Cake Island, port. Mr. Sephiroth had just stepped out of the spatial folding door. On the outskirts of Cake Island, a group of Chess Soldiers responsible for vigilance quickly surrounded him, raising their weapons and pointing them at him.
"Step aside, everyone! This is a distinguished guest specially invited by Mama to attend the tea party." A shout came from behind the Chess Soldiers.
Immediately, the crowd parted, and a man holding a cane, wearing a pink suit, eggshell-patterned pants, sunglasses, and with a scar over his left eye, quickly walked towards Mr. Sephiroth. "Hello! Mr. Sephiroth, I am Baron Tamago. Please forgive these guys for their offense... The tea party is about to begin. Would you please take the special car as soon as possible?" Baron Tamago bowed slightly and said politely.
"Okay!" Mr. Sephiroth nodded in agreement and followed behind Baron Tamago, walking towards a distant... pig-drawn carriage?!
Behind a giant pink fat pig, six meters long, a luxuriously decorated pink carriage was being pulled. The two created a strong sense of contrast, causing Mr. Sephiroth's eye corner to twitch slightly. He commented helplessly, "Your Totto Land's vehicles are truly unique...!"
"This is a special car, and it will take you directly to the venue..." Baron Tamago explained. "Alright!" Through the opened car door, Mr. Sephiroth found that Du Feld, Dorag Piekro, Kiberson, and Umit, these familiar faces, had already taken their seats inside the carriage. In addition, he also saw Morgans of the World Economic News inside. Thus, he also stepped into the carriage and sat down in the last row. Although there were already six people in the carriage, there was still ample space. The carriage had three rows of benches, each capable of seating three or four people. Du Feld and Dorag Piekro, two large fat men, sat in the first row. Kiberson and Umit sat in the second row. Mr. Sephiroth sat in the third row with the birdman Morgans. Since Mr. Sephiroth had previously issued an order not to talk to him in public unless there were special circumstances, to avoid exposing their relationship, Du Feld and the others did not strike up a conversation with him, but instead feigned ignorance of each other.
Sephiroth sitting next to him, his eyes immediately rolled, and the corner of his mouth curled into a wicked smile. Then, he quickly pulled out a notebook and a pen from his person. "Huh!? I seem to smell a big scoop... Mr. Sephiroth, as a high-ranking member of the Umbrella Corporation, you are actually attending Big Mom's tea party. Could it be that the Umbrella Corporation is preparing to cooperate with the Big Mom Pirates?" Seeing the expression on Morgans' bird face, Mr. Sephiroth knew that this guy was definitely up to no good.
Morgans, being a fun-loving person who enjoyed watching the excitement and fanning the flames, would definitely seize the opportunity to create a big news story, regardless of whether it was true or false. The World Economic News had great influence. Once the matter spread, regardless of its truth, it would have an immeasurable impact on the Umbrella Corporation...
Therefore, Mr. Sephiroth immediately countered with a light chuckle: "No! I am here only on my own behalf, not on behalf of the Company..."
"Morgans, as the president of the World Economic News, are you attending Big Mom's tea party because your Company is preparing to cooperate with the Big Mom Pirates? Recently, the World Government's crackdown on this aspect has been very severe!"
"Hahaha! I am also here only on my own behalf..." Hearing this, Morgans immediately laughed it off and dropped the subject.
Given the identities and statuses of the people in the carriage, they were more or less involved in various entanglements and connections with both the underworld and the legitimate world... Therefore, even if they came to attend Big Mom's tea party and secretly engaged in some shady cooperation, the World Government would basically choose to turn a blind eye, as long as they didn't go too far and expose certain matters openly, considering their own influence.
Tap-tap-tap!
The sound of high heels echoed on the carriage steps. Stussy, wearing a pink dress, a white hat with flowers, and carrying a white bag, walked into the carriage with elegant steps. A strong and alluring perfume scent entered Mr. Sephiroth's nostrils as Stussy sat down beside him.
Stussy's beautiful eyes flickered, and a captivating and charming smile appeared on her face. She gently brushed her medium-length golden hair and said in a sweet voice, "Oh my! I didn't expect to meet Mr. Sephiroth here! I have admired you for a long time! If you have time, how about we schedule a time to have a cup of coffee?"
"How much for an all-night stay?"
"Ah!?" Stussy's face immediately froze, stunned for a moment. Mr. Sephiroth, however, completely ignored her reaction. With a wicked smile, he said bluntly, "Girl, stop pretending to be pure for me! I'm asking you how much for an all-night stay? If you serve me well, I can pay you monthly, or even yearly... Are you trying to tell me that you, the boss of the Pleasure Quarter, don't understand this?"
"No, you misunderstood! I..."
"Oh! I see! You're playing hard to get now to raise your price, right? Let's cut the games, just name your price!" Mr. Sephiroth's tone, filled with contempt and mockery, directly made Stussy's face alternate between green and white with anger. "How much extra for rough play? Can you be an M?"
Finally, Stussy couldn't bear it anymore. She abruptly stood up from her seat and cursed in a low voice:
"Bah! Lewd!" She took a few steps forward and sat down angrily in the second row, joining Umit and Kiberson.
Seeing this, Mr. Sephiroth immediately clicked his tongue, feigning a dissatisfied expression. He muttered, "Tch! The quality of ladies nowadays is really poor, no professionalism at all..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
"..."
After driving away Stussy, the double agent of Vegapunk and the World Government, Mr. Sephiroth stopped talking. He crossed his arms and closed his eyes to rest.
If it had been a few years ago, before the Umbrella Corporation began analyzing Moon technology, Mr. Sephiroth might have risked being targeted by the World Government. He would have tried to contact Stussy to get in touch with Vegapunk through her. He would have wanted to see if they could reach an agreement and abduct this genius scientist.
But...
Since he received Ain's help and restored the Moon's textual data, Vegapunk's value to Mr. Sephiroth had significantly decreased, making him a dispensable existence. Moon technology was hundreds of years ahead of the current One Piece World.
It would take the Umbrella Corporation at least twenty to thirty years to roughly digest it. During this period, the Umbrella Corporation didn't need any innovation; it only needed to reproduce Moon technology and put it into use. As for top scientific research talents, the Umbrella Corporation also had Ayzac, a genius scientist, to lead the charge. Mr. Sephiroth's own scientific research level was not weak. In terms of personal knowledge reserves, there was basically no one in this world who could surpass him, except for Vegapunk, who ate the Brain-Brain Fruit...
Therefore, even if Vegapunk joined the Umbrella Corporation now, it would at most be a bonus and would not bring about any significant leaps for the Company within a few decades. Thus, Mr. Sephiroth currently had no intention of dealing with the dangerous woman, Stussy. Yes! In every sense of the word... After all, his schedule was basically fully booked by the ladies!