"Hahaha, what law should we enact today? How about a law that forces everyone to crawl? Walking upright is a privilege that only I, the noble king, can enjoy!" A large, fat man wearing a white shawl sat in the castle and laughed loudly.
Now, even his staunch supporters, the afro-haired Kuromarimo and the thick-lipped Chess, turned pale. Damn it, does that mean they'll have to crawl on their stomachs from now on, especially crawling along the ground in the freezing cold? Just thinking about it sends chills down their spines.
Kuromarimo quickly advised, "Lord Wapol, I personally feel that the laws you previously formulated are slightly flawed. They should reflect the differences between different social classes."
Chess rubbed his hands together and chuckled, "That's right, Lord Wapol. Think about it, the lowest-class commoners crawl, you walk upright, and people like us should walk with our heads down. The next level down are walking with our backs bent or kneeling. Do you think that makes more sense?"
"What good is rationality? Do I need to create rational laws?" Wapol gaped, his huge mouth agape like that of an enraged hippo.
"No, no, no, Chess means it will be more fun and interesting this way," Kuromarimo, who knew Wapol's personality well, quickly added.
"Oh? It'll be even more fun? Great, then let's make this law."
Dalton, who was standing to the side, could no longer bear it. "I object. How can the laws be made so frivolously? If people are really forced to crawl on the cold ground, many will definitely suffer frostbite or even die."
"You bastard, who asked for your opinion, Dalton!"
"My words are the law, this is the politics of the country. If you understand, then prepare to carry them out. This is the king's order!"
Bang!
The castle gates were opened, and a soldier rushed in, terrified, even managing to slip and fall several times along the way.
"Oh no, oh no! So many, many, many... pirates have appeared on the island!"
"You bastard, explain yourself! How many pirates have appeared?" Wapol had always kept a backup plan of becoming a pirate for himself, but that didn't mean he wanted pirates to appear on his island.
"I... I don't know either. Anyway, the mountains and fields are full of pirates. There are probably a thousand, two thousand, five thousand, ten thousand, or even ten thousand."
Wapol wished he could devour the messenger soldier whole; the number of soldiers fluctuating so wildly was astounding.
Dalton couldn't bother arguing with Wapol at this point. After all, he was the captain of the kingdom's guard and knew a bit about the news at sea. He knew that most pirates were vicious thugs who could easily massacre cities and towns, and there were quite a few great pirates who dared to conquer a country.
If they were to invade this country, the damage they would cause would be far greater than that caused by a foolish king.
So he first reassured the soldiers, and then asked in a rather heavy tone, "What else do you know? Don't be afraid, tell me everything."
"Giants, there are giants! There are two giants on their ship that are over ten meters tall! That's terrifying! They must be man-eating monsters. Oh, and I also heard them mention that they seem to be from a pirate crew called Phantom Sword."
"What? It's the Phantom Sword Pirates!" Dalton's expression was beyond serious. He knew that an enemy of this caliber was far beyond what his small Drum Kingdom could handle.
"Dalton, do you know anything about this group of enemies?" Wapol asked Dalton, generously indicating that he had forgiven them.
"Well then, let me give you a brief overview of the enemy. The Phantom Sword Pirates are a formidable force, estimated at between five and ten thousand men. They are all seasoned and ruthless bandits, and their captain is a notorious pirate with a bounty of 300 million. He once single-handedly defeated Doflamingo, one of the Shichibukai." Dalton himself grew increasingly desperate as he spoke; this kind of enemy was simply beyond their capabilities.
"What?" Wapol huddled together with the man with the afro and thick lips, hugging each other tightly for warmth. "How could such a great pirate appear in my kingdom? Quickly call the Navy to drive them away!"
Even if they were ignorant, they would understand the meaning behind Dalton's words.
"It's too late. Only a powerful navy can defeat a pirate of his caliber. By the time the navy arrives, he will have conquered our kingdom countless times." Dalton shook his head with a wry smile. Not to mention that Wapol has lost the hearts of the people and no one is willing to fight, even if everyone were united and of one mind, they would still be no match for this kind of enemy.
"Aaaaaah, whatever! Let whoever wants to be king be king! I hereby declare the Tinplate Pirates formed! Everyone, come with me to lay low for a while, and we'll come back when these pirates are gone!" Wapol waved his hand, exuding a sense of heroic pride.
"Lord Wapol is so wise! We swear to follow him to the death!" Kuromarimo and Chess shouted excitedly. As expected, Lord Wapol really knows how to handle things.
Dalton could hardly believe his ears. When the country was in trouble, the king was the first to think about fleeing, and he even had the nerve to talk about coming back later.
"Lord Wapol, please take back what you said. You are the king, how can you run away when you are most needed?" Dalton's veins bulged, and he was so angry that he almost transformed.
"What do you know? This is called a strategic retreat, preserving the last embers," Kuromarimo said with a disdainful look.
"That's right, this is politics, something a stupid ox like you would never understand," Chess nodded in agreement.
"Dalton, do you see that? This is the will of the people, this is the trend of the times. Alright, I don't have time to waste here with you anymore. I hope when we come back, we'll still see you saying these words with such conviction. Moo hahaha."
"No, by the time we get back, it'll be questionable whether we'll even see him again, hahaha."
Just as Wapol was laughing happily, he found that the surroundings suddenly became quiet, eerily so. The two goofy officers and the other kingdom soldiers seemed to be shivering, their mouths wide open but unable to utter a single word.
"Laugh, weren't you laughing happily? Why did you stop laughing?" A voice suddenly appeared, breaking the silence and startling Wapol.
"You... you... you... you... you... you..." Wapol turned around abruptly, looking at the pirates who were staring at him with ill intent and laughing all over the castle. He swallowed hard, feeling like a little lamb surrounded by wolves, pitiful, weak and helpless.