"I'm very good at winning hearts, you know."
Hearing Robin's playful comment, and recalling how easily she won over the Straw Hat crew in the original timeline, Sora couldn't help but chuckle.
When it came to understanding people, if Robin claimed second place, no one would dare to claim first.
Sora continued, "That woman Lola, apparently…"
He went on to explain the situation to Robin: how the prince of Elbaf had fallen for Lola, the nature of Katakuri's personality, and how he planned to use Lola to strike a deal.
In Sora's mind, if he released Lola, Katakuri might hesitate to attack out of concern for her safety.
And that would give him the perfect opening to negotiate.
After hearing his plan, Robin understood everything and smiled.
"I think that could work."
"I'll handle communication with Katakuri."
…
Aboard the Tart Ship.
Smoothie frowned slightly as a slash from the Divine Slave sliced past them, missing by a narrow margin.
She began absorbing moisture again, preparing for another multi-slash attack.
But just as she was about to act, Katakuri stopped her.
"Wait."
Katakuri turned toward the mast of the Tart Ship.
There, half-emerging from the mast, was a woman in business attire.
It was a clone created by Nico Robin using her Flower-Flower Fruit.
This clone ability was something Robin was supposed to master two years later, but under Sora's guidance, she had developed it early.
Of course, it definitely wasn't because of any strange ideas Sora might have had.
Definitely not…
As Robin's clone manifested, Daifuku, Oven, and the others looked on warily.
'She's huge… Can Sora even handle someone that tall?'
Robin glanced at the towering ten-meter-tall Smoothie and pursed her lips thoughtfully.
Smoothie felt the weight of Robin's gaze and frowned. Something about the way she was being looked at felt… off, but she couldn't explain why.
Pulling her eyes away from Smoothie, Robin addressed Katakuri.
"Why are you chasing our merchant guild so relentlessly?"
Katakuri looked at her and answered seriously, "I want to trade for the flight ship technology."
Originally, Katakuri had intended to capture Sora, but the Divine Slave was simply too fast—his Tart Ship couldn't keep up. So he changed tactics.
To Katakuri, as long as he could obtain the schematics, everything else could come later.
Smoothie, Daifuku, and Oven said nothing—they had no objections to his change in strategy.
Seeing that Katakuri clearly knew who Sora was, Robin looked at Smoothie again and said,
"We're open to a trade for the ship schematics."
"But… can you actually represent the Big Mom Pirates?"
"I can," Katakuri replied calmly. As Big Mom's strongest child, his authority extended far enough to make certain decisions on her behalf.
Robin smiled and turned to Smoothie.
"Then here's the offer—Sora is interested in her. You trade her for the schematics."
"What?!" Smoothie's face twisted in shock. She couldn't believe that Sora had taken a liking to her.
As Big Mom's daughter and one of the Sweet Commanders, she was used to terrifying anyone who dared flirt with her—most of those men were now feeding the sea.
So this sudden situation left her momentarily speechless.
Daifuku, Oven, and the others were stunned as well. They hadn't expected Sora to be interested in someone like Smoothie.
Katakuri's aura surged with killing intent. He stared coldly at Robin.
"You'd better explain yourself."
Robin smiled calmly.
"Sora wants to cooperate with the Big Mom Pirates—and he's proposing a political marriage. The bride would be Smoothie."
"If you agree, he'll give you the flight technology as a dowry."
A political marriage?
Katakuri frowned. Things were getting weird fast.
And this felt like it was edging outside the bounds of what he had authority to decide.
Still, the truth was—Sora's ship was too fast. They couldn't capture him. Negotiation was their only option.
Daifuku, Oven, and the others looked at each other, completely at a loss.
Smoothie, meanwhile, twitched at the corner of her mouth.
Just as she was about to speak, Katakuri cut her off and said to Robin:
"I have many sisters. Smoothie is not a suitable choice."
As one of the Sweet Commanders and Big Mom's most powerful children, Smoothie was far too valuable to be bartered away.
Robin didn't seem bothered. She smiled and said,
"Then how about this—we have Lola."
"You know, the sister who ran away because the prince of Elbaf fell in love with her."
"If you agree, Sora will hand her over too."
If Sora wanted Smoothie, flight schematics alone wouldn't be enough. So he decided to add Lola as leverage.
"Lola?!"
Daifuku, Oven, and Smoothie were all visibly shocked. They hadn't expected that Godslayer Sora had actually captured her.
Though they didn't care much for Lola personally, she was vital to Big Mom's political ambitions. A marriage between her and the prince of Elbaf would be the key to an alliance with the Giant Kingdom.
Katakuri frowned. He hadn't expected Sora to know about that either.
But if Sora really had Lola, and offered her in exchange, then Katakuri knew there was a good chance their mother would agree.
A marriage to the Giants would be a huge step toward Big Mom's dream of becoming Pirate King.
Sora had the looks, the power, and the technology. He was more than worthy.
Looking at Robin, Katakuri said, "Is Lola really on your ship? I'll need to see her with my own eyes to believe you."
Robin replied, "She's being held on another one of our ships. She's… well, constantly proposing to people, and constantly getting rejected."
"If you still don't believe me, give me a pen—I'll draw her for you."
Katakuri gestured to a chess soldier to bring her a pen and sketchpad.
Robin took them and quickly sketched a portrait.
When she handed it over, Katakuri glanced at it and then turned to Smoothie.
"If you're unwilling, I'll talk to Mama myself. But I need to know what you think."
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