By the misty riverside, Yamato stood confused, vaguely seeing someone waving to her from the opposite bank.
"Yamato, come here, I'm Mama..."
"Mama?"
Yamato walked into the river in a daze, the icy water soaking her calves, making her shiver.
When she reached the middle of the river, the figure on the bank gradually became clear, and the calling became gentler, but she stopped, a question mark appearing above her head.
Huh, did she have a mama?
She didn't have a mama!
The girl was furious.
"You're not my mama!"
"Hehe, I am—"
Seeing her lie exposed, the dark figure shed its disguise, revealing its burly true form, and grinned as it stretched out its arms to grab Yamato!
"Waaahhhh!"
Onigashima, dungeon.
"Waaahhhh, don't come any closer!"
Yamato screamed and sat up, flailing her arms wildly in fright, until she realized she was in the familiar cave, then she relaxed.
Great, it's the dungeon!
The dark, damp dungeon felt as warm as home now.
The previous scene was just a dream.
It really scared her to death.
"Was I captured?"
Yamato hugged her knees, pitifully curled into a ball.
Being in the dungeon meant she had been captured by her father's subordinates, and she would only be able to break out by force once she regained her strength.
"Wuwu~ I'm out of strength."
"My back hurts so much, and my neck hurts, and my head."
"My whole body hurts!"
"Gurgle gurgle~~"
"I'm so hungry!"
"I want to eat sashimi~ slurp~"
The hunger overshadowed the pain.
"Huh, it smells so good!"
Yamato closed her eyes and sniffed, catching the scent of meat coming from far away, and couldn't help but swallow hard. Her instincts prompted her to follow the scent.
"Bang!"
Her forehead hit the steel bars.
"Ouch, that hurts!"
The girl clutched her head and squatted defensively in pain, little tears falling.
When she opened her eyes, she was pleasantly surprised to find delicious-smelling food piled outside the cell. Not only various tasty meats but also her favorite salmon.
Saliva flowed like a waterfall.
Yamato stared at the salmon until a charcoal fire was lit, and the salmon was placed over the flames to be grilled.
"No!"
The girl stretched her hand through the bars, trying to stop it.
She liked to eat it raw!
However, her hand was not long enough.
Soon, the salmon sizzled with oil from the charcoal fire, and the rich smell of grilled fish filled the dungeon.
Yamato clutched the bars in grief and anger, her heart bleeding.
Why! Why do this!
Salmon was only most delicious when eaten raw!
"Sizzle~ sizzle~~"
Daichi sat in front of the charcoal fire, skillfully sprinkling spices on the surface of the grilled fish, and after grilling both sides until golden, he picked it up and took a big bite.
Tsk, that's the taste!
He used to do a lot of outdoor activities, and grilling was an essential skill, not difficult at all. Now that he was guarding the dungeon alone, he decided to add some extra food for himself.
After eating the grilled fish, Daichi skillfully started preparing skewers.
"Slurp~~ slurp~~"
The sound of swallowing saliva kept coming.
Daichi turned his head to look at the cell.
The white-haired girl was clutching the bars, staring eagerly at the large meat skewer in his hand, constantly swallowing her saliva.
How pitiful.
Noticing Daichi looking at her, Yamato's eyes immediately lit up, filled with anxiety and a pleasing expression.
Like a dog.
If Yamato had a tail, it would probably be wagging like a propeller right now.
Quite cute.
Daichi smiled and shook his head, picked up the large meat skewer, faced Yamato, and in Yamato's even more anxious and hopeful gaze, he shoved it into his mouth.
"Mmm, delicious!"
"..."
Yamato instantly lost all her strength and collapsed into a heap.
Wuwu~~
Wuwuwuwuwu~~
The girl bit her lip, trying hard not to let tears fall.
She! Was! Not! Hungry!
"Plop."
Just as the girl stubbornly resisted, a bowl of fragrant white rice appeared outside the bars, within reach.
So fragrant!
