One Piece: Marine Luffy, Garp regrets it

At the evening banquet, the two parties who had reached their mutually beneficial arrangement behaved with exceptional harmony.

Throughout the event, Sanji remained the only exception, deliberately turning a blind eye to Judge's concerns and thinly veiled intentions. The rest of the attendees gradually grew more animated as the wine flowed freely, cup after cup.

Among them, Luffy and Reiju appeared to be enjoying themselves the most.

Under Judge's careful orchestration, Luffy and Reiju had been seated side by side. Meanwhile, the three women who clearly had romantic connections with Luffy—Ain, Nami, and Vivi—were strategically arranged by the calculating patriarch to sit directly across from them.

As Luffy consumed glass after glass of fine wine, with the beautiful Reiju attentively refilling his cup, he gradually reached that pleasant state where it wasn't the alcohol making him drunk, but rather his own willingness to embrace the warm sensation. He became increasingly relaxed and began conversing freely with Reiju.

"I truly envy Sanji for having such a beautiful and gracious sister as yourself, Miss Reiju," Luffy said with genuine admiration. "From the moment we first met at noon, I found myself thinking that I absolutely must ask Sanji to introduce us properly, if circumstances allowed."

No matter a woman's age or status, compliments about her beauty rarely go unappreciated. Reiju was no exception. She raised her hand elegantly, half-covering her reddened lips as she chuckled softly.

Blinking her captivating eyes, she fixed her gaze on the handsome young man beside her and returned his praise generously. "General, you flatter me. There are countless women with my modest beauty scattered across the seas. But there are precious few individuals with your strength and acclaim in this world." She smiled warmly. "Moreover, you're still young with such a promising future ahead. I should be the one honored to have the opportunity to dine with you this evening."

"Haha, beautiful and well-spoken too," Luffy responded with a charming smile. "Now I truly feel this journey was worthwhile. Just making your acquaintance, Miss Reiju, compensates for any difficulties encountered along the way."

Though Reiju recognized his words as light flirtation, she couldn't help but feel genuinely pleased. Her eyes narrowed slightly with delight, curving into delicate crescents.

"Since we're both enjoying each other's company, let's dispense with such formalities," she suggested. "There's no need to address me as 'Miss'—we can simply use our names. What do you think, Luffy?" As she spoke, she raised her wine glass and tilted it toward him in invitation.

Luffy had no objections and immediately raised his own glass to clink gently against hers. "Of course, that's perfectly fine with me, Reiju."

After this exchange, they smiled at one another, simultaneously lifting their glasses and drinking deeply.

From across the table, they appeared thoroughly engrossed in conversation, their interaction practically surrounded by an aura of mutual appreciation.

The young princess Vivi aggressively sliced through the sea-fried sea king meat on her plate with her dinner knife. She wielded the utensil as if she were cutting into some despicable villain, her angry eyes practically shooting flames.

"That scoundrel!" she fumed internally. "Has he forgotten his fiancée is sitting right here? He dares to flirt so openly with another woman right in front of me—I shudder to imagine what he does behind my back!"

Listening to the princess's indignant mutterings, Ain and Nami seated beside her remained remarkably composed, showing no signs of surprise.

There was good reason for their calm demeanor. As the first two women to enter Luffy's life, they had witnessed similar scenes countless times during their travels together, to the point where they'd become almost numb to such displays.

In their view, with more than a dozen women already sharing space in their home, one or two more made little difference.

Nami even took it upon herself to counsel Vivi, assuring her that she would eventually grow accustomed to Luffy's ways.

Seeing even the typically possessive Nami show such generosity of spirit, Vivi found herself at a loss for words. All she could do was swallow her anger temporarily, privately vowing to address this matter with Luffy when a suitable opportunity presented itself!

From his position at the head of the table, Judge also observed the unfolding scene with interest. He had specifically arranged the seating to enable Reiju to establish a connection with Luffy, laying groundwork for their future marriage.

However, he hadn't anticipated that Reiju—who had earlier appeared teary-eyed and reluctant—would adjust so quickly. Now, her every expression and gesture revealed not the slightest trace of the grievance she had displayed before.

This transformation caused Judge to nod approvingly to himself, inwardly impressed by his daughter's adaptability.

She is truly worthy of being my greatest pride, he thought. Her performance is so convincing that even I couldn't detect a single flaw.

Carry on, Reiju, he silently encouraged. Your father's ambition to become king of the North Sea now rests in your capable hands!