The Fish-Man Guard had cleared a broad road. At Neptune's invitation, Hades boarded a Bubble Car and headed toward the Mermaid Royal Palace.
Along the way, Neptune cheerfully told Hades about the changes Fish-Man Island had undergone over the years.
Neptune was immensely proud of those changes.
He was four years older than Hades, fifty years old now.
He had watched Fish-Man Island gradually develop after it raised the Pluton Pirates' flag.
Not only did they now have a place to live beneath the sun on the surface, but Fish-Man Island itself had also grown increasingly prosperous.
Neptune could not grasp the deeper economic implications. Like him, the vast majority of Fish-Man Island's residents were deeply grateful to the Pluton Pirates.
"Pluton" Hades, in particular, was a savior much like the legendary "Sun God" Nika.
Nika was far too distant, so distant that they had even forgotten his vow.
In the past, the residents of Fish-Man Island, rejected by the seas, yearning for land and sunlight with no hope in sight, had looked to Nika.
They had pinned their hopes on an ancient prophecy.
Now, what Nika had once promised had become reality, so naturally, no one thought about him anymore.
Hades listened to Neptune with a smile, nodding slightly and offering an occasional reply.
His approachable manner eased much of Neptune's anxiety.
The gulf between their positions was too vast, and a barrier stood between them.
A subordinate force needed to understand its place.
Neptune was not naive. He feared that one day, the Pluton Pirates might suddenly abandon Fish-Man Island.
He had no idea how much the Pluton Pirates and the Kronos Kingdom profited from Fish-Man Island.
The Kronos Kingdom's decision to join the World Government Member States might have repercussions for Fish-Man Island.
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