Chapter 341: Fish-Man Island - Forced Bargain

Enel's words not only failed to stop Shirahoshi from crying, but made her wail even louder, "You're so mean! Waaaah! No one's ever been so mean to me before. It's terrifying, waaah..."

"Hey, stop crying!" Enel hated crying more than anything, and at this point, he was genuinely considering killing her to shut her up.

Kaku, who was about to close the door, heard the exchange between Enel and Shirahoshi. He paused and looked back. Seeing Enel's fierce demeanor, he sighed, "She's just an eleven-year-old kid. The harsher you are, the more she'll cry. Can't you be a bit gentler?"

"Gentle? Hah, why should this god be gentle to a fish I've just met?" Enel retorted irritably.

Kaku raised an eyebrow at that. "Have you ever been gentle to anyone? You constantly pick fights with me, and you always butt heads with the captain. Do you even understand what being gentle means, you fool?"

"Damn long nose, what do you mean I don't get it?" Enel paused, then quickly realized something. "You bastard, did you just call me a fool? You've become more rebellious! Today, I'll teach you the consequences of defying a god!"

"I'm sorry, sirs," Shirahoshi whimpered as she wiped her eyes, clearly still upset. "I understand, I was wrong. I'll stop crying, please don't argue."

Enel, still annoyed, snapped, "Shut up!"

Shirahoshi was so frightened that she began wailing again.

"Enough already!" Enel said in frustration. "All you do is cry! I'm going to end you right now!" His body began to crackle with electricity.

Takumi had just completed a system task, and he was in a good mood.

While he also found constant crying annoying, Shirahoshi was a key figure on Fish-Man Island, and the next task could potentially involve her. If Enel killed her, being hated by the island's residents or being hunted by Neptune would be minor issues compared to missing out on completing their mission.

For that reason, Takumi wasn't about to let Shirahoshi die.

He stepped in front of Shirahoshi, facing Enel, and said calmly, "She can't die yet."

"How does your brain even work?" Kaku added, "Did you forget where we are? We're ten thousand meters below the sea! This girl is a princess. If you kill her, do you think we'll make it back to the surface alive? Our captain is clearly the wiser one here. You should learn from him!"

Enel stayed silent.

Shirahoshi blinked her big eyes, tears glistening as she looked at the trio, her voice trembling, "Lord Thunder God, please don't be angry. I promise I won't cry anymore. Really, I won't!"

Seeing her make an effort to stop crying, Enel scoffed, "Consider yourself lucky. This god won't kill you today."

"Thank you, Lord Thunder God," Shirahoshi said, her cheeks flushed as she smiled, as if nothing had happened. Then, as if remembering something, she quickly added, "Do the three of you want something to eat? I have lots of snacks. Let's share them together!"

"No need, we just ate," Takumi replied curtly. "Did my crew scare you?"

Enel and Kaku exchanged puzzled glances.

Based on what they knew of Takumi, he wasn't the type to care about someone he had just met, much less ask such a question.

However, Shirahoshi had never met Takumi before and didn't know what kind of person he was. His act of cutting down Vander Decken IX's weapon and stepping in to protect her made her think of him as a genuinely kind person.

"I was only a little scared," Shirahoshi said with a smile. "It's okay. It was my constant crying that made Lord Thunder God so angry. But it's over now, and I'm so happy. It's been a long time since I've spoken this much to anyone besides my brothers. If possible, could you stay a little longer? There are so many things I want to ask. Can you tell me what the surface world is like? I'm so curious."

But Takumi wasn't interested in indulging her curiosity. He got straight to the point. "As compensation for my crew scaring you, I will grant you one wish."

"Huh?" Shirahoshi blinked, then waved her hands, "Oh, there's no need. You don't need to fulfill any wish for me. Just having you three here to talk with me is more than enough."

"No," Takumi insisted, "I said I'd grant you a wish, and I mean it. There's no room for refusal." He paused and asked, "How long have you been stuck in here?"

Shirahoshi, having never met someone so unyielding, answered honestly despite her reluctance, "Almost five years. Father said I need to stay here to be safe."

"Alright," Takumi said without hesitation. "I'll take you out for a while. Wherever you want to go."

"Huh? No, I can't leave," Shirahoshi said, worried. "If I leave, Father and my brothers will be worried. Even though I want to go out, I can't let them worry. I really can't leave. But thank you for the offer."

"Then let's go to the Forest of the Sea," Takumi said, disregarding everything she had just said, stating his already-decided destination.

In his memory, the Forest of the Sea was a place Shirahoshi had always longed to visit. Perhaps fulfilling her wish would trigger the next progress mission.

Takumi's forceful approach left both Kaku and Enel stunned.

"Big guy," Kaku said in surprise, "Did I hear that right? Since when has the captain become this... compassionate?"

Enel's mouth twitched, and he muttered, "Weird. This is too weird. Takumi isn't usually this nice. What's he plotting?"

Kaku shook his head. "I don't know. The captain's thoughts are always hard to read. Maybe he plans to take the mermaid princess and sell her off? But the captain isn't the type to care about money... I can't figure out what he's after."

"I got it!" Enel suddenly exclaimed, jolted by a thought.