You can read ahead up to 30 chapters on my patreon and I've also activated (date to date) subscription model on my patreon https://www.patreon.com/marvel6395
The woman, who had transformed back from a ferocious red-haired gorilla, sat dazed on the ground, her expression a mix of confusion and disbelief.
Liam waved his hand in front of her face. "Hello?"
The woman's eyes flickered occasionally before she began to regain some awareness, looking up at the unfamiliar man before her. She opened her mouth, her voice hoarse, and asked, "Who... are you?"
Robin stepped forward, pulling a robe from Little Green's City Fortress, a gift from the village chief's grandmother on the island where Koala had been taken in, and draped it around the woman to cover her.
The woman wrapped the robe tightly around herself and murmured, "I am... I am... Annie..."
She blinked a few times, then suddenly gasped, "Amoline!"
Her voice was filled with urgency and fear. The woman scanned her surroundings, taking in the devastation left behind by the battle between Liam and Cavendish, and her face turned ashen.
"Amoline..."
"Don't worry, your daughter Amoline isn't here," Liam said casually, tossing the Devil Fruit chip in his hand. "Let me guess... You, who had been trapped in the form of a red-haired gorilla, didn't have a clear sense of self-awareness, right? That's why you left your hometown and your daughter, Amoline."
Annie recoiled, her face twisting in pain as memories flooded her mind, her body trembling slightly.
"As a token of gratitude, I'll be taking this Zoan," Liam added nonchalantly.
With a flick of his wrist, he tossed the triangular chip of the red-haired gorilla to B.I.B., who snatched it mid-air and stored it within the "reactor" embedded in his chest.
Cavendish, standing nearby, watched in confusion as Liam performed this "mime act" in the air. Then, he heard Giorno speak up. "As for your daughter Amoline, this kind and noble fourth prince, His Highness, will either escort you back or bring your daughter here."
"Hey!" Cavendish shouted, chopping Liam on the back of his head with a karate chop. He was fully dissatisfied with Liam taking advantage of the bet and acting like he could boss everyone around.
The guards busily cleared the bodies of the sword-wielding pirate crew, packed them into large crates, and hauled them onto their ship. After a while, Cavendish and Liam finally made their way over, though they were now accompanied by an unfamiliar woman.
The guards didn't say anything. The fourth prince was only eleven, what harm could come from this? Besides, Cavendish had always been surrounded by beautiful women, and rather than worrying about him being led astray, it was more likely that women would fall head over heels for him.
"They're all guests," Cavendish introduced Liam, Robin, Koala, Marianne, and Annie, who had reverted back from the red-haired gorilla, once they boarded the ship.
The guards nodded, understanding. The priority now was to return the fourth prince to the city without any more disruptions.
Annie, wrapped in the robe, boarded Cavendish's luxurious ship, looking nervous and disoriented, sticking close to Robin.
Koala, no longer as frightened by strangers, held Marianne's hand. The little girl, her cheeks and forehead smeared with oil paint, looked around curiously after boarding the ship, her legs swinging as she dragged Koala along behind B.I.B.
Liam observed the scene and glanced at Robin's single-shoulder bag before exchanging a look with B.I.B., who gave him a slight nod.
"She looks exhausted. Let her rest first," Liam suggested to Robin after entering the cabin.
"Hey!" Cavendish raised his hand, clearly dissatisfied. "I'm the host here, aren't I? Why are you the one making decisions for the guests?"
Robin nodded at Liam, reached into her single-shoulder bag, and pulled out a green Den Den Mushi, handing it to Liam. Then, she placed her arm around the nervous and exhausted Annie, whispered a few soothing words, and stepped forward, pressing her hand on the small green device in Liam's palm. With two quick "BIU" sounds, Robin and Annie vanished without a trace.
"...!" Cavendish's words caught in his throat, and his jaw dropped in shock once again.
The guards, who had been following them, were also left stunned as they watched two people disappear into thin air.
"Weren't you going to entertain the guests?" Liam asked casually. "Where's my room?"
"I see..." Liam mused aloud, sitting comfortably on the sofa in the beautifully decorated cabin. "This explains how your graffiti hypnosis effect works so instantly, and why the suggestions are so potent."
After asking Marianne a few simple questions, Liam learned about her past.
Although she spoke of a past, there wasn't much to say. The little girl was only a little over three years old, and her life experiences had barely exceeded a thousand days.
According to Marianne, her parents had disappeared a few months ago.
In the chaos of a crowd, she had been snatched away by someone and ended up aboard a ship, never to see her parents again. She missed them dearly.
At that moment, in the cozy cabin room, strange doodles were scattered across the carpet and furniture.
Marianne was happily drawing with a pen.
Liam had initially thought the little girl might be grieving for her parents, but to his surprise, she didn't seem sad at all. Instead, she appeared quite optimistic. Though she didn't smile brightly, her serious concentration while drawing and her relaxed expression clearly suggested she was in a good mood.
B.I.B. gestured to the doodles covering the little girl's face and arms.
Liam paused, his curiosity piqued. He quickly guessed what was going on.
She was using her own hypnotic doodles to buff herself... Had she come up with this on her own, or had someone taught her?
Liam extended his finger and pressed it against one of the doodles on the edge of the coffee table. A strong sense of curiosity surged within him.
He immediately withdrew his finger and, after thinking for a moment, stepped on one of the doodles on the carpet.
In an instant, Liam felt a sudden surge of joyful energy fill his heart.
"Do you know what each of these doodles represents?" Liam asked, lifting little Marianne like a kitten and settling her on his lap.
Marianne glanced up at B.I.B., who stood like a silent bodyguard, then turned her gaze to Liam, shaking her head before nodding.
"It's about feelings," the little girl explained with an air of wisdom far beyond her age, her voice clear and crisp. "What I feel when I draw is what it becomes!"
She looked up at him with her big, innocent eyes, her expression almost saying, "Isn't it obvious?"
Liam chuckled and affectionately ruffled Marianne's soft head, his rough hand gently caressing her baby-soft cheeks. She squinted her eyes in contentment, tilting her face up as his hand stroked her delicate baby fat.
Liam nodded, a smile tugging at his lips, before his expression turned thoughtful.
There was no doubt: Marianne was a natural-born genius when it came to hypnosis, someone who learned instinctively, without needing a teacher.
Her method of hypnosis was unlike Liam's; she hypnotized herself first.
As she doodled, Marianne simultaneously hypnotized herself, making her believe that the patterns held certain powers. Her hypnotic abilities deepened the effect of the doodles, much like two opposing mirrors, with the light from one reflecting off the other, rapidly amplifying the hypnosis effect.
This created a feedback loop that made Marianne's doodles hold an unimaginable hypnotic power.
In fact, in the serialized cover page of a comic, Marianne could even doodle in mid-air. The range of her hypnotic suggestion was staggering, causing everyone aboard her ship to experience illusions of their dreams coming true.
Even the Sand Crocodile and Mr. 1, locked up in a nearby Marine prison, fell victim to the hallucinations. Old Sand found himself dressed as a pirate king, while Mr. 1 imagined himself wearing a superhero costume…
(End of This Chapter)