Roger was caught off guard by Cudius's words. Before he could speak, Cudius casually shook the e in his hand and asked, "These es are delicious. Mind pag a few for me? And how about we find a pce to sit down and have a drink? I don't have much money on me, but I'll treat you."

  Roger wasn't sure what Cudius to, but he didn't want to escate things. He khat Cudius, having appeared here and discovered his family, meant there were now dangerous variables in py. Sure, Roger could probably kill Cudius and his entire grht here, but there was no guarahat Cudius hadn't left behind some kind of tingen.

  After all, Roger knew his days were numbered, he couldn't protect Rouge forever, especially with her being pregnant. That only increased his worries. So, instead of being overly aggressive, he decided it was best to hear Cudius out.

  With a smile, Roger said, "I've never shared a drink with a Celestial Dragon before. Since you're , I won't refuse."

  Cudius smiled back. "It's my first time on this isnd, so you'd know the best spot. Why don't you lead the way?"

  Roger stood, turning te. "I'm going to have a drink with this friend of mine. If you're tired, go ahead and close up the stall a some rest."

  Rouge gave him a worried g eventually nodded. "Just take care of yourself. Don't drink too much, okay?"

  Roger smiled softly, his eyes full of warmth. "Don't worry. I know my limits."

  Cudius, already standing, gnced over to his group. "You all stay here and help out. If this beautiful stall owner wants to pack up, give her a hand. After all, I did eat twes for free."

  Though Stussy was ed about Cudius going off with Roger, she kept quiet. His fidence reassured her, and if things went south, she had no problem with taking matters into her own hands, Roger's wife could make a good hostage if needed.

  "Uood, Yhness. We'll take care of Miss Rouge," Nia responded promptly.

  Rave a quick look around, reizing the unspoken arra. Cudius was leaving Rouge in the care of his people as a form of leverage, but Roger didn't ent on it. He simply e before heading off with Cudius.

  The tavern they found was small and shabby, with rickety tables and chairs that looked as old as the town itself. The owner, an elderly man, was sitting half-asleep behind the ter. When he saw them enter, he zily poio the bottles on the wall and mumbled, "Help yourselves. Just pay before you leave."

  Roger, aced to the id-back vibe of the isnd, grabbed two bottles of wine, pced them oable, and invited Cudius to sit. "So, how did you know I was here? I didn't tell anyone about this pot even Rayleigh knows where I am."

  Cudius uncorked the bottles, p a gss for each of them. "Who do you think I am? I'm the head of CP-X. Do you really think it's that hard for me to find you?"

  Roger raised an eyebrow as he took a sip of his drink, listening carefully.

  "I've actually known where you were for a while now," Cudius tinued. "I've been hanging around South Blue for months, but I didn't e to you immediately. I wao give you some time to be with your family."

  Roger's eyes softened for a moment, but then he chuckled. "Well, I guess I should thank you for that, then. It seems you really are the one who caught Shiki after all. I wasn't sure if I believed it before."

  Cudius feigned surprise. "You didn't believe it?"

  "Of course not," Roger replied bluntly. "CP-X just pops up out of nowhere? You don't expect people to be suspicious?"

  Cudius ughed heartily. "Fair point. If you hadn't run so fast that day, I might've caught you too."

  Rrinned. "I suppose I should t myself lucky."

  The two men, who by all appearances should have been enemies, sat together drinking as if they were old friends. They chatted freely, and for a while, it seemed like they were just twur men reminisg over past adventures.

  Eventually, after one of the bottles had beeied, Roger leaned bad asked, "Earlier, you said, 'It's almost time.' What did you mean by that? You didn't e all this way just to have a drink with me, did you?"

  Cudius poured another round and looked at Roger seriously. "I mealy that. I will eventually arrest you. I just don't think the time is right yet."

  Roger was momentarily stunned. "You'll arrest me? When?"

  Cudius took a sip from his gss, gng over at Roger. "Whenever you're ready. After all, I see you're not in the best shape these days. You've lost a lot of weight since I st saw you. Not to mention, your wife's warning not to drink too much."

  Roger's face tensed for a moment before he let out a heavy sigh. "Yeah, you're right. I don't have much time left. I'm terminally ill."

  "Figured as much," Cudius said calmly.

  Roger looked at him with surprise. "You're not shocked?"

  "What's there to be shocked about? Birth, aging, siess, death—it's all part of life. Just because you're the Pirate King doesn't mean you escape it. You're still just a man, Roger," Cudius said, waving it off as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

  Roger let out a deep, booming ugh. "Hahahaha! You're right, after all. I'm still just a man."

  After sharing a few more drinks in silence, Cudius asked softly, "How much time do you need?"

  Roger studied Cudius for a long moment, then spoke, his voice tinged with emotion. "You're really something else, you know that? Ba the day, I thought there was something different about you, even though you're a Celestial Dragon. Looking baow, I regret not taking you on my ship. We could've bee friends. Imagihe adventures we'd have had."

  Cudius nodded as Roger spoke, listening quietly without interrupting.

  After a few more moments of refle, Roger shook his head and sighed. "I don't know how much longer I have left, but it won't be long. Wheime es, I'll e to you. I'll surrender."

  Roger had already decided this was his fate. Since Cudius had shown him this level of respect, Roger would reciprocate by turning himself in to him wheime was right.

  "Really?" Cudius replied with a grin. "You're the one calling the shots here. I couldn't beat you in a fight anyway, so whatever you say goes. I'm not in a rush."

  They drank in silence for a little while longer until Roger's expression grew heavy again. "Rouge is i, you know that, right?"

  Cudius set his gss down and looked at Roger. "She's married to the Pirate King, isn't she? From what I tell, she's pregnant too, isn't she? It doesn't matter if she's i uilty. The world won't see her that way."

  Roger's face darkened. He knew Cudius was right.