There were a few drops of rain here and there, but the weather was largely sunny, and everyone on board the Sanguine Rose was doing their own thing until Codey observed a circular ship sailing on the ocean in the distance. It was still, and another ship appeared to be carrying marines. Because of it, Codey stood up and alerted everyone else.
"There's a marine ship right in front of us, next to that building. I'm not sure, but a building on the middle of the ocean is something I never expected existed."
Karisa rose up after dropping the map to the side and raised her head to see from the poop deck over the forecastle deck. Everyone's attention was drawn to Tim barging through the door and leaping to the top of the crow's nest, which caught Codey off guard and caused him to scream in fear.
"Hey! Watch out there's place only for one, Tim!"
Ignored by Tim, Codey sensed how Tim's body collided with his own and pushed him over the nest, causing Codey to scream and drop to the ship's very bottom deck, where a loud thump reverberated throughout the ship, and the weight bounced the ship's entire construction into the air, with everyone yelling at Codey.
"Would you be careful! Are you trying to kill us?!"
Wondered Ayuka, who had been standing by the ship's fence with Kou in a headstand due to the ship's bounce and then slowly collapsing with his behind and legs onto the floor, Karisa hanging next to the fence, Elliott face palmed against the fence, and Natan standing still with crossed arms and a careless expression. Tim smiled as he stood on the crow's nest edge, watching the massive edifice glide by.
"Guys, let's stop here! There might be some delicious food there, and maybe I'll be able to eat something new!"
Everyone locked their gazes on Tim and screamed angrily at him at the same time, with Tim caring less than expected. Elliott's ears popped open as Ayuka instantly delivered a large and loud complaint.
"How about you eat some of those stupid ideas! We've got to get to the Castlemania to help Tomomi not waste time on some food when we can always eat here on "our" ship!"
Elliott began to wobble left and right, his everyday hearts revolving in his eyes, and sent a nice compliment to Ayuka, whose face quickly got angry by the fact that she already knew what he was going to say.
"I can't believe how sexy you are yelling even after Tim treated you so badly while dragging you across the desert." He turned serious with a displeased expression before continuing, recalling the events of a few days ago in the Golden Wasakona.
~ As Tim drooled and had been heard by the crab, the crab sweated and quickly lost control that forced Tim to lose balance and bounce off its head through the air toward the bottom and sand, while he screamed and stretched his arms forward.
"Tomomi! Hurry, grab Ayuka!"
Tomomi pressed her sole into the crab's rough body, picked up Ayuka, and jumped into the air, floating through the air while the enormous crab rolled over toward Tim's friends, who screamed when they saw the massive shadow covering the tops of their heads. ~
"He tried to kill her." Ayuka screamed into Elliott's hollow eyes and banged the top of his head against the table. He collided with the ground through the deck and into the forecastle, and she immediately shouted out.
"He didn't try to kill me!"
Standing up, Codey moved toward the forecastle's deck, scratching the back of his ears, and then groaned as he leaned on the fence.
"We'll have to fix the deck as soon as we're done here, it seems. I'm not sure why, but that marine's ship does not appear to be friendly... Okay, guys, let's park close to the restaurant, but keep an eye out for potential danger once we step onto its deck."
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Elliott dropped the anchor when he was directed to and parked the ship in front of the restaurant's deck when they were next to the marine's ship. They promptly boarded the ship and prepared to board once it was located.
"Okay, no matter what happens, stay together. We shouldn't rush in with impact since it can set off an alarm. So, whatever don't yo-?!"
Tim dashed over the restaurant's deck and stepped to the front of the entrance with Kou, both ecstatic to see a restaurant floating above the sea. "This is fantastic!" They dashed through the door and into a large restaurant, where they were immediately recognized.
"An entire restaurant this big on a single ship?! That's so cool!"
Tim and Kou both thoroughly examined the menu while Tim's voice boomed throughout the restaurant. They were overjoyed, and they rapidly prepared for what was about to happen. "Let's get going to find a seat! I'm hungry!" Tim exclaimed in a flash, and Kou agreed with him right away. They dashed to the far back of the room, where they found a free table and sat down, grabbing the menu. They carefully examined it and immediately lifted their arms.
"Hey! Waiter, could your bring loads of meat to this table! We're starving!"
