Among the countless clauses written across the contract, one condition stood above all the others.
From this moment onward, the Kid Pirates would surrender their status as an independent crew.
Every member would swear unconditional loyalty to the Eternal Divine Kingdom and obey every order issued by its ruler, Ron.
The terms could hardly have been stricter.
Kid did not hesitate.
He did not bargain.
He did not ask for concessions.
He understood exactly what kind of decision this was, and he had already made peace with it before ever setting foot here.
The room fell into a heavy silence.
Kid raised his head, his expression resolute.
Then he brought his right thumb to his mouth and bit down hard.
Pain shot through his hand as his teeth broke the skin.
Kid barely reacted.
Bright red blood welled from the wound and slowly ran down his finger.
The contract lay open on the table before him, its parchment crowded with dense lines of regulations and obligations.
Kid gave the details one final glance.
That was enough.
At this point, he had already understood the real meaning behind them.
In a world ruled by overwhelming power, words written on parchment were never the thing that truly bound anyone.
Strength was.
And if complete submission was the price of securing survival and a chance at a future, then Kid had already decided he was willing to pay it.
He pressed his bloodied thumb down firmly at the bottom of the contract.
The crimson fingerprint stood out vividly against the pale parchment.
For Kid, that mark represented far more than a signature.
It was a dividing line.
On one side lay the life he had lived until now—the arrogant, reckless freedom of a pirate who answered to no one.
On the other waited something completely different.
A new road.
Perhaps a harsher one.
But also one carrying possibilities he would never have possessed alone.
Killer watched silently from behind him.
His mask concealed his expression, but his eyes revealed enough.
Concern for the unknown.
Respect for his captain's decision.
And perhaps a lingering struggle over what they were leaving behind.
In the end, Killer drew in a slow breath and stepped forward.
He bit into his own fingertip without hesitation.
Then he pressed his bloody fingerprint beside his name.
Whatever awaited them from this point onward, he would face it alongside Kid.
The other core members exchanged uncertain glances after hearing Swart's instructions.
There was hesitation among them.
Confusion.
Anxiety over a future none of them could predict.
For a few moments, no one moved.
Then one crew member stepped forward.
He opened his finger, smeared it with blood, and pressed his mark onto the contract.
Another followed.
Then another.
Soon, everyone was doing the same.
One by one, the Kid Pirates placed their bloodprints beside their names.
Some looked tense.
Others solemn.
But in the end, every one of them chose to follow their captain.
When the final bloody fingerprint was pressed onto the parchment, Swart's calm gaze passed slowly across the assembled crew.
Then he gave a slight nod.
With measured care, he rolled up the contract and secured it.
"The contract is complete."
His voice was composed but carried unmistakable weight.
"Captain Kid, and all of you—welcome. From this moment onward, you are officially members of the Eternal Divine Kingdom."
Swart continued evenly.
"The Divine Kingdom will assign duties and resources according to your individual strength and contributions."
His gaze sharpened slightly.
"But remember this."
"From today onward, your honor, your victories, and your lives are tied to the Divine Kingdom."
"Every decision you make and every battle you fight will no longer concern only yourselves. Your actions will also reflect upon the kingdom whose banner you now serve."
Kid stood quietly to the side.
The cut on his thumb still stung.
The metallic smell of blood lingered faintly in the air, reminding him of the promise he had just made.
He slowly exhaled.
Strangely, the tension that had been wound through his shoulders since arriving began to ease.
It felt as though he had finally set down a burden he had been carrying without realizing it.
The absolute freedom he had once treasured now seemed almost childish compared to the scale of what was coming.
In exchange, something else had settled over him.
Protection.
The word felt strange.
Kid had spent most of his life depending on nothing except his own strength and the people beside him.
Now, for the first time, he stood beneath the protection of something vastly larger than himself.
The feeling was unfamiliar.
But he could not deny that there was relief in it.
From this moment onward, his fate was tied to the Eternal Divine Kingdom.
There would be no easy way back.
Kid slowly raised his head.
His gaze traveled toward the highest temple deep within the Divine Kingdom, its distant silhouette half-hidden behind drifting clouds.
The place carried an almost unreachable presence, as though it belonged to an entirely different level of existence.
Kid stared at it for a long moment.
Resolve hardened in his eyes.
'Fine.'
That single thought contained everything he needed to say.
He had made his choice.
From today onward, he would throw himself into this new world and claw his way upward with everything he had.
A fierce grin gradually spread across his face.
'I'm the Divine Kingdom's mad dog now.'
The thought no longer felt humiliating.
If anything, it stirred something savage and ambitious inside him.
'Ron…'
Kid's fingers curled into a fist.
'Then let this whole damn sea see what kind of future the sharpest fangs under your banner can tear apart.'
...
Behind Kid's seemingly unquestioning submission was a mind that remained perfectly clear about the situation.
He understood the kind of world he lived in.
The weak were devoured by the strong, and anyone who wanted the chance to rise had to recognize where the tide was flowing and move with it rather than let it crush them.
