As soon as the Right Minister finished speaking, Neptune frowned and said angrily:
"What?!"
"Didn't I tell you to strengthen the guards to prevent another attack on the Hard-Shell Tower? It would only make the princess more uneasy!
You couldn't even manage that?!
A bunch of idiots!"
After being scolded by Neptune, the Right Minister grew indignant.
"That's because Your Majesty suddenly disappeared! The already uneasy city became even more chaotic—don't you understand?!"
Unexpectedly, Neptune didn't refute him.
Instead, he nodded honestly and offered a sincere apology.
"Sorry, sorry!"
"I'll really pay more attention in the future."
"But for now, let's hurry and entertain our guests!"
He then turned to Kronos and the others who were waiting nearby.
This time, both ministers immediately agreed with Neptune's proposal.
"Yes, yes!"
"Let's welcome our guests!"
With that, the two ministers followed Neptune and walked toward Kronos.
Neptune spoke again:
"Oh, by the way, let's invite the princess to join the banquet too!"
"Right Minister, please go in person."
Hearing this, the Right Minister was momentarily stunned. After glancing at Neptune for a second, he still nodded.
"Yes, I'll go right away!"
As the seahorse mermaid turned to leave, Neptune looked at the Left Minister seriously.
"This banquet must go smoothly. No accidents!"
"Mobilize all the soldiers to guard the perimeter of the banquet hall—including those stationed at the Hard-Shell Tower!"
The Left Minister, who was holding a cane, nodded solemnly.
"Understood. I'll make the necessary arrangements. Don't worry, Your Majesty!"
Shortly after,
Neptune, Kronos, and the others arrived at the banquet hall, escorted by a group of soldiers.
Mermaids in charge of serving dishes began to push carts loaded with various delicacies and wine to the long banquet table.
As Kronos took his seat, Neptune raised his voice:
"Let the banquet... begin!"
Music began to play.
Graceful mermaids walked out from both sides of the hall, dancing to the rhythm.
Soon after, a stunning female singer—the pride of Fish-Man Island's undersea performers—took the stage.
Maria Napoleon!
Her singing echoed through the hall, but most mermaids were too distracted by Kronos's presence to pay attention.
As for Kronos, he didn't seem to appreciate it at all. He wasn't interested in music.
After a while, a voice announced:
"Princess Shirahoshi has arrived!"
All eyes in the hall turned toward the entrance.
Everyone saw a tall mermaid with flowing pink curly hair adorned with a taiyaki-shaped hairpiece. She wore shell-shaped earrings, had beautiful blue eyes, a voluptuous upper body, and a long, pink fishtail of varying hues.
She was Princess Shirahoshi—the youngest and most beloved daughter of Neptune, King of the Ryugu Kingdom.
Shirahoshi seemed nervous facing so many strangers. She looked to her father for reassurance and called out timidly:
"Father… Father!"
Seeing her, Neptune smiled warmly and walked over.
"Shirahoshi, you're here."
He leaned in close and whispered gently:
"I'm sorry, Shirahoshi."
"These guests are special. Since there's no immediate danger in Dragon Palace City, I had to reassign the guards from the Hard-Shell Tower."
"I wasn't comfortable leaving you there alone, so I brought you here instead."
Shirahoshi shook her head and smiled sweetly.
"It's okay, Father. I don't feel wronged."
At that moment, Gojo Satoru floated up beside her, curious.
"So this is Princess Shirahoshi? She's dazzling," he said with a charming smile.
His sudden appearance startled her.
Shirahoshi recoiled slightly in fear, her wide blue eyes locked onto Gojo, her expression full of alarm.
Within seconds, tears welled up in her eyes.
She was clearly frightened to the point of crying by Gojo's unexpected approach.
Seeing this, Artoria quickly scolded him.
"Gojo Satoru, you scared her."
Gojo blinked in surprise. Upon seeing the tears in Shirahoshi's eyes, he scratched his head and gave a sheepish grin.
"Ah, sorry! I didn't mean to scare you."
On the other side of the hall, Hashirama, Madara, Banggu, and Asak were enjoying the food and wine, chatting and laughing.
"Mmm! The food here is really good!" Hashirama said cheerfully.
Madara, sitting beside him, seemed less interested.
He was more focused on when Hashirama would finally fight him than on the banquet itself.
"The wine's excellent too," Banggu added with a gentle smile as he lifted his glass.
Meanwhile, Kronos sat quietly at his seat, smiling as he watched his crew.
He seemed lost in thought—either in contemplation or nostalgia.
At that moment, Albedo walked to his side and asked sweetly:
"Lord Kronos, is something troubling you?"
Kronos snapped out of his daze.
When he saw it was Albedo, he smiled.
"Ah, Albedo."
"No, nothing's wrong. I was just remembering some things from the past..."
He thought back to the time when he left Erika's Tavern—it felt like yesterday.
He wondered how things were for them now. Were they still afraid? Was life better after the bandits were gone?
He had been through so much since going out to sea.
Now, he stood as one of the Emperors of the Sea.
But even so, the path to the top was still long.
In terms of status and reputation, he was still far behind the original Four Emperors—even if his pirate crew was now stronger than any of theirs.
Thinking of this, Kronos smiled faintly, shook his head, and murmured:
"I need more prestige..."
"From today onward, Fish-Man Island is under my protection. It's my territory now."
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