One Piece: Holy Light Swordmaster

"Bahhohohoho…" Vander Decken IX wandered around Fish-Man District with two of his lackeys in tow.

"I feel like today's love letter is still too short!"

Vander Decken stroked his tiny mustache thoughtfully. "Hmm… considering Shirahoshi is still just a little girl, she might not grasp the depth of my emotions hidden in such a brief letter…

"Otherwise, there's no way my deeply passionate words would've gone unanswered for so many days!"

"But, Captain," Lackey A interjected with a serious tone, "if the letter's too long, wouldn't Princess Shirahoshi lose interest? I heard kids don't have much patience—getting them to read three lines is already pushing it!"

"…" Vander Decken ground his teeth in frustration. "Then I'll write a little every day! Split the letter into parts…"

He smirked triumphantly. "What a genius I am!"

"But Captain!" Lackey B chimed in hesitantly. "Are you even capable of writing such a long love letter?"

"!!"

Vander Decken froze, as if struck by lightning, before erupting in anger. "You little punk! Are you questioning my literacy?!

"If I can't write it myself, I'll hire a ghostwriter!"

"Oh… so you really can't write it yourself, huh, Captain?"

"Shut up!"

In the Ryugu Kingdom's council chamber, Jinbe had already ordered the palace guards to gather intelligence on Vander Decken IX.

While Fish-Man Island wasn't massive, it was far from small. To locate someone like Vander Decken IX, who had evaded capture for centuries and passed down his pirate legacy across nine generations, was akin to searching for a needle in a haystack.

Taking this into account, Vice Admiral Wright offered a professional suggestion: analyze Vander Decken's patterns of activity to narrow down the search area.

"By the way, fish-men have lifespans similar to humans, right?" Wright asked Jinbe, who nodded in confirmation. "Indeed. But why bring that up all of a sudden?"

"I was just wondering… how has the Vander Decken family managed to span only nine generations over the course of several centuries?" Wright mused, stroking his smooth chin.

He had forgotten his shaving kit in the rush to arrive, so he had resorted to using Ashes as a razor. Surprisingly, it had worked quite well.

"That's… an interesting question," Jinbe admitted, clearly caught off guard. The issue had seemingly been overlooked all this time due to the distant history—how long ago had the first Vander Decken arrived at Fish-Man Island? Three hundred years? Five hundred? Eight?

"Could it be that 'Vander Decken' is a title, only inherited by descendants who meet certain conditions? Otherwise, it doesn't make sense for the ninth generation to share the exact same name as their ancestor," Jinbe speculated.

"Hmm?" Wright paused, intrigued. Jinbe's explanation did make sense.

"If we can investigate the periods when each Vander Decken was active and identify their common traits, we might uncover the truth!"

Jinbe nodded. "Once the data is compiled, I'll have it looked into immediately. But how does this help us capture Vander Decken IX? Wouldn't everything become clear once we've caught him?"

"No… I have a hunch there's more to him than meets the eye," Wright replied.

"Well, of course he's got issues! What kind of sicko sends love letters to a six-year-old girl?" Jinbe growled, his frustration evident. "The guy's scum!"

"…" Wright spread his hands in a calming gesture. "Okay, but think about it—what does he gain from doing this?"

"The purpose of writing love letters… Intimidation? Boredom? A prank? Perversion?" Jinbe rolled his eyes. "The more I think about it, the angrier I get!"

"What if… he genuinely intends to propose?" Wright suggested darkly.

"!!" Jinbe's eyes widened. "You're joking, right?"

"Do you think it's impossible?" Wright countered, his expression serious. "When Queen Otohime was assassinated, and even earlier, when the Celestial Dragons held her hostage, what happened afterward? Surely you haven't forgotten.

"Once might be a coincidence, but twice? Princess Shirahoshi's uncontrollable sobbing clearly triggers some kind of immense power!

"And that power… could the Vander Decken family have known about it for centuries?

"If gaining Princess Shirahoshi's favor equates to…" Wright's voice lowered ominously. "Acquiring that power by proxy, wouldn't that explain everything?"

"…" Jinbe stared at Wright in shock. "Could Princess Shirahoshi really possess such a power?"

"You've had your suspicions too, haven't you? Anyone who's witnessed or heard about it would think so. The average citizen might dismiss it as coincidence, but people like us—at this level—know better."

Wright shook his head. "It's obviously a royal secret, and we shouldn't pry. But we must uncover Vander Decken's intentions."

Jinbe exhaled deeply, regaining his composure. "You're right… If he truly knows something, we can't let him spread that knowledge. Any threat to Princess Shirahoshi must be eradicated completely!"

After a detailed review of historical records, Wright and Jinbe's hypothesis was confirmed. The pirates bearing the title "Vander Decken" didn't appear continuously through history. There were significant gaps—some lasting decades—when no one by that name was active.

Moreover, all Vander Deckens shared a peculiar trait: they couldn't swim.

For a fish-man to lack the ability to swim, only one explanation came to mind—they were Devil Fruit users.

"So inheriting the 'Vander Decken' title requires being a Devil Fruit user?" Jinbe speculated, impressed by Wright's meticulous reasoning.

"Seems that way. With such a grand scheme, it's highly likely they've been targeting the mermaid princess's unique abilities from the start!

"But it wasn't until now, with the ninth generation, that they finally identified their target—Princess Shirahoshi!"

As Wright analyzed the gathered data, he pinpointed Vander Decken IX's general area of activity.

"I'll leave the rest to you. Once he's captured, I won't interfere further—this is, after all, Fish-Man Island's internal matter."

"…Thank you for understanding, Vice Admiral Wright."

Meanwhile, Vander Decken IX was racking his brains, trying to find a capable ghostwriter—or rather, figure out how to craft a brilliant love letter himself.

As he and his lackeys made their way back to their pirate ship, Lackey A suddenly cried out, "Captain! There's something under your feet!"

Lackey B exclaimed, "Captain! What a beautiful glow! How did you do that?"

"??!"

Vander Decken IX looked down in surprise. A golden ring of light pulsed rhythmically beneath him, radiating outward from the center of his body. It disappeared, then reappeared—a mesmerizing display.

"Huh? How pretty! If I show this to Shirahoshi, she's bound to fall for me!"

Lackey A: "…"

Lackey B: "Captain, the palace guards are closing in!"

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