Chapter 67: The Player's PUA Scene
Musgarud slowly awoke.
Otohime's palm strike not only put the enraged Musgard into a deep, infant-like sleep, but also served as a bonus of a major memory erasure technique.
In other words, Musgarud completely forgot what happened before he passed out.
When Musgarud woke up, he didn't even consider that he had been knocked unconscious; he simply thought he was asleep.
Although his neck hurt a little, ever since he was unlucky enough to be attacked by those sea kings and drifted in the sea until he was washed ashore on Fishman Island, there wasn't a single part of his body that wasn't in pain!
As a Celestial Dragon, when had he ever suffered such torment? He had never even bled before, let alone suffered such a large and gruesome wound.
Feeling the pain in his body, Musgarud was both angry and scared, and tears and snot streamed down his face.
That damned wretch still hasn't healed his wounds, leaving him in pain for so many days!
He desperately wanted to smash something to vent his anger, but the bandages tightly wrapped around his body prevented him from even lifting his arms.
"Hmm, you're awake?"
Musgarud heard a voice coming from beside his bed. He opened his eyes and saw a black-haired, mixed-race merman girl standing at the head of the bed, looking at him with curiosity.
Musgarud glared at the clueless "maid": "Don't you have eyes? Hurry up and get me some water!"
“No,” Violet refused. “I’m too lazy to move.”
Violet sat down on the chair next to Musgarud's bed, crossed her legs, and yawned: "Ha, just bear with it for now."
If it weren't for the fact that his eyes were so small, Musgarud's eyes would have popped out of their sockets.
Endure, endure?!
This was the first time in Musgarud's life she had heard such outrageous words, and she was actually going to just put up with it?!
"Hmm..." Musgarud's head throbbed with anger, but the girl narrowed her eyes and looked at him with disgust. "Your face is covered in snot and tears. You're so dirty."
Musgarud: !!
Vera pondered for a moment, then continued to provoke him: "If you look closely, it's not all just snot and tears; the main problem is that you're really not good-looking."
It wasn't a mocking or sarcastic tone, but rather a very serious, straightforward statement, as if it were the natural order of things, like saying that the sun rises in the east and sets in the west.
This infuriated Musgarud to the point of his blood boiling.
Musgard: "You, you lowly commoner, do you know who I am? I am a Celestial Dragon!"
"Who is Tian?"
"Celestial Dragons!"
"What dragon people?"
"Celestial Dragons!"
"Tianlong what?"
"A Celestial Dragon!" Musgard suddenly realized something was wrong. "You're playing me?!"
"Hey, I just saw you lying there bored." Vera spread her hands. "Sick people are prone to low moods, so I'm trying to cheer you up."
Musgarud: "You lowly wretch, you lowly wretch! How dare you play me like this! You deserve to die, you deserve to die!"
“Wow,” Violet exclaimed, “How terrifying!”
Vera rested her chin on her hand and looked at Musgarud with great interest: "It's a pity that there are only the two of us in the room now."
"Go ahead and scream, even if you scream your lungs out, no one will save you."
"Wh-what?"
"That means I'll be taking care of you today."
Even if Musgarud was completely out of his mind, he would know something was wrong: "No, I, this saint, don't need your care. Change people, this saint wants to change people!"
"Oh? You're not satisfied with me? What a pity, everyone's busy looking for medicine for you, they can't get away." Vera said, "Just bear with it."
"Think about it, I don't even mind that I'm ugly, I'm willing to take care of you."
"It's not your fault that you're ugly, but ask yourself honestly, have you been working hard to lose weight and take care of your appearance?"
"I'm very busy, but I still put aside a lot of things to take care of you. Be a good girl and don't make me angry, okay?"
I heard that Musgarud almost shot and injured Queen Otohime, and even frightened Shirahoshi? Then Violet feels even less pressure.
As for Musgalud, when had he ever seen such a scene? From childhood to adulthood, everyone had doted on and indulged him; he had never even heard a harsh word spoken to him.
But instead of refuting or scolding him, Violet said something else... Musgarud didn't know how to describe it. On one hand, he felt something was wrong, but on the other hand, he seemed unable to refute it. Moreover, he felt a little bit of guilt and gratitude.
Musgarud's mouth moved slightly as he looked into Vera's dark eyes, and he actually let her apply the medicine to him.
