Snack stood by the window, his face blank.
At that moment, Chiffon came over and, seeing Snack's dazed expression, curiously asked, "What's wrong?"
"Cake..."
Snack snapped out of his thoughts and hesitated before saying, "Mom might not need it anymore."
Chiffon widened her eyes, confirming that her brother Snack wasn't joking, and quickly squeezed to the window to look at the venue. She was equally shocked by the scene inside.
"Brother Katakuri and the others..."
Katakuri had always been an incredibly strong figure among the siblings. Chiffon found it hard to believe that this nearly perfect brother had also been defeated.
Snack remained silent.
This was an outcome he had never imagined.
Now, the entire family's hopes rested on Big Mom, who was in the throes of her hunger pangs.
As long as Big Mom remained undefeated, the Charlotte family could eventually rise again.
However, the siblings didn't notice that around the corner, Drake was leaning against the wall, lost in thought.
Not only were the Charlotte siblings shocked, but Drake was also stunned by the sheer power of the clones under Reddy's command.
"I hope Big Mom won't be defeated by that man," Drake silently prayed, his expression turning serious again.
Big Mom, consumed by her hunger pangs, was undoubtedly the best choice to suppress Reddy.
Katakuri had gambled with almost all of Totto Land's forces and suffered a crushing defeat. Drake was the biggest beneficiary, effortlessly locating the kitchen and identifying his next opponents.
"My chance is only once!"
...
"Perfect opportunity!"
Peacock's eyes lit up when she saw the bruised Smoker guarded by only two chess soldiers.
According to the tea party's schedule, Smoker was supposed to be taken to the venue for a public execution.
However, the situation had changed dramatically.
With Reddy's sudden outburst, the tea party had ended abruptly.
Smoker was now completely ignored.
"Wait!"
Tina's expression was grave as she carefully observed the surroundings.
Seeing her caution, Peacock's face flushed slightly, grateful that Tina was accompanying her on this mission. If she had been alone, she might have failed.
Their mission was clear: find and rescue Smoker.
As such, they were unaware of the situation at the venue.
"Strange..."
After observing for a while, Tina looked puzzled.
There really were only two chess soldiers guarding Smoker.
Was Smoker not important?
Tina couldn't understand why things had turned out this way.
"Can we move now?"
Peacock looked at Tina expectantly.
"Uh... let's go!"
Not wanting Peacock to realize she had overthought things earlier, Tina rushed out first.
The chess soldiers weren't strong.
By the time Peacock followed Tina out of hiding, Tina had already used her Devil Fruit ability to bind the two chess soldiers together.
"Hey, you're not dead, are you?"
Tina walked up to Smoker, lit a cigarette, and smirked at her usually arrogant classmate.
Smoker's face darkened, but he didn't speak. Instead, he raised his hands to show the seastone cuffs on his wrists.
Earlier, he had caused trouble in the castle, thoroughly angering Katakuri and the other Charlotte family members. If the Marines hadn't planned to use him as a warning, he would have been killed long ago.
Still, death was out of the question, but a brutal beating was unavoidable.
Smoker wasn't unwilling to try saving himself, but the only non-Devil Fruit user in the Blade Unit, Kotori, had already gone to the East Blue.
Every member who came to Whole Cake Island was a Devil Fruit user, making the seastone cuffs an insurmountable obstacle.
Rather than waste energy, it was better to think about where the key might be.
Otherwise, he would just become dead weight during the escape, something he absolutely couldn't accept.
"Do you know where the key is?"
Tina stared at the seastone cuffs on Smoker's wrists, feeling equally stumped.
They couldn't just carry Smoker out, could they?
Not only would she hate it, but Smoker would definitely refuse too.
"You might not believe this..."
Smoker's expression was strange as he recounted his bizarre experience after being captured.
"Huh?"
Tina was dumbfounded. "They didn't know where to lock you up?"
Smoker nodded seriously.
This was the most unbelievable part for him.
After his capture, while Perospero and the others were discussing where to imprison him, Katakuri had seemed like he wanted to say something but ultimately stayed silent, his eyes filled with obvious confusion.
"So you've been sitting here all night?"
Tina couldn't help but laugh. If they had known, they should have rescued him last night.
Smoker awkwardly avoided Tina's gaze and hesitantly shared his guess: "If the key isn't on Katakuri, then it must be on Perospero."
"Alright..."
Tina shrugged. "First, we have to break into the venue, find the key on Katakuri or Perospero in front of all those people... Do you think we're all Marine Admirals?"
Peacock looked at him sympathetically. "Once Drake destroys the cake, we'll retreat. You definitely won't be a burden to us."
Smoker immediately felt depressed.
At that moment, Prince Grus, who was in charge of backup, walked over with a strange expression.
"Hmm?"
Tina frowned, cigarette in her mouth.
Grus was acting like a rookie right now. Did he not understand their current situation?
"Big Mom won."
Grus's words left Smoker and the other two stunned.
"No way!"
If anyone said Reddy had been defeated by Big Mom, Smoker would be the first to disagree.
With so many monstrously powerful clones, how could Big Mom possibly win? Tina and Peacock also refused to believe Reddy had lost to Big Mom.
Grus smiled bitterly. "I have no reason to lie to you... Just now, Dr. Reddy was severely injured and spat blood. His clones rescued him, and Big Mom is chasing them down."
"Then we..."
Peacock's face paled.
Without Reddy drawing attention upfront, their small group would be walking into a death trap.
"Grus, carry him."
Tina signaled Grus to take Smoker, who couldn't move, and led the way, planning to regroup with Drake.
Not far ahead, a lean figure made Tina's expression change drastically.
"Surprised?"
Reddy stood with his hands in his pockets, smiling gently as he shrugged.
Three pairs of eyes instantly turned to Grus.
Grus felt like his head was about to explode.
He had just seen this man coughing up blood after being beaten by Big Mom.
"Dr. Reddy..."
Smoker opened his mouth but didn't know what to say, his emotions complicated.
"Dr. Reddy, what else do you have to discuss with these Marines?"
Morgan walked up beside Reddy, squinted at Smoker and the others, and shook his head with interest. "I'd actually prefer if they could spread the news. This is big enough to shock the world."
Seeing this, Smoker and the others' expressions changed again.
Had these two big shots formed an alliance?
Reddy smiled without answering and snapped his fingers.
Smoker and the others immediately sensed danger.
But what could they do?
Soon, Smoker and the others were knocked unconscious by two clones.
Morgan watched as Reddy summoned another clone and didn't want to see any more. He turned and walked away, saying, "Don't forget your promise."
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