Chapter 55: They Probably Won’t Come After Me, Right?
Seven Warlords of the King,
This thing is, when stripped down, a deformed monster born from the World Government’s compromise with the Pirate Era. Among the higher-ups in the World Government and Navy, plenty of people can’t stand this strategy of using pirates to control pirates, and they especially despise these pirates who have gained legitimate status.
In the eyes of the opposition,
Pirates are ultimately uncontrollable.
These guys attracted by that bullshit freedom are all potential bombs.
No one knows when these bombs will suddenly explode.
“······But it’s no use. No matter how many opposition members there are, they can’t outweigh the resolve of the Five Elders. The establishment and operation of the Seven Warlords of the King system has the Five Elders’ approval. As long as the Five Elders aren’t prepared to make changes, this system is as steady as Reverse Mountain—no amount of water from the Four Seas could shake it even a little.”
“But, El, you actually convinced the Sea Knight······ You’re dead set on becoming one of the Seven Warlords of the King, huh?”
The Den Den Mushi’s mouth opened and closed,
accurately translating the information from the received bio waves.
“Yeah!”
Prince Elus held the microphone in his hands, chatting idly with his grandfather Sokachio on the Red Line.
“We’ve come this far already. Saying we’d give up······ would be too much of a waste. Whether this matter succeeds or fails in the end, we have to keep going now. Quitting halfway isn’t a good habit. Even just for the energy and resources spent so far, we can’t just stop.”
“Seven Warlords of the King. El, your interests are truly strange.”
“I don’t want to hear that from an old man who married a teenage girl.”
“Hahaha! Aren’t a man’s ‘interests’ all like this? El, don’t tell me you don’t get it.” Sokachio’s laughter was very improper, but the silence on the other end of the Den Den Mushi made him snap out of it. Talking like this with his grandson didn’t seem······ appropriate?
“Cough cough.”
He cleared his throat and casually changed the subject,
“Oh yeah, I forgot to tell you, El. You have a little aunt now. Let me tell you······”
Sokachio excitedly described how lovable his newborn daughter, not even a month old, was, as if the lewd and improper words from before were all an illusion.
“······”
Prince Elus took a breath, not wanting to speak.
This speed,
is really something!
It hasn’t been that long, and he’s added another elder······
“El, when you come to the Red Line next time, remember to bring gifts!” Sokachio emphasized.
“······I’m planning to come to the Red Line soon.”
“Soon?”
Sokachio, who was sitting in his office smoking, raised an eyebrow. “Is it for the Seven Warlords of the King matter?”
“That’s part of it, but not entirely. I also want to see what the World Government is really like. If possible, I’d like to visit Navy Headquarters and see what the true overlord of the seas looks like in all his glory.”
“······El, don’t mess around! The Holy Land’s waters run deep. I don’t even know what level you’re at now, but don’t cause trouble here in the Holy Land!” Sokachio warned his eldest grandson, who had always been particularly opinionated since childhood.
Even though the Sokachio Family had built up some influence and connections within the World Government over the years, they still couldn’t touch the true inner workings of the Holy Land. Just the World Government’s three military branches alone instilled a terrifying, irresistible power.
And that was just on the surface.
In the shadows, there was CipherPol-AIGIS0, commonly known as CP0. In this secret intelligence agency directly under the Five Elders, few knew how much unknown terror it hid.
“Rest assured! I have no ties with the Revolutionary Army.”
“······The Revolutionary Army! It’s best not to offend those lunatics if you can avoid provoking them!”
Sokachio muttered softly.
Though the voice was small, the Den Den Mushi faithfully conveyed it to Prince Elus’s ears.
“Grandfather, you······ don’t tell me you’ve dealt with the Revolutionary Army?”
“No one around you?”
This reaction startled Prince Elus.
Could it be that his own grandfather really had some connection with the Revolutionary Army?
“Just me. Um, Grandfather, don’t tell me you’re······”
“Yeah, I have some connection with the Revolutionary Army.”
“Eh?”
Prince Elus scratched his head vigorously.
“No, I should say I have some connection with the Queen of Kamabakka Kingdom.”
“The Queen of Kamabakka Kingdom?”
Who was that?
Prince Elus didn’t react at first.
