Transcended as Lord Buggy

Palu & Buggy go to the orange garden to have a talk.

"What is it?" asks Buggy.

"I-I want to ask for advice, about Jude," says Palu shyly.

"Hmm, I want to say just go for it, but the situation isn't good to do it. For now, I think you need to observe the situation first. Her heart must be quite in a mess now, so she won't accept your advance kindly. I think the best thing you can do for now is to stay by her side. Show her your support and show her that you'll always be there for her."

"Also, I think you need to ask for Mantis's advice. As a fellow woman, she will know what you need to do for Jude. But from my experience, what you need to show her is your sincerity and care. The reason why Jude liked me was because I care for her when she doesn't have anyone to depend on. I was the one who saved her and the only one who could protect her at that time. Cricket has Mantis, after all," says Buggy.

"So I just need to be by her side?" asks Palu.

"Yeah, and you can't rush things. Be patient while showing her that you care for her. Show her that you will always be there for her," says Buggy.

Palu gets silent for a moment before saying, "Thanks for the advice, Captain. Also, I ask your permission to say something that might be rude."

"Just say it. We aren't stranger," says Buggy.

"Thank you. Then I will say it. I was very jealous of you for getting Jude's love. But I wanted her to be happy, so I wished for her love to be fruitful. I was ready to fight you if you hurt her. That's why I thought I would be angry when you broke her heart. But strangely, I felt happy because now I have a chance to be with her," says Palu.

"That is not strange, that's normal. Even if you want the person you love to be happy, deep down, you want to be the one that makes her happy. That's the case for everyone in love, so it's not strange. Jealousy is also normal. So I could understand if you got angry at me. But you also need to remember too, that I won't just do nothing if that happens," says Buggy.

Palu smiles thinly and says, "I understand," before walking away.

Buggy calls Palu as he walks away, "Palu, don't forget about the house!"

"I know, I will prepare everything in 3 days," says Palu.

Buggy then returns to Belle's house and meets with Nojiko who is taking care of Nami. Belle has left to help Mantis & her team to cook food. They have a lot of meat from the Seakings that they killed on Calm Belt, so they want to cook for the villagers. The meat will spoil too, so they need to cook it before it can't be cooked.

Luckily, Jude isn't there because she is very bad at cooking. So Mantis tells her to go around and get some fresh air to ease her mind. When Palu comes after talking with Buggy, Mantis tells him to accompany Jude, it's her way to help the 2 of them.

While they cook the food, Mantis talks with Belle about a lot of things. Belle asks Mantis about the crew's adventure and what Buggy did. While Mantis asks Belle about her & Buggy's past before he met them.

The 2 women hit it off very fast. They have some similarities, after all. Both of them are hard-headed, strict women. They are strict with themselves and others. If they've decided something, then they will do it no matter what.

"Heh, now I know what Captain meant when he said you are a strong woman. It's not that you are strong physically, but you have a strong mentality which is rare. I think that's what made him attracted to you," says Mantis.

Mantis also knows now why Buggy never gets attracted to Jude. In terms of physical or battle power, Jude is obviously stronger than Bellemere. But her mentality is weak and that is not the type of girl that Buggy likes.

"Not strong physically, huh? I was quite confident in my physical strength. But after I saw what you girls are capable of, I realized that I am weak. The world is a lot bigger than I thought. Now I know why B really wanted to explore it," says Bellemere.

"I know, right? If I didn't follow Captain, then I would never know how big the world is. Why didn't you follow him back then?" asks Mantis.

"At that time, I was still pursuing my dream as a Marine, to capture 'bad' pirates. My perception of pirates was very bad in the past and I think all of them were the same. Ruthless, evil, and doesn't have a shred of humanity."

"But then the man I love said that he wants to be a pirate and explore the world. I was shocked at first, but I know that he isn't an evil person. So I made him promise that he won't kill innocents. That's the only thing that I don't want him to do," says Belle.

"And he hasn't broken that promise," says Mantis while smiling.

"Yeah, he is a trustworthy man," says Belle.

"You resigned from Marine because you needed to take care of the girls, right? Is it hard to raise children?" asks Mantis very curiously.

"It's certainly not easy, especially at first. I didn't know anything about raising kids, after all. I didn't even pregnant before having kids, so I hadn't prepared anything. Everything was new, so things were very hard for me," says Belle while smiling.

"You are complaining, but you look very happy," says Mantis.

"Yeah, although it's hard, they bring me happiness that I've never had before. Those 2 become my new life. I was ready to break up with B if he could not accept the girls. B & I can live by ourselves, but the girls can't. So I can't leave them even if B leaves me," says Belle with a very sad expression.

Mantis is surprised to hear that. Even she can tell just how much Bellemere loves Buggy. She also has someone she loves, so she knows well how hard it is to leave the person you love.

"So this is what it means to be a mother, huh? I don't know if I am ready for it," says Mantis with a bitter smile.

"Well, I'm sure you can handle it. I heard you have taken care of the children in the crew. So I'm sure you'll be able to raise your own child. It's just that you need to find the right time for it. You guys are very infamous and your enemies will try to find your weaknesses. Children are their parents' strength, but also their weaknesses at the same time," says Belle.

"You're right. If Cricket & I have a child, then our enemies will try to use the child. We really need to be careful," says Mantis.

"That's why I am quite worried now. It's fine when you guys are here. But it will be dangerous after you leave," says Belle worriedly.

"Don't worry, Captain must've thought about it, or he won't come here. Also, if you are worried about your & your kids' safety, then grow stronger. Only strength can protect you in this cruel world. Be stronger so that you can protect your kids when danger comes," says Mantis.

"You're right, I need to get stronger. Mantis, can you-?" asks Bellemere, but Mantis interrupts her question.

"No. It's not me who you should be asking, it's Captain. He always thinks about you, so surely he has thought about making you stronger," says Mantis.

Bellemere nods and they resume their cooking while keep talking about many things. Sometime later, the whole Cocoyasi village eats dinner together with the Clown Pirates. And just like what The Clown Pirates always do, they hold a big party, making the villagers get closer to them.

Buggy also gets closer to Nojiko & Nami after doing many things. They like to pinch his red nose and enjoy playing with him. Bellemere is very happy about it. The day when they will be a real family doesn't seem too far now.

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1. Chapter 320 of Fairy Tail: Sun Eater

2. Chapter 331 of Transcended as Lord Buggy

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