Tim called as Kou added right next to the order.
"Could you bring some fresh lettuce too? From where I came from we didn't have loads of greens!"
A waiter who had been standing next to the table near the front had just fixed his fazes on them and was ready to move away from the table when he realized that the two customers he had just served were surprised to see Tim's face and began to whisper.
"Isn't that the 'White Hair Pirate' Tim, who has a $100,000,000 bounty on his head? Back at the Golden Wasakona, I heard he earned a name for himself by defeating one of the "Sea Nobles.""
"Yes, without a doubt. That's him, and that's probably one of his gang. If I read the papers correctly, there were nine of them."
Despite hearing such intimidating comments, the waiter moved away from their table and walked over to Tim and Kou's. Despite one of them having a $100,000,000 reward on his head, they appeared pleasant, but the waiter made sure to keep a close eye on them in case they tried to cause trouble.
"Are you certain you belong here? When there are marines on the opposite side of the restaurant, I wouldn't advocate staying there. In any case, what kind of meat and greens do you prefer?"
Tim and Kou stared the waiter in the eyes, suspicious and perplexed. They were intrigued, but Tim showed no evidence of being bothered by the presence of the marines and responded with a smile. He swiftly grabbed the menu and demonstrated the sort of meat, while the server observed Tim's preferences.
"Whatever the heck this type of meat is. It looks delicious."
"And I'll have this tomato lettuce. I want loads of food that I never had the chance to try."
The waiter quickly grabbed the menu from the table and made his way to the kitchen, where the marines stood silently watching Tim and Kou. The marine appeared to have pink hair and was accompanied by a woman.
"Take a look at them pirates! They believe they can enter this restaurant without difficulty? Such disgusting behavior. Perhaps I should pay them a visit once I've finished eating meals that only a five-year-old child could prepare."
The man exclaimed, attracting the attention of the waiter, whose eyes, shook as he sensed a negative reaction to the dish he or the kitchen had made. He paused for a second, trying not to make a scene, and then dashed into the kitchen, where the cooks were hard at work preparing the tables.
"New order from table 45, Geezer. A lot of cooked beef and a tomato salad."
The waiter slid the paper on which the order was written down and was about to leave when the elder cook abruptly stopped him. He put the order back into the hands of the waiter, who gave the older a serious look.
"We're occupied, Zumo. Those pirates don't have permission to be at the restaurant. Get rid of them as soon as possible. I'm sure they'll start causing havoc as soon as they get their hands on some food. They might not want to pay, and I'm not going to let them leave unless they do."
Zumo looked the cook in the eyes and pulled the order out of his hands. He tossed the handkerchief aside and stared at Tim and Kou from afar, as the two of them continued to converse and joke around among the onlookers. Zumo remembered what they said when they asked for food.
~ "Hey! Waiter, could your bring loads of meat to this table! We're starving!" ~
"When someone is hungry, money is irrelevant. It makes no difference whether they are poor folks or fearsome pirates. Regardless of who they are, everyone should be served. Are you a villain or a hero? I'll cook everything for them myself."
When Zumo walked into the kitchen, the chefs gave him a skeptical look, and one of the taller cooks had already grumbled about why Zumo had started cooking the food.
"Zumo, you're a fool! Whether you enjoy cooking or not, there's no way you'll cook the meal for them for free! Especially not to those who are professional dancers. They may appear innocent now, but after they get their hands on your well-prepared food, they'll toss it out and claim it wasn't good without even tasting it! Even if they eat it, I'm confident they'll lie and say the food was bad, forcing us to make more delicious food!"
"I told you that it doesn't matter if they're pirates or heroes. I'll cook for them, and if they complain about the meal, I'll deal with them on my own."
Zumo took the tools to prepare the lunch without hesitation or frequent dispute, while Tim and Kou continued their chat.
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Meanwhile, Codey and the rest of the crew sat outside the restaurant, watching what was going on inside. They were seated at one of the tables closest to the window, giving them a clear view of the action inside. They were waiting for one of the cooks to finish cooking their supper, and Codey was worried about the prolonged silence.
"This does not appeal to me. Marines are stationed on the opposite side of the room from Tim and Kou, but they don't seem to be doing anything. It's out of the norm, and based on what we've discovered, Tim and Kou are still unaware of *that*..."
To be continued...