“Princess Nanamo, there’s news from the New World. Wang Zhi has come to Fishman Island.”
“Hm? What? He attacked us directly? That much nerve?”
After being woken from her nap by Hermes, Nanamo’s first reaction was that Wang Zhi had come to attack.
After all, that inexplicable provocation earlier had already felt strange. Thinking about it carefully, if Wang Zhi wanted to lure the tiger away from the mountain and secretly pull something while Nereus was away from Fishman Island, it wasn’t impossible.
“No, I really am still half-asleep. How could I think something like that…”
Rubbing her face, Nanamo dismissed her earlier thoughts.
She had grown up on Fullalead Island and knew the people from the Rocks Pirates fairly well. Wang Zhi’s strength on Fullalead Island wasn’t at the bottom, but he was only middle-tier at best.
And Nanamo’s fixed impression of Wang Zhi was that he was cowardly.
Whenever there was some major operation, Wang Zhi would always shrink back and hesitate to step forward. Usually, he stayed behind to guard Fullalead Island. For someone like that to take the initiative to attack Fishman Island, either someone was backing him, or he had gone crazy.
“Princess Nanamo, Lord Nereus isn’t here, so you need to be cautious. What if this guy is bait too? A small suggestion, choose a position that’s neither too close nor too far from Fishman Island.
That way, if something unexpected happens, it’ll be convenient for you to rush back and help. And underwater, there’s no need to fear him pulling anything.”
Hermes picked up a fan beside it and offered advice while fanning itself.
Barbell was standing guard on the Sabaody Archipelago, Sebastian was out on campaign, and Nereus was outside observing the situation.
Among the senior officers capable of operating in the deep sea, aside from Nanamo, only Sunbell remained.
If Wang Zhi were allowed onto the island, it might trigger some uncontrollable factors.
“That’s exactly what I was thinking. Doesn’t matter what he came for, we’ll treat him as an enemy first. But… Hermes, go notify Uncle Sunbell and tell him to prepare for battle. I’ll go to the sea myself.”
Nanamo left Hermes on the island. As a Homies, Hermes itself wasn’t afraid of water; after all, clouds could also be considered a form of water.
But in the deep sea, Hermes’s usefulness would be greatly reduced, so it was better for it to stay on the island and prepare for other possible incidents.
Not long after, Wang Zhi met someone from Fishman Island beneath the sea.
Only Nanamo had come.
Nanamo hadn’t brought anyone else. If there were too many people, it would only make it harder for her to fight freely.
What puzzled her, however, was that Wang Zhi had also come alone. Aside from Wang Zhi himself, Nanamo couldn’t sense the presence of any living person on that pirate ship.
“Wang Zhi, why did you come here?!”
Nanamo didn’t bother being polite. Back then, Wang Zhi and Nereus hadn’t been close at all, and now there was no way she could speak to Wang Zhi like some old friend.
Being directly addressed by name by the little brat from the island left Wang Zhi somewhat displeased, but recalling the news from back then, this little girl who hardly seemed to have grown up was apparently even stronger than the Demon Heir on Roger’s ship.
And in the deep sea, he didn’t seem to have much chance of winning against her either. Coupled with the purpose of his visit, Wang Zhi’s expression showed no change because of it.
“You came alone?”
“What? Looking down on me? Dealing with you, I’m enough by myself. If you want to talk to Dad, he’ll be heading to Fullalead Island to vis—”
Before Nanamo could finish saying the word “visit,” she noticed Wang Zhi’s expression shift from cold indifference to… fawning.
“Y-You… what exactly are you trying to do?! Why are you smiling so disgustingly?!”
“Ahem, Nanamo, when you were born, I was already on Fullalead Island. If you calculate it carefully, we can be considered old acquaintances. I came here to avoid unnecessary war between Fishman Island and Fullalead Island.
I came alone precisely to show my sincerity. Besides that… there’s also these.”
Wang Zhi reached behind him and pulled, and more than a dozen chests filled with glittering treasures appeared behind him just like that.
The reason he had asked whether Nanamo came alone wasn’t for anything else; it was simply to preserve a bit of dignity for himself.
Admitting defeat was one thing, but privately admitting defeat and admitting defeat in front of countless pirates were completely different matters.
That was also why he had come here alone.
If he happened to run into Nereus, then kneeling down and begging for mercy by himself wasn’t impossible.
If too many people were around, it would instead interfere with his ability to beg for mercy. If pride got in the way, he might even lose his life.
Since the one who came was Nanamo, Wang Zhi was actually quite pleased inside. After all, she was a money grubber and easier to move with treasure.
No matter what, she was still Nereus’s daughter and should have some say in things. If he could persuade her, then Nereus probably wouldn’t pursue the matter too heavily either.
“Your ‘sincerity’ does indeed look quite good.”
“Of course…”
Wang Zhi also felt some pain in his heart. His title of Pirate Guru was real, and with Fullalead Island under his control, plenty of pirates came and went, so he earned quite a lot in normal times.
But suddenly spending such a large amount of wealth couldn’t exactly be called painless.
“Some people used my name to do some very excessive things. I don’t think we need to go to war over something like this… so…”
Wang Zhi briefly summarized the previous incident and repeatedly emphasized that it had nothing to do with him.
Wang Zhi was worried that Nereus might truly lose his temper and issue another sea-sealing order. He didn’t have a convenient escape ability like the Warp-Warp Fruit, and if he ended up being targeted by monsters like Whitebeard, things would become troublesome.
“So that’s how it is. I understand. I’ll relay your words to Father. My father isn’t some warmonger either, so this matter should be avoidable.”
Wang Zhi smiled and nodded along from the side, but inwardly he was cursing.
Nereus wasn’t a warmonger?
That guy was clearly a battle-crazed lunatic! The kind who would wipe out your entire family at the slightest disagreement. He had practically mastered the Nine Familial Extermination technique.
Of course, these thoughts only stayed in his head. As long as they didn’t have to fight and not many outsiders knew about this, it was already the most satisfactory outcome in Wang Zhi’s mind.
After Nanamo accepted treasures, Wang Zhi had just been about to steer his ship away when he heard a sentence that struck straight into his soul.
“I’ve accepted your sincerity. So where’s Fishman Island’s share?”
“We mobilized so many people, doesn’t that cost money? Food expenses, military expenses, emotional damages, aren’t those all money too? And if you’re asking people to handle something for you, you can’t possibly expect to do it with just your mouth without spending anything, right?”
Wang Zhi pointed at the treasures Nanamo had just accepted. In his understanding, that was the compensation he had paid.
But according to Nanamo’s word, it seemed to have become a private bribe paid directly to her.
However, Wang Zhi wasn’t surprised at all. Instead, with complete confidence, he opened several more chests afterward.
If the one who came had been Nereus, Wang Zhi would have displayed a completely different attitude and directly handed over everything.
But since the person who came was Nanamo, Wang Zhi activated his backup plan. He hadn’t brought out all the treasure immediately, instead leaving room for bargaining.
Although Nanamo hadn’t bargained, in a certain sense, the response still counted as appropriate.
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