Even though Violet's movements were clumsy and aggravated his wound, he only gasped for breath, and he subconsciously shut his mouth after seeing Violet's gesture to be quiet.
Vera nodded in satisfaction: "Good girl."
——
"Saint Musgarud?"
As Queen Otohime entered the room with her maids, she saw Musgarud, who was lying on the bed, visibly tremble.
It seems that Vera was right. The care she received all day yesterday gave Musgarud an unprecedented and profound experience, so much so that he couldn't recover even after a whole night.
As Musgarud watched Princess Otohime walk in, he couldn't help but glance behind her.
Not seeing the black-haired figure, Musgarud couldn't tell whether he felt more disappointed or relieved at that moment.
Queen Otohime looked at the wounds on Musgard's body and said, "You look much better than you did the day before yesterday. It seems that Violet has been taking good care of you."
"What?"
Musgarud is incredulous.
She was trying to be attentive, but that guy was clearly distracted while applying the medicine to him. One minute he was complaining that the smell of the medicine on him was too strong and made him uncomfortable, and the next minute he was saying that he was too fat and wasted too much bandage.
When she touched him roughly and hurt him, she took the initiative to complain that he wouldn't cooperate with her.
Queen Otohime's eyes were clear and sincere: "Of course, the wound is healing very well. You shouldn't be in as much pain as you were a few days ago."
It seems that it is indeed true.
Musgarud had no idea that his good recovery had nothing to do with Violet's care, but was entirely due to Violet secretly adding a honey ointment to his medicine.
Musgarud: "...Where is she?"
"Her?" Queen Otohime pondered the title for a moment without revealing her true feelings, but continued as planned, saying, "You mean Violet? She's just a guest from Fishman Island. She heard we were short-handed, so she offered to come and take care of you."
"She was originally supposed to help take care of you for a morning, but she was worried you'd be bored by yourself, so she stayed with you all day. However, that child probably has her own things to do, so she didn't come today."
Well, Violet's job was to show off the things she brought to her friend Shirahoshi, and also eat and drink with her to build a relationship.
Judging by the time, those kids should be having dessert at the Mermaid Cafe right now.
"Vell is very busy and has a somewhat eccentric personality. She has never taken such good care of anyone before. It seems that Lord Musgarud gets along very well with her."
Musgarud didn't feel any pleasure in his relationship with her, but it was undeniable that his injuries had healed considerably.
Musgarud's eyes lit up: "Then call her over and let her continue to take care of me!"
Queen Otohime chuckled, "Alright, then I'll take some people to find Violet."
Then, amidst Musgarud's mixed emotions, Violet stood him up for an entire day.
In response, Violet said that Musgarud was nothing, and that she was currently enjoying afternoon tea with her first angel investor, Shirahoshi, who had generously gifted her a role.
After Violet gave Shirahoshi some things from the shore last time, Shirahoshi longed for the land even more. Although she was too timid to go ashore, she had already begun exploring the area near Fishman Island with that goal in mind.
Violet was telling Shirahoshi about her adventures over the past few days. She was undoubtedly a good listener. Whenever Violet got to the exciting parts, Shirahoshi would tense up as if she were there herself. Her huge fish tail curled up into a ball, and she covered her face with her hands in fear, but she still couldn't help but peek at Violet through her fingers.
Shirahoshi: "Lady Violet is so amazing. I wish I could go ashore someday."
Bai Xing touched the wreath on her wrist. She liked these little things from the ground, but they were too fragile. No matter how carefully Bai Xing took care of them, they would still lose their color, rot, and decay after ten days.
Shirahoshi looked up at the Sun Tree Eve, radiating a warm glow in the distance—if only one day she could actually walk onto land and see the sun.
Luo put down his coffee cup: "It must be difficult to get the people of Fishman Island onto the mainland."
Shirahoshi nodded with a troubled expression. Her mother, Otohime, had made many efforts to eliminate the generations-long hatred between humans and fish-men. She had also launched a petition on Fish-Man Island, hoping to express Fish-Man Island's demand to relocate to the mainland to the various member republics at the World Conference.
However, things are far from that simple.
Even ignoring the various hatreds and misunderstandings between mermaids, fishmen, and humans, let's talk about the most realistic question: where will the residents of Fishman Island live after they come to the mainland?
