Before Xia Tali could answer, a gust of wind picked up a small stone and hit Luffy on the forehead. It wasn't enough to hurt Luffy, who was a rubber man, but the force it carried still made Luffy's head snap back. At the same time, Luo Yan's voice, tinged with anger, rang out from behind Luffy.
"Luffy! Xia Tali is my subordinate. Isn't it a bit too much to poach her right in front of me!"
"Hahahaha! Sorry, sorry. Oh, by the way, do you still have that potion? Can you give me a few more? It might come in handy later."
Luffy apologized with a laugh, changing the subject. Xia Tali nodded, took out two test tubes containing dark green liquid from her small bag, and handed them to Luffy.
"The effect of the medicine will weaken after one month and will be completely gone after three months."
"Ah haha~~ You're really a good person."
Luffy shoved the large piece of meat in his hand into his mouth, then grabbed the test tubes with his greasy hands. At this moment, Sanji, holding a tray with a glass of orange juice, solicitously approached Xia Tali and carefully set the juice down.
"Tali-chan, this is freshly squeezed orange juice. Please enjoy."
"Thank you, your cooking is delicious."
Xia Tali thanked him softly, and Sanji immediately showed an enraptured expression, as if he had received the highest praise a chef could get.
"It is my honor to satisfy a lady. If possible, I would like to cook for you every day."
After his captain's invitation failed, Sanji finally revealed his intention, wanting to capture her with delicious food. However, Xia Tali refused without even a moment's consideration:
"Sorry, I already have a Captain. And if it weren't for the Captain, I would have been sold as a slave. It was also the Captain who gave me... taught me medical skills."
Xia Tali originally wanted to say that Luo Yan gave her magic potions, which gave her the ability to concoct medicines, but she immediately realized that such a miraculous magic potion was very precious and should not be spoken about carelessly, at least not by herself.
Upon hearing the answer, Sanji reacted as if he had been attacked, clutching his chest with one hand and stumbling back two steps. Then he sharply looked at Luo Yan, his eyes filled with anger and unwillingness.
"Damn it! Tali-chan is so loyal to you, I'm really too envious, boo hoo hoo~~"
Sanji knelt on the ground, tears streaming down his face, repeatedly pounding the ground with his fists, hating himself for not being able to capture the heart of a beautiful lady.
Luo Yan, who had thrown the stone to prevent his ship's doctor from being poached, had already turned his gaze towards them. Even though he had somewhat expected it, seeing Sanji's reaction still made the corners of his mouth twitch.
"Luffy, where are you planning to go next? I'm going to Loguetown, known as the beginning and the end. I wonder if it's on your way."
"Huh? The beginning and the end?"
Luffy tilted his head, looking bewildered. He had no idea about this place. Luo Yan smiled and explained:
"That's where the Pirate King was born and died. It's not far from here. I'm going there to resupply."
"The place where the Pirate King was born and died..."
Luffy murmured to himself, then suddenly looked up with a big smile, nodding heavily.
"Yeah! I want to go see it! I want to go see Loguetown!"
"Haha, then let's set sail together tomorrow!"
Luo Yan raised his wine glass to Luffy from across the way. Luffy only liked to eat meat and wasn't very interested in wine, so he didn't have any nearby. His gaze swept around, and he grabbed the juice in front of Xia Tali, made a toasting gesture to Luo Yan from a distance, then tilted his head back and drank the juice in one gulp.
Sanji, who had been kneeling on the ground, deeply distraught, immediately jumped up. He slapped Luffy on the back of his head, making his neck stretch out, his head bouncing off the ground like a rubber ball and soaring high. Finally, his stretched neck retracted, his head returning to its place, but his swollen cheeks still quivered incessantly.
"Bastard! That was specially prepared for Tali-chan! Who told you to drink it!"
"Ah hahaha! Sorry, sorry."
Luffy showed no airs of a Captain either, apologizing with a grin. Sanji, however, had already disappeared. After a while, he reappeared, carrying another glass of juice that looked exactly like the previous one, and approached Xia Tali, setting the juice down with a very gentlemanly demeanor.
"Thank you."
Xia Tali thanked him with a faint smile, picked up the juice, and took a small sip.
The atmosphere at dinner was cheerful from beginning to end. The next day, Luo Yan took Xia Tali back to the shore where their ship was docked, only to find that Mite and Luo Ta were not on board. Instead, they were sitting in a small wooden raft, slowly gliding around the ship. Mite was mainly rowing, while Luo Ta was fishing with a fishing rod.
"What are you two doing?"
Luo Yan waved at them and asked. Hearing his voice, both turned their heads. Mite's hands didn't stop, quickly paddling the oars to bring the raft to shore.
"Captain, are you done with your business?"
Luo Ta dropped his fishing rod and approached with a silly grin. Luo Yan frowned, looking at the two of them and then at the raft, momentarily unable to figure out what these two were actually doing.
"It's all done, very smoothly. You haven't answered me yet, what are you doing?"
Luo Yan wasn't really trying to hold them accountable for anything; he was just genuinely curious about what made them paddle a raft around their own ship.
"Oh! Captain, we are summarizing and role-playing according to your instructions."
"Role-playing? Just paddling a raft around the ship? One of you is a Sailor, and the other is a Hunter. How can you role-play with the same activity?"
Luo Yan, after hearing the explanation, was not relieved but became even more confused. Perhaps feeling that Luo Ta's explanation was not clear enough, Mite, who had followed, took over the conversation:
"Captain, it's like this: although we are on the same raft, we are not doing the same thing. I am rowing the raft, and he is fishing on the raft. These are different."
Luo Ta quickly nodded in agreement: "That's right, Captain, these are different. We are both summarizing and role-playing according to your hints. I am a Hunter, and you said that Hunters don't just rely on weapons for hunting; they also need to know how to use traps and tools. So, when fish are considered prey, isn't a fishing rod a trap and a tool? And don't even mention it, every time I catch a fish, I can feel the magic potion being digested a little!"
Before Luo Yan could answer, Mite also eagerly chimed in: "Yes, I am also summarizing and role-playing according to your hints. A Sailor is someone who controls a ship, so they shouldn't just control the direction of the ship; the amount of power provided should also be considered. So I thought of rowing a raft, and the effect is quite good!"
The corner of Luo Yan's mouth twitched uncontrollably. For a moment, he didn't know what to say, so he had to cough forcefully and change the subject.
"Ahem! We're leaving now. Let's go, set sail!"