Yet deep inside those sharp eyes, his ambition had not disappeared.
It was merely lying dormant.
Like a predator hidden in the shadows, Kid was willing to lower himself for now, observe the world around him, build his strength, and wait patiently for the right moment to bare his fangs again.
The ink on the contract had barely dried when Swart reached into his robes and produced a faintly glowing map.
The light surrounding it was subtle, but there was something unusual about the document, as though it contained far more than ordinary navigational information.
Swart handed it to Kid.
"Captain Kid."
Even the way he addressed him had changed.
There was more formality now, acknowledging Kid as an official subordinate of the Divine Kingdom rather than an outsider seeking entry.
His tone remained calm, but the authority behind his words was unmistakable.
"This is your first assignment."
Swart placed one finger on a marked location.
"Your target is Raiseld Island."
Kid's eyes dropped toward the map.
"A group calling themselves the Bonebreaker Gang has taken control of the island."
Swart continued.
"Their leader carries a bounty of one hundred and twenty million Berries."
"These people have seized control of the island's freshwater and food supplies. They've been using those resources to extort and terrorize the local population for quite some time."
A trace of cold disgust entered Swart's expression.
"The methods they use are particularly brutal. The civilians there have been living under them long enough."
Kid accepted the mission materials with both hands.
His gaze sharpened as he began examining them.
The documentation was far more comprehensive than he had expected.
A detailed map of the island unfolded before him, showing not only the terrain but also the locations of important settlements, routes, and enemy strongholds.
Key positions were clearly marked.
So were supply depots.
Defensive points.
Likely escape routes.
Then came dossiers on the Bonebreaker Gang's leadership.
Portraits.
Physical descriptions.
Known combat styles.
Possible abilities.
Past incidents.
Everything had been organized so thoroughly that Kid could begin forming a battle plan before he had even finished reading.
The objective itself was equally simple.
Eliminate the Bonebreaker Gang completely and restore order to Raiseld Island.
If serious resistance was encountered, all necessary force was authorized.
There were no unnecessary questions.
No lengthy debate.
No room for bargaining.
That was the Divine Kingdom's way.
Efficient.
Direct.
Decisive.
When an obstacle stood in its path, it did not waste time circling around it.
It crushed straight through.
Kid's mouth slowly stretched into a dangerous grin.
The suffocating feeling he had experienced while signing the contract vanished almost instantly.
This—
this was something he understood.
The Bonebreaker Gang sounded like exactly the kind of trash Kid had no problem tearing apart.
A bunch of bastards strong enough to bully defenseless civilians but nowhere near strong enough to stand against anyone truly dangerous.
For him, this was practically a warm-up.
"Heh…"
A low, eager chuckle escaped him.
"Perfect."
Kid flexed his metal arm.
"I just joined and I've already got all this damn energy with nowhere to put it."
His grin widened.
"Might as well stretch my muscles."
Metal scraped against metal as his mechanical arm shifted.
A faint magnetic pulse spread outward from his body.
Tiny metallic fragments nearby began trembling.
Loose screws rattled.
Several small pieces of iron twitched against the floor as though responding instinctively to his presence.
Kid suddenly turned toward his crew.
The sea wind whipped through his red hair and coat as he threw one arm into the air.
"Listen up, you bastards!"
His crew immediately looked toward him.
Kid jabbed a thumb toward the mission map.
"You heard the man!"
"This is the Divine Kingdom's welcome gift to us!"
His grin became savage.
"And they've given us one hell of a good one!"
"Our destination is Raiseld Island!"
Kid's voice rolled across the harbor.
"There's a pack of worthless assholes over there who think being strong enough to bully civilians makes them kings!"
He slammed his metal fist into his palm.
"Today, we're gonna teach them exactly how wrong they are!"
His eyes burned with savage excitement.
"Crush every last one of them!"
"Don't leave enough behind to fill a damn coffin!"
"OOOOHHHHH!!!"
The Kid Pirates erupted into cheers.
The hesitation and gloom that had followed their submission to the Divine Kingdom disappeared almost instantly.
At their core, they were still a crew of violent lunatics who had spent years surviving the most brutal waters on the sea.
Joining the Divine Kingdom might have been a decision made partly out of necessity.
But their love of fighting?
Their appetite for destruction?
That had never gone anywhere.
It was buried too deeply in their bones.
And now they had been handed an officially sanctioned target.
They could hardly have asked for a better first assignment.
Without wasting another moment, Kid and his crew moved like beasts finally released from their cages.
Under Swart's calm, unreadable gaze, they quickly boarded the same heavily reinforced pirate ship that had brought them to the Divine Kingdom.
Its metallic hull gleamed coldly beneath the sunlight, almost as though the vessel itself were eager for battle.
The crew rushed to their stations.
Ropes were released.
The anchor came up.
Then the enormous sails were raised one after another.
They caught the sea wind and billowed wide.
The Kid Pirates were setting out once again.
But this time—
they sailed beneath the authority of the Eternal Divine Kingdom.