We can't possibly ask each of the other constituent republics to carve out a piece of territory for them to live in, can we? That's impossible.
As for unclaimed land, forget about it. There is no such place in the Four Seas, and in the Grand Line, if an island is not occupied by any force, it means either that the island is extremely remote and barren, or that there is a great danger lurking on or near the island.
Bai Xing couldn't help but sigh. Although she was young, she had always stayed by her mother's side, helping her with various speeches, and she also acknowledged that the hatred between mermaids, fish-men, and humans was unsustainable.
But as long as they live on the Fishman Island in the deep sea, the physical barrier makes it impossible for them to understand each other.
Sabo: "But there are also fishmen or mermaids on Fishman Island who leave, right? Where do they usually go and what do they do?"
Shirahoshi: "Those who are away from home for a long time usually become pirates like Lord Namur or Lord Jinbe, and some also join the Navy."
"Apart from that, people only occasionally do small business with the people of Sabaody Archipelago, or go out and wander around incognito."
Sabo: "Jinbe, the new Shichibukai?"
Violet: "Eh, Jinbe is also a Shichibukai?" Like Hancock?
Shirahoshi recalled: "Yes, Lord Jinbe took over the title of Shichibukai a week ago."
"So for Fishman Island, there are two problems that need to be solved right now," Luo analyzed. "One is that Fishman Island is limited by its geographical conditions and does not understand humans on the mainland. In addition, there is the problem of mutual hostility caused by years of slave trading and killings."
"Another issue is that even if Queen Otohime eventually persuades Fishman Island and the members of the affiliated republic, it will still be difficult to find a suitable place to settle you on land."
“That’s right!” Bai Xing nodded, looking at Luo with admiration. “These are indeed the two points that have always been a major headache for Father and Mother.”
"Lady Vil, Lord Roth, and Lord Sabo, do you have any suggestions?"
Sabo glanced at Violet: "Why don't you learn from the island lord?"
Violet: "Me?"
Bai Xing: "Lady Violet?"
"The pirate crew that Jinbe is leading now, well, it's called the Sun Pirates, right? They have both the title of Shichibukai and the corresponding strength, so they can definitely protect a group of Fishman Island residents and let them live on the mainland temporarily."
"We can use them as a window to sell some of the Fishman Island's specialties. On the one hand, we can accumulate Beli to prepare for the future relocation. On the other hand, it is also a good way to communicate."
Vera realized that people are easily wary and hostile towards each other, but things are much better between people and things.
Just like Sachi's suggestion to do business with the floating restaurant, although it seems that Violet is communicating with the captain or head chef of the floating restaurant, the fruits and vegetables of R'lyeh play a very important role in it.
Luo thought Sabo's suggestion was good: "Fishman Island is a mysterious and dreamlike place for many people outside, and many things here are very unique, so it should be popular with everyone."
Violet nodded in agreement, adding, "The name 'Fishman Island' is the best advertisement and gimmick. Once various products featuring Fishman Island characteristics are available, people will naturally become curious about Fishman Island."
Moreover, with the availability of specialty products from Fishman Island, Fishman Island is no longer just a legendary place of unknown origin for people on the shore. The fondness for a place's products and scenery can easily be transferred to the residents of that place.
Bai Xing listened attentively, not wanting to lose focus for even a moment. If it weren't for the circumstances, she really wanted to take out a small notebook and write down everything everyone said.
"Thank you so much everyone!" Shirahoshi exclaimed excitedly. "These ideas are all so wonderful!"
The future that had been lingering in Bai Xing's mind, as elusive as a fog, suddenly became clear.
Bai Xing secretly resolved that she needed to become braver. She wanted to go to the mainland, to see the flowers and grass with her own eyes, and to go to the window to the outside world that Lady Violet had mentioned, to show the beauty of Fishman Island to the people on the mainland.
Sabo: "That's right, Miss Shirahoshi. Isn't it great that you're in such a high-spirited state right now?"
Sabo raised his glass: "Let's toast to this plan!"
The group laughed and raised their hands, causing cups of varying sizes to clink together, the aroma of the Mermaid Cafe's coffee swirling within them.
Xia Li stood behind the bar, watching the lively group of children from afar, and smiled.
"That's great."
Shirahoshi, Violet... these are the future of Fishman Island and the mainland.
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Author's Note: Musgarud: Who will make peanuts for me? [crying emoji]
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