Chapter 668: Help Has Arrived
While speaking with Pudding, Ian was eating with his back to her.
But in reality, Ian was only pretending to chew with his cheeks puffed out. He hadn't actually swallowed any of the chocolate pie!
Every piece of chocolate pie he lifted with his fork, the moment it entered his mouth, was swiftly taken down with lightning-fast hand speed, pinched in his other hand, and instantly incinerated into black ash by flames, scattered under the table...
Then, as he continued eating, Ian suddenly stopped moving, staggered to his feet, and put on a dizzy expression.
He shook his head vigorously, then, without a word, fell backward onto the floor.
To make it look real, Ian relaxed his body, let himself hit the floor hard, and even knocked over a chair, producing a loud crash.
"I... Ian-san, what's wrong!?" Pudding gasped, quickly crouching down and shaking Ian's body.
Ian lay completely still, eyes closed, letting her shake him.
"Ian-san! Ian-san!" Pudding called out in panic, saying, "You... don't scare me like this!"
Her voice sounded urgent, but Ian, lying on the ground pretending to be unconscious, was secretly wondering if he had overplayed his hand. If the chocolate pie really had no issues, this would be awkward...
Yes, Ian was testing Pudding. In fact, from the moment he opened the door and saw that it was Pudding standing there, he had vaguely guessed what Big Mom was trying to do. But he still let her in, intending to confirm it.
This Pudding was just a girl. If she didn't use a weapon—like the gun he remembered her using to shoot Reiju—she probably had little combat ability. Ian had already shown his strength during the day. If she wasn't stupid, she wouldn't try to attack him with a weapon. So, after thinking it over, Ian figured that if there was a problem, it had to be in the chocolate pie she brought...
Since he hadn't actually eaten it, Ian didn't know exactly what was wrong with the chocolate pie. He just guessed it was probably a sleeping drug or something similar. Direct poisoning seemed unlikely.
Ian knew his acting might be a bit stiff, but whatever. He would just lie there like a dead fish. If Pudding noticed something off and grew suspicious, she wouldn't dare to act. He could just send her away like that. But if his act worked, then things would get interesting...
Come on, do your worst. As the saying goes, don't pity me just because I'm a delicate flower...
As Pudding shook his body and shouted, Ian remained motionless. Her cries sounded sincere and anxious, but Ian had already noticed something was wrong.
No matter what, if she had nothing to hide, seeing him faint like this, she should have gone to find a doctor or called for help after failing to wake him. But she didn't do that at all. Instead, she slapped him twice on the face, trying to snap him out of it...
Alright, I'll endure it...
Sure enough, after trying a bit more, Pudding seemed to confirm that Ian was truly unconscious.
Then, she let out a cold laugh...
At this moment, the shy expression on Pudding's face was long gone, replaced by a sinister look. This was the dark side of Pudding.
"It looks like he's really passed out..." Pudding muttered coldly. "Are all men such stupid creatures?"
Ian had guessed correctly. What Pudding put in the chocolate pie was indeed a sleeping drug. Moreover, after Ian fainted, Pudding never suspected that he might be faking it.
The reason was simple: Pudding hadn't appeared at all during the day. Neither her dark side nor her Memo-Memo Fruit ability had ever been shown to any outsider. Only the Charlotte family knew her true nature. Since Ian knew nothing about her, how could he possibly know what she was planning and prepare against it?
In short, Pudding didn't think Ian had any reason to be wary of a weak girl like her...
Modifying Ian's memory was the task Big Mom had given Pudding. Out of fear of Big Mom, Pudding had to grit her teeth and get it done. Driven by this urgency, she made assumptions. Some of Ian's stiff acting was overlooked by Pudding, like why he ate with his back to her.
Of course, the thing she least expected was that Ian already knew exactly what kind of person she was and what abilities she had!
So, cheaters are the most troublesome existence...
Pudding leaned her upper body over Ian, her red lips almost at his neck. If one of her hands hadn't been reaching toward his temple, this would have been quite a sensual scene...
"Don't worry, it'll be over soon..." Pudding muttered to herself, her hand about to plunge into Ian's head.
