After the others had left the room, Shiki remained seated for a while longer.
It had been quite some time since he had last checked his progress.
With a thought, a familiar translucent panel appeared before his eyes.
[God-Level Template System]
[First Template: Golden Lion Shiki — Compatibility: 100%]
[Second Template: Shiki Tohno — Compatibility: 100%]
[Third Template: Yami Sukehiro — Progress: 80%]
[Abilities Acquired: Top-Tier Armament Haki, Top-Tier Observation Haki, Top-Tier Advanced Conqueror's Haki, Top-Tier Swordsmanship, Fuwa Fuwa no Mi — Awakened, Mystic Eyes of Death Perception — Top Stage, Yami Yami no Mi, Dark Magic Adaptation, Devil Fruit Extraction, Power Nullification, Dimension Slash]
[Skills: Basic Three Ninja Techniques, Body Flicker Technique]
[Daily Tasks: None]
Shiki silently examined the panel.
Compared to when he had first arrived in this world, the panel had changed drastically.
Considering everything he had done during that time, such progress was hardly surprising.
But still... eighty percent, huh?
The Yami Sukehiro Template had already granted him more than enough power to influence the course of this world.
The Yami Yami no Mi had been absorbed and adapted into his abilities, giving him control over darkness without forcing him to suffer all of the fruit's usual weaknesses.
Dark Magic Adaptation allowed him to convert and shape that darkness more naturally, while Devil Fruit Extraction and Power Nullification had expanded his options considerably.
Then there was Dimension Slash.
Even Shiki could not deny that it was troublesome.
A slash capable of cutting through space itself was far more useful than simply producing a larger flying slash.
However, the remaining twenty percent had yet to move.
Shiki rested one arm against the side of the chair.
"Looks like it won't rise from ordinary battles anymore."
That was hardly surprising.
The opponents he had faced recently might have been powerful by the standards of the sea, but very few had been capable of forcing him to improve.
Even the war at Marineford had ended without pushing him anywhere near his limit.
Perhaps defeating stronger enemies would increase the compatibility.
Or perhaps the final portion required him to understand something deeper about Yami's strength rather than merely using the abilities he had received.
Either way, there was little reason to rush.
There were still plenty of troublesome monsters waiting in the New World.
Shiki dismissed the panel.
The translucent screen vanished just as someone knocked on the door.
"Come in."
The door opened, revealing King Neptune.
He had come alone, without his ministers or guards. His expression was unusually serious, and the cheerful mood he had shown during the banquet was nowhere to be seen.
Shiki was not surprised.
Just as he had expected, Neptune had finally come to him of his own accord.
The king had attempted to handle the matter without involving outsiders.
"Shiki... there is a favor I need to ask of you, jamon."
Shiki gestured toward the seat across from him.
Neptune lowered himself carefully.
For several seconds, he remained silent.
The matter concerned his daughter, and even speaking about it to someone outside the royal family was not easy.
However, Shirahoshi had remained confined inside the Hard-Shell Tower for years.
Neptune had watched her childhood pass from behind a locked door.
As her father, he could no longer pretend that the situation was acceptable.
"It concerns my daughter, Shirahoshi."
Neptune told him everything.
For the past eight years, weapons had been flying toward Shirahoshi from somewhere beyond Ryugu Palace.
Axes, swords, spears—anything capable of killing her.
The attacks had begun shortly after Queen Otohime's death. At first, the royal family had assumed they were isolated threats caused by the unrest surrounding her assassination.
But the weapons never stopped.
No matter where Shirahoshi was moved, they continued to find her.
Eventually, Neptune had been forced to place her inside the Hard-Shell Tower, the safest location in the palace.
She had remained there ever since.
"The one responsible is Vander Decken IX," Neptune said, his expression darkening.
Shiki already knew the name, but he allowed him to continue.
Vander Decken, captain of the Flying Pirates, possessed the power of the Mato Mato no Mi.
Once he touched someone, anything thrown from his hand would pursue that person regardless of the distance between them.
Years ago, he had touched Shirahoshi.
Since then, every weapon he threw had continued to seek her out.
The Neptune Army had searched for him countless times, but his ability allowed him to attack without going anywhere near the palace.
He could throw a weapon from one end of Fish-Man Island and disappear before the soldiers even knew where to begin looking.
"We've captured members of his crew before," Neptune continued. "But none of them knew where he was hiding, jamon."
Shiki rested his cheek against one hand.
"So now you want me to deal with him... right? You should know what that means."
Neptune lowered his head. Of course, he understood what Shiki meant. He had already considered everything before coming here, so there was no reason to hesitate now.
