"Are we just going to leave?"
Tyler asked, seemingly a bit hesitant about leaving everything behind.
Frank patted him on the shoulder and said.
"Captain, our journey is on the sea. We can't look back. Just trust them!"
Tyler released a deep breath and said.
"I have faced this situation for the first time in my life. Thank you for that, Frank. I am the Captain, but I was the first to break under the pressure."
Frank shook his head.
"It's the first time for everyone, Captain. Realization hits too hard. After all, there are no consequences to our actions."
Hearing that, Tyler paused.
"Consequences?"
At this moment, his heartbeat skipped. A realization dawned upon him. For the longest time, he had wondered one thing.
What would be his dream?
Being King of the Pirates was originally Tyler's dream. So for two months, he didn't have a dream of his own.
He wanted to get stronger; he wanted to find One Piece, but he never had a dream of his own.
Because he didn't understand the reason for his existence. He already had goals, so he just wanted to complete those goals.
The dream was too far away from him.
But at this moment, he felt like something clicked in him.
He needed a dream and not just any dream, a dream worthy of a transmigrator like him.
Changing the world was indeed a thing, but it wasn't his dream. He wanted something grand, something that was too amazing.
And consequences became a foundation for his dream.
Because that world and his own dream reminded him of Kaido, of the question that he asked Luffy at the end of their fight.
But his dream wouldn't be the same as Luffy's. No, it was to become stronger than Kaido, become more powerful than Loki.
Not just in strength but also in control.
He realized what he needed to do.
His dream wasn't to be King of the Pirates. It was to become King of the Dragons.
Not just Kaido and Loki; he also wanted to become superior to Monkey D. Dragon. Yes, just because he had Dragon in his name.
But also because he admired Dragon.
This world didn't need Nika. It always needed Monkey D. Dragon. At this moment, he realized why he wanted to become Dragon's superior.
Because he wanted his achievements to surpass Dragon's, but deep inside, he realized something.
Dragon had truly started something that could never be surpassed in this world.
As long as there were people with a thought of rebellion, even if Nika loses the battle, even if the World Government wins this battle, there would always be people fighting for other people's freedom.
Luffy can be a savior because he is the protagonist, but Dragon must be a savior because he brought the very concept of rebellion to this world.
Being a pirate could be seen as rebellion against the World Government, but it wasn't.
Because the World Government was just another Pirate crew.
He realized why Dragon never made a move.
It wasn't enough; the very concept of rebellion hadn't reached most people.
Kuma could bet on Luffy because Luffy ate the Nika Fruit, but Dragon couldn't bet on his son just because of that.
Oda understood his characters very well. He knew what kind of people he was writing about.
That's why people wouldn't question why Nami never tried to find Marine Hero Garp, who was also in the East Blue, to save her village.
It was simply because her mind couldn't comprehend the power that Marine Hero held, and also because she was too stubborn.
She wanted to raise one hundred million by herself, and for that goal, she and those villages suffered for eight years.
Ace was another case of that kind of stubbornness.
Just to defend an old man who accepted him and took care of him for three years, he ignored all the suffering and pain Luffy went through just to get him out.
In his mind, defending the honor of Whitebeard was more important than taking Luffy to Marco.
He saw Luffy collapse in Marineford, but not even once did he think of going back with Luffy and letting his ship's doctor check his condition.
That's why people would blame nobody except themselves for what he did.
Yeah, Akainu played dirty, but he was a Marine. His goal was to kill Ace. He would do anything to kill Ace.
But Ace wasn't just a pirate. He was also a brother.
And to defend Whitebeard's honor and stubborn belief in his strength, he forgot ten years of his brotherhood.
That's why Luffy became the protagonist, and Ace couldn't, even though he had every right to become the savior.
During his journey, Luffy learned an important lesson.
To save his friend, sometimes he could let go of that stubbornness.
Vivi taught him how to ask for help for his friend. Unfortunately, nobody taught Ace anything.
No wonder Roger Pirates, despite knowing Ace was Roger's son, never bothered to go to Marineford.
In fact, if Ace hadn't joined Whitebeard, they would've helped him. Even if he wasn't Nika.
Simply because he was their Captain's son. But the moment he joined Whitebeard, it meant Ace could never walk in his father's footsteps.
That's what made Dragon so different from the rest of these people.
Dragon was just as stubborn. Despite his weakness, he stubbornly tried to help the people of the God Valley, tried to save Shanks, and to a certain extent, he succeeded.
Dragon could be very much stubborn like Luffy, who would go to any length to save his friends.
He could be tolerant like his father, who, despite knowing what Celestial Dragons do, still chose to work in the Marines to help ordinary people.
But he didn't.
He chose not to become either of them.
He rebelled against the Marines, against the World Government, but he didn't choose to save Ginny or Kuma.
Not because he was heartless, but simply because he couldn't make that move.
He was the center of the Revolutionary Army. If he died without making any progress, his death wouldn't serve its purpose.
Why hadn't he made any moves, and when he did, the first thing he did was to create a hunger riot.
For any other transmigrators, that might be laughable.
Because these people were given systems and powerful cheats, they could simply ignore the impact of their actions.
But because Tyler didn't become invincible after coming to this world, he truly understood the impact of that action.
Dragon wasn't doing small things. He was sending a message to the world.
Celestial Dragons could also go hungry.
He was telling the world they were not gods; they shouldn't be praised, they shouldn't be feared, they shouldn't be the rulers.
It's funny that among all the faces that Imu remembered, he didn't remember Dragon.
A man who was silently biding his time, trying to spread the influence of revolution under the radar of some of the most influential people.
Even then, Imu didn't see Dragon as a threat, and that's good.
One Piece might end with Luffy winning the battle, but this world would continue with ideas spread by Dragon.
Even if Luffy didn't free every single kingdom in the world, the people of this world would rise against their rulers' tyrannical rule in the future.
Luffy was the protagonist who would free the world, but it was Dragon who changed the world for the better.
Monarchy wasn't a good option for the people. Luffy could never change that because his friends were rulers.
Luffy wasn't fighting for freedom. All along, he was fighting for his friends. Of course, that's what made him different from Nika.
He wasn't a slave to his desire to free the world. He was simply doing this to save his friends.
But Dragon was the man who was truly fighting for the world. He didn't need to stay behind and take control of those countries.
Not because he was irresponsible, but because he could only save people who could save themselves.
The idea of revolution wasn't to overthrow the current rulers. It was to overthrow the very cancer that was destroying their kingdom.
So, he could help them once, but he needed them to learn from his revolution.
So that even after thousands of years since his death, people could still rise against the oppression.
In this world where Willpower reigns supreme, Dragon was arming every single ordinary person with the power to change the world.
They didn't need an absurd Devil Fruit. They just needed the Willpower to make the change, fight against oppression.
And that's what made Tyler admire this man more than the literal protagonist of this world.
(A/N- This is just what I think Dragon represents in the One Piece World. If Oda writes Dragon differently, then it's none of my business.)
That's why Tyler desires to become the King of the Dragons.