[Ten Days Later]
Except for those who had died accidentally along the way, all the doctors who had been taken from Drum Kingdom were returned.
Almost at the same time, the second wave of aid from Arabasta arrived in Drum Kingdom. This batch of aid included not just supplies but also manpower to help rebuild the country.
At this moment, the entire Drum Kingdom was in celebration.
Watching the jubilant atmosphere, as if it were a national holiday, Ginny fell completely into confusion.
She had joined the Revolutionary Army because she truly believed in Dragon's ideals, not like Kuma, who joined only because his other comrades were there.
But what she saw now... it felt unbearably jarring.
Back then, they had come here to liberate this place.
"Feeling upset inside? Hurts to see him being admired by thousands?"
Moa stood beside Ginny, tilting her head up to look at the high platform, where Rosse was accompanied respectfully by King Valit.
Valit had just finished his speech; next would be the execution, the execution of Ivankov.
"Why? That demon deceived everyone! He could never be the savior of this world!", Ginny gritted her teeth, staring fixedly at Rosse, her eyes filled with resentment.
These past few days, she had been tormented enough.
'How could a man like him be seen as a savior by the people of Drum Kingdom? Are all these ordinary people blind?'
"If not him, then who? You people?", Moa shot Ginny a sideways glance, her voice calm, "He harmed you and the Revolutionary Army, but he never harmed the people of Drum Kingdom. You know, people's feelings aren't connected. He tortured you, but to them, that's something to cheer for."
"Why? The people of Drum Kingdom work in factories every day, they live without any freedom! Meanwhile the king and those factory owners enjoy luxury every day, where's the justice in that?", Ginny shouted emotionally.
"So your method is to burn down the factories, kill all the royals, and completely cut off the people's livelihood? No freedom, so just die?"
Moa looked at her with contempt. With thinking like that, Ginny's level was even lower than hers back in the day.
Dragon was going backward the longer he lived, already desperate enough to start deceiving a bunch of naive idealists.
"It's not that extreme! Without the factories and those oppressors above them, they could do whatever they wanted," Ginny argued.
She had never worked in a factory herself, but she and Kuma had wandered from country to country, and it hadn't been that bad.
At the worst times, they could fish in the sea or eat wild fruits.
Those days were tough, but because the freedom was so hard-won, they were also the happiest days of her life.
"That's why I said, people's feelings can't connect."
Moa let out two cold laughs, "Without the factories, sure, they won't be oppressed anymore, but they'll also lose the very soil they depend on to survive. With Drum Kingdom's environment, what can they do? What can they eat? If not for Arabasta's free aid, they'd all be starving to death in this frozen land."
"You only think about giving them freedom, have you ever thought about how they'll live after that freedom?", Moa asked sharply.
"I... they can go fishing! There are so many fish in the sea."
Ginny didn't know how to refute her, but she didn't feel she was wrong.
"The master will stay in Drum Kingdom for two more days. You can use this opportunity to try it out, see how many people can actually catch fish out there. Remember, this is the Grand Line, not the calm four seas. If those people die at sea, you will be their murderer," Moa said indifferently.
She had to admit, after following Rosse for so long, her mindset had changed greatly.
The ideal of letting ordinary people live good lives still lingered in her heart, but not as strongly as before.
Because after learning more, she deeply realized how unrealistic that ideal was.
Not that no one could achieve it, but she never could.
Moa was well aware of her own limits.
Otherwise, Rosse wouldn't have turned her into a mere plaything.
If they compared abilities, she wasn't even as capable as Stella.
At least Stella could manage hundreds of family servants perfectly. Moa could barely handle a few old revolutionaries before getting overwhelmed.
And as Rosse's policies began to take effect one by one, her conviction faded even further.
Rather than believing in herself, it seemed more reliable to believe in Rosse's ability to achieve something.
Sure, it wouldn't be an equal world, but people are never born equal to began with.
Even someone like Dragon, just because he had power, could make people follow him with slogans, and even earn respect from powerful pirates at sea.
For ordinary people, though? They might get slapped to death by the first pirate they ran into.
"I'll do it!", Ginny glared furiously at Moa, easily hearing the mockery in her tone.
Back when Moa was captured was also when she and Kuma joined the Revolutionary Army. Ginny had even pitied her then, wondered whether she should try to rescue her.
Who would have thought that after so little time, the woman's heart had already changed completely.
'Heh! The way she screamed back then... no doubt even her heart had been conquered.'
"We'll see," Moa said lightly, then jerked her chin toward the viewing platform, "For now, enjoy watching your comrade's final moments."
"Ivankov used to be your comrade too, didn't he?", Ginny's eyes widened, glaring at Moa in anger.
"Yes. But he followed the wrong person. With today's ending, he got what he deserved."
Moa's tone was calm. Her words might have been about Ivankov, mocked and condemned by the citizens of Drum Kingdom, but even more, they were about herself.
A life saved, perhaps it could only be repaid in kind.
By now, even she didn't know why she was still alive.
Logically, she had already repaid Dragon's favor by passing him the information about the Figarlands.
What remained now was nothing but a clash of ideals.
She wanted to prove that Dragon's way was completely wrong.
And she also wanted to see a man like Rosse fall into hell.
'But maybe... both are just hopeless dreams.'
"You!", Ginny was angry, but honestly, she didn't know how to argue anymore.
In reality, Ivankov probably had followed the wrong person.
Dragon still hadn't come.
Not when they were captured. Not when they begged for help. Not even for the execution.
Even the doctors Dragon was supposed to take away, someone else had returned them to Drum Kingdom.
In other words, after all their destruction here, they gained absolutely nothing.
And afterward, the people of this country saw them as villains, no different from pirates.
'So... what have we even done?'
Ginny didn't know the answer, but she wanted to know it.
Maybe Dragon's actions were about the greater good, but as one of the sacrificed, she couldn't accept it.
'Still, at least Kuma has escaped.'
'I hope... he can live well.'
As the blade fell, Ivankov's head was severed, and the crowd erupted into cheers.
Ginny silently watched the scene, a single tear sliding down the corner of her eye.