But at that moment, a hand reached behind Pudding's neck and struck her hard.
The blood pressure receptors at the back of the neck were hit, causing a reflexive drop in blood pressure. Pudding's vision went dark, and she collapsed without a sound, falling onto Ian.
Ian then propped himself up on his arms and sat up from the floor. That chop was his doing...
"Tsk tsk! I guessed right. Trying to modify my memory, huh?" Ian pushed Pudding aside, looking at her three closed eyes and the hand that had almost entered his head.
Crouching down, Ian poked the eye on Pudding's forehead and said, a bit annoyed, "Why do I always feel like the Big Mom Pirates treat me like an idiot? What's up with that?"
As he said the last sentence, he looked up toward the door.
As his words fell, the lock clicked, and someone pushed the door open and walked in, saying, "Simple. No one has ever successfully challenged Big Mom, so Mama thinks no one can outsmart her... That's the mindset of the strong!"
The person who just entered was short and stout, wearing a suit and a coat, one hand in his pocket, the other holding a cigar. His lips were covered in blue stubble, and his eyes were dark and ruthless.
Who else could it be but Capone Bege, the captain of the Fire Tank Pirates?
"Didn't expect you to notice me..." Capone Bege closed the door behind him before continuing, "But don't misunderstand. I have no ill intentions. I came here because of Pudding."
"So, you came here to warn me to be careful of this girl?" Ian walked over to a chair and sat down, asking with interest.
Capone Bege nodded. "That's right. But it looks like I worried for nothing. A big shot like you wouldn't fall for it so easily..."
As he spoke, Capone Bege pulled over another chair and sat down in front of Ian, saying, "So, Ian-sama, are you interested in cooperating with me?"
"Cooperating on what?" Ian asked.
"As you've seen," Capone Bege said with a fierce look, lowering his voice, "Big Mom is after your crew and you. Your Dragon Hunter Pirates are already strong enough. If she gets you on her side, she can take down Kaido, take down Shanks, and even take down Whitebeard. You would be the final piece of the puzzle for her to become the Pirate King!"
"I see!" Ian nodded thoughtfully. He finally understood Big Mom's intentions. No wonder she tolerated him so much during the day, even after he fought Katakuri and destroyed her banquet hall.
But... Ian couldn't help but sneer. What made her so confident that he would join her and help her take down Whitebeard Old Man?
"Don't doubt it!" Capone Bege pointed at Pudding lying on the floor. "Big Mom has many talented people under her, with all kinds of Devil Fruit abilities you can't even imagine. This Pudding is just one example. As long as you're on this island, she'll find a way to make you comply!"
"So, if you don't want to be controlled by Big Mom, you either escape from Whole Cake Island as soon as possible, or you fight back!" Capone Bege said with a sinister grin. "But I heard you fought Katakuri during the day, which shows you're confident in your strength. Running away would be an insult to you, wouldn't it?"
Ian narrowed his eyes at him, saying nothing.
"You want the position of an Emperor too, don't you?" Capone Bege said bluntly. "You accepted the tea party invitation and came here, hoping to see if you could ally with the Big Mom Pirates to take down Kaido. But why not think the other way? Taking down Big Mom would work just as well!"
"So, you want to cooperate with me to take down Big Mom?" Ian tapped the armrest of his chair and asked.
"That's right!" Capone Bege nodded. "After entering the New World, I had to seek Big Mom's protection to escape my enemies. But going from a boss to someone else's underling is something I really don't like! Besides, in the West Blue mafia, taking down the boss to move up is tradition!"
Damn! This guy is no saint either!
"You're supposed to be the groom tomorrow, and now you're talking to an outsider about taking down your future mother-in-law? Isn't that a bit much?" Ian chuckled and asked him.
"Taking down a mother-in-law is exactly what a son-in-law wants to do!" Capone Bege laughed heartily. "Of course, Chiffon is a good woman, and I do plan to marry her. But if possible, I'd rather marry her with a traditional West Blue wedding. To make that happen, it all depends on whether we can cooperate successfully..."