章 61: Chapter 60
Nami curiously looked at the light blue-haired girl, who was anxiously watching the two doctors treating the young boy.
The rest of the crew was silent too, and they had already been introduced to the girl by Sin.
Her name was Nefertari Vivi, and she was the Princess of Arabasta.
But no matter how hard Nami looked at her, she could not wrap her head around why the girl was wearing common clothes with dirt all over them, and she even had a few bruises on her hands and arms. Even her shoes were not something a princess would wear, and she knew that Arabasta was not a poor Kingdom.
"Are you really a princess?" She could not help but ask, and her question snapped Vivi out of her thoughts.
"Sorry?"
"Why are you wearing such common clothes?" Nami tilted her head, raising her question, and Vivi frowned at her a little.
"I sneaked out of the Palace to meet my friends." She told her and finally noticed the clothes everyone was wearing. They were all wearing very expensive and beautiful clothes, especially the younger girls, and it made her curous. "Are you a pirate?" She asked the girl back and raised her brow when Nami grinned at her.
"I am a princess." She said, and Vivi's eyes widened in surprise. "Sin kidnapped me from my Kingdom." And her next words froze the girl.
Seeing her eyes quiver and the dumb expression she was wearimg now, everyone could not help their laughter, and Nami was the one who was laughing the hardest.
"She's messing with you." Robin gently informed the Princess who seemed quite confused, and Vivi immediately felt a little embarrassed for not picking up on it.
"The boy is safe, and the cut wasn't deep. His eye has survived." The two doctors, who had just finished treating the boy, informed Sin. "The scar will remain though."
"Thank you!" Vivi tearfully bowed to them, and the two old men smiled at her.
"It's our duty to save the injured. No need to thank us."
"You shouldn't be sneaking out of your Palace, Princess." Sin suddenly said, and Vivi panicked a little at the seriousness in his voice.
"I..."
"And a princess shouldn't be friends with commoners in the first place."
His words not only made Vivi frown, but Nami and Nojiko frowned as well.
"Why not?" Vivi clenched her fists and bravely looked at him, already thinking that he was some prejudiced man. Which was ironic, considering he was a Pirate, a criminal. But she lowered her head when she looked into his cold grey eyes.
"There are several reasons, some of which you are too young to understand right now. But I will give you a reason which you are capable of understanding." He said, prompting her to meet his eyes again. "Their lives will be in danger because of you. And people might try to harm them to get to you. Unlike you, they don't have the Royal Guards to protect them."
Tears brimmed up in Vivi's eyes, and what happened today surfaced on her mind again.
Yes, it was because of her that her friends had been harmed. She was smart enough to understand this.
If Koza had not tried to protect her, he would not have received that scar that would stay with him for the rest of his life.
Vivi felt quite ashamed of herself, and inadvertently glanced at the boy who was still unconscious.
Sin did not say anything else and left the young girl to her thoughts. The rest of the crew did the same, and even Nami and Nojiko did not disturb Vivi.
An hour later, the Blackstar Crew, together with Vivi, and the now awake Koza, arrived at the entrance of Alubarna, a city that was situated on a plateau near an oasis, and some people were already waiting for them at the gate.
There were some Royal Guards too, in addition to the Gate Keepers, and it the crew that were expected.
"Koza!" A middle man with a big belly and a mustache ran forward when he saw that his son was alright.
"Dad!" The boy was happy too as he was hugged and then their group of friends rushed forward to hug him and expresstheir happiness at seeing that he was alright.
"I am sorry that Koza got hurt because of me, Mr. Toto." Vivi climbed off the Accellegator and apologised to the man. "I am sorry everyone." And then she turned to her friends.
"We are just glad that you are alright, Princess." Toto anxiously said as he bowed to her, and Koza brightly smiled at her.
"We are Suna Suna Clan, Vivi. We must protect each other!" He said to her, and the other children enthusiastically nodded their heads.
Vivi held back he tears and lightly smiled at them.
"Thank you."
However, there was something in her voice that the kids found a little off, but Toto, being much wiser than these kids, could guess Vivi's train of thoughts.
"Let's go." He dragged his son away with him after he thanked Sin and the rest of them, and the kids bid goodbye to Vivi too, running off to their homes, promising to meet the next day.
And when they were all gone, Vivi's smile ceased and she lowered her head again.
The citizens of Alubarna were quite alarmed and curious why the Princess was being accompanied by the notorious Eighth Warlord of the Seas, and when they saw Sin's eyes glancing their way, they immediately bowed to him in a greeting and dispersed.
At some point, the Royal Guards had started following them as they headed to the Palace, but no one dared to come forward and take the Princess, who was walking right next to Sin.
"Princess!" Pell, who was waiting inside the Palace, was immensely relieved when he saw the Princess return safe and sound, and having already received his orders, he gratefully bowed to the youngest Warlord.
"King Cobra is waiting for you in the throne room." He informed them.
