After arriving in Dragon Palace City, Neptune relayed the decision he discussed with Jinbei and others to Rhine the previous night.
"I see, you don't trust me?" Rhine smiled.
"No... The main reason is that Shirahoshi has never left Fish-Man Island since she was a child. With Jinbei by her side, it should be easier to take care of her," Neptune quickly explained. He didn't dare to offend the World Government, but he also didn't want to become hostile to Rhine. This man had played the Revolutionary Army to death and treated the Celestial Dragons as ruthless individuals who only played with women.
"No, no, no need to be polite, King Neptune. Given what I have done before, it is only natural that you don't trust me," Rhine said with a smile, unfazed. "This little matter is fine, but before that, can you let me meet Princess Shirahoshi? After all, we're going to travel together in the future, so we should get acquainted first, right?"
Neptune blinked in astonishment, not expecting Rhine to be so eloquent. This was different from the rumors he had heard about Rhine. However, Neptune didn't know that a bad person's badness doesn't necessarily have to be shown in their attitude towards others.
Aizen is bad enough, right? Yet he still has an elegant temperament.
Crust Tower was a shelter specially built for the mermaid princess Shirahoshi to avoid the effects of Vander Decken IX's Target-Target Fruit. Rhine followed Neptune down a curved corridor to a door adorned with coral shells and various weapons.
As the gate slowly opened, Neptune held the golden trident tightly, ready for battle. He feared that as soon as the door opened, Vander Decken IX would use his ability to attack his daughter. "Don't be so nervous, Your Majesty, I'm here," Rhine chuckled.
The door fully opened, releasing an intoxicating fragrance. "That's really big enough," Rhine sighed as he saw Shirahoshi curled up on her shell bed, her beautiful, tear-streaked face still a bit immature.
The door behind Rhine and Neptune closed slowly with a bang. As it did, a spear flew through the crack, aimed at Shirahoshi's delicate skin. Rhine reached out and caught the spear just before it hit Shirahoshi.
"That bastard Vander Decken!" Neptune was initially stunned, then so angry he almost ground his teeth. It was clear that the attack came from Vander Decken IX. The moment the spear shot into the room, Shirahoshi was already crying, her oversized teardrops streaming down.
Rhine dodged the tears, and Shirahoshi sobbed, "Father! It's scary! Shirahoshi is so scared!"
"It's okay, kid, daddy is here," Neptune said, stroking Shirahoshi's head to comfort her. The sight of a father comforting his daughter, who was three times his size, was somewhat comical.
After nearly ten minutes, Shirahoshi finally stopped sobbing. Hugging her pet shark Megalo, she looked at Rhine with tear-filled eyes. "It's all right, Princess Shirahoshi," Rhine said, tossing the spear aside with a gentle smile. "I'm here to invite you to the Sea Forest."
"Really?!" Shirahoshi's tension and doubt turned into surprise. She hugged Megalo tightly, causing the shark to look like it was being strangled. Shirahoshi's long-cherished wish was to visit the Sea Forest to pay tribute to her mother, Princess Otohime, but Vander Decken's threats had always prevented it.
"It's so deceiving..." Rhine thought. Though he hit Shirahoshi's weakness based on his knowledge, he was surprised at how smoothly it went. If Robin was so easy to deceive, he wouldn't have faced so many revelations and still harbored hatred towards him.
"Your Highness Rhine, are you really all right?" Neptune asked, still fearful despite seeing Rhine catch Vander Decken IX's attack with his bare hands.
"Your Majesty, you are too timid. With me here, it's impossible for Shirahoshi to be harmed by such attacks," Rhine laughed. In the original story, Luffy called Shirahoshi a "coward," but it seemed her father wasn't very brave either.
Sea Forest was an underwater forest located northeast of Fish-Man Street, known as the "Ship Graveyard" due to the many shipwrecks floating there.
"Amazing..." Nami, Perona, and the others gasped when they saw Shirahoshi, either due to her size or her appearance.
"Compared to being a concubine, there is still a certain distance," Hancock said, flicking her long hair back.
Under Rhine and the others' protection, Shirahoshi traveled from the Hard-Shell Tower to the Sea Forest openly, unlike the original story's clumsy disguise. They encountered three attacks from Vander Decken IX along the way. Rhine blocked the first two, and Hancock destroyed the third with her "Pistol Kiss."
At first, Shirahoshi was terrified and cried, but by the third and fourth attacks, she gradually became desensitized, though she still wiped away tears.
After arriving at the Sea Forest and paying her respects, Shirahoshi's emotions overflowed, and she cried fully. "Why is there such a pervert?" Nami and Perona were outraged after hearing Shirahoshi's story from Rhine, and even Hancock frowned.
"With your ability, can't you solve that disgusting man?" Nami asked Rhine compassionately, sharing a tragic childhood with Shirahoshi. Many beautiful characters in One Piece had difficult childhoods, including Nami, Robin, Shirahoshi, Hancock, and even Perona.
"For now, I can only protect Shirahoshi when Vander Decken attacks," Rhine said. He didn't trust Nami enough to reveal his true intentions, knowing nothing good would come from it. His stated reason for taking Shirahoshi to sea was to let her see the outside world after eight years in the Hard-Shell Tower, but Nami, Perona, and even Hancock didn't believe him.
Shirahoshi's beauty made Rhine's intentions suspect. However, considering her size compared to Rhine's height, the girls felt relieved. Even if Rhine wanted to do something, the height difference would make it difficult. Nami recalled Rhine's strength and thought even his full strength would be like acupuncture to Shirahoshi. They wouldn't say this aloud, understanding the need to save face for men.
"We will do our best to protect you, don't worry, Your Highness the Princess," Rhine assured Shirahoshi after she finished paying respects to her mother. He then informed her of his plan to take her to sea.
"I, can I really do it? Won't I be a burden?" Shirahoshi asked nervously, worried about her lack of experience.
"Don't worry, Hancock will teach you," Rhine said, smiling at Hancock. "Shirahoshi will live on the Perfume Snake from now on, please take care of her."
Shirahoshi's size required the use of the Perfume Snake, as she was almost as big as the Thousand Sunny. After defeating Kaido or Big Mom, this problem would be resolved.
"Okay!" Hancock nodded, then addressed Shirahoshi, "You will follow me from now on, you know? Mermaid."
"Please, please teach me," Shirahoshi replied nervously.
Hancock's friendly attitude surprised Rhine, as she had previously shown disdain for Nami. However, Hancock felt confident due to the height difference between Shirahoshi and Rhine, believing he couldn't harm her. Rhine didn't know this and might have been annoyed if he did.