"Are you even from this world? This is something everyone knows!" Whitebeard said, clearly exasperated.
"I honestly didn't know," Rimuru said awkwardly, scratching the back of their small head. "Can I come with you guys?"
"Such a polite Demon Lord—I've never met one like you before," Whitebeard said, stroking his chin thoughtfully. Then, with that classic line, he added, "Wanna be my daughter?"
"I refuse!!" Rimuru shot back with a blank expression. If they didn't know the kind of man Whitebeard was, that might have started a fight right then and there! A life-or-death kind of fight! He's only survived this long thanks to his strength, huh? Rimuru couldn't even be bothered to make a snarky comeback.
"Gurararara... Not interested?" Whitebeard looked disappointed. "Is it really so hard to have a cute daughter?" He glanced resentfully at his sons—nothing but a bunch of big, burly men. Not a single one was a sweet little bundle of joy.
Crack. That was the sound of hearts breaking. The Whitebeard Pirates all took emotional damage. Talk about getting hit by friendly fire...
Ignoring the blow he just dealt his sons, Whitebeard stood up from his chair and waved his arm. "Gurararara... Boys! Let's throw a feast to welcome Rimuru!"
"Yes, Pops!" Despite the emotional injury, everyone immediately got to work. Some cooked, some hauled stuff around. The whole ship bustled with activity.
"You guys throw parties that easily?" Rimuru grabbed Marco to ask.
"This is actually a mild reason," Marco said, shaking his head helplessly. "The other day, Pops said we should throw a party because—we rescued a drowning Sea King. Then we ate it."
The Sea King: "You guys just wanted to eat me! (T^T) I didn't even know I was drowning!"
Rimuru was speechless. (=__=) Is Whitebeard somehow related to those wacky rural YouTubers?
"Marco, have you been slacking in your training lately?" Whitebeard suddenly appeared behind him, his face full of concern.
The man who once kicked an Admiral trembled as he looked up at Whitebeard's fatherly smile. Gulping nervously, Marco replied, "Pops, I've been training hard... I-I actually have something I need to take care of right now—"
But before he could escape, Whitebeard grabbed him by the collar.
"Let someone else handle it. You're free now, so let me check your progress. I'll even help you find any weak spots," Whitebeard said, dragging Marco off despite his struggles.
Soon after, a series of pitiful wails echoed from somewhere on the ship. Anyone who heard them wept. All the Whitebeard Pirates trembled in silent terror.
Rimuru silently offered a prayer: Rest in peace, Marco.
Not long after, Whitebeard returned looking relaxed and cheerful—followed by a dead-eyed Marco who seemed utterly defeated. Not even the Phoenix's super-fast healing could recover him, which said everything about the... "love" he had just endured.
"You're pretty strong too, huh?" Whitebeard said to Rimuru. "My Observation Haki picked up some powerful energy from you."
Everyone stopped what they were doing. Their own Haki wasn't nearly as sharp, and they'd assumed Rimuru was just a cute little thing. Maybe the wolf was powerful, but now even Whitebeard was saying this?
"If even Pops says so..." Marco murmured, still in shock.
"Oh." – Third Division Commander, Diamond Jozu.
"Interesting." – Fifth Division Commander, Flower Sword Vista.
"Looks like things won't be boring now." – Fourth Division Commander, Thatch.
"You want to spar?" Rimuru smiled. "Sure. But it's too cramped here. We'll need more room."
"There's an uninhabited island nearby!" someone shouted.
"Gurararara... Sounds like we've got ourselves a fight," Whitebeard laughed. "Just don't cry when you lose."
"Grrr! You wait and see, you old geezer!" Rimuru snapped back. "I'll take the title of 'Strongest Man in the World' and make you regret it! Hmph!" (╯^╰)
Whitebeard went silent for a moment, then asked a very blunt question: "You're a guy?"
Why the questioning tone!? Do I really look that much like a girl? I'm a pure-blooded—wait, I'm a slime. I'm literally a genderless slime.
Rimuru, who was about to fire back, suddenly fell silent.
"Hahahahahaha…"
Laugh all you want! Just wait until I beat the crap out of you! I'm still a Demon Lord, darn it! The little slime had now entered their dark mode.
"We're here, Pops," someone called out, interrupting the laughter.
"We are?" Whitebeard picked up his weapon—Murakumogiri—and looked over at Rimuru. "Kid, want me to carry you?"
"Hmph," Rimuru turned their head away with a snort.
"Wind," they muttered. A gust picked them up and carried them into the sky.
"They can fly!?" Whitebeard squinted, watching Rimuru fly ahead. A smile tugged at the corners of his mouth. Then, with a mighty leap that made the whole ship dip, he launched himself in pursuit.