Chapter 50: Sorbel Kingdom

Sorbel Kingdom, Southern Seas.

On the Donghai Dihuang with its dragon-head and red sails, the Morning Star Pirates are holding an internal meeting; the intern, the little black girl Jin Ni, is responsible for taking notes.

"Captain, the Donghai Dihuang is too conspicuous. Entering the Sorbel Kingdom rashly will very likely draw the attention of the Marines and the World Government."

Master Tenghu continued, "To avoid unnecessary trouble for subsequent operations, I suggest you and Mr. Mihawk proceed light."

Saint Saint Saiwen extinguished the arcs of electricity dancing at his fingertips and, unusually, vetoed Master Tenghu's lifelong proposal.

"No need."

"We sail our ship openly. Without World Government permission, the Marines will not easily engage us in battle, let alone the Marines of the Four Seas."

"Do not underestimate our influence."

After the Four Emperors' power structure was established in the seas of later generations, why were they able to coexist peacefully with the Marines for so many years?

The World Government wants stability and order; rashly launching war against a Four Emperors pirate crew would only cause turmoil and unrest, which does not align with the World Government's interests.

Although the Morning Star Pirates have few members, every single one is a human calamity—

A captain who summons thunderstorms, a first mate who can cleave mountains and split seas with a casual swing, a combatant who summons meteors; the Marines would need to deploy three or more Admiral-level powers just to have a chance of taking them down.

The cost incurred does not match the gain; the World Government will not engage in such a losing business.

Saint Saint Saiwen pointed to the map hanging behind him.

"The Sorbel Kingdom was split in two by the current king, Becoli: the northern city clusters remain a World Government member state, continuing to pay the Heavenly Tribute, while the southern rural areas have become lawless zones."

"This fellow has some wisdom, but not much."

The Heavenly Tribute is collected according to population size.

It is a treasure system wherein the World Government's 170 member states pay tribute to the Celestial Dragons annually, transported via Marine warships to the Holy Land of Mary Geoise to maintain their subordinate relationship.

King Becoli's aim in splitting the kingdom in two is to reduce the population count, thereby decreasing the amount of Heavenly Tribute paid to the Celestial Dragons.

Such maneuvers are the norm on the seas.

Compared to the enormous sums of the Heavenly Tribute, whether half the populace lives or dies is something kings simply do not care about.

Know this: on these seas, it is not only the Celestial Dragons who are filthy and corrupt; kings, nobles, pirates, and even some Marines are equally no good.

Saint Saint Saiwen pointed to a certain area on the map.

"After the God Valley Great War ended, Kuma and Jin Ni returned to the South Sea; currently, they serve as pastors in a rural church in the southern part of the Sorbel Kingdom, treating commoners for free."

"If we wish to dispel Kuma's concerns, we must overthrow the rule of the current king, Becoli, and find a decent king for the Sorbel Kingdom.

In the era when the former king, Burdogg, ruled, though the land was poor, the people's hearts were still rich..."

Mihawk interjected coldly, "The difficulty is poverty..."

Saint Saint Saiwen spread his hands.

"Whether they are poor or not has nothing to do with us; it is the Celestial Dragons who plunder their wealth."

"We are not saviors; giving them a relatively relaxed and democratic environment is enough. Changing their impoverished lives can only be up to them."

"Mr. Mihawk, let us first go to the town to purchase daily supplies; Mr. Tenghu, stay behind to guard the ship."

Mihawk nodded slightly, "Very well."

Although they had repeatedly emphasized the need to develop in secret, upon arriving at the Sorbel Kingdom, they were already planning to overthrow the current king's rule.

Only you could do it, Barzab Saint Saint Saiwen!

Not long after, the Donghai Dihuang docked steadily at the port of the southern town.

Due to insufficient crew members, the task of replenishing daily supplies could only be handled by the captain and chef, Saint Saint Saiwen, and the first mate and helmsman, Mihawk.

Robin and the Ohara scholars are essentially mobile bombs, unsuitable for showing their faces in public.

This also made Saint Saint Saiwen realize he must recruit some loyal, well-connected crew members soon to handle such trivial matters, saving time that could then be used to further develop the Goro Goro no Mi abilities.

Regarding the development of the Goro Goro no Mi—

Following the ultimate move like the Super Electromagnetic Cannon, Saint Saint Saiwen is currently focusing on bio-electricity; more accurately, brainwaves similar to telepathy.

It is a higher realm of Observation Haki.

Besides telepathy, Observation Haki also includes foreseeing the future, reading memories... and even listening to the voices of all things; these may also be the ultimate manifestations of Observation Haki.

Upon entering the town's commercial street, Saint Saint Saiwen and Mihawk split up at the street corner to purchase supplies.

Among the staggered streets and alleys, most shops still had their doors open, yet the streets were empty, with only signs occasionally creaking softly as the wind blew them.

As a heavy meat lover, Saint Saint Saiwen immediately went to the butcher shop to make purchases.

On the butcher's counter lay various kinds of meat; behind the counter, the owner looked alert, slowly wiping a thick-backed cleaver in his hand.

As the God of Skypiea, the wealth of Gold Country is immeasurable, but Saint Saint Saiwen felt: haggling is the joy of shopping, unrelated to the thickness of one's wallet.

"Twenty percent off, I'll take it all."

The owner's hand paused for a moment.

"Customer, these are fresh kills from this morning; look at the meat texture. There is no better in town than mine."

Saint Saint Saiwen pointed to the empty street.

"But someone still has to buy them, right? Who else is on the street besides me right now?"

The owner fell silent for a moment, then set down the cleaver.

"Very well, I'll accept the price the customer mentioned."

"Do you need delivery?"

Merchants are best at reading people; Saint Saint Saiwen's attire clearly showed he was not a local, most likely a merchant stopping at the dock for supplies.

Why not a pirate?

In all these years of doing business, the butcher owner had never seen a pirate so easy to talk to; if the other party were a pirate, the blade would already be at his throat by now.

"Deliver it to the dock."

During the waiting period for packing, Saint Saint Saiwen asked casually.

"Boss, this town looks pretty big—why is there not a single soul on the streets?"

The butcher explained: "The villagers have all been arrested by the king."

"Arrested?"

As if finally finding someone to unburden himself to, the butcher launched into speech: "Don't hide it from you, sir—the king has abandoned these rural places."

"Our priest took the villagers to beg the king to rescind the order, and they were all thrown into the kingdom's prison."

"Master Bear is a good man—he's treated us for free these past years, and always helped anyone in trouble."

"I just don't understand—why isn't such a good man the king?"

Saint Saint Saiwen shrugged: Because that's a crewman I've set my sights on—if Great Bear became your king, what would become of me, the captain?

I've fought my way from the West Sea to the Solbe Kingdom, fearing the Sweat King would get there first.

Now it seems the timing is perfect.

"Boss, deliver the goods to the largest ship at the dock—I'll go buy some other things."

The butcher pushed his cart: "Sir, let me go with you—I can help you load other items too."

"That's perfect." Saint Saint Saiwen did not refuse the kindness.

Humans, this little thing—when good, they're truly good, even earning the doting affection of the Legendary Lover King.

When bad…

Never mind. Words that hurt unity aren't worth saying.

After nearly emptying the town's stock of goods, Saint Saint Saiwen led the delivery merchants back to the dock.

Once all the goods were loaded, the Donghai Dihuang departed the harbor, leaving the merchants staring in stunned silence.