Glancing at the humans lying on the ground pretending to be dead—but whose trembling bodies gave them away—Kronos didn't bother to act.
He simply turned and said to his crew,
"Let's go."
Hearing this, Albedo and the others stepped aside, clearing a path for Kronos to walk.
But they didn't leave the ship.
Albedo's cold gaze, along with the others', remained fixed on the humans feigning death.
The pressure from their stares made those humans break into a cold sweat, too afraid to move even a muscle.
Not long after, the Kamui Pirates' ship adjusted its course and resumed sailing toward Fish-Man Island.
The ones pretending to be dead didn't dare lift their heads until the Kamui Pirates had been gone for over ten minutes.
Only then did they cautiously peek up.
Confirming that the Kamui Pirates had indeed left, the survivors exhaled deeply in relief.
"Phew~ that scared me to death!"
"Luckily, they didn't do anything to us. Otherwise, we'd be dead!"
Someone rolled over and joked with a grin,
"Hehe, I guess we're pretty good at playing dead.
Those guys totally bought it."
But as soon as he said that, the rest of the survivors glared at him.
Before he could respond—
Several voices snapped at him:
"Are you stupid?!"
"Did you get scared into brain damage?"
"We survived, and you really think it's because we faked our deaths well?"
"Even an idiot should realize—we're alive only because they didn't feel like killing us!"
"They made a whole group of powerful fish-men kill themselves just by saying a few words.
You think they couldn't tell we were still alive?!"
"How many lives do you think you have to play dead like that?!"
The one who spoke earlier stood frozen, stunned by the verbal lashing.
Afterwards, the others ignored him and sighed emotionally.
"The Kamui Pirates... Sea Emperors..."
"As expected of the crew that dared to attack Marine Headquarters and destroy Marineford! That's true power."
"Those fish-men slaughtered us effortlessly."
"And then they slaughtered the fish-men—and even made them commit suicide like it was nothing!"
"Let's not forget: their minimum bounties are over 100 million! All of them are infamous pirates!"
"When I saw them, I honestly gave up all hope of surviving. I didn't expect the heavens to spare me!"
The pirates slowly relaxed, chatting freely as though the fear from earlier had already faded.
At that moment, one pirate stood up, stomped violently on a fish-man's corpse, and shouted with a twisted expression:
"Look closely! This is the power of us humans!"
"Mere fish-men, don't get cocky!"
"We humans have five Sea Emperors on our side!"
Meanwhile, aboard the Kamui Pirates' ship—
Kronos was still reflecting on the sensation of using his new ability.
It was his first time activating it.
And the result? Perfect.
He got the idea from Albedo.
After seeing Albedo command everyone to kneel with just a word, Kronos grew curious.
So when he expanded his domain using spatial powers and imposed his own rules, he tried to replicate that same control.
"Looks like I haven't reached the full potential of my Devil Fruit yet..."
Kronos muttered as he looked down at his palm.
The ship sailed steadily forward.
Who knows how much time passed before Artoria's voice came from behind him.
"Hey, Captain! What's that up ahead?"
Kronos looked up.
A massive, translucent bubble shield appeared on the horizon.
Smiling, Kronos answered calmly,
"That's our destination—Fish-Man Island."
It resembled a giant gourd.
Inside the enormous shield was a bustling, prosperous town.
Above the main shield was a smaller bubble, also encasing a city.
That smaller dome housed the Ryugu Kingdom—the royal palace and the residence of King Neptune, the god of the sea, and his children.
Dragon Palace (Ryugu Palace).
If one approached Fish-Man Island via the wrong path, the ship's coating would automatically detach and merge with the island's shield.
Although deep underwater, Fish-Man Island had an artificial sky and even clouds.
Thanks to the massive Sun Tree Eve, which transmitted sunlight from the surface down to the depths,
Fish-Man Island enjoyed natural light and even a cycle of day and night.
Meanwhile, on Fish-Man Island—
Inside the Mermaid Café...
Clink! Crash!
A sharp sound of shattering glass rang out—
followed by a piercing scream of pain.
"Ahhh!!!"
"No... impossible! The future... how can the future turn out like this?!"
A beautiful mermaid, larger than most, held her head in agony and mumbled to herself in disbelief.
She had short black hair that fell over the right side of her face, cold blue eyes, skin pale as snow, and a notably full figure.
She was none other than the fortune teller of Fish-Man Island—Madam Shyarly!
Her screams quickly drew the attention of everyone nearby.
Fish-men and mermaids turned their heads and whispered:
"Isn't that Madam Shyarly from the Mermaid Café?"
"What's wrong with her? Is it the recent unrest on the island?"
Ever since the Battle of Marineford, many places had fallen into chaos.
And Fish-Man Island was one of them.
The fall of the Whitebeard Pirates had left a power vacuum.
Fish-Man Island, which had once been under Whitebeard's protection, was the first to feel the impact.
At first, it was just a few people stirring up trouble...
But it was like opening Pandora's box.
The fighting escalated into riots, spreading across the island.
Now, the peaceful and calm Fish-Man Island was long gone!
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