The Asdea Kingdom was near the entrance to the Grand Line, about three days' voyage away.
Asdea was publicly recognized as the most chaotic country in the North Blue.
From the king and nobles down to the common people, they all shared one belief.
Rob.
Rob merchant ships. Rob pirate ships. Rob anything.
They even robbed their own people.
If the country had been powerful, that would have been one thing. But Asdea's total population was only around a hundred thousand. Of those, about seventy thousand could be dragged out as fighting force.
Of course, no one knew how many of those seventy thousand could actually hold a weapon.
Asdea often raided nearby countries.
Every time, they killed and looted everything, leaving no traces behind.
Even when others knew it was them, they could do nothing.
There was no evidence.
And Asdea was a World Government member nation.
Several kingdoms eventually could not endure it anymore and joined forces to attack Asdea.
They fought their way into the kingdom and captured the king alive.
Who would have expected that the man did not panic at all?
When the World Government's ship arrived, the allied kingdoms finally realized this fellow had already reported the matter to the World Government.
Although the World Government would not interfere with the internal affairs of other countries, it could mediate disputes between nations.
Under the World Government's intervention, Asdea signed an agreement guaranteeing it would never invade other countries again.
At first, things were fine.
Everyone thought the king would keep his word.
But not long after, the massacres and village raids began again.
Before the other countries could even hold Asdea accountable, Asdea immediately stepped out to explain.
"Those people were all exiles from our kingdom. Their actions have nothing to do with us."
The other countries were so furious their teeth nearly cracked.
Did they think everyone else was stupid?
Who would believe that nonsense?
The neighboring countries, pushed to their limits, directly sent naval forces to patrol their territories.
As long as they saw those dwarfs, they opened fire without a second word.
After all, weren't they exiles?
Then helping Asdea clean them up should be perfectly fine, right?
And so, for years, that was how the surrounding countries handled things.
If they saw them, they fired.
White Ghost stood at the bow, looking toward the distant harbor packed with people.
Those people were holding banners that read: Welcome, Dragon Emperor of Beasts, Soul King, Soul Diva.
After clearly seeing their appearances, White Ghost frowned.
Beside him, Issho noticed the change.
"What is it? Is something wrong?"
White Ghost shook his head, a trace of disgust appearing in his eyes.
"Nothing. I just find it strange. There's actually a country on this sea similar to Wano in the New World."
Issho did not speak.
He had sensed the disgust White Ghost released in that instant.
Although it vanished quickly, Issho still felt it.
Issho's Observation Haki swept over the crowd at the harbor, and his brows tightened. He sighed.
"To think such a vile country exists on the sea."
Those people all wore happy expressions, as if eagerly awaiting White Ghost's arrival.
But Issho could sense the evil in their hearts.
Kuro looked at the approaching harbor, the corner of his mouth curling.
"The show is about to begin."
Lafitte also laughed.
It was not his usual professional fake smile, but an excited laugh from the heart.
"How thrilling."
White Ghost turned to Issho, who was as tall as him.
"You should leave. Otherwise, you may never be able to leave again."
Issho froze.
"Is this not a good opportunity? A good chance to pull this one onto your ship?"
White Ghost looked into those blank eyes.
"You are a pure-hearted man. I am different. My heart is full of calculations. To put it plainly, I am sinister and cunning.
"So go.
"I don't want you inexplicably boarding my pirate ship.
"I don't want to see someone who carries justice in his heart become like me."
Issho tightened his grip around his cane sword.
"So you said this for the sake of this one's reputation?"
White Ghost nodded.
As the ship docked at the harbor, the cheers on shore grew louder.
"Welcome, Dragon Emperor!"
The voices came from every direction.
To outsiders, they really looked like White Ghost's fans.
Issho picked up a cloak from the side.
It was one Stella and the others had designed.
On the cloak was a five-clawed golden dragon with wings on its back.
According to them, he needed some presence.
Just look at the Marines and pirates—who didn't look imposing?
Seeing Issho's actions, White Ghost frowned.
"My path is very difficult. Maybe I stop here. Maybe one day I'll be buried at sea."
Issho put on the cloak, the corner of his mouth lifting.
"Didn't you say it yourself?
"Matters are decided by people. When an obstacle appears, cut it apart with the sword in your hand.
"So this one also wishes to walk with you.
"Although these eyes can no longer see, this one still wishes to hear the laughter of people who can eat their fill so long as they are willing to work."
White Ghost looked at him.
"What a fool. You clearly know this road is hard, yet you insist on following."
Issho met White Ghost's gaze with his blank eyes.
"You once said something.
"When you reach the mountain peak, you will discover that the world seen by each person is different."
White Ghost said no more.
He led the others off the ship.
Once everyone disembarked, White Ghost pressed his hand against the side of the ship.
Whoosh.
The people welcoming them at the harbor watched the enormous ship vanish before their eyes.
White Ghost clapped his hands and smiled at the stunned king.
A dwarf.
His wretched appearance was almost on par with Kizaru's.
"What's wrong, Yoshimasa Mita? Never seen the world before?"
Hearing White Ghost's words, Yoshimasa Mita hurriedly came back to his senses.
His greedy eyes swept over the golden bracelet on White Ghost's wrist.
Someone had told him about that thing.
A storage bracelet.
It could store anything.
Who knew how much gold and treasure was inside?
Yoshimasa Mita quickly walked over with a smile and tried to shake White Ghost's hand.
White Ghost also put on a false smile and exchanged pleasantries with him.
After everyone arrived at the so-called royal palace, Zango, who was behind White Ghost, could not help but complain.
"Isn't this just a thatched house? And they call it a palace?"
"Bastard!"
A dwarf beside Yoshimasa Mita was furious and pointed at Zango.
"What do you know? His Majesty loves his people and lives in the same kind of house as them."
The dwarf official had barely finished speaking when a palm appeared before his eyes.
Slap!
A crisp slap rang out.
Everyone around them fell silent, staring in disbelief at White Ghost, who had made the move.
White Ghost smiled at the dwarf he had slapped unconscious.
"There was a mosquito on your face just now, so I helped you out. You don't mind, do you?"
The corner of Yoshimasa Mita's mouth twitched, and his expression turned ugly.
Then he seemed to think of something and quickly suppressed his emotions, waving his hand.
"Take him away. When he wakes, tell him to thank His Excellency."
Yoshimasa Mita extended his hand.
"Please come inside, my lord. You must all be tired from sailing. I've already prepared wine."
White Ghost nodded.
"Good. I happen to be tired too. A little wine to relieve fatigue sounds nice."
"Yes, yes."
Yoshimasa Mita led White Ghost and the others into the so-called palace, his greedy eyes sweeping over White Ghost's women.
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