On the 23rd island of the Sabaody Archipelago.
In front of the iron - barred window of a human trafficking shop, Tezzolo was still singing. He hoped to bring more joy to his beloved.
Clang!
The door of the human trafficking shop was pushed open from the inside. A middle - aged man in a black suit with a beard walked out of the shop.
"Hey, young man! You've been singing all night. It's almost twelve o'clock at night. I'm gonna close the shop and go to sleep."
"Let me tell you, if you really like Stella, just pay the money and buy her!
Spending 38 million berries to buy a princess from a non - World Government member country is a good deal no matter how you look at it!" the middle - aged man yawned and said.
In fact, the middle - aged man was also eager to get rid of Stella!
This woman is a princess from a non - World Government member country and is good at many skills. But ultimately, she is just a prettier woman. For the same price, you could buy four or five beauties of this level with plenty left over.
Recently, he had been thinking about whether to lower the price. Stella had been eating and living here for more than a year for free.
If he waited a few more years and her looks faded, he wouldn't be able to sell her...
"Boss, please wait a little longer. I'll have the money soon..." Tezzolo said sincerely.
"If you really want to buy her, I can give you a discount of 1 million berries.
I'm only giving you this discount because you've come here every day for over a year."
As they were talking, a black - mist - shrouded figure descended onto the street from the sky, scaring the boss.
When the black mist dissipated, a silver - haired teenager appeared. Tezzolo immediately shouted excitedly:
"Boss Sephiroth!"
"I've brought the money."
The silver - haired teenager ended his vampire state. He smiled lightly and patted the suitcase in his hand.
"Boss, the money is here. I'm going to redeem Stella now."
Tezzolo beamed and firmly grasped the middle - aged man's shoulders and shook him.
"Oh, my one million berries! ..." The human trafficking shop boss sighed to himself. Why did he soften his heart and lower the price?
However, the boss didn't go back on his word. He immediately led Sephiroth and Tezzolo into the human trafficking shop and quickly completed the purchase documents for Stella. It was a straightforward transaction of money for goods.
When Stella was released from the window and the explosive collar around her neck was removed, she immediately threw herself into Tezzolo's arms and burst into tears, which made the latter quickly comfort her.
Seeing that the two of them seemed to go on and on, Sephiroth, who had been force - fed a mouthful of sweet talk, coughed lightly:
"Ahem! You two, that's enough! There are other people here!"
"Ah! I'm very sorry!"
Tezzolo scratched his head awkwardly and smiled sheepishly. Stella beside him blushed and tightly grabbed his arm.
"Come on! Take me to your home.
Next, I have something to talk to you about.
Sephiroth waved his hand and left the human trafficking shop first. The other two quickly followed him out of the shop.
"Boss, from now on, I'll work for you. What exactly do I need to do?"
Sephiroth gently snapped his fingers. He said matter-of-factly:
"Of course, it's about doing business to make money!"
"Specifically in which areas?" Tezzolo asked tentatively.
"Arms, medicine, heavy industry, entertainment. Later, I also want to get involved in the intelligence field..."
"It seems that our company is going to be a big enterprise!"
"That's right. From now on, I'll be the chairman of the company, and you'll be the vice - chairman."
Hearing this, Tezzolo's eyes twitched slightly. He tentatively asked:
"Boss, I hope you don't mind me asking. How many people are there in our company now, and what's the company's name?"
"Including you and me, there are only two people... As for the company's name, well..."
Sephiroth gently rubbed his chin. After a moment of hesitation, he burst out laughing and said:
"Let's name it the Umbrella Corporation!
Just you wait! Sooner or later, the company's name will echo across the world!
Well... The company's logo flag will have a white background with an umbrella made up of silver - gray and red on it."
Hearing this, Tezzolo couldn't help but put his hand on his forehead and let out a soft sigh.
He always felt a bit unsure in his heart, but now that he had already boarded this "ship", he could only go all the way and see what the final result would be.
Seeing this, Stella, who was holding his arm, covered her mouth and let out a soft laugh.
"By the way, Miss Stella...
There's a question I'm not sure if I should ask..." Sephiroth hesitated for a moment and then tentatively asked.
Stella blinked her eyes and smiled:
"Hmm? Mr. Sephiroth, go ahead and ask. I'll answer you as long as I can."
"I heard from that shop owner that you're a princess...
Then how did you end up being locked up in the human trafficking shop?"
"Well... It's a long story...
A little over a year ago, the Kingdom of Saldo, where I lived, was attacked by pirates...
Our country's army was no match for the powerful pirate group. They occupied our country and ran amok.
That's when I was captured and sold as a slave..."
"Why didn't your country call the navy for support?"
"Because our country is too poor to pay the Heavenly Tribute, we're not eligible to become a member state of the World Government...
Therefore, the navy won't come to rescue us.
Well, there's nothing we can do.
After all, our island is quite far from other islands. You can't reach it with a Log Pose; you need a Permanent Pose to locate it...
Our country has barren land and no valuable specialties, so there's little communication with the outside world, and as a result, the country can't develop at all..."
"I see!"
Sephiroth nodded in understanding, finally realizing why a princess like her had ended up as a slave.
The World Government has always adopted an attitude of squeezing non-allied countries dry if it can, and ignoring them if there's nothing left to squeeze.
Presumably, the Kingdom of Saldo must be a poverty-stricken place (a place so poor that not even a bird would want to stay), or else it would have been squeezed dry by now...
"What's the name of the pirate crew that attacked your country?"
"Pirate Admiral Paul Flood and his Grand Lion Fleet.
That guy is a big-time pirate with a bounty of 365 million berries..."
"Huh!? This name... Why does it sound so familiar... A bounty of over 300 million..."
Sephiroth rubbed his chin, thought for a moment, then suddenly had an epiphany and said,
"Oh! Right, that guy... seems to have been thrown into Impel Down by Garp..."
"Really?"
"Yeah... That guy encountered Vice Admiral Garp at sea. Instead of running away, he chose to fight head-on, but he got beaten."
Hearing this, Stella burst into tears of joy. She had been worried about this for over a year.
Suddenly getting this good news today, she really couldn't control her emotions...