"Mr. Duke, do you have any orders?"
As the sailor from the Swordfish greeted Duke, Graves froze in place. Duke glanced at him and snorted, "Now that you have a job, don't always think about your old tricks!"
"Isn't it better to clock in and out on time every day?"
Patting Graves' shoulder, whose face was written with embarrassment, Duke pulled the sailor closer and whispered to him, "Where's the chef on the ship?"
"Aside from the head chef who went to the hotel, the second chef is still on the ship."
"Have him bake a few cheesecakes, the sweet, delicious, and intensely fragrant kind!"
"Make as many as the oven can fit!"
"Yes, sir, is there anything else you need?"
"Also, help me inquire about that ship!"
Pointing to the merchant ship Neeko was on, Duke waved his hand, telling the sailor to hurry up and do his job.
"Yes, sir."
The sailor jogged away, carrying out Duke's orders, while Duke himself recalled Neeko's background story.
According to Neeko's background story, after her home was destroyed, Neeko fled for several days before finally falling into the Water.
Not long after drifting, she was picked up by a merchant ship departing from Ionia. Neeko eventually disembarked at Harell Port in Ixtal and ventured inland into the Jungle.
There, she met the Wild Huntress, Nidalee, who walked into an alley on two legs and came out on four.
Later, in search of a few pieces of cheese bread, she inadvertently destroyed a Noxus outpost. Neeko used her innate abilities to constantly try to get the people in the outpost to tell her where the storeroom was, so she could find some cheese bread.
As a result, these people, due to mutual suspicion, brought about their own destruction.
According to Duke's speculation, Neeko should now be on the mast because the merchant ship arrived in Bilgewater for resupply, and she couldn't suppress her curiosity, so she ran up the mast to survey this never-before-seen city.
"What a coincidence! I thought I would only encounter Bilgewater heroes, but I didn't expect to meet Neeko!"
Duke looked at the mast again. Neeko was still standing on the mast, and below the mast, a Vastaya sailor with horns was constantly scolding Neeko.
He wanted her to come down from the mast.
Although his tone was a bit stern, his intentions were good.
Even though Bilgewater is a melting pot of cultures and races, Vastaya are like gold in a pile of rubble here, exceptionally rare and eye-catching.
A Vastaya could be exchanged for a hefty sum of Golden Krakens, and many people at the dock were already eyeing this Ionian merchant ship, with Neeko, who was curiously observing everything from the mast, being the one they coveted the most.
The darkness of human hearts can never disappear, and such an innocent and lovely Vastaya girl can attract an extraordinary amount of covetousness.
Duke stood on the dock, watching Neeko reluctantly climbing down the mast from a distance through Edith; she was being carried by a Vastaya sailor into the cabin.
"By my reckoning, the cake should be ready soon!"
Duke walked unhurriedly towards the Swordfish with his hands in his pockets. The Swordfish was right next to the Ionian merchant ship, and the kitchen's location was quite close to their cabin.
So, now it was his time to perform.
.....
"Korete, you big bad dummy, Neeko doesn't like you!"
Neeko, with her tail coiled into a mosquito coil, hugged her painted arms and glared angrily at the Vastaya sailor. Korete helplessly ruffled Neeko's blue-purple short hair.
"Don't go out casually. We Vastaya aren't as free here as we are in our homeland."
"Hmph!"
Neeko turned her head away, looking sulky. Noticing her expression, Korete shook his head helplessly. It would be best to keep Neeko in the cabin for now. Once the goods were sold in Ixtal, he would take her back to Ionia, where she would receive the most proper arrangements.
"Stay in the cabin, don't run around, or I won't give you any cheese bread!"
"No, Neeko loves cheese bread the most!"
"Then stay here obediently, don't go anywhere!"
Neeko glared at Korete, and as her form shifted, she transformed into him, making a face at Korete.
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