Gyoverly Hills.
This place is the premier district of the Fish-Man Island, the most upscale area in Ryugu Kingdom.
Those who reside here are all fish-men or merfolk with considerable wealth and power in the kingdom.
For instance, the future King Neptune.
After reaching a preliminary cooperation agreement with Bazel in the VIP reception room, Neptune left work early.
He sent someone to find Olga, who was riding her sea lizard around the palace, and brought the three of them and the lizard to the villa located in Gyoverly Hills.
As the villa gate opened, Bazel and the other two entered first, welcomed by Otohime.
"Captain Neptune~~"
Neptune, who was about to step inside, stopped and turned around.
"Oh~ It's you, Tiger. Dressed like that, are you setting off on another journey?"
"That's right. I came specifically to say goodbye before leaving."
'Fisher Tiger?'
Bazel apologized to Otohime and turned to walk out of the villa, wanting to catch a glimpse of the warrior who would stir great waves in the future.
Regardless of the cause and effect, Bazel greatly admired Fisher Tiger's courage.
Not everyone has the courage and ability to scale the Red Line.
Let alone secretly infiltrate the Celestial Dragons' residence, wreak havoc, and escape alive with a group of slaves.
Tiger's kindness was another aspect Bazel appreciated.
Despite the abuse he suffered at the hands of the Celestial Dragons, when liberating slaves, he did not turn a blind eye to the human slaves because of his past experiences.
Instead, he treated everyone equally, organizing a diverse team of various races to cause an uproar in Mary Geoise before making their escape.
From another perspective, the first to achieve 'peaceful coexistence of all races' in the original work was not Big Mom.
It was Fisher Tiger, though this 'coexistence of all races' lasted only a single night.
But on that night of escape, whether human, giant, fish-man, or any other race, under Fisher Tiger's leadership, there were no barriers between them.
Their only goal was to escape and survive.
"Human?"
Fisher Tiger frowned.
"Neptune, why is there a human in your home?"
"It's like this..."
Neptune quickly explained the origins of Bazel and his group, as well as the actions the Beasts Pirates had taken earlier.
"I see. Thank you very much for your help!"
Fisher Tiger immediately bowed to Bazel in gratitude.
"I am Fisher Tiger, a fish-man adventurer determined to travel the world. Pleased to meet you!"
"Bazel, a pirate."
After introducing himself to Fisher Tiger, Bazel thought for a moment and asked Olga for paper and pen.
He wrote down a series of numbers and handed it over.
"This is my Den Den Mushi number. Since you are Neptune's friend, you are also my friend."
"If you encounter an insurmountable crisis while out there, please don't hesitate to contact me."
"I will do everything in my power to help my friends."
Bazel shared his Den Den Mushi number partly because kind words are never wasted, and partly to express his admiration for Tiger.
"Please don't feel embarrassed. If friends worry about pride, then the word 'friend' loses its meaning, doesn't it?"
"This…"
Tiger instinctively glanced at Neptune, and after receiving an encouraging nod, he tucked the note into an inner pocket.
"You are the first human friend I've made in my 31 years. I will cherish this friendship."
After bowing to both of them once more in farewell, Tiger adjusted the small backpack on his back and turned to leave.
"Tiger is a remarkable fish-man."
After Tiger walked away, Neptune smiled and introduced, "Don't let his fierce appearance fool you… he's actually a great fish-man. He's a highly respected great adventurer in the Ryugu Kingdom."
"His dream is to travel the entire world. Whenever he returns, he brings back fantastic stories from his journeys."
'Travel the entire world…'
Bazel's eyes were deep and unreadable.
He hoped that this time, Fisher Tiger would not make a trip to Mary Geoise.
Courage is indeed the anthem of humanity and all life, but when faced with insurmountable reality, whether that anthem can be played to the end remains to be seen.
"Neptune, the food is almost ready. What are you still doing outside?"
Otohime's voice called from inside the house.
"Coming!"
"Let's go, Bazel. Otohime's cooking is absolutely amazing. Today, we must drink until we're drunk, hahaha~"
…
At the same time, at Coral Hill.
Mermaid Café.