"Lead the way." He smiled and the patted Vivi's head, bringing her out of her thoughts and making her realise that his words were directed to her.
The young princess nodded her head to him and then took the lead, showing them way to the throne room.
Seeing that the girl was finally out of her thoughts, Nami rushed forward and started asking her questions about anything that caught her interest, and Vivi had a smile on her face as she answered them.
It was hard for anyone to resist Nami's intoxicating enthusiasm, and Vivi was girl who was even younger than her.
"I read that the Palace is 4000 years old. Is it really true?" The orangehead curiously asked, and Vivi nodded at first and then shook it.
"Yes, and no. Alubarna has always been the Capital City, and though the first Royal Palace was constructed right here, it did not survive past a few centuries. Several Palaces were built over thousands of years, and they eventually fell. This one was built 1800 years ago after the Nefertari Family became the rulers of Arabasta, and it has also been renovated several times since then. The last renovation took place fifty years ago."
Seeing that Vivi was well-versed in her family's history, Nami enthusiastically asked even more questions, and the two girls were still chatting with each other when they arrived in the throne room.
"Vivi."
It was not until Cobra called out to her that Vivi realised where they were, and then she immediately rushed up to him, climbed the stairs, and launched herself in his arms.
"I am sorry." She apologised, and then nervously waited for him to say something.
"You are safe. That's all that matters. Please, take the guards with you next time. And never sneak out of the city."
Vivi had tears brimming in her eyes as she heard her father words and sensed his worries, and she immediately shook her head.
"I won't sneak out again." She promised, and Cobra was shocked to hear her words.
He knew that he had spoiled her a little too much, but after the passing of her mother, he had always tried his best to keep her happy, even allowing her to become a little wilful if it would save her from drowning in sadness and missing her mother too much.
Cobra pulled Vivi into a hug again, and then affectionately planted a kiss on her head.
"Go, freshen up and get changed. Lunch will be served soon."
"Yes." She nodded to him and then ran down the Royal platform.
"Take Nami, Nojiko, and Pascia with you." Sin suddenly said, and Vivi turned to look at her father, who nodded to her.
Nami, who was curiously looking at the King, raised a question as soon as Cobra looked at her.
"Where's your crown?"
Cobra stared at the girl in surprise, but then he started laughing at her innocent question.
"It's too heavy, so I don't like wearing it. And a King is a King even if he is not wearing his crown." He told her, and Nami brightly smiled at him.
"Okay!" She nodded her head and then happily followed Vivi and left the throne room with her.
"Excuse us," Cobra suddenly said, "All of you. Even the Royal Protectors."
His words surpsied some, but they silently obeyed his command and closed the door behind them as they left Cobra alone with the Blackstar Crew.
"You resemble your father a lot." The King of Arabasta stood up from his throne and slowly walked down the stairs. "But you are much more handsome than him when he was at your age."
"I was told by my Protector, Issac, that my father and you were good friends." Sin chuckled at his words and then nodded to him in a greeting.
"Oh, yes. And How's that Old Issac doing? And Zavier?" He curiously asked, and tensed up a little when he saw Sin briefly close his eyes and sigh.
There was no mistaking the pain that surfaced on his face.
"They died protecting me," He informed Cobra, who lowered his head and sighed as well. Offering a prayer for their souls in his heart.
He did not say any words of consolation, knowing well that they were useless and would only rekindle more sad memories.
Cobra then raised his head and looked at Sin's crew, and when his eyes landed at Robin, and he smiled at her.
"Welcome to Arabasta, Princess." He politely bowed to her in a greeting, and Robin smiled back at him.
"Thank you." She returned the courtesy, and then reached forward to open the Chest that Bart had brought into the throne room. "We brought some gifts for you, and we hope you would like them."
Cobra laughed at her words and then walked over to curious look inside the chest, where he found three small wooden chests lying on the cushions.
"Devil Fruits?" Cobra surpriseldy asked when the chests were opened, and Robin nodded to him.
"Yes. A present that would bolster the strength of your Royal Guards and Kingdom." She smiled. "The first one is Neko Neko no Mi, Model: Tiger." She pointed at the Grapefruit, which that had acquired after killing Barga. "The second one is Tori Tori no Mi, Model: Hawk." She pointed at the one they had acquired from treasure of Arlong Pirates. "And this one is Wani Wani no Mi, the Crocodile Fruit."
Sin had acquired Wani Wani no Mi a few years ago, and it had been resting in the Treasury of their ship all this time. And earlier today, he had asked Robin to retrieve it along with the other two fruits.
Cobra stared at the Fruits in shock as he realised that all three of them were powerful Zoan Type Fruits. Any Kingdom would readily splash a huge sum on them as they would massively bolster the strength of their Royal Guards.
"These are too expensive." Cobra sighed and helplessly smiled.
If they were anything like their father, there was no way he would be able to reject their goodwill.
Black D. Orion was quite a forceful man, and the grins on Sin and Robin's faces told Cobra that they had inherited the trait from their father.
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