Fish-Man Special Forces?
The moment those four words came out of Mary Geoise 'Vidal mouth, unsurprisingly, they stunned all the Fish-Man Race present.
Don't be fooled by the fact that these Fish-Men usually look down on people just like humans do because of their different appearances. They think they are superior to humans just because they are amphibious creatures, and they look down on this and that.
Ultimately, their fear of humans far outweighs any other emotion, and the more the Fish-Man understand the outside world, the stronger this fear becomes.
The core source of this fear is the World Government and its largest and most powerful violent organization, the Marine Headquarters!
If the Fish-Men and mermaids on Fish-Man Island, due to their lack of understanding of the outside world, develop arrogant and self-righteous thoughts.
In contrast, the Fish-Men of the Ryugu Palace, who frequently interact with the outside world, are far from arrogant; in fact, they are filled with fear and apprehension towards the World Government and the Navy.
"You mean you rescued our fellow Fish-Man Race from the Celestial Dragons?"
King Neptune swallowed subconsciously, but his Adam's apple was not visible due to his overly thick, orange-red beard.
"Right."
Vidal pretended to think and said, "Let me think... there seem to be nineteen Fish-Man Race slaves, all of whom I traded with the Celestial Dragons."
Then, he revealed a gentle smile.
"I felt sorry for them at the time, so I agreed to let the Celestial Dragons use slaves to buy 'Magical Creatures' instead of Beli, and this kind of trade will continue. I guess there will be more Fish-Man Race slaves coming down from there in the future."
"This... this is truly... thank you so much for your help. As the King of Fish-Man Island, I express my gratitude on behalf of my fellow Fish-Man who have been given a new lease on life!!"
King Neptune solemnly bowed his head and gave a deep bow to Vidal, to which neither the Right Minister nor the soldiers of the Neptune Army offered any dissuasion or objection.
Because it was their duty as king, their gaze toward Vidal became more friendly at this moment.
In this world, perhaps only the person before us can rescue Fish-Man slave from the Celestial Dragons and bring him out of Mary Geoise. Perhaps some others could do it, but that involves the question of whether they are willing.
"Okay, I'll accept your thanks without hesitation."
Vidal did not refuse, firstly because this world does not value humility, and secondly because he felt he was qualified to receive such a generous gift.
After all, regardless of the circumstances, the fact that those Fish-Men were able to escape from the Celestial Dragons can indeed be considered a form of redemption.
"However, I will not release those Fish-Man slaves anytime soon. I hope you can understand that. Could I discuss the specific reasons with you privately?"
"Of course, no problem!" King Neptune readily agreed, laughing, "How about we return to the Ryugu Palace together, and we'll throw you a proper banquet?"
He began to use honorifics with Vidal.
"Although I am eager to see the legendary, exquisitely beautiful Ryugu Palace, I have important duties to perform and have received orders from headquarters to return to the Sabaody Archipelago as soon as possible."
Vidal sighed, "Therefore, although it's regrettable, all I can say is that it will definitely happen next time."
"Is that so? That's a real shame. How about we meet at my 'Phoenix-Tail Carriage'?" King Neptune shook his head helplessly and suggested again.
"Phoenix-Tail Carriage? Is that the ridiculously large fish-shaped carriage?"
Vidal looked at the sea king behind King Neptune, whose body was longer than a warship, with a purple seashell as a lid in the middle section, and white-walled, red-silk carriages built inside bubbles, resembling Sea Kings white dragonfish.
This is clearly several times larger than the Phoenix-Tail Carriage that the future Fukaboshi, Ryuboshi, and Manboshi rode in; it must have been specially made for Neptune, who is twelve meters tall.
"That would be a good place to discuss things."
"Yes, please follow me."
King Neptune, seeing that Vidal did not refuse, was very pleased and invited him to stand on the back of the blue whale. He then quickly went to the Phoenix-Tail Carriage and jumped onto the back of the giant white dragonfish. Vidal followed closely behind and entered the carriage under the watchful eyes of the Neptune Army.
The interior of the carriage is very spacious, comparable to the size of a three-bedroom apartment, and is decorated with many colorful corals and shells, which is truly a feast for the eyes.
"Then, I'd like to know your purpose in contacting Sunlight Tree Eve, and what you're planning to do with the Fish-Man you rescued from Mary Geoise."
King Neptune, seated on the throne at the very back of the carriage, began the conversation with great seriousness.
This suited Vidal perfectly. Not wanting to waste any more time on pleasantries, he immediately said, "I am a user of the Woods-Woods Fruit, and therefore have a keen interest in all kinds of magical plants. They can enhance my fruit's abilities, but I only need to touch them. So you can rest assured, I did not harm the Sunlight Tree Eve."
"Just as I suspected!" King Neptune had already guessed, so he didn't doubt it much, and indeed, Sunlight Tree Eve hadn't changed at all.
"As for the nineteen Fish-Man Race slaves, as I said before, I cannot release them immediately, as that could cause me trouble."
Although he had the right to decide whether to release or not these slaves once they were in his hands, as the commander of the Marine Base in the Sabaody Archipelago, he also had many things to consider.
If he were to take over these slaves of various races and then turn around and release them all, what would the Mary Geoise think? Would they see him as an idealist and righteous person who strongly opposes the slave trade?
Is this the kind of thinking one would expect from a naval commander stationed in the Sabaody Archipelago?
It's important to know that the Sabaody Archipelago was the heart of the world's slave trade, home to the largest slave auctions, the most slave shops, and the most slave traders.
What is a lawless zone?
Isn't this just an area that allows these slaves' networks of interests to move freely?
Therefore, Vidal felt he could not easily release these slaves of various races that he had obtained from the Celestial Dragons; if he were to release them, he would need an extremely legitimate and politically correct reason.
King Neptune understood his meaning; although his words were somewhat vague, as a king, he could comprehend the trouble he was referring to.
So what are you planning to do?
"First, they need to stay by my side and work for me, but I will remove the explosive collars around their necks and the 'Hoof of the Soaring Dragon' branding them."
Vidal spoke as he pondered.
"But in return, I will also impose other restrictions, not only for outsiders to see, but also to prevent them from escaping and causing me trouble. You would be better off writing a letter for me to take back to them and help me appease their emotions."
King Neptune frowned.
What do you want them to do?
"Do what they can do. Fish-Men have ten times the basic arm strength of ordinary humans, and their swimming speed in water surpasses that of warships. Therefore, I plan to integrate them, along with the Fish-Man Race I later acquired from the Celestial Dragons, into a special forces team to serve me!"
Vidal narrowed his eyes. He had always felt that, aside from the conflict between the two races, the Fish-Man Race were indeed a very high-quality source of soldiers in this world, so he wanted to give it a try.
The conflict between the Fish-Man Race and the Navy is indirect; the direct conflict is with the current World Government, because the latter tacitly approves of the rampant slave trade. Therefore, the Fish-Men could very well become a major force under the World Government in the future.
So let's start exploring cooperation little by little from now on.