Women's restroom.

Bang!

The door was kicked open by a foot in peep-toe high heels.

"Damn it!!"

As soon as Stussy stepped inside, she gritted her teeth and cursed under her breath.

"He's just a disgusting, lecherous, shameless bastard!!"

"Why are those women throwing themselves at him like lunatics!?"

Her alluring face flushed and paled by turns, and for some reason, a nameless fury surged up from her chest, making her heaving bosom rise and fall violently.

Clacking loudly in her heels, Stussy marched to the sink. She suddenly turned on the faucet, scooped cold water in both hands, and slapped it onto her face.

Her heart screamed silently.

It was as if another voice echoed deep inside her mind, whispering over and over again:

Wake up, Stussy... This is a good thing.

So many women are clinging to him—he won't have the time or energy to bother you.

Isn't that what you wanted?

Once he finds a new toy, maybe he'll stop pestering you for good.

Isn't that what you've always wished for...

To be completely free of that bastard's attention?

...

Clatter...

Cool water streamed down her cheeks, dripping into the shell-shaped sink below.

Stussy stood motionless, staring at her wet, disheveled reflection in the mirror, gradually dazing out.

Yes, if that bastard really stopped bothering her, she might finally feel relieved.

Cutting ties with his control and harassment—that had been her goal all along.

But...

Her hand trembled slightly as she pressed it against her chest, her expression complicated.

Why did it feel so awful—watching him get swarmed by all those women, hearing that every hotel room on Fish-Man Island was booked?

Could it be... she'd developed some sort of feelings for that despicable bastard?

"That's impossible!"

Stussy suddenly clenched her teeth and shook her head hard.

She looked into the mirror at the figure that suddenly felt unfamiliar.

Almost involuntarily, she reached out and lightly lifted the hem of her skirt.

The lacy fabric slid up her smooth, pale thighs, revealing her pink knees... and the shameful mark on her upper leg.

As if recalling a certain memory, Stussy's face flushed crimson and her breathing quickened.

She bit her lip and suddenly rushed into one of the stalls.

Before long, a faint, drawn-out moan echoed softly within.

...

Banquet hall.

The wedding party was nearing its end.

"...Vice Admiral Daren, here's the room card for the private suite I reserved. I'll be waiting for you to come by for tea tonight."

A voluptuous noble lady silently slipped a card into Daren's hand, gave him a sultry wink, and lightly bit her red lips.

"My skills... are quite extraordinary."

She playfully twirled her brightly painted fingers, fluttering like a dragonfly's wings.

"I won't miss it, Lady Takayanagi,"

Daren replied with a smile.

"Daren, you rascal!"

Just then, Garp shuffled over with his stomach stuffed, grinning through his discomfort.

"King Neptune arranged a fine suite for each of us. It's getting late—let's spend the night here on Fish-Man Island and return to headquarters tomorrow."

"No problem, Vice Admiral Garp."

Daren nodded, then glanced at Kuzan, whose belly looked just as round.

He smiled.

"Where's Tokikake?"

Garp pointed in a certain direction.

Daren followed his gaze and saw Tokikake crouched in a shadowy corner, as if surrounded by falling snow. His back looked especially bleak and lonely.

"...What happened to him?"

Daren's mouth twitched.

Kuzan burst out laughing.

"At the party, he invited 38 queens, ladies, and princesses to dance... and got rejected 39 times."

Daren blinked.

"Didn't he only approach 38 people? How did he get rejected 39 times?"

Kuzan shrugged.

"Apparently one of them rejected him, walked away, then got mad thinking about it, came back to yell at him, and rejected him again."

Daren: "..."

Well then.

Shaking his head, he felt a bit sorry for Tokikake, so he walked over and called out.

"Tokikake, it's time to head back to the room and rest."

Hearing his voice, Tokikake slowly turned, tears streaming down his face.

"Daren... why... why don't they appreciate how handsome I am?"

Looking at Tokikake's tear-streaked face, Daren couldn't stop the corner of his eye from twitching.

…

Daren's hotel suite.

Daren pulled a thick stack of room cards from his coat and let them clatter onto the coffee table. He dropped onto the couch with a heavy sigh, crossed one leg over the other, lit a cigar, and exhaled a cloud of smoke, looking visibly drained.

Entertaining that many chattering women at the wedding had been an exhausting ordeal, both physically and mentally.

"What a bunch of hungry, crazy women..."

He rubbed his temples, but the hand holding the cigar paused midair.

A faint smirk tugged at the corner of his lips.

"How did you get in here?"

He looked up, amused, at the blonde woman who had appeared before him like a ghost.

Stussy stared at the smug Vice Admiral in front of her, her expression a mix of shame and frustration. She clenched her teeth hard.

"What exactly do you plan to do?"

She pointed at the mountain of room cards piled on the table.

Daren chuckled inwardly but simply shrugged.

"What I plan to do shouldn't really concern you, should it?"

"As a model Marine officer, maintaining close and in-depth relations with members of royal families and nobility from various nations is part of my duty."

"Also... aren't you forgetting how to address me?"

Stussy was so furious she looked like she was about to explode, her chest rising and falling with indignation.

This bastard... he could actually say such shameless things with a straight face?

Close and in-depth relations!?

"No!!"

She suddenly growled through gritted teeth.

But the moment the words left her mouth, she froze.

What right did she have to say no?

And yet, as the memory of what had happened earlier in the bathroom stall came back to her...

Stussy's expression grew increasingly conflicted, a blush slowly creeping across her face.

No matter what methods she tried, she couldn't recreate that addictive sensation from that day.

All she felt afterward was a bottomless emptiness.

Daren grinned.

"Why not?"

He grabbed a handful of room cards and made a move to stand up.

Unexpectedly, a pair of sleek black wings suddenly tore through Stussy's gown and extended from her back.

She had entered her vampire form.

Her entire aura shifted—now emanating a dangerous, seductive allure.

"If you go through with this, it will stir unrest among the royal families of the Member Nations!"

Stussy declared sharply.

"As a member of the World Government's top intelligence agency, I can't allow you to disrupt the political order!"

Daren: ...

Do you even believe that yourself?

"Alright, alright. Let's do this."

He began unbuttoning his uniform.

Stussy was stunned. Her cheeks flushed bright red, and her heart pounded uncontrollably.

"You, you..."

"Stop me. Or I'll go out and destroy world peace."

"O-okay..."

"And how should you be addressing me again?"

"..."

"If you don't say it, I'm stopping."

"Mas—no, I mean... M-master..."

...

(100 Chapters Ahead)

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