"Yes."
There was no authority behind the gesture.
He was not speaking as the king of Fish-Man Island.
He was asking as Shirahoshi's father.
"You and your crew have already done more than enough for this island," Neptune said. "Your companions helped stop Hody Jones, and you drove away the Big Mom Pirates."
His hands tightened against his knees.
"But Shirahoshi has spent eight years inside that tower."
She had never complained.
Whenever Neptune or her brothers visited, she smiled and insisted that she was fine.
Shirahoshi had always been too kind to let her family see how lonely she truly was.
"I don't want my daughter to spend the rest of her life hiding behind those walls," Neptune said.
Shiki studied him for a moment.
Accepting his flag was one thing.
Placing the safety of his own daughter in his hands was another.
By coming here, Neptune had finally acknowledged what it meant for Fish-Man Island to stand under his protection.
Thinking of this, Shiki rose from his chair and said calmly.
"You made the right choice."
Relief immediately appeared across Neptune's face.
"Then—"
"I'll deal with him."
Shiki walked toward the door.
Vander Decken might have been able to hide from the Neptune Army, but hiding from Shiki was another matter.
Once he focused his Observation Haki, every presence across Fish-Man Island would fall within his senses.
There was nowhere on the island he could hide forever.
Neptune quickly stood seeing him moving.
"Thank you, Shiki."
"Save that for after he's dealt with."
Without waiting for another response, Shiki walked out of the room.
Neptune watched him leave, relief still visible across his face. He had expected Shiki to immediately begin searching the island for Vander Decken, but Shiki was in no particular hurry.
The man had remained hidden for eight years.
A few more minutes would hardly make a difference.
Rather than spreading his Observation Haki across the entire island at once, Shiki decided to take a leisurely stroll through Ryugu Palace first.
Just then, the sound of wheels echoed from the far end of the corridor.
Shiki narrowed his eyes. Turning slightly, he slipped behind a cluster of decorative coral.
Four palace guards soon appeared, hurriedly pushing an enormous food cart through the water-filled passage. An irresistible aroma drifted from beneath its covered trays.
Shiki raised an eyebrow.
The scent was every bit as tempting as the food Yugito made.
And so, without the slightest hesitation, he stepped out and followed them.
The guards moved quickly through the underwater passages, weaving through corridor after corridor until they reached a hallway enclosed within a bubble membrane.
The moment they entered the air-filled passage, their pace slowed considerably.
Shiki followed leisurely behind them.
Not one of the guards noticed his presence.
He had not expected to find an area filled with air this deep inside Ryugu Palace.
The corridor was completely sealed within a bubble membrane, keeping the surrounding seawater outside. Naturally, once the guards entered it, they could no longer push the heavy cart as quickly as they had underwater.
While Shiki took his time observing his surroundings, the now-empty food cart came rolling back from farther down the corridor.
His figure vanished from where he stood.
Only after the guards had passed and disappeared around the corner did Shiki emerge from the shadows again.
His gaze settled on the enormous door at the end of the passage.
Ryugu Palace was luxurious and extravagant almost everywhere one looked, yet the door before him gave off a completely different impression.
Dark.
Eerie.
The tightly sealed wooden door was covered in countless iron nails. Even more unsettling were the enormous axes embedded one after another in the surrounding walls.
The walls themselves were unusually thick. Otherwise, they would have collapsed long ago under the impact of weapons large enough to bury half their blades inside the stone.
Shiki stared at the axes for a moment.
Then Neptune's explanation returned to him.
"So this is the Hard-Shell Tower."
He had somehow wandered directly to the place Neptune had just told him about.
Had Nami been here, she probably would have turned deathly pale and started screaming that the place was haunted.
Shiki tilted his head.
The guards had delivered enough food to feed an entire village before leaving.
Was Shirahoshi really that large?
Whatever.
He raised an eyebrow, placed one hand against the door, and pushed.
The answer would be waiting on the other side.
Creak...
The heavy door slowly opened, and Shiki stepped inside.
The interior was just as unsettling as the entrance. Aside from the thin sliver of light slipping through the gap behind him, the entire room was shrouded in darkness.
However, the rich aroma of food filled the air.
Shiki frowned slightly.
Through the faint light, he could make out what appeared to be an enormous mound in the middle of the room.
With a light tap of his foot, he floated upward and landed directly on top of it.
"Who's there?! Who came into my room?!"
A beautiful yet frightened female voice suddenly rang out.
In the next instant, every light in the room came on.
Shiki narrowed his eyes against the sudden brightness. Once his vision adjusted, he finally saw the room clearly.
Then his gaze fell upon the enormous figure beneath him.
