"Princess Vivi! Princess Vivi!"
Captain Igaram of the Royal Guard rushed through the palace corridors, his voice echoing with undisguised anxiety as he called the princess's name. Despite his usual formality, the urgency of the situation had him reverting to his role as her longtime protector rather than maintaining proper court etiquette.
"Princess Vivi, please come out! This is hardly the time for hide and seek!"
As he shouted, Igaram systematically opened and checked each room along the ornate hallway. The palace's vast size made a complete search nearly impossible—they could search until nightfall without success if the princess truly didn't wish to be found.
This wasn't the first time the blue-haired princess had disappeared before an important event. Her independent streak had only grown stronger as she matured into a young woman. Still, today of all days, her absence created a genuine diplomatic concern.
Just as sweat began beading on his forehead and panic threatened to overwhelm him, a melodious voice finally answered his calls.
"Igaram? I'm over here in Room 430!"
Igaram whipped his head around, following the sound to his left, where he spotted a door at the corridor's end cracked slightly open. Peering carefully through the narrow opening was the object of his frantic search—the princess he considered the most perfect, the cutest, the smartest, the most well-mannered, the most spirited, the most compassionate, the most beautiful... the list of superlatives could continue endlessly in his loyal heart.
Her distinctive blue hair was partially tied up in its usual style, though she appeared to have abandoned the formal royal attire that had been prepared for today's ceremony. Instead, she wore a simpler dress reminiscent of her traveling days.
Relief flooded through Igaram at the sight of the princess, but urgency quickly reasserted itself. He hurried over, too preoccupied to question why she had secluded herself in this rarely-used observation room. His gestures grew animated as he pleaded with her.
"Princess Vivi, we must proceed to the East Gate immediately! According to the schedule, Admiral Luffy will arrive at any moment!"
Despite the obvious urgency in his voice and his agitated demeanor, Igaram maintained his respect for royal protocol, refraining from physically hustling the princess away. This adherence to propriety, while commendable, further delayed their already precarious timeline.
In stark contrast to Igaram's visible distress, Vivi appeared remarkably composed—though a certain distraction clouded her usually attentive gaze. She seemed lost in thought, barely registering his anxiety.
She twisted a strand of hair around her finger—a nervous habit she'd developed after returning from her undercover mission with the young marine years ago.
The princess stepped back, wordlessly opening the door wider to invite Igaram inside. Once he entered, she turned back toward the large window that provided a panoramic view of the capital's East Gate and the surrounding areas.
"Have you ever seen the capital this alive before, Igaram?" she asked softly, her focus fixed on the massive crowds gathering below. "I've lived here for over twenty years, and I don't remember anything like this."
Igaram's instinct was to rush her away, but years of service had taught him to respect when the princess spoke in that particular tone. Despite his mounting anxiety, he forced himself to take several calming breaths, cleared his throat to compose himself, and responded with practiced patience.
"Indeed, Princess. The turnout appears unprecedented."
He joined her at the window, surveying the sea of people congregating around the East Gate. The normally spacious plaza had disappeared beneath the multitude, with citizens packed shoulder to shoulder as far as the eye could see.
"It seems everyone in the capital has gathered there," Vivi observed, a note of wonder in her voice.
Igaram's blood pressure threatened to spike again at her casual attitude, but he maintained his composure with visible effort.
"Not just the capital, Princess. People have journeyed from several neighboring cities as well. There are even visitors from distant provinces and foreign nations. The city reached maximum capacity days ago, so many are camped in the surrounding desert."
He didn't add that palace staff had been working double shifts for a week to accommodate the influx of dignitaries and manage the logistical challenges of such a massive public gathering. Or that King Cobra had personally overseen security arrangements with unprecedented thoroughness.
"Has he really become such a celebrity?" Vivi murmured, leaning her hands on the windowsill. Her gaze remained fixed on the crowd, but her thoughts seemed distant, unreachable.
Something in her tone finally penetrated Igaram's anxious state. He paused, truly looking at the young woman before him. Though she kept her expression neutral, he recognized the subtle signs of inner turmoil—the slight tension in her shoulders, the way she bit her lower lip, the distant look in her usually bright eyes.
Igaram might not understand the complex emotions of a young woman faced with reuniting with someone from her adventurous past, but he knew the princess he had watched grow from infancy. Her current demeanor indicated something troubling her deeply.
After a moment's hesitation, Igaram shifted mental gears, setting aside his role as Royal Guard Captain to become the supportive father figure he had always been to her.
"Princess Vivi..." he began tentatively.
She turned to acknowledge him, and Igaram forced an encouraging smile while nervously fidgeting with his hands behind his back.
"Well, you see... ahem... this reception is quite natural when you consider the circumstances," he offered gently. "Ever since Crocodile's machinations were exposed, the people of Alabasta have regarded Luffy as the hero who saved our nation from civil war and drought."
Vivi listened quietly, her expression softening slightly as Igaram continued.
Finding his confidence growing, Igaram expanded on his point. "The hero who once protected our land returns now with even greater accomplishments. The people feel they owe him their gratitude, and this is their way of expressing it."
He didn't mention how many citizens had approached the palace with personal requests to join the welcoming committee, or how children throughout Alabasta now played games where they pretended to be Luffy fighting Crocodile. The impact of those events had only grown with time.
"Beyond that," Igaram continued, warming to his subject, "he arrives now as a Marine Admiral who directly confronted and defeated one of the Four Emperors. Our citizens celebrate not just his promotion but what he represents—the potential end to the era of pirate dominance that has caused so much suffering."
He adjusted his cravat, standing a bit straighter.
"To many ordinary people who have endured pirate attacks and lived in fear, Luffy represents more than just Alabasta's benefactor. He symbolizes hope for a safer world."
Igaram's passionate explanation finally drew a genuine smile from Vivi. Encouraged, he couldn't resist adding a final observation with a hint of playful humor.
"I've heard he's become the most eligible bachelor in the world. Every woman's dream husband, apparently. How enviable!"
The smile that had begun to brighten Vivi's face instantly vanished, replaced by a complicated expression that Igaram couldn't quite interpret. Something in his casual remark had clearly struck a nerve.
A flash of something—perhaps jealousy, perhaps uncertainty—crossed her features before she could mask it with practiced royal composure.
Igaram mentally kicked himself. Of course, the princess would have complicated feelings about the man who had once been her companion during the most formative adventure of her life. The man who had, in many ways, helped shape her understanding of justice, friendship, and leadership.
What Igaram didn't fully grasp was just how deeply those memories were affecting Vivi now—or how the news of Luffy's many romantic attachments had reached even the sheltered palace, leaving the princess with questions she had never expected to face about her own feelings.
Silence fell between them as Vivi turned back toward the window, her thoughts once again a mystery as the distant sound of trumpets announced the beginning of the arrival ceremony.