“Emporio Ivankov······ You’ve heard of her, right? The one who saved people doctors deemed beyond saving and nations on the brink of death, leaving behind the ‘Miracle Worker Legend,’ the strongest in history······” By the end, his voice became muffled again.
“Ah!”
Flipping through the memories in his mind, Prince Elus finally remembered who the Queen of Kamabakka Kingdom was!
Wasn’t it the Revolutionary Army’s top cadre, the one nicknamed the Okama King.
“Grandfather, don’t tell me you and that Okama King······”
“I was tricked!!!” Sokachio roared.
Prince Elus was stunned.
Damn it,
This, this, tricked? Tricked by what······ He didn’t dare think about it, couldn’t think about it.
“Hey, El, don’t misunderstand.” Perhaps sensing his grandson’s wild thoughts, Sokachio hurriedly explained. To protect his reputation, he didn’t care about exposing a long-hidden old story. “Back then, I was······”
The story wasn’t long or complicated.
In short, the ambitious fifth King of Eckmond Kingdom back then was swayed by lust, only to be badly pranked by the Queen of Kamabaka Kingdom using her Devil Fruit powers. He was caught with a handle he didn’t want known, and from then on, he was blackmailed for World Government secrets.
“Isn’t this just straight-up blackmail? What kind of ‘connection’ is that!”
Prince Elus had a bellyful of retorts and didn’t know how to spit them out.
“Shut up. Anyway, if you can avoid provoking the Revolutionary Army, don’t mess with those lunatics who fear neither death nor ideals.” Enraged, Sokachio roared again.
“Grandfather, a year ago, the Queen of Kamabaka Kingdom was arrested by the World Government on trumped-up charges and sent straight to Impel Down······ Don’t tell me that was your doing?” Prince Elus asked.
The Den Den Mushi gave no answer.
After a moment of silence, the call cut off, and the Den Den Mushi drooped its head.
Holding the microphone, Prince Elus had a bit of a headache.
“Old man, you’re quite capable! Tossing a Revolutionary Army top cadre into Impel Down······ The Revolutionary Army shouldn’t come after me, right?”
————
Capital of Eckmond Kingdom, Arabica.
The white moon floating at the top of the sky coldly illuminated this bustling city by the seaside.
It was now nearly midnight. The new day was unknowingly close at hand, but the city hadn’t sunk into sweet dreams. Rutherford Avenue was brilliantly lit, with rows of streetlights like a shining dragon stretching from Sokachio Central Square in the city center all the way to the east coast port.
At the port, the lighthouse’s beam shot like a rainbow toward the distant sea, slicing through the thick darkness and guiding ships on the sea.
Under this light’s guidance,
A fleet flying the Golden Coffee Tree Flag slowly sailed into the port.
“Is this Coffee City?”
“What do you think? Jinbe, how’s the city?”
“······It’s indeed a fine city.”
Sea Knight Jinbe stood on the deck at the ship’s bow, gazing at the prosperous city before his eyes.
“But······ why is Garp here?”
The Whale Shark Fish-Man’s expression showed a hint of gravity.
Navy Hero Garp.
Though only a Vice Admiral, in the New World, anyone with a functioning brain knew this man was a monster who could rival the Four Emperors. Even though he had been recruited by the World Government and become a pirate with legitimate plundering rights, the sense of guilt wouldn’t just vanish from Jinbe’s heart.
Going to Navy Headquarters voluntarily would be one thing.
But running into Navy powerhouses like this at sea always made him uneasy—it was an instinct as a pirate he couldn’t erase.
“That’s the question I want to ask too.”
Prince Elus leaned on the railing, his emerald eyes locked on the group in Navy uniforms mixed in the welcoming party on the dock. Leading them was an old man wearing a dog-head hat and draped in a Navy ‘Justice’ coat.
This unassuming old man was Navy Hero Garp, the Vice Admiral known as ‘Iron Fist.’
「Navy······ What exactly is their goal?」
Even now,
They still hadn’t figured out why the Navy had suddenly visited Eckmond Kingdom.
No matter how Berville tried to probe indirectly, he couldn’t get Vice Admiral Garp to spill anything useful. Instead, the palace’s food expenses had risen since Vice Admiral Garp arrived—especially the confectionery chef, who reportedly had to procure sweets from outside because he couldn’t provide enough.
“They wouldn’t be planning to eat us out of house and home, would they?”
Prince Elus shook his head with a smile.