The girl's eyes lit up again, staring intently at the white rice.
The devil's tempting voice echoed in her ears.
"Want to eat?"
"Yes!"
Yamato nodded frantically like a pecking chick.
"Then eat."
Unexpectedly, the man pushed the white rice in front of her.
Yamato froze.
He was really going to let her eat?
Every time she had been locked up before, the guards didn't dare to give her food, because if that terrible father found out, they would surely be killed.
The other party couldn't possibly not know this.
Smelling the tempting smell of the rice, Yamato swallowed hard, struggled with her thoughts for a while, then turned her head, tears streaming down her face.
"I'm not hungry!"
"..."
Daichi paused, then chuckled wryly.
She was quite cute, after all.
As for Yamato, he couldn't say he liked her, nor could he say he disliked her.
This girl was perfect in every aspect, whether it was her personal strength, figure, appearance, or straightforward personality.
He quite liked her.
But the problem was that her head wasn't quite right, fantasizing that she was Kozuki Oden and going against her own father.
This point made him dislike her.
His position dictated his thoughts. He was now a member of the Beast Pirates, and for a long time to come, he would have to rely on the Beast Pirates for his livelihood, so he naturally disliked traitors.
However.
His experience in the Flower Capital gave him a hint.
His current status was not high, and his strength was just starting, so it was inconvenient to do anything, but once he involved Kyoshiro, everything became smooth.
This was the benefit of status.
He needed a true backer, or rather, a patron who could intimidate people. Relying on Ulti was clearly not enough, and the girl in front of him was very suitable.
In Wano Country, besides Kaido, who would dare not give face to the Ogre Princess?
Even General Orochi had to show three points of respect!
The key was how to trick this girl, and also how to ensure she received the status and treatment befitting the Ogre Princess, so that he could raise a grand banner.
"Gurgle gurgle~~"
The girl's stomach protested.
Daichi's smile blossomed, and he picked up the bowl, scooping out a large spoonful with a spoon.
"Really not eating? Then I'll eat it, okay?"
"..."
Hungry eyes immediately fixed on him.
Slurp~~
Yamato swallowed hard.
At this moment, this bowl of white rice was like the most delicious treasure in the world to her. She wondered how happy she would be to eat a bite.
The next second, the fragrant rice was shoved into her mouth.
"Mmm!"
Her taste buds exploded!
Yamato involuntarily squeezed her legs together, her eyes welling up.
Delicious~~
More, she wanted more!
"Eat quickly."
The white rice was handed to the girl.
This time, Yamato didn't hesitate, devouring it like a hungry ghost reborn, even licking the bottom of the bowl clean.
"There's a grain of rice on your lip."
Hearing Daichi's reminder, the girl quickly reached out and put the grain of rice from the corner of her mouth into her mouth, even carefully sucking her fingers for a long time.
This was happiness!
After a long while, the girl looked at Daichi, her shining eyes as if seeing a beloved relative, full of trust.
And worry.
"Thank you, but if my father finds out that you gave me food..."
"You just don't say anything."
Daichi replied with a smile.
It was just him and Yamato in the dungeon. No one outside would know what happened, as long as they didn't speak of it.
He trusted the girl on this point.
"Mhm, I'll definitely keep it a secret!"
Yamato solemnly promised.
Although her stomach wasn't full, her body had experienced an unprecedented satisfaction. At this point, she finally focused her attention on Daichi.
A somewhat familiar burly figure, a somewhat familiar shiny bald head, and a somewhat familiar fierce appearance.
She felt like she had seen him somewhere before.
In her mind, scenes of being beaten by the man unconsciously flashed.
Yamato blinked, and after realizing the other party's identity, fine beads of sweat instantly covered her cheeks, followed by her eyes bulging in fright, and her tongue turning into a wavy line.
"Waaahhhhhh!"
A scream echoed through the dungeon.
"It's you!"
"..."
Daichi covered his ears, his face full of black lines.
Did this girl just recognize him now!