Two full days had passed since Renzo's earth-shaking conversation with the Five Elders.
Yet the atmosphere inside and outside Ryugu Palace had not calmed in the slightest from that massive shock.
King Neptune sat upon his enormous throne. For the past forty-eight hours, the expression on his face had barely changed, half ecstatic relief at surviving disaster, half dreamy disbelief at having latched onto an unimaginably powerful patron.
From time to time, he glanced toward a nearby area specially prepared for Renzo, the most comfortable "Coral Napping Zone."
There, Renzo was lying on his side atop a "constant-temperature ice cloud bed" specially created by Monet using the powers of the Snow-Snow Fruit. He was covered with a G-5 exclusive sea-beast fur blanket, sleeping so soundly that drool was practically about to spill from his mouth.
Gulp.
King Neptune swallowed again.
Even now, he couldn't connect this outrageously lazy man, lazy to the point of angering both gods and men, with the savior foretold by Madam Shyarly, the one who would "lead Fish-Man Island to the true sun."
But the facts were right in front of him.
The Five Elders had compromised.
A Celestial Dragon had been scolded into silence and didn't dare talk back.
Admiral Kizaru was willingly staying here as a "playmate."
Fish-Man Island... really might be saved!
"So… so this is what they call a thigh to cling to…" Neptune muttered, his beard trembling with excitement. "S-so thick! Otohime, do you see this? Our kingdom… finally…"
Just as the king was lost in boundless visions of the future, a discordant, suppressed sobbing sound drifted from a corner of the palace.
That was where the Admiral Haiiroyo's trophy was being kept, the Celestial Dragon, Saint Jalmack.
These past two days had felt longer than ten thousand years in hell for Jalmack.
Renzo himself couldn't be bothered with him, but Renzo's subordinate, especially that fat bastard named Rehn, was nothing short of a demon.
With Renzo's tacit approval, Rehn subjected this Celestial Dragon to an inhumane session of "psychological bullying," under the guise of venting anger and helping G-5 soldiers with mental counseling.
Jalmack's "cell" was a temporary coral enclosure.
Rehn had moved a table right in front of it.
Then Sanji served up a lavish Sea King banquet, exquisitely prepared.
Rehn and several G-5 Marines, who happened to be delivering the "Little Momo Care Log", sat down in front of Jalmack and feasted heartily.
"Oh my, Sanji-san, your cooking! Absolutely incredible!" Rehn praised while stuffing a huge piece of roasted meat into his mouth.
"The meat is tender, melts on the tongue! Now this is food meant for humans!"
"Unlike certain 'trash,'" he added, turning with a beaming smile toward Jalmack inside the cage.
"Can't even eat, only smell it. How pitiful."
"You… you filthy lower creatures!!" Jalmack trembled with rage.
Snap!
Rehn snapped his fingers. "Bring out our 'special meal' for the esteemed Celestial Dragon!"
A G-5 Marine grinned wickedly and brought over a... moldy black bread and a bowl of murky, dishwater that looked like it had been sitting for who knows how long.
"Eat up, 'god,'" Rehn said cheerfully. "This is what we at G-5... specifically use to feed the pigs."
And that was only the beginning.
Ren fully utilized his venomous tongue that could talk a dead person back to life just to insult them again.
He dragged over a small stool and sat before the cage, beginning with "the dangers of inbreeding," citing sources and explaining in vivid, accessible detail why Jalmack looked so uniquely and universally offensive to both gods and men.
He even thoughtfully drew a family genetic chart, carefully labeling the 'probability analysis of your father and your aunt producing you.'
This all-around psychological destruction, from biological, genetic, and sociological perspectives, was far more torturous than any physical punishment.
Jalmack went from initial rage and cursing, to later frustration and now... to mental disarray.
The proud spirit of a Celestial Dragon had been utterly crushed under Rehn's toxic eloquence.
Meanwhile, Renzo provided the perfect "environmental support" for this counseling session.
He simply applied a small [Decree of Sloth] to Jalmack's cage.
"Too lazy to sit."
"Too lazy to lie down."
Thus, Jalmack had been forced to stand without rest for two full days.
Listening to Rehn's nonstop, stand-up-comedy-style verbal assault, smelling top-tier gourmet food drifting from next door, and enduring the limits of physical and mental exhaustion…
He had completely broken.
"…Demons… you're all demons…"
Curled in the corner, hugging his knees, Jalmack muttered blankly, no longer even having the strength to cry.
"Lord Renzo."
At that moment, Monet entered the grand hall, her cool voice echoing softly.
"Urgent call from the Holy Land."
She handed a golden Den-Den Mushi to Renzo's "ice cloud bed."
