Chapter 34

Chapter 34: Do You Know Who We Are?

"Is this the rumored cat-pianist Tom?"

Guragas, bald, with thick orange beard, and a large beer belly, bore a strong resemblance to the appearance imitated by the phone bug.

His distillery was located on Island 43, not far from the port of Island 44. He usually brewed some alcohol himself and also bought wine from overseas.

"It's him. I didn't expect even you to have heard of him," Adrian replied.

Guragas chuckled heartily, "Haha, I'm afraid it won't be long before the news spreads throughout the entire Sabaody Archipelago. Get ready for the tavern to become a big hit!"

"I hope it doesn't cause any trouble," Adrian asked, "Is the alcohol I ordered ready?"

"It's all here. Why don't you count them, young man?" Guragas gestured toward the carriage behind him.

The carriage was also modified with bubbles, offering excellent shock absorption. Two workers were unloading box after box—mostly bottled wine. When customers requested, Guragas would also provide barrel wine, but that was usually reserved for those who were planning long sea voyages.

Adrian took the list and started counting, "Tom, Artoria, help me take these and store them in the cellar."

"The young lady and the little cat, let me help instead. These are quite heavy..." Guragas was shocked as he watched Tom pick up a box larger than himself and wobble towards the tavern, while Artoria easily carried three boxes, "Thanks for the offer, but we've got it."

"Uh... okay." Guragas scratched his large beard, "It seems this young lady isn't an ordinary person either."

"She's the tavern's guardian. Don't be deceived by her petite appearance; she can take down ten of me without breaking a sweat," Adrian exaggerated a bit, mainly to make sure they wouldn't doubt it. Artoria could probably defeat him easily, making him sweat buckets.

After counting, Adrian took Guragas inside the tavern to collect payment. The past few days had seen their income drop by nearly half.

Guragas looked at the prices on the wine shelves and said, "Are you still selling wine at the prices set by Old Bob? You're earning too little. This is a tavern, not a grocery store."

"Is that so? I thought doubling the cost price was already quite expensive," Adrian realized he had made a mistake; he hadn't gone to other stores to investigate before opening.

Guragas said, "So, you're charging the price of a grocery store or a regular store for the wine. You should increase it by another twenty or thirty percent to get the proper price for a tavern. Considering you have the Cat Pianist here, raising the price by forty percent is reasonable."

Adrian was tempted, "What about Old Bob...?"

Guragas speculated, "That guy is probably retiring and too lazy to adjust the prices. Or maybe he hasn't been keeping up with the market for a while."

"...I'll definitely look into it soon. Thanks for the reminder," Adrian said gratefully.

"You're welcome. If you need more wine, feel free to contact me anytime. I'm leaving now."

"Why not stay for a drink?"

"Haha, another time. I still have deliveries to make to a few more bars." Guragas left with his people.

...

Black Pepper Pan-Fried Sea King Meat

Tomato Stewed Sea King Meat

Crispy Sea King Meat

Garlic Vermicelli Steamed Sea King Meat

Red Wine Grilled Sea King Meat

These were the main courses for tonight's dinner at the tavern, along with a few vegetable dishes and a soup prepared meticulously by the chef.

Although the dishes on the table weren't emitting light, Adrian and Artoria's eyes were practically glowing.

The three of them rubbed their hands together, picked up their utensils, and with mouths watering, started their feast.

"Mmm..."

"Mmm..."

"Mmm..."

"So delicious!" *2

Whether it was Tom's improved cooking skills or the exceptionally good quality of the Sea King meat, after taking the first bite, they couldn't stop. They swept through the dishes in front of them as if a whirlwind had passed through.

Even Artoria and Adrian, who were relatively reserved, couldn't help but lick their plates clean, just like Tom.

Tom, for once, had stuffed himself until he was round. Artoria still seemed a bit unsatisfied, and Adrian hadn't even had time to wash the plates.

"Why do I feel unusually full tonight? Tom, did you make more dishes than usual?"

Tom shook his head, indicating that there wasn't much of a difference.

Taking a sip of tea, Artoria said, "It's probably the meat. It seems to have a strengthening effect on the body. Although it's not much, compared to ordinary food, it's quite significant. Eating a lot of Sea King meat every day would be very beneficial for you now."

"So you're saying I should buy it regularly?" Adrian was tempted by the idea of becoming stronger faster.

"That's right." Artoria nodded earnestly.

Adrian felt something was off and looked at her with suspicion, "Are you really suggesting this so I buy more, and not just because the meat tastes amazing?"

Artoria's hair tuft twitched, and she averted her gaze from his, denying with a faltering voice, "Absolutely not."

You're guilty, aren't you?!

Adrian was convinced that she wanted to eat this meat herself, and the part about it making him stronger was probably true too. He felt a little hurt, mostly for his wallet's sake—this stuff was much more expensive than regular meat...

Raise the prices. The prices of the alcohol in the tavern must be raised!

Otherwise, their already not-so-rich tavern would suffer even more.

"How about we close the shop and go fishing instead..."

Of course, this was just venting. Adrian still believed that the tavern had a chance to survive. If worse came to worst, he could reluctantly have Artoria capture some bounty or something. He had promised to provide three meals a day, after all. But it felt awkward to let her earn her own meal money.

That evening, they continued to operate at the regular prices. Adrian thought it would be an uneventful night, but a few troublemakers showed up unexpectedly.

They were three individuals wearing sunglasses, strutting around with the same arrogance as Doflamingo. They ordered some drinks and meat, enjoyed their fill, then nonchalantly put their hands in their pockets and started to leave.

"Gentlemen, did you forget to settle the bill?" Adrian put down the tray and walked over.

"We'll pay later. We'll settle with you in a few days," one of them said casually.

"It's a small business, and we don't do credit," Adrian blocked their way.

The leader pressed his arm against Adrian's, smiling, "Young man, you've been here for a short while. Do you know who we are?"

The other two laughed, their smiles just as radiant, "No, no, no. What I mean is, since you don't recognize us, it's much easier."

After speaking, they turned and tried to run.

Just as Adrian was about to ask them to introduce themselves, something round flew through the air—a

lasso that caught the first person by the neck. The upper half of his body came to an abrupt halt, while the lower half described an elegant fan shape, eventually hovering in the air for a second before falling flat on his back with a thud.