"Thank you!"
Picking up the wine bottle.
With a "bang," he pried open the cap with his thumb, and without hesitation, tilted his head back and took a large gulp.
Gulp~
The strong liquor entered his mouth, like a ball of fire, tracing its way through his oral cavity, down his throat, and into his stomach.
Then, as if his insides were being churned, the alcohol's potency instantly filled his entire body.
Bang—!
Setting the bottle down, Kong Tai exhaled a strong breath of alcohol and roared with laughter, "Hahaha! Good stuff."
He loved this kind of potent liquor.
Although the wines from Sky Island, Bass, or other islands were good, they lacked the strong kick he desired.
He vividly remembered a small bottle of wine sold to him by an old man in an old tavern on the island where he met Golden Lion in the East Blue.
That was the strongest and best wine he had ever tasted.
While the bottle in his hand now didn't possess that same mellow aroma, the sheer potency was enough to bring him joy.
Shakky watched Kong Tai, who had taken a large swig but only flushed slightly on his cheeks before recovering instantly. Seeing that he genuinely liked it, she also broke into a smile.
"I'm glad you like it."
With that, she pulled a cigarette pack from beneath the bar, shook out a cigarette, placed it in her mouth, and then produced a lighter. With a "click," she ignited it.
After lighting her cigarette, she extinguished the lighter, put it down, took a deep drag, and then held the cigarette between her fingers, removing it from her mouth.
She exhaled the smoke elegantly before turning her gaze back to Kong Tai, "Tell me! How did you know Rayleigh was here, and how did you know about him at the slave auction?"
Kong Tai didn't answer Shakky immediately. Instead, he picked up the wine bottle in front of him and, instead of taking a large gulp like before, took a shallow sip.
After setting the bottle down, he finally spoke, "I met a doctor in Twin Cape."
"A doctor?"
"Yes!"
Kong Tai nodded. "His name is 'Crocodile'."
"Crocodile."
Shakky paused slightly, then took a puff of her cigarette. "Is he alright?"
Of course, she knew who Crocodile was. Although they hadn't met many times, she knew Crocodile as Roger's ship doctor.
She hadn't expected this fellow to be hiding in Twin Cape.
Considering that was the gateway to the Four Seas, she wondered if he was afraid of the Marines and the World Government discovering him.
The World Government hadn't let Tom, who built ships for Roger, off the hook; would they let the doctor who treated Roger go?
Shaking her head, Shakky didn't know what to think about Crocodile.
Little did she know, the World Government hadn't pursued Tom for his shipbuilding alone, but for the Pluton blueprints he possessed.
Without the Pluton blueprints, the World Government wouldn't have bothered to make things difficult for a shipwright, especially one who had built the Sea Train.
As for Crocodile.
Before he even boarded Roger's ship, he was the lighthouse keeper of Twin Cape. He only joined Roger's crew to search for the Rumbar Pirates.
That guy was a doctor, just like Indigo. He had no bounty and low strength; why would the World Government bother with him?
"He's doing fine."
Thinking of Crocodile brought to mind Laboon, and Kong Tai's eyes revealed a hint of nostalgia as he smiled, "The old man spends his days reading newspapers and basking in the sun. He's doing quite well."
"Mm!"
Shakky nodded. She wasn't close to Crocodile and didn't pry further.
Then, as if a thought struck her, she looked up at Kong Tai and asked, "Even if you met Crocodile, you couldn't possibly know that Rayleigh was here!"
"He didn't tell me these things."
"He indeed didn't tell me."
Kong Tai nodded slightly, picked up the wine bottle, and took a sip. He then smiled and said, "If I told you I found out in a dream, would you believe me?"
"..."
Shakky froze in place, staring at Kong Tai, and said speechlessly, "Kid, if you don't want to talk about it, just say so. Don't play such childish jokes."
With that, she shook her head and raised her right hand, taking a deep drag of her cigarette.
"Never mind, I won't ask anymore. If you want to find Rayleigh, go ahead and look for him!"
"Haha!!"
Kong Tai looked at Shakky, a smile playing on his lips, and then asked, "By the way, Aunt Shakky."
"What?"
"I know you have a lot of information. Can you tell me if there are any Celestial Dragons on the island right now?"
As far as he knew, the Sabaody Archipelago was like a playground for the Celestial Dragons; they often came down.
To be honest, apart from Saint Charlos, he hadn't seen what a real Celestial Dragon looked like yet!
So, he was quite curious.
Well... just curious.
"Celestial Dragons?"
Shakky looked at Kong Tai, who was smiling, and her own smile vanished, replaced by a serious expression. "Kid, can I know your purpose for wanting information about the Celestial Dragons?"
"Curiosity."
Shakky gave Kong Tai a deep look, then withdrew her gaze. With the cigarette in her mouth, she bent down and rummaged through the bar, retrieving a piece of paper. After glancing at its contents, she handed it to Kong Tai.
"I don't know what you want the information about the Celestial Dragons for, but since you want it, I'll give it to you. However, we agreed, it won't be cheap!"
"Understood."
Kong Tai casually took the paper and looked down. It read, "This morning, Saint Jalmight brought slaves down to the Sabaody Archipelago. They are currently near Street 9 and heading towards the slave auction."
The time indicated was two hours ago.
Yes, Shakky was not only the bar owner but also an information broker.
"Saint Jalmight?"
Putting down the paper, Kong Tai picked up the wine bottle, took a swig, and then rubbed his chin with his right hand. "Doesn't ring a bell."
Another new Celestial Dragon.
Indeed, the Celestial Dragons comprised 19 distinct bloodlines. Even excluding the Donquixote family, there were still 18 others.
Hmm... wait.
He recalled that the Donquixote family had a Celestial Dragon, also named Donquixote, who was rescued by Queen Otohime of Fish-Man Island.
He'd forgotten the specific name, though.
So, there should still be 19 Celestial Dragon families.
That made sense. After 800 years, even if each family only had a few members 800 years ago, they would have long since branched out into countless individuals.
It seemed the residences in Mary Geoise weren't just for show; they must be occupied.
And given the scale of Mary Geoise, the Celestial Dragon lineage must have proliferated to fill the entire city.
The reason so few Celestial Dragons appeared in the original story was naturally because the narrative's focus was on the protagonist group.
And the protagonist group's perspective was only a part of this world.
Furthermore, for the safety of the Celestial Dragons, ordinary members rarely descended from Mary Geoise.
And they were incredibly arrogant, believing themselves to be gods, while everyone else in the world below were mere mortals.
How could gods descend to the mortal realm?
Even if they did, it would be limited, perhaps only for bored Celestial Dragons to survey the world or for amusement.
That's why so few Celestial Dragons were encountered.