Of course that was a joke. The Navy’s true purpose······ would probably only be clear after meeting this Navy Hero.
————
“Isn’t this Jinbe? What are you doing here?”
Garp greeted Jinbe.
As the most rule-abiding of the Seven Warlords of the King, Jinbe was often summoned to Navy Headquarters by Fleet Admiral Sengoku for various missions. After many trips to Marineford, he got to know Vice Admiral Garp, though their acquaintance wasn’t deep.
“Vice Admiral Garp, long time no see.”
Jinbe slightly bowed his head in greeting.
The somewhat stiff motion proved he wasn’t entirely comfortable in front of this Navy Hero.
Navy and pirates.
They were supposed to be natural enemies.
But the deformed system of the Seven Warlords of the King blurred the clear line between Navy and pirates, turning the illegal pirate identity legitimate. Not only were there many dissenting voices within the Navy, but pirates also saw the Seven Warlords as World Government lackeys.
It often left an honest man like Jinbe confused about his own position.
This was the palace’s living room.
Due to the late hour, Prince Elus didn’t linger at the dock. After exchanging a few words with the Navy Minister sent to greet him, he dismissed the welcoming party and brought Jinbe and the Navy guests straight back to the palace, hosting them in this opulent living room.
He hadn’t even had time to see his father and mother.
“I received an invitation from Prince Elus.”
Jinbe cautiously answered Garp’s question.
“Mr. Jinbe is my guest.”
Sipping scalding coffee milk from his cup, Prince Elus instantly felt the chill leave his body. A warm flow rose from his stomach, spreading to his limbs, and a wave of sleepiness naturally arose. He curled up on the soft sofa, crossed his legs, and lazily eyed the group of Navy officers on the opposite sofa.
He took the initiative to interrupt the crowd’s scrutinizing stares at the lone Jinbe on the side sofa—like they were looking at a criminal—and bluntly changed the subject by asking:
“Gentlemen of the Navy, I hear you have business with me. What brings you here?”
However,
“Kaka kaka!!!”
Vice Admiral Garp, the highest-ranking Navy officer present, simply picked up a rice cracker from the confectionery box on the table and ate it heartily, as if he hadn’t heard Prince Elus’s question, showing no intention of answering.
“Prince Elus, Your Highness, I am Rear Admiral Sprugen from Navy Headquarters.”
The man sitting to Garp’s left couldn’t help but speak up.
“Rear Admiral Sprugen, is it? Pleased to meet you. I shouldn’t need to reintroduce myself to you all, right?” Prince Elus said, though his gaze remained mostly fixed on Vice Admiral Garp, who was happily munching rice crackers.
At Prince Elus’s dismissive attitude.
Rear Admiral Sprugen felt a surge of frustration, but his reason was still sound. He wasn’t overly swayed by emotion and calmly stated in a steady voice: “No need for redundant introductions. In today’s New World, even the news coo knows of Your Highness Prince Elus’s renowned fame······”
It sounded like flattery.
And it indeed was putting a high hat on Prince Elus.
However,
The main course was yet to come; this was just a little appetizer.
“Skip the boring nonsense. Get to the point! What exactly do you want with me?”
Prince Elus interrupted Rear Admiral Sprugen’s flattery and fired another straight shot.
This time,
Rear Admiral Sprugen didn’t respond.
He glanced at Rear Admirals Bishiman and Cajetan beside him, then at Vice Admiral Garp eating rice crackers and drinking tea. No matter what, Vice Admiral Garp was the highest commander of this expedition; they couldn’t act without his lead.
“Cough cough!”
“Your Highness, your family’s sweets are quite tasty.”
After eating his fill and wiping his mouth, Garp cleared his throat and said as much.
Finally, the old man spoke,
And that was it?
Just this one bit of useless talk?
This was the shared sentiment of the three Rear Admirals and two Majors—especially the Rear Admirals, whose resentful glares like spurned wives pierced Vice Admiral Garp. They desperately hoped he would use his famed Iron Fists to properly gauge just how capable Sokachio Elus, the Black Prince, truly was.
“Thank you for the compliment.”
Prince Elus replied with a smile.
“Sweets eaten, tea drunk······ Now, let’s get to the main topic! Prince Elus.” Vice Admiral Garp flashed a brilliant smile, his row of white, sturdy teeth gleaming under the lights.
