Chapter 217: The Straw Hat Think Tank?
The Straw Hat Pirates boldly docked the Going Merry at the most conspicuous port in Hannabal.
Ralph stood at the bow, looking at the completely exposed docking spot, the corner of his mouth twitching slightly.
He glanced at Lufia.
Lufia was excitedly gazing at the town on the island, her eyes gleaming with "I want meat" light.
He looked at the others.
All were geared up and ready to disembark for a stroll.
Not a single person thought there was any issue with parking a pirate ship out in the open.
Ralph sighed.
With a carefree captain, the entire crew naturally relaxed.
It never even crossed their minds—
Could this possibly attract the Navy?
Forget it.
Ralph shook his head.
Since they were already here, they'd deal with the Navy or whatever when the time came.
"Let's go!"
At Lufia's command, she leaped off the ship first and charged toward the town.
The others followed.
Hannabal Town was more prosperous than expected.
Shops lined both sides of the street—taverns, casinos, weapon shops, clothing stores... everything one could imagine.
Lufia completely ignored everything else and rushed straight into what looked like the largest tavern.
"Boss! Bring out all the delicious food!"
The group followed her in and settled at a large table.
The tavern owner's eyes lit up at the sight of this crowd—big customers!
Then he witnessed the scene that followed.
Lufia grabbed a roasted chicken, and within three seconds, only the skeleton remained.
Chopper hugged a plate of fruit, his little hooves moving swiftly.
Zoro drank silently, with three plates of roasted meat laid out before him.
Sanji ate elegantly, but the speed at which his plates disappeared was no slower.
Usopp bragged while eating:
"Back in the day, the roasted whole elephant I had on the Grand Line, now that was..."
The plates piled higher and higher.
Higher and higher.
Finally, the stack of plates on the table nearly touched the ceiling.
The tavern owner's smile gradually froze.
He wiped the sweat from his forehead, silently calculating how much this table would cost.
At the same time, a glint of shrewdness flashed in the owner's eyes.
These people were definitely not ordinary.
Sure enough, after finishing their meal, the black-haired young woman leading the group walked up to the bar and pulled out two coins.
A total of 200 Berry.
The owner narrowed his eyes at the two coins.
This was the signal.
He nodded and whispered:
"Follow me."
The group followed the owner through the tavern's back door into a narrow alley.
At the end of the alley was an inconspicuous small door.
Pushing it open revealed a downward passage, dark and deep, pitch-black to the point of not seeing one's own hand.
"This is..."
Usopp was a bit nervous.
"It looks like an abandoned mine shaft."
Ralph observed and said.
The group continued along the mine shaft, and before long, an iron door appeared ahead.
Pushing open the iron door—
A sudden expanse opened up.
The interior of the island had been hollowed out into a massive space, comparable to a small town.
Circular corridors were carved layer by layer into the surrounding walls, each level packed with people.
Pirates clinked glasses, shouted loudly, with laughter, curses, and the clinking of cups blending together.
In the center was a huge pool, and above it, hanging from the former ceiling, several thick iron chains suspended ships as decorations.
The air was filled with the smell of alcohol, sweat, and gunpowder.
"Wow—!"
Lufia's eyes instantly lit up.
This atmosphere, this clamor, this freedom—
It was practically a paradise tailor-made for pirates!
"I heard the food here is free, and unlimited!"
Usopp leaned in and whispered.
Lufia's ears twitched.
Food?
Free?
Unlimited?
She had only eaten half her fill at the tavern earlier!
"Charge—!"
With a howl, Lufia grabbed Chopper and Usopp and dashed toward the nearest dining area.
Ralph watched Lufia's disappearing figure, his expression gradually freezing.
He had forgotten about this underground casino's "free food" setup.
Because everyone who came here was here to gamble, the food was just a lure.
Ralph clutched his forehead, regretting it so much his guts twisted.
He shouldn't have let her eat outside earlier.
After all, food expenses were a major cost for the Straw Hat Pirates.
Money didn't just fall from the sky.
Every bit saved counted.
"What's wrong?"
Nami noticed his expression.
"Nothing."
Ralph lowered his hand, his gaze turning resolute.
"Just thinking that we absolutely have to win back our capital here."
Nami blinked, then smiled.
"I like the sound of that."
The Straw Hat Pirates naturally split into two groups.
