his hand and slowly faded from view.

Vivi stared at Sanji's retreating back, but what kept replaying in her mind was the words Sanji had just spoken.

She turned her head to look at Igaram and said:

"Igaram, do you think if Knight Gao Wen truly saw the current state of Alabasta, he would step in?"

(End of chapter)