Renzo opened his eyes irritably and picked it up.
Click.
"…Renzo."
The aged, authoritative voice of the Five Elders came through the line.
"Oh, it's you," Renzo yawned. "What trouble now?"
"…." The Five Elders were clearly choked up for a second.
"The CP0 commander, 'Apocalypse' Stolos, has reached the waters of Fish-Man Island. He will retrieve Jalmack."
"Stolos?" Renzo had no impression of the name.
"You only need to hand him over."
"Got it," Renzo replied casually. "Anything else? If not, I'm hanging up. I need more sleep."
"…Wait." A note of warning entered the Elder's voice.
"Renzo, don't go too far. Jalmack… is still a Celestial Dragon. Leave him some 'divine' dignity."
"Dignity?"
Renzo let out a snort. Glancing at the delirious heap of "trash" in the corner, he said lazily:
"Relax."
"He's… very dignified right now."
Click.
Renzo hung up directly.
Holy Land Mary Geoise, the Room of Authority.
The Five Elders stared at the disconnected Den-Den Mushi and exchanged speechless looks.
…
Half an hour later, a jet-black submarine, sleek and eerie like a deep-sea assassin, slowly entered Ryugu Palace's harbor.
The deck opened, and a tall, thin figure in a pure white suit stepped out, starkly out of place against the surroundings.
He wore a white Noh mask adorned with golden patterns, concealing his expression.
Simply standing there, he emitted a heart-chilling, blade-like cold aura.
He was one of CP0's highest commanders, "Apocalypse" Stolos.
"Welcome, Lord Stolos."
King Neptune and his three sons were already waiting, suppressing their unease as they bowed respectfully.
Stolos ignored them. His eyes behind the mask calmly swept the area before settling on the figure lying on the ice cloud bed, seemingly completely unaware of his arrival.
"Admiral Haiiroyo, Lord Renzo."
Stollos spoke, his voice steady without a trace of fluctuation, as if merely stating a fact.
"By order of the Five Elders, I have come to retrieve Saint Jalmack."
"Oh."
Renzo finally opened his eyes lazily.
"Rehn."
"Yes! Lord Renzo!"
Rehn immediately scurried over, his trademark harmless, innocent smile on his face.
"Go. Invite our distinguished guest… out."
"Understood!"
Rehn went off to carry out the order. A few minutes later, when he reappeared...
The expression on Stollos's masked face twitched slightly, almost imperceptibly, for the first time.
Saint Jalmack, the once lofty Celestial Dragon, was being dragged across the smooth floor by his ankle like a dead dog.
His luxurious suit was torn and stained with unidentifiable filth.
His face was smeared with tears, snot, and drool.
His eyes were hollow and unfocused as he muttered endlessly:
"…moron… inbreeding… toothpick… bottle opener… stop… don't insult me anymore…"
"The man's here."
With a THUD, Rehn dropped Jalmack at Stolos's feet.
"…."
Stolos looked down at the thoroughly ruined Celestial Dragon.
Then looked up at the innocent-looking fat man and the Admiral, who was still yawning.
The corner of his mouth behind the mask slowly curved into a cold arc.
"Very good."
There was no anger. No questioning.
Only calm acknowledgment.
"Admiral Haiiroyo, your hospitality… I... have learned much."
"No need to thank me," Renzo waved lazily. "If there's another guest like this next time, notify me in advance. I'll have Rehn… prepare the 'welcome speech.'"
"Certainly."
Stolos wasted no more words. Two black-clad CP0 agents stepped forward and lifted Jalmack up.
"Then we take our leave."
Stolos bowed slightly.
Just as he turned to board the submarine,
"Oh, right."
Renzo's voice sounded again.
Stolos paused.
"Tell our dear Five Elder this."
Renzo's tone remained lazy, but his words made everyone present feel their hearts stop.
"This time, I left him alive out of respect for you."
"If you let this kind of lunatic run around again…"
A cold gray "aura of sloth" flickered in Renzo's eyes.
"…I'll personally help you clean house."
"I'll make them… too lazy to run around this world."
"After all…"
Renzo yawned, lay back down, and pulled up the blanket.
"…I hate trouble the most."
From beneath Stolos's mask came the faint sound of grinding teeth.
He did not turn around, only replying in a low voice:
"…I will… convey it exactly."
The black submarine sank silently into the deep sea.
Ryugu Palace returned to calm once more.
Only King Neptune collapsed to his knees with a thud, drenched in cold sweat, staring at the figure who had already begun snoring softly, with the gaze of a man looking upon a true god.
....
[email protected]/DaoistJinzu