Luo Chen and Nami rode the Wood Dragon, landing outside the Alabastan city of "Rainbase."
The two walked toward the center of Rainbase.
This city was Crocodile's main base of operations.
The casino "Rain-Dinners" was located here.
Compared to the other arid cities, Rainbase did not lack water, and its commerce was well-developed.
The streets were bustling with people, crowded and noisy.
"Did you hear? In this morning's latest report, a great and extremely wicked pirate has emerged from the East Blue."
"The East Blue? Isn't that known as the weakest sea? How could a great pirate come from there?"
"It's true! The report says that the pirate is a former Marine Major and should have already entered the Grand Line."
"A great pirate? How great?"
"A bounty of two hundred and thirty million Berries!"
"How much?!"
"Two hundred and thirty million! The former Marine Major, Luo Chen, is now a great pirate!"
"..."
Luo Chen, wearing sunglasses, clearly caught his own name.
Nami also looked up, her eyes filled with surprise.
"Two hundred and thirty million?!"
She asked in astonishment, "How can it be so high?"
Luo Chen shook his head, indicating he didn't know.
He led her to a newsstand and bought a copy of this morning's latest newspaper.
When they opened it, they found Luo Chen's wanted poster plastered in the most conspicuous spot.
["The Fallen Marine Major" Luo Chen]
[Crimes: Slaughtered hundreds of villagers, killed four Headquarters Captains, killed one Rear Admiral, destroyed the Loguetown Marine branch base.]
[Bounty: 230,000,000 Berries]
The long string of zeros left Nami dazzled. She murmured, "Luo Chen, you're so valuable."
Luo Chen smiled. "The bounty increased so much probably because I killed a Rear Admiral and destroyed the Loguetown base."
For a pirate's bounty, strength was one factor. The level of threat and wickedness were also important contributing factors.
Nami pursed her lips and smiled. "It's a good thing I had you wear sunglasses, otherwise you would definitely be recognized."
Luo Chen smiled and pointed to the newspaper. "There's a bounty for you below, too."
["Cat Burglar" Nami]
[Bounty: 10,000,000 Berries]
"You're worth ten million Berries."
"Good thing I'm wearing sunglasses too," Nami said, playfully sticking out her tongue.
She was wearing a pair of pink sunglasses, which she had bought at the same time as the ones she gave to Luo Chen.
Luo Chen put the newspaper away and led her toward Rain-Dinners.
"Let's go. We'll go find Nico Robin."
The two walked on, not in too much of a hurry. When they saw unfamiliar food and drinks on the sides of the street, they would stop to try them.
As Luo Chen passed a restaurant, his steps suddenly halted, and he looked toward a corner.
Nami looked over, puzzled, and asked curiously, "Do you know that person?"
In the corner of the restaurant, a man wearing an orange cowboy hat was eating with his head down, his upper body bare, revealing a special pattern tattooed on his back.
Luo Chen's gaze fell on the tattoo on the man's back. He said slowly, "That's the mark of the Whitebeard Pirates."
Nami was so shocked she almost cried out.
She quickly covered her mouth and whispered, "The Whitebeard Pirates?! Isn't that one of the Four Emperors?!"
"And that Whitebeard is known as the strongest man in the world!"
The fame of Whitebeard was known to all in the pirate world.
Luo Chen nodded. "That's the crew."
He continued walking toward the casino, Rain-Dinners.
If nothing unexpected happened, that man in the orange cowboy hat was Ace.
Portgas D. Ace, Luffy's non-blood-related older brother.
The son of the Pirate King, Gol D. Roger.
And also the commander of the Whitebeard Pirates' 2nd division, with a bounty as high as 550 million Berries.
Nami was puzzled. "What's a member of the Whitebeard Pirates doing here?"
Luo Chen shook his head, indicating he didn't know.
He couldn't possibly tell Nami about future events.
In fact, the biggest war in One Piece was about to break out.
The fuse was Ace being captured and executed by the Marines.
The Marines would use this opportunity to lure out Whitebeard, kill the world's strongest man, and cause the Whitebeard Pirates to fall apart.
...
After walking for a while, a magnificent building appeared ahead.
A giant golden crocodile lay prone on the top of the building.
This was the casino, Rain-Dinners.
The lair of the Warlord of the Sea, "Sir Crocodile."
Luo Chen and Nami entered the casino.
The interior of the main hall was luxuriously decorated, resplendent and magnificent, exuding an air of money everywhere.
"Crocodile has certainly raked in a lot of money," a smile hung on the corner of Luo Chen's mouth.
The richer his opponent, the happier he was.
"Nami, you wait here for me. Don't wander off."
Luo Chen instructed.
The last time he had been in contact with Robin, he had left a Flying Thunder God mark on her.
After entering Rain-Dinners, Luo Chen clearly sensed that Robin was deep inside the casino, no more than a hundred meters away in a straight line, which was well within the range of his Flying Thunder God.
As for not bringing Nami along, it was entirely because he was worried that Crocodile might be with Robin.
If Luo Chen faced Crocodile alone, even if he was no match, he could easily escape. But Nami might be in danger.
Hearing this, Nami nodded obediently and instructed, "Be very careful, Luo Chen."
"Okay."
With that, Luo Chen walked toward the restroom.
Using the Flying Thunder God Technique in the crowded main hall would be too conspicuous.
After entering a stall in the restroom, Luo Chen activated the Flying Thunder God technique.
...
Underground at Rain-Dinners, in a spacious bathroom.
The room was filled with steam. In a bathtub made of white jade, the stunning curves of a woman's body could be vaguely seen.
At the edge of the tub, a figure suddenly appeared.
The woman lifted her beautiful face, slightly flushed from the bath, just in time to meet Luo Chen's gaze.
Luo Chen's expression froze. He hadn't expected Robin to be taking a bath.
But thanks to his training with the leather-clad female teacher, he was able to control his state of mind very well.
Luo Chen saw the shame and anger in Nico Robin's eyes and consciously turned around.
"Sorry to intrude."
Behind him, the sound of splashing water was heard.
Luo Chen could tell that Robin had gotten out of the tub and was backing away.
Soon, her voice rang out, "How did you get here?"
Luo Chen slowly turned around.
Nico Robin was wrapping her fiery body in a white bath towel, her bare feet standing on the bathroom's stone tiles.
Her deep blue, beautiful eyes showed a mixture of shame, anger, and astonishment.
"Finding you is very simple," Luo Chen said, his gaze sweeping over her. He said seriously, "Is the money ready?"
Robin took a deep breath. "You go out first. I need to get dressed."
"Alright. I'll wait for you outside," Luo Chen said, pushing open the bathroom door and waiting outside.
He muttered to himself, "Her figure is really amazing, and her composure is so stable. As expected of Robin."
"What did you say?"
Even Luo Chen was startled.
He turned his head to look.
An ear and a mouth had appeared on the bathroom door at some point.
From the looks of it, they were Robin's ear and mouth.
The corner of Luo Chen's mouth twitched. He was speechless.
'I was overheard...'
Fortunately, Robin didn't seem to make a big deal out of it.
Before long, the bathroom door pushed open, and Robin, still dressed in her denim vest, shorts, and leather boots, walked out.
Her expression had returned to its usual indifference. She said, "Follow me to get the money."
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]