The Truth

Chapter 120: The Truth

"But this is just your speculation," Jinbei remained calm. Despite Rodney's convincing arguments, speculation was still speculation. Without evidence, he couldn't be convinced, even though he believed most of what Rodney had said.

Everything must be based on evidence!

"Alright," Rodney said. While speaking, he opened his Sharingan and explained, "Look into my eyes. People with weaker mental power will be controlled by me, while stronger ones won't be affected much. Take a look at the three princes."

Upon seeing the Sharingan, the second prince, Ryuboshi, and the third prince, Manboshi, immediately fell into the illusion, while the eldest prince, Fukaboshi, was still resisting, though his face turned unpleasant.

Rodney said, "I can use my illusion to interrogate Hody Jones. If you're willing to trust me, I can make him spill the truth."

Snapping his fingers, he released the illusion on the three princes. "The choice is yours, King Neptune and Mr. Jinbei."

King Neptune took a deep breath and said, "Then we'll rely on you, Mr. Rodney. But how can we ensure that what Hody Jones says under your control is not a lie?"

Indeed, how could they prove it?

Rodney hadn't really thought about this. He just wanted to use his illusion to make Hody Jones reveal the reasons and details of Queen Otohime's assassination, but he forgot that there weren't many people familiar with illusions in this world. He had no way to prove that he wasn't manipulating Hody Jones to say things that favored him.

Well, it seemed he had hit a snag.

"I can't prove that," Rodney admitted, "But King Neptune, you must understand that deceiving you wouldn't benefit me in any way. What could I gain from it? The friendship of Fish-Man Island? I have many ways to achieve that. Killing Hody Jones is undoubtedly a last resort."

As the five of them pondered Rodney's words, they realized that it made sense.

"In that case, we entrust you, Mr. Rodney," King Neptune said. The group made way for Rodney, who approached Hody Jones. Rodney gently lifted Hody Jones's eyelids, and his psychic energy invaded Hody Jones's mind.

Hody Jones sat up, his eyes vacant. Despite his severe injuries, he remained motionless, as if he couldn't feel pain.

"Hody Jones, I ask you, did you kill Queen Otohime?"

"It was me."

Under the influence of the illusion, there were no lies. All questions pointed directly to the deepest recesses of his heart.

"How did you do it?"

"A few years ago, on the night of the assassination, I found a human scapegoat, paid him money, and had him burn the signed petition that Queen Otohime had collected. While she was busy extinguishing the fire, I shot her and then framed the human."

"Why did you do it?"

"To ignite fish-men's hatred against humans with Queen Otohime's death. This way, I could fulfill my ambitions!" He answered emotionlessly. King Neptune and the three princes had tears in their eyes, their gazes filled with hatred towards Hody Jones.

This was the true culprit behind the murder of their loved one, and he had been free for so long!

Furthermore, they had considered this guy their friend!

They suppressed their anger, even though their hatred had reached its peak. Because their beloved Queen Otohime had told them not to harbor hatred. She didn't want her family and the people of Fish-Man Island to be consumed by hatred, to break ties with humans, to be consumed by anger.

Queen Otohime was a truly great person. She had spent her life striving to allow the residents of Fish-Man Island to see the sunlight, to live on the surface. She repaid malice with kindness. Although her body was frail, like Fisher Tiger, she was the spiritual leader of the entire Fish-Man Island.

"Oh, I remember now. It seems that there were a few eyewitnesses when Hody Jones killed Queen Otohime, including a shark. Wasn't that your pet? Oh, where is that shark?" Rodney asked.

"What?! Megalo? It was an eyewitness?" King Neptune recalled his daughter's pet shark, the adorable one.

"Wait a minute, if Megalo knew, that means..."

"Did Shirahoshi know?"

As Shirahoshi's pet, there was no way Megalo wouldn't have told its owner about it. That meant, did that child know?

How much had she endured over these years?

King Neptune's heart was filled with a mixture of emotions. That child couldn't leave the Hard-Shell Tower because of that incident, living a reclusive life for years. How much pain had she suffered due to her soft-hearted nature?

 A while later they called Megalo.

"Speak up, there's nothing to be afraid of now. Hody Jones is powerless," King Neptune said softly.

Megalo finally nodded, making a "gulping" sound. In the world of merfolk and fish-men, they could understand fish language. 

Except for Jinbei, Rodney, and a few others, King Neptune and the three princes listened as Megalo recounted the truth of that fateful day. Their expressions grew increasingly grim, and tears welled in King Neptune's eyes.

When Queen Otohime was assassinated, he had spent a great deal of effort restraining himself from seeking revenge against the "culprit." He had wanted to, desperately so, to the point of madness. 

As a husband, he yearned to avenge his wife. But for the sake of his wife and children, he had suppressed his grief and hatred and, along with his resilient children, persuaded the residents of Fish-Man Island not to harbor hatred and to avoid severing ties with humans.

King Neptune, as a husband, a father, and a king, was truly exceptional. His only two regrets were likely Queen Otohime and Princess White Star, who had been confined to the Hard-Shell Tower and unable to leave.

He took a deep breath, suppressing the grief in his heart, and deeply bowed to Rodney. 

"Thank you, Mr. Rodney, for revealing the truth of that year. My family owes you a great debt."

Rodney waved it off, saying, "It's nothing. I just couldn't stand by and watch. I'd like to take one of my crew members to the Forest of the Sea. I hope you can grant me permission."

"No, that's not a problem at all. You're free to go. Apart from the Hard-Shell Tower, you can come and go as you please on Fish-Man Island. We won't stop you. And I hope we can repay you."

"Forget about repaying me. I just did what I could. This guy came here to meet his end anyway. There's one more thing—since this guy was seen by quite a few fish-men on the way here, to avoid any misunderstandings between fish-men and humans from worsening, please think of a solution."

"No problem. We'll handle that. Mr. Rodney, please don't worry."