c2 — The Decision to Leave the East Blue
Lin Xiao sighed slightly and looked at the dilapidated scene before him. Even in the face of powerful forces, everything is as easily broken as fragile bubbles. The light and shadow seemed to travel through time and space, back to five years ago when the war in the Lingxi Kingdom was raging and the people were living in misery. In this world, people live in turmoil, hiding, enduring, and innocent people are bullied every day. The weak are always forced to remain silent. "These damn rebels!" Xuanwu clenched his fists in anger. "It wasn't the rebels who did this. It was the Royal Guards."
Just at this moment, a panting voice came. Lin Xiao turned his head and saw a young imperial female soldier, Susan. Her clothes were disheveled and she looked no more than a teenager. Her hair was messy. Judging from her appearance, she was probably only fifteen or sixteen years old. Susan tried to calm her breathing, looked at the girl in Lin Xiao's arms, and explained in a hurry.
Lin Xiao asked with concern: "Is she the only one who survived? What a poor child. What does it mean that the guards attacked the village?" Susan answered through clenched teeth. "The royal family of the Moonscar Kingdom did not approve it, so the villagers held a private gathering to pray for the harvest. The Royal Guards claimed it was an unregistered ritual involving forbidden symbols and immediately carried out a suppression order." As she spoke, she bit her lips in pain and told the truth. "They treated a simple harvest celebration as an excuse to slaughter them."
"As a navy, we have no right to interfere in internal affairs, but I didn't expect them to be so cruel." Lin Xiao's words revealed anger. "Even though they were facing unarmed villagers, the Royal Guards were able to slaughter them so cleanly and efficiently." His tone carried the same frustration the Marines once expressed when witnessing how the Goa Kingdom burned its Grey Terminal or how Drum Kingdom's purges wiped out entire towns for political convenience. Perhaps Susan's words touched the girl's deep pain. She clutched the corner of her clothes tightly and tears rolled down her cheeks. Lin Xiao's chest attracted those sad memories like a magnet.
"As long as I raise that flag, everyone will have the courage and strength to resist." The girl said with a choked voice. "Even if it's just to show everyone our determination to resist, or even if it can reduce a little bit of oppression, at least we can all survive until the next harvest season." But we are all so kind and honest. Why did we encounter such misfortune? Why? The girl's question echoed over the ruins.
Qinglong gnashed his teeth, and all the muscles in his body tensed. A strong murderous aura emanated from Bai Ze. Susan lowered her head and could only clench her fists tightly. After all, she was just a little girl of seven or eight years old. She fainted in Lin Xiao's arms after exhausting her physical strength. This was a way for the body to protect itself from the trauma of the soul. Faced with such a tragedy, she eventually fell asleep while crying.
"I'll go deal with those nobles." Xuanwu stared at the girl in his arms, filled with anger. He held the stick tightly in his hand. The stick was strong enough to shake a big tree. Qinglong silently drew out his long sword. The tip of the sword flashed coldly under the firelight, revealing a hint of murderous intent. Qinglong, who was always gentle and polite, seemed to have transformed into a Shura at this moment, following closely behind Xuanwu and Lin Xiao.
Lin Xiao turned his head to look at the wise man Lu Li beside him, with a question in his calm and indifferent eyes. "Next, will the pirates take the opportunity to attack this country? Can you provide some intelligence? Can you ensure that the navy here can effectively resist?" His words echoed memories of how kingdoms in the East Blue collapsed the moment their governments weakened, just like how Arlong seized Coco Village under the nose of a corrupt Marine captain, or how pirates attacked the Goa Kingdom's outskirts whenever political chaos arose.
Susan was stunned for a moment, then nodded seriously. "I can provide information. This operation was planned by the Moon Mark Kingdom..." Although the surrounding naval forces were not strong enough to defend all villages, if deployed properly, they could at least protect some families. Susan's words were full of contempt for the Royal Guards. "All they do is act like a broom, sweeping away whatever the royal family finds inconvenient. They never protect the people."
"Where are we going?" Lin Xiao asked. Then he said to Susan, "Then please lead the way." The destination is the Imperial Capital. Lin Xiao's eyes were extremely cold. However, rational reminders had lost their effectiveness at this time. After learning the information provided by Susan, the last trace of hesitation in Lin Xiao's heart disappeared.