Even Shiki, who had encountered countless beautiful women throughout the world, was momentarily stunned.
A gigantic mermaid sat in the center of the room. Long, flowing pink hair curled gracefully down her back, while her sea blue eyes trembled with fear. Tears larger than an ordinary human's entire body gathered at their corners, threatening to fall at any moment.
Her beautiful face was filled with panic and grievance.
Most striking of all was her rare pink tail, its scales alternating between soft shades of color.
Shiki sighed inwardly.
She truly deserved to be praised as a beauty capable of standing alongside the Pirate Empress, Boa Hancock.
However, Shirahoshi's presence was completely different from Hancock's.
Hancock carried the overwhelming pride and majesty of an empress.
Shirahoshi seemed to embody pure gentleness.
So this was the daughter Neptune had been so worried about.
While Shiki studied Shirahoshi, she stared back at the unfamiliar man who had suddenly appeared inside her room, anxiously looking him up and down.
Her fear quickly overwhelmed her, and she began to sob.
"W-What is happening...?"
She stared at him through tear-filled eyes.
"And what were you doing on top of me just now?"
"Uh... I..."
Shiki scratched his head.
He had faced powerful enemies without hesitation, but a crying girl was something he had absolutely no idea how to handle.
For once, he found himself at a loss for words.
"Who are you?" Shirahoshi sniffled, Shiki's figure reflected in her watery blue eyes. "You came here to kill me too, didn't you?"
Her lips trembled, but she desperately tried to sound brave.
"B-But I'm not afraid! I am the daughter of King Neptune, so I won't be frightened! I won't... I won't be frightened at all..."
"Stop crying for a moment."
Shiki pressed a hand against his temple, both troubled and helpless.
She truly was as timid as she was gentle.
Despite repeatedly claiming that she was not afraid, tears were already streaming uncontrollably down her delicate cheeks.
And because every tear was enormous, Shiki had to continuously move aside to avoid being hit by them.
"I-I can't hold it anymore...!"
In the end, Shirahoshi broke down completely and burst into loud, heart-wrenching sobs.
"Someone, please come quickly! Father! Royal Brothers!"
Shiki's mouth twitched.
He forced himself to keep trying to calm her.
"Hey, I haven't even done anything."
Unfortunately, Shirahoshi was no longer listening.
She continued crying without pause, forcing Shiki to dodge tear after tear. It was not as though he could simply hit her to make her stop.
The patience her beauty had earned her was rapidly wearing thin.
"So noisy..."
What a headache.
Elsewhere in Ryugu Palace, the guards stationed near the Hard-Shell Tower heard Princess Shirahoshi's desperate cries for her father and brothers.
Their expressions changed immediately.
"Something happened to the princess!"
"Move!"
The guards abandoned their posts and rushed toward the tower as quickly as they could.
Inside the room, Shirahoshi's sobbing continued.
"M-Mister Human..." she cried, her voice growing hoarse. "You really came into this room to kill me, didn't you?"
"No. I walked in here by accident."
Shiki covered his ears as he tried to explain.
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
Whoosh!
In the next instant, Shiki's expression darkened.
The color drained completely from Shirahoshi's already pale face.
She stared in horror at the iron door Shiki had left slightly open.
Her tears stopped.
A massive axe suddenly flew through the narrow opening, spinning through the air as it headed directly toward her.
Shirahoshi could only watch in terror.
She was certain she was finished.
However, before the axe could reach her, the firm back of the man before her blocked its path.
Shiki lightly tapped his foot and floated into the air, positioning himself directly in front of Shirahoshi.
He raised one hand.
The enormous axe, several times larger than an ordinary person, came to an abrupt stop in his grasp.
Shiki caught it effortlessly.
His eyes moved toward the red rose emblem painted upon the weapon.
So this belonged to Vander Decken.
Then, with a casual motion, he hurled it back outside.
The axe slammed against the outer wall before crashing heavily to the floor.
Shirahoshi stared at the red rose emblem.
Her entire body began trembling uncontrollably.
"Princess Shirahoshi!"
A flurry of hurried footsteps sounded from outside.
"So someone finally came."
Shiki crossed his arms and slowly lowered himself to the ground, his gaze turning toward the doorway.
Shirahoshi looked at him hesitantly.
The stranger had entered her room without permission and frightened her badly.
But he had also protected her from the axe.
Before she could think any further, the guards were already approaching the open door.
Shirahoshi gritted her teeth and suddenly reached toward him.
"Hey."
Shiki frowned and prepared to move aside.
However, the moment his eyes met Shirahoshi's bright blue gaze, he paused.
