“Oi! Poker Face! Bring two more bottles of rum over here!”
“I’ll take two more servings of stir-fried pancakes! I’m exhausted from working all day!”
“Same for us over here!”
Inside a tavern, a group of shipwrights who had just gotten off work were shouting their orders.
Their words might have been a bit impolite, but the bartender, being a kind-hearted man, didn’t mind.
Among the shipwrights was a familiar figure with dyed blond hair—Paulie, the top-tier shipwright who was on par with Rob Lucci and the others.
But here, he was just another shipwright.
“Paulie-aniki! That mast you repaired today was incredible! You did it in one go without a hitch.”
“Yeah, when will we ever be as skilled as you?”
A few shipwrights sat around Paulie, looking at him with admiration.
“Hahaha~ That was nothing! Do it enough times, and you’ll get the hang of it too.”
Paulie replied humbly, and the group soon started chatting away.
After waiting a while and still not seeing their food arrive, they started complaining.
“Why is it taking so long? That poker-faced bartender better not be slacking off.”
“Yeah, come to think of it, I don’t think I’ve ever seen him make any facial expressions.”
Hearing that, Paulie also chimed in, “Maybe he was just born with a poker face. After all these years, I’ve never seen him show any expression.”
“Hahaha! Same here!”
“Yeah, not once!”
Just as they finished speaking, the poker-faced bartender, Blueno, arrived carrying a pile of food.
He was none other than Vir’s target, a CP9 member and the user of the Door-Door Fruit.
After swiftly placing down the food, he turned back to the counter and stood there, expressionless as usual.
Seeing this, the group joked, “I bet there’s nothing in this world that could make him change his expression.”
The others all nodded in agreement before digging into their food.
Just then, a figure dressed in white entered the tavern.
After scanning the room, he walked straight to the counter and sat down at the bar, striking up a conversation with Blueno.
“Looks like a new pirate in town. Wonder if he’ll get pissed at the bartender for being so expressionless and start a commotion.”
The shipwrights eating their food started speculating.
“Nah, that guy looks pretty friendly. Seems like a decent person.”
“I think so too.”
Paulie added, “No worries, troublemakers all get handled by the bartender. His strength isn’t something those small-time pirates can even imagine.”
“That’s right! The bartender might have a poker face, but his strength is no joke.”
“Yeah, I hope he starts something—that’ll give us a good show, hahaha!”
Just as they were chatting away, a sudden exclamation interrupted them.
“WHAT!!”
Blueno let out a startled shout as he stared at Vir in shock.
“That’s right. I know you’re a CP9 member, and I also know your mission is to acquire the Pluton blueprints.”
Sitting across from him was Vir, wearing a different face. He spoke softly, dropping one bombshell after another.
Blueno was utterly shocked to have his identity exposed out of nowhere.
They were just about to close in on their target, so where had this wildcard come from?
His mind raced, trying to figure out a way to eliminate Vir without raising suspicion.
But to the shipwrights, Blueno’s reaction sent waves of shock through them.
“Did the bartender… just shout?”
“And now he’s furrowing his brows…?”
“What’s going on?! What did they say to make him react like that?”
“Looks like the bartender is about to make a move!”
The group wore expressions of shock and excitement.
Shocked that Blueno had actually shown an expression.
The guy had gone years without even a single one!
“How about we take this conversation inside?”
Vir looked at Blueno and asked.
This immediately made Blueno grin.
He was just wondering how to lure him in!
“Ahahaha~ Please, step inside!”
Blueno then did something completely out of character.
That bright smile on his face looked like a blooming flower.
Acting was a fundamental skill for CP agents…
The two quickly disappeared into the backroom, leaving the shipwrights stunned.
“Uh… Did I just witness him turn into a bootlicker?”
“I swear I caught a whiff of flattery…”
Paulie, utterly dumbfounded, shouted, “Is that really the point here?! That guy actually smiled! And not just smiled—he smiled in such a sleazy way!”
“Is this even the Blueno I know?! No way! I gotta tell others about this!”
“Hurry up and eat! We gotta finish and get outta here fast!”
With that, Paulie started shoveling food into his mouth at top speed.
Blueno: My deadpan face is my camouflage.
…
…
Inside the backroom, Blueno swiftly locked the door.
The fake smile instantly vanished from his face.
He was back to his usual emotionless self.
“Speak. Where did you get this information?”
As he spoke, Blueno pulled out a lie detector from his coat pocket.
This was the latest high-tech device developed by the research division—extremely accurate.
“Think carefully before you answer. If the red light turns on, your life ends here.”
Blueno’s words, however, didn’t seem to faze Vir in the slightest.
It was as if he hadn’t even registered the threat.
He had felt a little guilty before, but since Blueno was acting like this, he wouldn’t hold back anymore.
Seeing Vir’s nonchalant demeanor, Blueno’s patience wore thin.
Just as he was about to teach this guy a lesson—
His Den Den Mushi suddenly rang.
It was his direct line to the organization.
For now, he put aside his urge to deal with Vir and answered the call right in front of him.
To Blueno, Vir was already a dead man walking.
*Click.*
The call connected.
“It’s me.”
Blueno spoke first.
The voice on the other end, after confirming his identity, spoke in a low voice:
“The target has appeared. Begin the operation.”
Then the line went dead.
Even though the caller had deliberately lowered his voice, Vir recognized it instantly.
It was Kaku.
The target had appeared?
Who?
It clearly wasn’t him.
That meant it could only be… Robin.
So they were following the original storyline after all.
Where was Momousagi and the others?
Why did it feel like they hadn’t even shown up?
Oh well, he’d find out soon enough.
Blueno put away the Den Den Mushi and turned his gaze back to Vir.
Seeing him still completely unfazed, Blueno finally decided to make his move!
With a swift *Shigan*, he aimed for Vir’s shoulder!
Yet Vir remained motionless, as if he were frozen in fear.
Seeing this, a trace of disdain flashed through Blueno’s eyes.
Pathetic weakling—how dare he act so cocky?!
He was going to make sure this guy suffered before he died!