The Art of Seduction?

"Mm... where is this?"

After who knows how long, the dazed Kaiser Lynn groggily woke up. The light outside the window was like the morning sun—clean and bright.

"Why is my neck so sore?"

Sitting up from the floor, Kaiser Lynn rubbed the spot on her neck where Shirakawa had struck her. It took a long while before she remembered what had happened yesterday.

"Damn it, that guy actually knocked me out."

Kaiser Lynn quickly stood up and glared viciously at Shirakawa, who was still sound asleep in bed.

"This bastard did something bad and still sleeps with such peace of mind?"

She wanted to wake him up, but just as she was about to touch him, a transparent barrier appeared around his body.

"What is this?"

Kaiser Lynn reached out, intending to poke it tentatively.

"What do you want?" Just as she poked it twice and felt nothing special, a voice suddenly reached her ears.

"Hehe, I just wanted to study how this thing forms." Kaiser Lynn felt like she'd been caught red-handed doing something wrong, and said it with some embarrassment.

"If you didn't have ill intentions, this thing wouldn't have appeared."

Then Shirakawa sat up as well, and the shield in front of him vanished instantly.

"Ill intentions toward you? Speaking of which, why did you throw me on the floor to sleep yesterday?"

At the mention of ill intentions, Kaiser Lynn snapped back to reality—she was supposed to be settling scores with him. Having ill intentions was only natural.

"Yesterday? A whole day's passed already? I didn't get to experience any nightlife at all last night—what a waste."

Shirakawa was a bit annoyed. How could he have slept so soundly? Was it because this damn bed was too comfortable?

"Hmph, serves you right for missing out on nightlife, making this Princess sleep on the cold floor."

"Well, you looked pretty comfortable to me."

Shirakawa lifted his head and glanced at Kaiser Lynn's face. There were still obvious marks on it, along with traces of drool.

Hearing this, Kaiser Lynn's face flushed red. She quickly turned around and tidied up her appearance.

The truth was, she hadn't slept this peacefully in days—always on edge. Yesterday, for some reason, even though she'd been knocked out, she hadn't felt any panic while unconscious.

Shirakawa got out of bed, pushed the slightly obstructive Kaiser Lynn aside, and headed for the bathroom. He hadn't relieved himself in over a dozen hours, and he was feeling a bit backed up. He figured he might as well take a shower while he was at it.

He had to admit, the technology in the pirate world was really impressive. Toilets, showers—anything Shirakawa could think of was available.

Hearing the sound of running water from the bathroom, Kaiser Lynn's face reddened a little more. "Should I take a peek?" She was probably startled by her own bold thought.

"What are you thinking? You're a lady. Even if that guy is kind of handsome, you can't do that. You can't be craving his body."

Kaiser Lynn patted her cheeks and shook her head, trying to shake that colored thought out of her mind.

To be fair, guys shower fast. Maybe it was because he'd already bathed last night—he was out in just a few minutes.

"I'm going to shower too. Don't peek, okay." As they passed each other, Kaiser Lynn said to Shirakawa.

"Do you think I'm you?" Shirakawa shot back, then sat back down on the bed without missing a beat.

"How does he know what I was thinking?"

Though Kaiser Lynn's heart was racing like crazy, she kept her composure on the surface, steady as an old dog. Only after she stepped into the bathroom did she let herself relax.

Her heart pounded, thump-thump-thump.

But Shirakawa still caught a hint of something. "Don't tell me I hit the mark—did she really watch me shower?"

His expression stiffened. He couldn't lose his virtue like this.

"No way. I have to look back, can't let myself get shortchanged." Shirakawa resolutely walked to the door, then suddenly stopped, his momentum deflating.

"No. Even if she was unfair, I can't be unjust." He sat back down on the bed and put on his clothes.

But that move of Shirakawa's had genuinely scared Kaiser Lynn. Even though the glass wasn't transparent, she could see the silhouette.

She'd been ready to scream when she saw his shadow approach, but luckily he backed off in the end.

"Hmph, coward." For some reason, there was a tiny hint of disappointment in her heart.

Looking at her perfect figure in the mirror, she was momentarily dazed. "If only it were a little bigger here, that would be perfect."

After a long while, Kaiser Lynn finally came out. Seeing her like this, Shirakawa was stunned again.

Though her whole body was wrapped in a bath towel, her face was exposed.

Her cheeks were flushed from shyness, and her hair was still dripping from the shower. Even Shirakawa's usually calm heart couldn't help but beat a little faster.

"What are you doing, staring at me like that?" Kaiser Lynn said in a shy, quiet voice.

"Oh, sorry." Shirakawa quickly stepped outside and said, "Hurry up and get dressed. If nothing unexpected happens, we should be able to leave soon."

"Mm... thank you." Kaiser Lynn's voice was still very soft. If Shirakawa's hearing weren't so sharp, he might not have caught it.

"No need to thank me."

Shirakawa opened the door and slipped out in a flash.

He quickly shut the door behind him, leaned against it, and gasped for air.

"Damn, that woman has no shame, actually trying to seduce me. If I weren't so strong-willed, I might have fallen for it."

"Sure enough, beautiful women all have venomous hearts. She wanted to trap me by her side like this and keep me from going to sea."

No matter what, Shirakawa refused to pin that flutter in his heart on himself.

He was a responsible man who couldn't bear to break any girl's heart.

Since he had already become the King of Silver, that meant he had obtained an immortal body. No matter how many years passed—decades or even centuries—his appearance might never change. But she wouldn't be so lucky.

At that thought, Shirakawa's eyes dimmed slightly. "Could it be that I'm doomed to be alone for this whole life?"

"No, I absolutely won't allow that to happen," he thought firmly.

"There are so many Devil Fruits in this world, all kinds of bizarre ones. Maybe there's one that can grant immortality."

After calming down for a moment, Shirakawa walked over to Shanks and Buggy's room, ready to wake the two kids up. Because expecting them to get up on their own was out of the question.

Knock, knock, knock. A rhythmic rapping sounded from the collision between Shirakawa's hand and the door, but after a long while, there was no response from inside.

"Do I really have to use force?"

Shirakawa shook his head helplessly, lifted his leg, and kicked.

With a bang, the entire door flew straight off its hinges.