Rainbase!

After Lizard stopped, Sage climbed down from its head, and the Subordinates eagerly jumped off its massive back, quickly grabbing their water pouches and gulping down water.

The desert is nothing like being On the Sea; going without water for over two hours is manageable at sea, but under this scorching sun, two hours without water will leave you parched.

"This is Rainbase."

Renetia, standing a distance away in the desert, shaded her eyes with her hand and gazed at the buildings of Rainbase, her eyes lighting up, "It really looks worth the trouble, much better than Naruhara."

"A gambling city, of course, it's a place of excess."

Sage said, "Every day, a massive flow of wealth passes through here, whether it's gold, silver, gems, or heaps of Belly; gamblers don't care about being rich or poor. Once we receive the order, we'll raid. Leave the regular shops alone; they don't have much money compared to what we can get, so it's not worth the time."

The money from gamblers is no different whether it goes to the casino or to Sage; it all disappears from their hands.

Taking it to the casino is pointless, but giving it to Sage is a boost to fulfill every dream! As for whether they think about it that way, who cares?

"Let's go, everyone, let's check out the casino first!"

Sage laughed heartily and led the group towards Rainbase.

Without the Impact and intimidation of Conqueror's Haki, the two Sandora Great Lizards immediately burrowed into the desert, creating a mound in the sand as they quickly escaped. In the blink of an eye, they had already reached the horizon far away in the desert.

In terms of speed, these creatures are much faster than camels.

This also saved Sage some time; he didn't want to wander in the desert for two days. If it weren't for knowing that there was almost free money in Rainbase, this pirate would have preferred to operate near the port.

Unless necessary, he didn't want to venture inland, let alone into a desert, which was inherently at odds with him.

The place where Lizard stopped was not far from Rainbase; after a ten-minute walk, they entered Rainbase. Compared to Naruhara, if one didn't look at the surrounding desert, this city could easily be mistaken for an ordinary city with no water shortage.

The number of travelers in the entire city surpassed that of Naruhara, all of them wearing expressions of dreamy anticipation, dragging suitcases or cloth bags as they entered various casinos, with the largest one, 'Rain Banquet,' being the Land of Dreams for everyone.

"They seem really excited; is there something good here?"

Looking at the eager faces of the crowd, Renetia asked in confusion.

"Of course they're excited; this is where their 'dreams' exist," Sage scoffed.

"Dreams?" Renetia blinked, "What kind of dreams could gather so many people together? To become the king of gambling?"

"Pretty much, or rather..."

Sage shook his head and smiled, "To get rich overnight. Some people get rich overnight here, acquiring vast wealth, while others leave with nothing, having lost all their money to the casino. But whether it's the former or the latter, as long as they stay here, they will eventually end up broke."

Does a casino not make money? Isn't that like going against the heavens? "Let's go check out Rain Banquet; you all can play for a bit. Remember how much you lose, and when the time comes to raid, you can take back your principal. If you win, that's yours!"

Sage led the group to Rain Banquet, which was situated next to the only lake in this oasis, occupying the entire area around the lake.

Including Sage and his group, there were nearly sixty people, and no one stopped them. Upon entering the main door, they were greeted by a bustling hall filled with voices.

Inside, people were gathered around various gambling tables, frantically placing bets, completely indifferent to the arrival of Sage and his group.

There were dice games, slot machines, blackjack, and poker; everything was available here.

"Still here?"

A red dot appeared in Sage's eyes as he looked up, shaking his head. He let his Subordinates disperse to explore freely and waved over a nearby waiter, who hurried over.

"Change some chips for me."

He tossed a bag of gold coins, which the waiter caught and scampered off with.

"You're playing too?" Lily looked surprised.

"What? Can't I play?"

Sage shot her an annoyed glance, "Do you know what participation feels like? I might be a bit unlucky, but that doesn't mean I shouldn't participate in anything! Besides, it'll all come back anyway."

How much he loses doesn't matter.

It's all just temporarily placed here; before long, it will come back, multiplied.

Since he had to wait anyway, he might as well enjoy himself.

After waiting for the waiter to eagerly hand him the chips, Sage showed Lily what it meant to be unlucky.

In blackjack, Sage drew two face cards for a total of twenty and stopped, while the dealer revealed a twenty-one, winning everything.

Not believing in bad luck, he placed another bet. This time he drew two face cards again, and then drew a third card, resulting in three face cards and busting.

On his third bet, he drew a face card again, and on the fourth bet, he drew another face card. "Goodbye!"

None of his bets were successful!

Sage immediately withdrew and turned to play the slot machine. This thing might be rigged, but it still pays out; however, for Sage, he would always land on different symbols—he couldn't even get two of the same.

Even the roulette, which tests eyesight and skill, could have the ball bounce unexpectedly, causing a shift.

Playing poker, "You'd never guess, this card is actually the Ace of Hearts! You lose!"

Sage dramatically revealed his hidden card, slamming it onto the table with force, stunning the nearby gamblers.

Ace high! All of them!

Lily stood by, her eyes twitching uncontrollably. She couldn't believe that the hidden card was just an Ace of Hearts, yet Sage had gone all in.

Didn't he even look? And who was that 'you lose' guy?

From the look of it, Sage seemed like he wanted to cut open the dealer's belly. If Sage hadn't left immediately, Lily would have thought it was a signal to draw her sword and cause trouble.

Although the chips kept falling, Sage seemed very interested in moving from table to table, appearing to have a great time.

It wasn't until he started playing another slot machine that a gentle voice suddenly rang out from behind.

"There you are."

Hearing the voice, Lily turned around first and saw a smiling woman, who had a somewhat similar gentle demeanor to Marika.

However, after Lily glanced at the woman and then at Sage, who was shaking the slot machine, her eyes widened in surprise.

So similar! This face looked just like the one on that Bounty Notice... "Ni."

"Don't disturb me."

Before Lily could finish speaking, Sage turned his head to look at the woman with a warm smile, "I'm having a great time playing."

"Subordinate reported seeing a familiar face. Since you want to play, why not enjoy it a bit more? Our boss invites you over," the woman smiled.