Under the watchful eyes of all the mermaids and fish-men, Brian tilted his head slightly, giving a signal. Griffin nodded and tossed the barely breathing Daken aside.
Daken slid across the floor like a ragged doll before collapsing in the grand hall, on the brink of death.
The atmosphere in the hall instantly grew tense.
In Neptune's eyes, Brian was deliberately showing off his power to intimidate their Ryugu Kingdom.
Young and impulsive, his expression was filled with anger and confusion. He wanted to take action, but his father's heavy gaze held him back, preventing him from acting recklessly.
The surrounding palace guards were also on high alert, their eyes fixed intently on these figures, yet they were suffocated by the overwhelming presence of Brian's Beast Girls.
"Lord Brian!!"
King Aegir spoke first, his face dark, his voice carrying the deep, echoing resonance unique to the ocean depths.
"I admit that your actions at the port today stopped Daken's atrocities. But your indiscriminate slaughter and disregard for our kingdom—isn't that too tyrannical?"
No matter how much he feared Brian, Aegir was still the ruler of a nation.
At this moment, he represented the dignity of his country and the leverage for future negotiations.
Even though Aegir was panicking inside, he had no choice but to step forward and protest Brian's arrogant actions.
Otherwise, where would the dignity of the Fish-Man Island royal family be in the future?
This was somewhat similar to how, in the original story, despite Fish-Man Island suffering numerous injustices and countless mermaids being kidnapped, Neptune still took his children to Mary Geoise to attend the World Conference.
Did Neptune not know that this journey was fraught with danger, that they might be targeted again by the Celestial Dragons, and that they might never return?
No, Neptune knew.
But there was no other way. Even knowing the dangers ahead, Neptune still took his three sons and Shirahoshi to Mary Geoise.
Fish-Man Island had to participate in the World Conference, no matter how many injustices they faced.
If they didn't participate now, they would lose even more standing among the nations of the world in the future.
It might even reach a point where Fish-Man Island could be expelled from the ranks of the World Government's member nations.
By then, Fish-Man Island would become nothing more than meat on a chopping block, left to be carved up and exploited by the world's nations.
Although the situation Aegir faced now wasn't as severe as what Neptune would later confront, it shared similar underlying principles.
Because of this, despite his fear and reluctance to face Brian, Aegir forced himself to stand his ground and voice his challenge.
Didn't everyone notice the shock and admiration in the eyes of Neptune and the ministers below when they saw Aegir's performance?
Although this act of a weaker party questioning a stronger one was somewhat reckless and even foolish, Brian merely raised an eyebrow in response to Aegir's challenge and did not rush to speak.
He merely gave Aegir—a man unrecorded in the original work—a serious glance before stepping forward. Under the gaze of everyone present, he walked straight to the throne.
Standing before the throne, he looked up and stared at Aegir's towering figure without rushing to speak.
Thud—
Beside him, Griffin, seeing her master act this way, instantly understood. Her figure vanished in an instant, and she kicked Aegir flying.
His massive body, several meters tall, was sent crashing into the wall behind like a giant sofa, collapsing it and sending dust flying everywhere.
Only then did Brian slowly turn around and sit directly on Aegir's enormous throne. He crossed his legs casually and looked leisurely at those below.
Aegir, old but not yet dead, had truly met his match this time.
Brian wouldn't indulge him or engage in pointless arguments—all of that was meaningless.
"Tyranny?"
"Hah, hahaha!"
Brian laughed, his smile carrying the arrogance of one who had completely seized control of the situation.
"King Aegir, you should thank me for my tyranny."
"If it weren't for my Beast Girls capturing Daken and the others, you might not even be alive right now to question me."
"By then, your Fish-Man Island would likely have been used by Daken as a bargaining chip to trade with an even more brutal force in exchange for stronger protection."
"Now, with our Rocks Pirates taking over Fish-Man Island again, consider it your good fortune."
It's worth emphasizing here that the "more brutal force" refers to the World Government.
In a way, Fish-Man Island falling into the hands of a great pirate is indeed better than falling into the hands of the World Government.
Those Celestial Dragons are utterly obsessed with mermaids, craving them desperately—
Neptune could no longer hold back. He stepped forward and angrily questioned, "Take over?! What's the difference between you and Daken?! Fish-Man Island is a member nation of the World Government. This is an open declaration of war!"
"Member nation?"
Brian sneered and shook his head disdainfully.
"The greatest tragedy of Fish-Man Island is believing in the hypocrisy of the human government and, coupled with your own lack of strength, living in a bubble."
"Your greatest desire is to bring Fish-Man Island to the surface and live under the sunlight. The World Government gave you hope but never provided a path to achieve it."
Brian looked up at Neptune, staring at this familiar, towering merman.
"Forget it. There's no point in saying more to you."
"I'll give Fish-Man Island a choice. Either pledge complete loyalty to our Rocks Pirates once again, declaring absolute allegiance."
"Or, your entire Ryugu Kingdom will join Daken's forces in eternal rest on this island."
"Choose!"
As soon as these words were spoken, everyone present instantly paled.
Was this a choice?
Damn it, was this even a choice?!
Two choices, but in reality, only one could be chosen—the first option of submission.
Choosing the second was nothing but pure suicide.
Hiss—
Neptune took a deep breath, not looking at Brian but at Daken, who lay discarded on the ground.
He knew that in the face of absolute force, any resistance was futile. The bloodshed at the harbor was the clearest proof.
He understood even more clearly that Brian was telling the truth—the World Government's protection of Fish-Man Island was merely a tool to keep the pirates in check.
The geographical location of Fish-Man Island was simply too important; the World Government could never allow it to fall into the hands of pirates.
"If we become a vassal, what would Lord Beasts require of us?"
Thud—
Aegir's voice rang out as he pushed aside the rubble covering him, trembling as he stood up and slowly made his way to Neptune's side.
Neptune's son quickly reached out to support his father, deeply concerned.
That earlier strike had left Aegir covered in fresh blood, his already aged face looking even more withered.
His strength had never been impressive to begin with, and after the rebellion caused by Daken, he was both physically and mentally exhausted, nearly at his breaking point.
Taking a hit from Griffin like that and not dying on the spot was proof that Aegir still had some fight left in him.
"It's simple."
Brian extended three fingers.
"First, Fish-Man Island may continue to be governed by the Ryugu Kingdom, maintaining the current order. However, all major decisions must receive my approval."
"Second, from now on, Fish-Man Island will contribute one-fifth of the Celestial Tribute to us annually as a garrison fee. In return, I will provide Fish-Man Island with high-level security guarantees. Any pirates or Navy forces that dare to attack will face my Beast Girl Legion."
The first two demands were somewhat reasonable, falling within the expectations of both Aegir and Neptune.
But they never expected that the final demand Brian proposed next would once again cause their expressions to change drastically.
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