"Wow, sir, you're truly amazing! You actually drank all the alcohol in one go~~~!"
"Ah~~ Hanafuda-sama is super cool~~"
With alcohol clouding his mind and the coquettish, cute voices around him, Hanafuda, his emotional value maxed out, threw his head back and laughed heartily.
He flashed his signature smile.
"This little bit of alcohol isn't even enough for me to rinse my mouth! Bring out the strongest liquor you have in this place!"
Hanafuda leaned back, nostrils flared, his arms wrapped around two sexy and alluring mermaid ladies.
"Captain, isn't that about enough?"
Costa looked at the empty wallet, his hand trembling.
"Our Berry…"
"What nonsense are you spouting! I've been saving up for a long time! Today, I'm definitely going to drink to my heart's content!"
Costa, on the verge of tears, picked up the wallet. He was just about to say, 'Captain, all your private savings are already used up', when the cafe door was kicked open with a bang.
"I heard there's a strong human here! Hey, human, come out and fight me!"
A blue-skinned whale shark fish-man walked into the cafe, his face still bearing unhealed wounds.
Feeling the mermaid lady in his arms begin to tremble, Hanafuda paused his drinking for a moment, then quickly increased the pace.
"Really, there are always troublemakers who don't know their place no matter where you go! Can't you see you're scaring the beautiful mermaid ladies?!"
"G-guest, please keep your voice down!"
A soft, faintly fragrant hand covered Hanafuda's mouth.
"He's Jinbei, a famous big shot from the lawless Fish-Man District!"
"If you anger him, after you leave, we'll definitely be in trouble!"
"Last week, a guest offended a hoodlum from there and got beaten so badly he couldn't even get out of bed…"
"So even the fish-man race has its trash…"
The glass in his hand developed several cracks. Hanafuda put down the glass and slowly stood up, cracking his neck from side to side with audible pops.
"To make the beautiful mermaid ladies afraid… you really deserve to die, you bastard."
"Costa, notify everyone to assemble. Have Babanuki come too."
Hanafuda's body gradually began to transform into his hybrid form.
His golden vertical pupils looked down at Jinbe.
"Let's go to Fish-Man District. I want to see what level these so-called famous hoodlums are at."
"If they can't even take three punches from me, I'll be terribly disappointed!"
"Captain! Important news! It's from Olga-san!!"
Deron suddenly ran over with a Den Den Mushi and handed it to Hanafuda.
"Moshi moshi, is that Hanafuda-chan?"
"It's me, what's going on, Olga?"
"Not me! Bazel asked me to tell you that the Ryugu Kingdom and the Beasts Pirates are now allies."
The Den Den Mushi said with a laugh, "Bazel wants you to make a trip to the ship, inform Captain Kaido, who's not answering his Den Den Mushi, about this, and along the way, bring our Jolly Roger over to Fish-Man Island's Gyoverly Hills~"
Hanafuda glanced at the surrounding mermaids, all wearing expressions of astonishment.
He voiced the question on all their minds.
"Why did Bazel choose to form an alliance with this kingdom?"
"I don't know the specifics either~ But Bazel is currently calling that super big fish-man Neptune his brother! Hey, you stupid snake, don't pour alcohol into my cup!"
"I'm just a kid, I can't drink! You idiot, if you're drunk, go rest already!!"
"Tch~" The Den Den Mushi transmitted Bazel's mocking voice, "A two-hundred-year-old granny acting all young, you... Ouch! That hurts! Let go! Are you a dog or something?!"
Hanafuda hung up the Den Den Mushi.
"Deron, you make a trip to the ship and inform Captain Kaido about what just happened. Costa, notify everyone to assemble. After I deal with this hoodlum, we're heading to Fish-Man District!"
"Roger that~!"
"Now then…"
Gently setting down the mermaid lady clinging to his leg with utmost care, Hanafuda turned a ferocious grin towards Jinbei.
"I'm Hanafuda, a cadre of the Beasts Pirates. Come on, I'll let you hit me three times first."
"Consider it a gift for our new alliance. But after those three punches, you'd better be ready for me to beat the shit out of you, brat!"
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