Inside the palace's luxurious dining room.
At this moment, the long dining table was filled with all sorts of delicacies from the mountains and seas.
Sitting in a chair on the right side of the long dining table, Karl looked at Neptune, who was seated in the main seat, and Jinbe opposite him, and smiled, "King Neptune, if I remember correctly, you have a few children, don't you..."
"What about those princes, and the legendary Mermaid Princess?"
Hearing this, Neptune said, "My three sons have started helping me share the burden in recent years. They are now responsible for managing all matters, big and small, of the Ryugu Kingdom."
"But if you wish to see them, Lord Karl, I will notify them to return now!"
Karl's words were exactly what Neptune wanted to hear.
If his three sons could gain Karl's friendship, then in the future when he and his brother Whitebeard passed away, Fish-Man Island would not revert to the chaos of the beginning of the Great Pirate Era even after losing the protection of the Whitebeard Pirates.
However, Karl had no interest in those three princes.
Karl directly ignored Neptune's last sentence and said with great interest, "What about the legendary Mermaid Princess?"
"Lord Karl, you mean Shirahoshi..."
A look of helplessness and guilt appeared on Neptune's face as he said, "I'm very sorry, but for certain reasons, Shirahoshi cannot leave the place where she is. As her father, I rarely get to see my daughter."
"Oh?"
The interest on Karl's face grew even stronger as he feigned ignorance, "She can only move within a fixed area? Has she run into some trouble?"
"..."
Neptune seemed to hesitate, then said honestly, "It all started a few years ago..."
The delicacies from the mountains and seas before them were like decorations.
Neither Karl nor Jinbe made a move to eat, quietly listening to Neptune's story.
During the tale, not only Neptune, as the father, but even Jinbe had a look of guilt and an anger that was not directed at anyone present.
"So that's how it is..."
As Neptune spoke, jogging some memories of details Karl had long forgotten.
Karl nodded in sudden realization, "A user of the Paramecia-type Mark-Mark Fruit? I didn't expect a rule-based ability user like that to be here in the deep sea, ten thousand meters below."
That's right!
The Mark-Mark Fruit was also a type of rule-based ability.
As long as you touch an opponent with your hand and set them as a target, anything the user throws will automatically track that target.
Unless the object is intercepted midway, there is no distance limit; it will not stop even if it has to chase to the ends of the earth.
What was even more terrifying was that as long as the Mark-Mark Fruit user had the stamina and something to grab, the size of the object thrown had almost no upper limit.
From small weapons to the great Ark, Noah, which was half the size of Fish-Man Island.
From this, it was clear that the Mark-Mark Fruit was a rule-based ability capable of throwing an island and tracking an enemy until it hit.
But such a rule-based ability, appearing on a weak person, also had significant limitations.
The user could only remember as many targets as they had hands.
After touching a target, they couldn't even wash their hands, or they would have to touch them again.
To obtain Shirahoshi, one of the three Ancient Weapons, that fellow named Vander Decken IX took advantage of the chaos caused by Queen Otohime's assassination to secretly touch the then 6-year-old Shirahoshi, and he hasn't washed his hands since.
A pretty good ability!
At this point, Karl asked Neptune, "King Neptune, do you need my help?"
"Is... is that possible?"
Neptune was stunned for a moment, then looked at Karl with pleasant surprise.
Shirahoshi was 12 years old this year.
From the age of 6 until now, his most beloved daughter could only stay in a room that was like a prison cell.
To say Neptune's heart didn't ache, that he didn't want to rescue Shirahoshi from that dark abyss, would definitely be a lie!
But...
It was just as Karl had said.
That Vander Decken IX's ability was one of the most unreasonable rule-based abilities among the Paramecia types.
Even if the other party wasn't in the deep sea ten thousand meters below, even if he threw a weapon from one of the Four Seas, as long as it wasn't blocked midway, it would fly all the way to Fish-Man Island until it hit Shirahoshi.
Jinbe had tried more than once to find Vander Decken IX's whereabouts in the deep sea.
Unfortunately, he failed every time.
The deep sea was vaster than the land and pitch black. Finding a single person was even more difficult than finding the legendary great treasure.
Even so, Neptune would never give up.
Now, hearing that Karl was willing to help, he naturally felt overjoyed.
As one of the overlords of the seas, Neptune had already learned a thing or two about Karl's strength from the newspapers.
He was an absolute island-destroying existence!
If the Warlord of the Sea, Jinbe, couldn't find Vander Decken IX, then Karl, as an overlord of the seas, might have a way to find his tracks.
At the very least, the hope would definitely be greater than with Jinbe.
Seeing Neptune's moved expression, a triumphant smile appeared in Karl's heart, but on the surface, he nodded and said with a smile, "I have a few rule-based ability users on my ship as well, and I also know a few friends with rule-based abilities."
"One of them has the Paramecia-type Glare-Glare Fruit ability."
"As the name suggests, it's an eye-based ability user who can perform ultra-long-distance observation within a radius of 4000 kilometers."
Karl didn't speak too definitively.
He first brought up Viola from Doflamingo's side, without explaining if she was a crewmate or a friend, and then, under Neptune's excited gaze, Karl continued, "But she's not here right now. I can help first with my Rumble-Rumble Fruit ability."
"Could it be... that Lord Karl's Rumble-Rumble Fruit can also perform long-distance observation?"
Neptune, whose excitement had been replaced by disappointment upon hearing that the Glare-Glare Fruit user wasn't here, suddenly had his hope rekindled.
"Ah..."
Karl nodded and said modestly, "Although my Rumble-Rumble Fruit can't compare to the Glare-Glare Fruit, it can still monitor an entire island."
"I can help you look. If my ability can't find him, then I'll just have to make a trip back to the New World and bring the Glare-Glare Fruit user here."
"Thank you so much, Lord Karl!"
Neptune, not wanting to let go of any hope, bowed his head directly to Karl and said sincerely, "Please, Lord Karl, do it yourself. Regardless of success or failure, this king will definitely present you with a great gift that will satisfy you afterward."
"As for a gift..."
Karl finally revealed his fangs and said with a smile, "Compared to those dead things, I'm more interested in the legendary Mermaid Princess!"
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