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Buggy noticed Otohime following behind them. He guessed her intentions. Being a Fish-Man, she didn't need to enter the sea like they did. She was doing this to ease their worries.
Most of the other crew members also understood Otohime's intentions. A strange look flashed in their eyes. Of the remaining crew, Jessica was the most curious. She directly asked, "Otohime, are you Fish-Men afraid of water?"
Jessica thought that if Otohime was going to ride the same transportation as them, maybe she couldn't move freely in the sea.
Hearing this question, Otohime smiled gently, looking at Jessica's age. "We Fish-Men can move freely in the sea and aren't affected by seawater. I'm just going with you to show you the underwater scenery along the way."
Otohime wouldn't reveal her true intentions. She couldn't explain it directly to a little girl like this. She could only give Jessica a reasonable explanation.
Hearing Otohime's answer, Jessica understood. She knew that the other party wasn't afraid of water.
The Fish-Men on the shore, including Tiger, jumped into the sea. The whale they were on also descended to the seabed under Otohime's instructions.
The Fish-Men swam ahead, and the whale followed behind them. Everyone was heading in one direction.
Soon, they arrived at a group of buildings. The most prominent was a building surrounded by a golden dragon. Buggy recognized it as the Dragon Palace.
Without stopping, the group headed towards a huge palace. Soon, they entered the palace. Buggy and his crew saw Neptune sitting on the throne.
Everyone was taken to an area on the left side of the palace. There was a space enclosed by a giant rectangular bubble. Inside were tables, chairs, and various delicacies. This was specially prepared for Buggy and his crew.
"Welcome to the Dragon Palace. It's also good to see you again, Buggy."
Neptune had only met Buggy a few times. He didn't have a deep impression of Buggy. He said this because Otohime, who had returned, had told him about Buggy's background. He remembered who Buggy was.
"It's good to see you again, King Neptune. I also extend greetings from the Roger Pirates."
Although Neptune hadn't interacted with Buggy much, he had interacted with Roger, Rayleigh, and the others. Since he was here, he naturally had to greet Neptune on behalf of the Roger Pirates.
Hearing the words "Roger Pirates," a look of reminiscence flashed in Neptune's eyes. He also thought of Roger and the others. His eyes were filled with regret.
"Hahaha, it's truly nostalgic. I didn't expect it. It's a shame."
Neptune felt very sorry for Roger's fate. He didn't expect that Roger, such a powerful strongman, would end up like this. Although he had guessed his purpose, it was truly a shame.
Of course, he also had many other thoughts. If Roger were still alive, with him, the Pirate King, protecting Fish-Man Island, maybe the Fish-Men wouldn't have been treated like this. Maybe the Fish-Men could really live on land without any danger. His regret included this aspect.
"Let's not talk about this. Everyone, eat and drink well. We'll talk about anything else after we finish."
Otohime saw that both of them had fallen silent. She spoke at the right time to ease the atmosphere.
Thus, the banquet officially began. Everyone enjoyed the food from the sea and some unique products. Everyone ate to their heart's content.
During the banquet, many people had different expressions. These people were Tiger's crew. When they learned that Buggy was a member of the Roger Pirates, several of them had abnormal expressions.
Arlong was the most abnormal. His face was filled with anger. His teeth were grinding. He stared fiercely at Buggy and his crew. Anyone who saw his expression knew that if they weren't in the Dragon Palace, he might have already attacked.
Several others were also very angry. They were angry because their relatives and friends had been harmed by pirates who were after Roger's treasure. They naturally blamed Roger. Since Buggy was a member of the Roger Pirates, they naturally harbored hatred for Buggy. Their eyes were also fierce.
Tiger and Jinbe were relatively calmer, but their faces were also very conflicted. To say they didn't hate Roger was impossible. Roger's Great Pirate Era had caused great harm to their Fish-Man Island. How could they not hate him?
They were conflicted because Buggy was just a member of the Roger Pirates. He wasn't Roger. The one who caused Fish-Man Island's current predicament wasn't him. They were still rational and understood the situation. This made them conflicted. They didn't know how to face Buggy and his crew.
During the banquet, Buggy and his crew naturally noticed those fierce gazes. But Buggy didn't pay any attention to them. He also knew why those Fish-Men had suddenly changed their attitude towards him and his crew. He guessed that they must have learned his identity and become like this.
He didn't take these people seriously. Even though he was currently underwater, he didn't care. He had ways to deal with them. He didn't take their hatred to heart. After all, the Roger Pirates did have a hand in causing the predicament of Fish-Man Island. It was normal for them to have this attitude towards him.
The crew members saw that Buggy didn't react, so they didn't react either. They let those gazes fall on them.
Looking at Buggy and his crew happily eating, Arlong, who was already filled with suppressed anger, erupted. He stood up and shouted fiercely at Buggy and his crew, "You're a remnant of the Roger Pirates. How dare you come to our Fish-Man Island and eat and drink like this? Why are you here eating and drinking? Do you know how much damage your captain, that damn Roger, caused us? We're in this situation because of him. Why don't you go die? Why can you eat?"
Hearing this sudden roar, everyone, including Buggy, turned their gaze to Arlong.
Otohime and Neptune's faces were very ugly. They knew that something unexpected might happen at this banquet. There might even be a fight.
"Arlong, you can't blame Roger and Buggy for this. It's the fault of those damn pirates."
Otohime directly spoke to persuade Arlong. She didn't think it was Roger's fault. The fault might lie with those cruel pirates.
"Princess, why are you defending Roger and him? Our Fish-Man Island has suffered so many deaths and injuries because of that damn Roger and the damn era he started. How can Roger and his pirate crew escape responsibility for this blood debt?"
Arlong looked at Otohime with bloodshot eyes. The respect he used to have was gone. He was like a beast ready to devour someone.
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