[~1400 Words]
As the saying goes, a good woman is afraid of being clingy. Tashigi realised that she was in the wrong, it being her first encounter with such a situation and not knowing how to handle it.
"But... I'm a Marine..." She protested weakly.
"Can't members of the navy get married? Consider Vice Admiral Garp, Admiral Zephyr and others. They hold high positions and wield great power yet they still get married?" James countered.
"A-ah, this..." Tashigi was taken aback, realising there was an inherent issue she couldn't quite put her finger on.
"Forget it, if you don't want to marry me, I'll find another way." James declared resolutely.
"What way?" Tashigi asked, hope flitting across her features. If he keeps pestering her, she feared she might give in.
"If you do not agree to be my wife, I will destroy all the Marines of Logue Town. If you accept my proposal, you will be making a meaningful contribution to the navy."
"You… are you joking?" Tashigi asked incredulously.
There was no reply, James simply stared at her intensely.
Just when Tashigi's face flushed and she found herself at a loss, there came a cacophony of footsteps outside the street.
"Are they finally here~?"
James raised the corner of his mouth slightly. With so many people having fainted on this street, someone must have discovered the situation here and informed the Marine Base nearby.
However, Smoker's men are all ruffians with weak strength and poor attitude; it is only natural they arrived late.
A contingent of marines soon appeared before the two and surrounded them, though none dared approach and left a large circle in the middle.
"Hey! Tashigi, What are you standing there for? Come here!" Smoker barked, three cigars held between his teeth, his expression grave.
"Ah?" Tashigi remained confused as to what was unfolding.
"If you want them to die... just leave me be." James threatened nonchalantly.
"Lightning Emperor James! What brings someone as impressive as you to the East Blue? What have you done to Hina and where is she?!" Smoker snarled through gritted teeth, cursing himself for not having learned Haki from his Teacher Z at the Naval Academy.
"Heh~ You noticed me, and instead of getting lost, you had the audacity to get closer.~" James taunted with a devilish grin.
"You are Divine Lightning Emperor `James´?!" Tashigi exclaimed in disbelief, her eyes widening. "Have you been mocking me just now?"
"How could that be? What I said was true. Tashigi, become my Divine Consort! As long as you promise yourself to me, I shall spare the Marines of Logue Town!"
James advanced and placed his hands on her shoulders which quivered with excitement and trepidation; an electric current passed through her, calming her mind.
"I..." She began hesitantly.
"Damn it! Tashigi! Do not agree to him! We would rather die than allow pirates to succeed!" Smoker shouted in anger.
"Then you die!"
There was a flash of cold light in James's eyes. As soon as he spoke, Smoker felt his vision blur and a sharp pain emanate from his head; he was brutally stomped to the ground by James's Armament coated foot.
Even the earth beneath him cracked under the powerful impact.
Just like that, Smoker fainted and fell into a coma instantly due to severe blunt force trauma to his head.
"Captain Smoker!!!" Tashigi and the marines cried out in shock.
James narrowed his eyes, an invisible Conqueror´s Haki radiated from him.
The Marines who were swept by the wave all rolled their eyes, lost consciousness and collapsed; for a time there were continuous clangs of swords striking the ground and thuds of bodies falling.
"This...what has happened to them?!" Tashigi demanded angrily.
"They just fainted, Tashigi. I am confident you will make a decision that will please me.~" James declared as he stepped over Smoker's unconscious body and strode straight towards Tashigi.
"Why? Why are you targeting me?" Tashigi asked, her voice quavering. Everything had happened too swiftly and she didn´t know how to respond.
"Because I am kindhearted and wish to save you from the suffering of the navy." James replied simply.
"Ah?" Tashigi was confounded. How could he claim that the being a Marine is misery? She immediately retorted indignantly, "The Navy embodies justice. Becoming a pirate like you is basically inviting trouble!!"
"I am not a pirate, I am the God and Divine Emperor of my Kingdom." James pulled Tashigi up by her waist and escorted her to a nearby coffee shop to take their seats.
"Have you not realised that there are no others in the navy's top brass save Vice Admiral Tsuru and the one she treats as a little Sister, Gion?"
"This...what does this have to do with the Marines being a sea of suffering..." Tashigi protested weakly.
"Heh~ That is because once a navy position reaches a certain level, nearly to that of Vice Admiral, they are often assigned to protect the Celestial Dragons."
"Male marines rarely encounter trouble. After all, female Celestial Dragons will not permit lowly commoners to being with them. But female marines... hah!" As James spoke, he forced Tashigi, whose pretty face had gone pale, to drink a sip of tea to help her calm herself.
"If they lack a background as solid as Gion, then regardless of whether they are male or female Celestial Dragons, their fate shall be to be treated as slaves and playthings until death!"
"Celestial Dragons? How could this be..." Tashigi murmured in disbelief.
"I have no reason to lie to you. You will naturally come to understand the darkness of this world in due course."
"The navy is just a group of dogs raised by the Celestial Dragons, whose duty it is to protect them and maintain their rule."
After hearing James's explanation, Tashigi was stunned, her eyes vacant.
James did not hurry either. Her worldview was being assaulted by the reality of the navy, her mind shutting down as she tried to process the content of his words.
After some time had passed, Tashigi finally took action. She looked at James with a gloomy expression and murmured,
"I... I understand. I would be willing to serve as your Divine Consort provided that you honor our agreement and leave the navy of Logue Town alone...."
She reasoned: if what James had said was true, then her ultimate fate would be to die in obscurity and disgrace.
It would be better to surrender to James and sacrifice herself in exchange for the survival of the navy of Logue Town so that they might live on with their own sense of justice.
"Don't be afraid of feeling sad. Upon becoming my Divine Consort, you may still uphold your justice. When we return to my Divine Kingdom, you can join the Divine Enforcers."
"Yes..." There was a faint light rekindling in the depths of Tashigi's eyes, no longer as dead as before.
James was not concerned that she might not be able to endure reality; after all, the incident had not happened to her and her experience remained superficial.
Upon becoming his Consort, they would only enjoy the beauty of the world and follow in his footsteps to gradually change it. They all would grow more confident about their future.
"Let´s go. Let's go back to your hometown together. Prepare anything you may need; we shall depart from the East Blue at noon."
"Yes..." Tashigi responded mechanically, though her body remained unmoving.
James smiled helplessly, rose and hugged her waist.
Tashigi finally came back to her senses, a blush appearing on her pale face as she turned around awkwardly, feeling somewhat uncomfortable with his intimate gestures.
"Time to go" James said, casting a casual glance at Hina who had been following them silently in the distance.
["Thanks for reading!, and Hope you enjoyed the chapter. See you in the next one."]
Please Check out my new Fanfic "Detective Conan: Harem begins with Kisaki Eri". It's a translation, but completely reworked from the ground up with 18+ Smut scenes added in. And also pls give 6TAD a try.