Vasco Shot

The enormous surprise struck King Gilia, leaving him so excited that he could barely speak coherently. He could only keep repeating words of endless gratitude.

"Wait, I still have a few questions."

"Please, ask." He calmed his inner joy and sorted through his thoughts.

"A single Devil Fruit can create a powerful fighter. And an Ancient Zoan Devil Fruit, so long as its user's development isn't too poor, can produce one of the top fighters in the Four Seas. That's practically common knowledge across the seas. Why didn't you have one of your own people eat it? Why use it as a bargaining chip to ask for my help instead? The circumstances behind this can't be simple, can they?"

Honestly, if Roy's Observation Haki had not clearly told him that the king was not lying, he would have assumed the king was trying to deceive him.

The king looked troubled, but after some thought, he decided to tell the truth. "It all began a long time ago. An ancestor of our royal family obtained this Devil Fruit by chance. Overjoyed, he believed it was an opportunity for the Gilia Kingdom to rise. But his expectations for the fruit were far too high. He believed ordinary people were unworthy of eating it, and that only the strongest person in Gilia Kingdom's history deserved to consume it and lead the kingdom to greatness. So, he built an Underground Palace filled with traps and mechanisms, placed the Devil Fruit at its very center, and declared that whoever could clear the Underground Palace would be the strong person he acknowledged."

Roy was somewhat speechless. The thought processes of these kings really were bizarre. But what left him even more speechless was what kind of ridiculous Underground Palace could remain uncleared by anyone in an entire kingdom for so many years.

King Gilia knew what Roy was wondering and continued, "The descendants of that ancestor believed that, should this news spread, it might bring disaster upon the kingdom. So they sealed the information away and had each generation of the royal family attempt the trial. Unfortunately, we have been too disappointing. No one has ever brought out that Devil Fruit. Over the long years, the news even became a legend, with only a scattered few people knowing about it."

Roy curled his lip disdainfully. "They said they were afraid it would bring disaster? I think they simply didn't want the fruit to fall into someone else's hands. People's hearts are unpredictable. Who knew whether the person who obtained the Devil Fruit might want to overthrow the royal family?"

Still, that was fine. Otherwise, how would the Devil Fruit have fallen to Roy? As for whether he could obtain it, Roy was not worried in the slightest. Even if the Underground Palace truly was terrifying enough that he could not clear it with his strength, he still had other methods. Unlike those simple-minded royals, he knew how to adapt.

He could completely destroy every mechanism along the route, or simply pinpoint its location from above and dig straight down. There were plenty of ways.

"Alright, tell me about those pirates. Defeating a Marines Commodore isn't easy. After all, the Marines in the North Blue are usually at least somewhat competent."

King Gilia knew that speaking plainly might lead to unforeseen complications. But if hiding information caused Roy to underestimate his opponent and fail, it would be far too late for regrets. He could only grit his teeth and reveal the truth, hoping Roy would not be frightened away by the terrifying bounty.

"That pirate crew is called the Drunken Pirates. They originally had no reputation at all in the North Blue, but they became famous after conquering the nearby Ciss Kingdom some time ago. Their captain, Big Drunkard—Vasco Shot—was directly given a bounty of 50 million Beli. Rear Admiral Arita attempted to capture him in order to eliminate the negative influence, but he still underestimated Vasco Shot's strength and suffered a crushing defeat. Afterward, he declared that the pirate known as Big Drunkard likely possessed strength comparable to those great pirates with bounties in the 80 million Beli range."

Roy was deeply surprised as well. An 80 million Beli bounty was absolutely no small amount. Even on the Grand Line, such a figure would be a terrifying presence capable of intimidating countless others. Yet someone like that had suddenly appeared in the North Blue, with virtually no reputation preceding him.

"This is getting interesting. Big Drunkard... that title sounds rather familiar. Hmm, I can't remember. Forget it. Too troublesome. I won't think about it."

Hearing Roy mutter to himself, King Gilia was greatly alarmed. Lord Roy had heard that his opponent possessed the strength of someone worth 80 million Beli, yet he showed not the slightest trace of fear. Instead, he even seemed eager to fight. Could he also be the sort of person whose strength had been severely underestimated?

"Your bargaining chip really won't be easy to claim. Facing such a powerful opponent, even I would feel some pressure. But looking at it another way, if this were the latter half of the Grand Line, obtaining an Ancient Zoan Devil Fruit after fighting a pirate worth 80 million Beli would be an absolute steal."

"How is the situation now?" Arita asked with a grave expression.

"Reporting, sir! We have successfully shaken off the Drunken Pirates. After all, our warship outperforms theirs by far. However, there is bad news. Our warship suffered severe damage in the earlier battle and can no longer continue sailing for much longer."

"Is that so? What a shame. It seems we really can only resupply at the Gilia Kingdom. I hope the 25th Branch still has warships in good condition."

The Marines major beside him hesitated, but in the end, he could not help speaking. "Rear Admiral Arita, if we use the 25th Branch's warships in the Gilia Kingdom to escape, won't the people of the Gilia Kingdom become targets for the Drunken Pirates to vent their anger on? The Drunken Pirates are already a band of lawless and vicious criminals. Doing this could bring an irreparable catastrophe."

The major's words resonated with many others. For most Marines soldiers and officers, they truly upheld the banner of justice. Yet now, to save themselves, they were about to bring disaster upon civilians. It completely ran contrary to the ideals and beliefs in their hearts.

"Major, you need to understand that all of us are Marine elites. I am also the highest-ranking officer stationed at Water Marsh Fortress. If we fall here, the entire North Blue will undoubtedly be thrown into turmoil. That would only cause an even greater disaster. As a mature Marine officer, you must learn to weigh your choices." Arita's expression was cold, as though the life and death of an entire kingdom meant nothing to him.

"Only by returning alive can we create the greatest value, continue pursuing the ideals in our hearts, capture the Drunken Pirates, and avenge the people of the Gilia Kingdom."

"Yes, I understand." He shouted the words through tear-filled eyes. After all, it was not hard to infer from the rear admiral's final sentence what fate awaited the people of the Gilia Kingdom.

"Mm. There have always been sacrifices in war."