Yuba Pub
Even though today's customers aren't locals, and even the owner isn't here, it's still lively.
All the tables in the pub are full, and even the seats at the bar are taken.
These humans and fish-men put the berries they found on their ships into the counter drawer, and then took out some barrels of wine from the pub's storage.
Wine, it's something that can give people comfort, especially when they feel helpless.
When the strong liquid goes down their throats, they feel alive again.
They raise their glasses and laugh loudly.
It's a bitter laugh, but also a way to let out their feelings.
It's hard to believe that fish-men and humans are sitting together, drinking and toasting.
...
At the bar, a human and a tall fish-man raise their glasses to each other.
The human is the young man who talked to the town elder yesterday, one of the few humans who can talk to outsiders.
At the same time, a tall, thin fish-man carries a new, unopened barrel of wine from the storage.
He's about to open it, but the tall fish-man at the bar suddenly slams the table.
"Hey, Wall!"
The tall fish-man points and says, "Pay first."
The tall, thin fish-man named Wall is unhappy and mumbles, "Hocka, nobody will care, and we might need that money later..."
"If you can't pay, then deal with it, no drink!"
The fish-man Hocka says firmly, "Remember, Wall, this is something we can't cross, because we're not pirates or fugitives!"
Wall has no choice but to take out some berries from his pocket and put them in the unattended counter drawer.
Then, he turns around and goes to drink with his friends.
The young man shakes his head with a bitter smile, "You're really strict, Hocka."
Hocka sighs.
"I can't help it, they're all too young."
He holds out his hand and makes a mark, "Take Wall for example, when I first met him in Mary Geoise, he wasn't even as tall as this bar."
Hocka smiles, remembering the past.
"Wow, so many years have passed."
"Suddenly getting freedom is lucky for young people, but it's also a test, I can't let them go down the wrong path."
The young man lowers his head and says slowly, "Sorry, you have to take care of us, otherwise you should have left with Fisher Tiger..."
"Don't say that, friend."
Hocka says seriously, "We swore we would find a place to settle down together."
"A place to settle down?"
The young man laughs at himself, rolls up his sleeves, and the bright red "Heavenly Dragon's Hoof" mark is clearly visible.
It's a shameful mark that can't be erased.
"Who would accept us?"
"Someone will," Hocka says, comforting him, "If the Grand Line doesn't work, we'll cross the Reverse Mountain and go to the four seas, there will always be a place where we can settle down."
The young man nods, his expression easing a little.
"I hope so."
Then, a burst of noise nearby catches their attention.
Several fish-men move the tables and chairs aside, clearing a space.
Two of them step into the space, empty-handed, ready to fight.
It's a special game from the fish-man festival, called "Alazama," which means fish-man wrestling ring.
The participants fight each other in the ring, using only strength and skill, and the one who throws the other out of the ring wins.
After the fight, the winner and loser will drink a lot of wine to celebrate their friendship.
Even though it's not festival time, this game is a good way to relax.
"Oh, here it comes!"
"Fight well!"
"I'm next!"
"Haha, you're drunk, don't join in!"
"..."
Bang!
A fish-man is thrown out of the ring, he laughs loudly, and is pulled up from the ground by the winner.
They put their arms around each other's shoulders and drink two big mugs of beer.
It has been a long time since they felt so relaxed.
Seeing this, the young man smiles, "Chaka, aren't you going to play?"
Chaka raises his eyebrows and asks the fish-men nearby, "Anyone want to fight me?"
Hearing this, the fish-men quickly shake their heads and say, "Chaka, don't do that, you hit too hard!"
If he weren't very strong, Hocka wouldn't be the boss of everyone, and wouldn't have been able to lead a large group out of the hell of Mary Geoise.
"You brats!"
Chaka laughs, scolds them a few times, and continues drinking with the young man.
Just then, the door of the pub is suddenly pushed open.
It's a man wearing golden armor, followed by another man with a cigar, and a little girl with blue hair.
This scene makes the once noisy pub fall silent instantly.
Then, the man who walked in first suddenly says something that doesn't make any sense:
"A pigeon walks into a pub."
"..."
No one answers, because they don't know what that sentence means.
Seeing this, the expression on the man's face shows obvious disappointment.
He mumbles, "Hey, isn't that a funny joke? Aren't you going to react to it?"
Crocodile frowns and says in a low voice:
"Are you trying to make us laugh with an eight-hundred-year-old joke?"
Rowan: "..."
That makes sense.
Crocodile says with a sneer, "Tsk, what an uninspiring emperor!"
Along the way, his heart has been full of complaints, and he's very unhappy with Rowan's behavior.
This emperor from eight hundred years ago is like a desert.
When you punch him, it leaves a mark, but as soon as the wind blows, everything goes back to normal.
Crocodile thinks that this type of person is often the most difficult to deal with.
Because they only have their goals in mind, and they don't care about anything else!
As expected, Rowan not only doesn't get angry when he hears this, but laughs and says, "Compared to the serious court, I like the atmosphere here better!"
Crocodile raises his eyebrows, "If that's the case, why don't you become an adventurer?"
Rowan thinks seriously and answers earnestly:
"Because of responsibility."
Hearing this, Crocodile is obviously stunned for a moment, then turns his face away and mumbles:
"Tsk, how boring..."
Rowan's gaze sweeps around, observing the surrounding situation.
There are about thirty fish-men here, and a dozen humans.
"What a lively party!"
Rowan's tone seems very interested.
When he sees the cleared space, he becomes even more excited.
"Is that Alazama? You guys are still playing this game!"
"That brings back memories..."
After saying this, Rowan ignores the surprised or hostile looks around him and walks straight into the cleared space.
He takes off his helmet and the upper part of his armor, revealing a body that isn't muscular, but still has strong muscles.
He twists his arms and waves to the fish-man in front of him:
"Come on, let's fight!"
The fish-man is Wall.
He's a little confused, but the human man in front of him is already ready to fight empty-handed.
Wall quickly shakes his head and says, "Human, you'll get hurt."
Alazama is a rough game that only tests strength.
Fish-men are ten times stronger than ordinary humans, so Alazama is very dangerous for the human's weak body.
But Rowan doesn't care about this, and keeps waving, motioning Wall to start quickly.
"Then please be careful!"
Wall bends over slightly.
He plans to use brute force to push this strange human out of the ring, which would be good for everyone.
Whoosh!
Wall steps forward, and his two big hands grab Rowan's shoulders.
But just as he's about to use his strength, he suddenly feels the world spinning.
Bang!
By the time Wall realizes what happened, he's already been thrown heavily out of the ring.
He lies on the ground, looking at the human in front of him in disbelief.
Did he... lose?
This scene makes the faces of all the fish-men change, because they saw with their own eyes the human man easily throw Wall out of the ring.
Their eyes turn to Hocka, the leader.
Rowan notices this.
He also turns to look at Hocka, moving his wrists.
"I remember that at the end of Alazama, the winner and loser will raise their glasses together and celebrate their friendship."
"So..."
Rowan hooks his finger at Hocka, "If I win in the end, how about we have a drink together?"