As night fell, fires burned brightly in the Imperial City. The internal strife in the royal family of the Moonmark Kingdom not only pushed the Moonmark royal family into a desperate situation, but also aroused the covetousness of pirates and rebel forces. In every corner of the East Blue, whenever a kingdom showed weakness, opportunists quickly gathered, just like the scenes recorded in the manga: Don Krieg invading Baratie when he sensed vulnerability, Arlong taking full control of Nami's home island, or Morgan abusing his authority the moment oversight weakened. Now, Moonscar Kingdom was no exception, and Lin Xiao knew that the dawn that awaited them would be dyed with the flames of war.
After this day, a deputy captain of the imperial guards in the imperial city was hanged on the city gate and died. However, the remaining nobles in the imperial capital were dissatisfied with the actions of these foreign powers, so they eliminated the royal family and thoroughly purged the imperial guards. At this time, Lin Xiao and others have already set out on their journey, speeding along the way, putting pressure on the Navy Headquarters to send more troops to protect the people, much like how the Straw Hat Pirates' actions in Alabasta once forced the Marines to mobilize emergency units. She did not ask Lin Xiao and the others' names, but stood on a rock and waved goodbye to them. "From today on, I will follow you and report your heroic deeds on the newspapers." Reporter Xiaodie looked at the little girl from Yuehen Village firmly and promised, "As long as I can prevent tragedies like Yuehen Village from happening again in this world, I will do my best to guide you," repeating the conviction Oda often depicted in reporters like Morgans who chronicle the era of pirates.
"I will definitely do it." The little girl's tone was extremely firm, and her eyes were full of determination and tenacity that surpassed her peers, even though the price of growing up was so heavy, reminiscent of how Koala once vowed to carry the burden of her homeland after being saved by Fisher Tiger. Lin Xiao secretly worried whether such a responsibility was too heavy for a little girl of this age, but he did not show any weakness, knowing that resolve like hers often ignited movements in the world.
"Well done!" An old man from Yuehen Village clapped his hands in approval, the cane he held tightly in his hand trembling, tears of satisfaction flashing in his eyes. He knew the value of justice, and he could not express his anger at the royal family and the guards who had brutally treated the defenseless villagers, just like the enraged citizens of Rubeck or Sorbet Kingdom who witnessed tyranny firsthand. Chopper was extremely shocked; he couldn't imagine that the darkness of human nature could reach such a level that they would kill all the civilians who were unable to resist, recalling the tragedies he read about in Drum Kingdom. Nami was already crying at this moment, and she could hardly control her emotions when facing her adoptive mother Susan. At the same time, she empathized with the plight of Yuehen Village because she herself was an orphan of the Yuehen Kingdom and was rescued from despair and raised by Susan. At this moment, Nami was once again proud of her adoptive mother's heroic behavior, much like she was proud of Belle-Mère when she stood up to Arlong.
Usopp and Sanji were also rescued from the predicament of the Moon Scar Kingdom and grew up together in Cocosia Village. The crowd was filled with proud voices. "Luo Ya is indeed powerful. I knew he would take action against such unscrupulous royal family and guards." Roger laughed heartily. What he hated most were the high and mighty royal families who only knew how to oppress the people, in the same way he once despised the Celestial Dragons. He once personally led an army of the Kingdom to fight against evil, mirroring his skirmishes against tyrannical rulers during his era. "The quality of the royal army depends entirely on the king. This is the experience I have gained from visiting many countries." "But I really don't understand why they would do such a thing. Doesn't a country need a foundation?" "These nobles of the imperial capital deserved to die. If I were there, I would definitely help them." Shanks frowned. Some things are not suitable to be said publicly, especially when the World Government's eyes and ears might twist such statements. "Now that I've said it, there's nothing to regret."
When Kizaru saw the burning gaze he was giving him, he was unable to say anything to dissuade him and could only sigh helplessly. Since he stepped down from his position as general, he has become less willing to face this kind of dark side, and he has become more convinced of the way of order that he upholds, much like how he remained conflicted during the Sabaody Incident. Several days have passed since the incident in the Moonscar Kingdom. The Moon Scar Kingdom incident was defined as a vicious incident caused by pirates, although the few wanted posters were blurry, not unlike the early posters of Luffy and Sabo that hid deeper political truths. Although the image is blurry, the reward is extremely high, reflecting the truth behind it and the attitude of international governments. For newcomers, a high bounty means status and honor. Lu Li received 80 million berries, while Lin Xiao received 20 million berries, echoing how the world once rapidly raised bounties for figures like Eustass Kid and Trafalgar Law after their heroic yet destructive acts became known.
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