Lufia led Zoro, Usopp, Chopper, and Ace toward the dining area.
Ralph led Sanji, Nami, and Robin deeper into the casino, aiming to sign up for the Dead End Race.
"Seems like the ones who use their brains are all here."
Nami teased.
Sanji, cigarette in mouth, curled the corner of his lips:
"Can't be helped, there are too many fools on our ship."
"Including your captain?"
Robin asked with a smile.
Sanji fell silent for a second.
Then he changed the subject:
"Where's that registration desk?"
The four arrived at the largest counter in the center of the casino.
Behind it sat a man as fat as a ball, dressed in a flashy suit, all ten fingers adorned with gold rings, a cigar in his mouth.
He looked every bit the casino owner.
"What would you like to play?"
The fat man asked with a smile.
"Roulette? Poker? Or..."
"The Dead End Race."
Ralph cut him off.
After confirming they knew the 200 Berry password, the fat man retrieved an Eternal Pose from under the counter.
Metal base, glass cover, the pointer inside steadily pointing in a certain direction.
"This is the Eternal Pose for the race's finish line."
The fat man handed it over, and Nami took it, examining it closely.
On the metal tag at the bottom was engraved a name.
Patia.
"Patia?"
Nami frowned.
"Never heard of that island."
"Just some nameless little island."
The fat man waved his hand.
"The important thing is the race, not the destination."
"Whoever arrives first wins and gets the mysterious grand prize."
"You can also place bets; the winner gets three hundred million Berries. Who are you betting on?"
Nami's eyes instantly turned into Berry symbols.
Three hundred million!
"Of course we're betting on ourselves!"
Though Ralph was fuzzy on the details, he knew the general plot.
He reached out and took the pointer from Nami's hand.
Then, with a light flick of his finger, the metal tag popped off.
Revealing the true engraving underneath.
Robin leaned in for a look, her smile growing more meaningful.
"That seems to be a Navy base."
The fat man's smile froze.
Nami's eyes instantly transformed from Berry symbols into those of a beast, her pearly white teeth seemingly turning into fangs, as if she wanted to bite the fat man!
Bang!
She slammed her fist on the counter, making the entire wooden table groan in protest.
The gold coins on the table jumped, spun a few times in the air, and then clattered back down.
"You fat bastard, care to explain!"
Cold sweat instantly broke out on the fat man's forehead.
He had fooled so many Pirates with this trick, and it had never failed before.
How had these youngsters seen through it?
"..."
He stammered, "This is actually the first round of the competition!"
Nami narrowed her eyes:
"The first round?"
"That's right, that's right!"
The fat man grew more confident as he spoke, "With so many Pirates participating, we have to filter out a batch."
"What does it take to rule the seas?"
"It takes wisdom!"
"If you don't even have the brains to see through a trick like this, you might as well not be a Pirate!"
He wiped his sweat and continued, "Sending those fools down a dead-end path early on is also giving you clever folks a better chance to win!"
Nami looked at Ralph.
Ralph looked at Robin.
Robin looked at Sanji.
The four exchanged glances.
It sounded reasonable, but upon closer thought, it was all nonsense.
None of them were fools.
The entire competition might just be a scam.
Luring these Pirate crews to participate, betting on themselves to win, only to be tricked into heading straight to a Navy base, never to return.
In the end, the casino owner would collect all the bets and become the biggest winner.
"Interesting."
Ralph smiled, "Then where's the real finish line?"
The fat man looked at him, knowing he couldn't hide it any longer.
He sighed and pulled out another Eternal Pose from under the counter.
This one had no label.
"Here."
He handed it over, "This one's real."
Nami took the pose and nodded in satisfaction.
Then she noticed—
The fat man's eyes nervously flicked toward a certain direction.
It was subtle.
But all four of them caught it at the same time.
"It seems the casino owner has an accomplice."
Robin said softly.
"To deceive so many Pirate crews at once, someone must be backing him."
Sanji added.
"Judging by the direction he glanced, that person is right here in the arena."
Nami analyzed, narrowing her eyes, "It might even be the favorite Pirate crew to win."
"If it's the favorite, it's definitely the top one."
Ralph concluded.
The four exchanged smiles.
When the brains of the group got to work, it was truly something else.
With just a few words, they had pieced together nearly the entire scheme designed by the owner and his shadowy backer.
"Then let's find out who the favorite is."
Nami said.