"Sorry."
Shirahoshi carefully closed her fingers around him.
Despite her enormous size, she controlled her strength remarkably well and did not squeeze him.
"Princess Shirahoshi, are you all right?"
"Were you injured?"
"Did someone enter the room?"
A large group of guards gathered nervously outside her door.
"No... No, I'm fine."
Shirahoshi hurriedly placed the hand holding Shiki behind her back and shook her head.
Seeing that the princess appeared unharmed, the captain of the guards released a breath of relief.
"We heard you calling for His Majesty and your brothers. We thought someone had attacked you."
His gaze moved toward the enormous axe lying in the corridor.
His expression immediately changed.
"Another weapon from Vander Decken..."
Several guards tightened their grips on their weapons.
The captain looked back at Shirahoshi.
"Did it hit you, Princess?"
"No. I wasn't hurt."
Shirahoshi shook her head quickly.
The captain glanced toward the half-open door.
"But the door is open."
The guards exchanged uneasy looks.
The Hard-Shell Tower was never supposed to be left open, especially while Shirahoshi was inside.
"Who opened it?"
"Could there be an intruder?"
They raised their weapons and stared suspiciously into the room.
Shirahoshi gave them an apologetic smile.
"I'm sorry for worrying everyone. I think... I must have opened it without realizing."
The captain frowned.
"That still doesn't explain why you were crying for help."
Shirahoshi began sweating.
Her eyes darted anxiously from side to side, unable to settle anywhere. Fortunately, she was so large that the guards standing far below could not clearly see her expression.
"I-I had a nightmare."
"A nightmare?"
"Yes!"
She nodded far too enthusiastically.
"It was a very frightening nightmare, so I called for Father and my brothers."
The guards remained doubtful.
"But I'm certain we heard someone else's voice," the captain said.
Sweat poured down Shirahoshi's face.
"N-No, that was... Well..."
She desperately searched for an excuse.
"That was the sound of my stomach."
"Your stomach?"
The guards exchanged confused looks.
"Hey..."
Shiki lay helplessly in Shirahoshi's palm.
He wanted to remind her that he was not some secret intruder who needed to be hidden away.
Unfortunately, Shirahoshi was already so nervous about lying to the guards that she could not think clearly.
The instant she heard Shiki speak, she hurriedly raised one enormous finger and pressed it over his mouth.
Shiki's eyelid twitched.
Had anyone other than Shirahoshi dared to do that, he would have cut the offending finger off without hesitation.
The captain's eyes narrowed.
"There it is again."
Shirahoshi stiffened.
"What?"
"That voice."
The guards raised their weapons once more.
"Someone is definitely inside the room."
Rustle...
Just then, a strange sound came from behind them.
"Who's there?!"
The captain immediately spun around.
Every guard raised his weapon in unison.
However, when they looked back, they discovered that the newcomer was only Megalo.
The instant she saw him, Shirahoshi's eyes lit up.
"Megalo! Welcome back!"
The captain relaxed slightly and signaled for the others to lower their weapons.
Megalo wriggled past the guards and made his way into the room.
She affectionately stroked the giant shark's head with her free hand.
Megalo leaned into her touch, clearly enjoying the attention.
The captain continued examining the room.
"Princess, are you absolutely certain no one entered?"
Shirahoshi nodded repeatedly.
"Yes. There is no one here."
Shiki, still trapped in her palm, stared silently upward.
This princess was surprisingly willing to lie for someone she had only just met.
Not that she was particularly good at it.
The captain remained suspicious, but Shirahoshi appeared unharmed, and Megalo was now beside her.
After several seconds, he finally lowered his weapon.
"We will inspect the surrounding corridors."
He gestured toward the door.
"Please keep the entrance properly closed from now on, Princess. Vander Decken's weapons could enter through even the smallest opening."
"I understand."
Shirahoshi nodded obediently.
"And call for us immediately if anything else happens."
"Yes."
The guards slowly withdrew from the room, though several of them continued glancing back suspiciously.
Once the last guard had stepped outside, they pulled the enormous door shut behind them.
The heavy lock fell into place.
Shirahoshi waited until their footsteps had completely disappeared.
Only then did she release the breath she had been holding.
She carefully opened her palms.
Shiki sat in the center of her hand with his arms crossed, staring at her without expression.
"Thank you so much. And... I'm sorry for being so rude earlier. I hope you can forgive me."
Shirahoshi gently cupped Shiki in her hands, lifted him in front of her face, and gave him a nervous smile.
Her thanks were naturally for saving her by stopping the axe earlier, while the apology was for suddenly hiding him inside her palm without warning.
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