A Father and Son in a South Blue Kingdom!

Although the latest issues of major newspapers have not yet been published, the news of the 'Slave King's' arrest has already begun to ferment among the high-ranking officials of the South Blue countries, with undercurrents surging back and forth through the exchanges between Den Den Mushi communication devices).

In terms of the scale of the slave trade, the South Blue was undoubtedly the foremost of the four major sea areas!

Of course, this is also inextricably linked to the fact that the King Taklama cultivated the land there for decades and made outstanding contributions to the development of the slave industry.

The West Blue is home to the Mafia, South Blue is home to slave owners. These are the defining characteristics of these two seas. As a result, the latter has a more developed heavy industry, while the former has a more prosperous light industry.

The Yanade Kingdom is a typical South Blue nation.

At this moment, a young, handsome man with blond curly hair, dressed in a blue and gold nobleman's robe, walked up the steps towards the royal palace hall built of large white stones, under the watchful eyes of guards holding muskets on both sides.

"Father!"

The young man walked gracefully into the hall and respectfully bowed to the middle-aged man seated on the throne.

"Pericles, you've finally arrived! Come and see this!"

The king, wearing a golden crown inlaid with sapphires, immediately brightened with joy upon seeing his eldest son arrive.

He stood up, walked down from the platform, and handed over the intelligence report.

"Okay, please wait a moment."

The prince of the Yanade Kingdom smiled as he accepted the report and read it carefully. But as he read, his expression changed to be similar to that of the Wano Country before. Then he looked up and said...

"Father, I think we can't judge the situation in the Thutmose Kingdom by appearances alone. It indicates that the World Government is about to take significant action against the slave trade!"

"Yes, I thought of that too. I don't know what's wrong with the World Government. They've tacitly accepted things for hundreds of years, and now they've changed their minds so suddenly!" the king complained, rubbing his temples.

In the past, he believed that even if the identity of the King Taklama was exposed, the World Government would not allow the Navy to easily take action against him. But now, they arrested him without any warning!

"This matter has a significant impact on the South Blue, and an even greater impact on our Yanade Kingdom," Prince Pericles said, repeatedly glancing at the report in his hands.

Their country has always purchased slaves through various channels, with the slaves responsible for producing light industrial goods in factories. A portion of the proceeds from these sales is then used to feed and replenish the slaves.

The remaining land is used for various domestic operations and to pay the annual Heavenly Tribute.

In this way, they relieved all the people of their burdens and vigorously cultivated their management skills. The people only needed to improve their knowledge, pursue their hobbies, and exercise.

This is considered the national policy of the Yanade Kingdom, and all the kings of the past have governed the country in this way.

Because they found this approach to be very effective, the people below lived in a wealthy, comfortable, relaxed, and clean environment, and naturally, they wholeheartedly supported their royal family, thus making them one of the very few royal families in the world to have maintained their rule for hundreds of years.

Because of their successful model, many countries in the South Blue have followed Imitation Magic, and most of them have become even more extreme.

Legend has it that there was a kingdom called Saint Margaret, whose royal family and nobles turned all their citizens into slaves, using them not only as cheap labor but also secretly selling them as commodities when needed.

Prince Pericles said to the King, "If the World Government truly intends to crack down on the slave trade, or even ban slavery altogether, then we must be prepared in every way!"

"Actually, there's a rumor circulating in aristocratic circles lately that the Five Elders will raise the issue of a complete ban on slavery at the upcoming Reverie this year."

The king paced back and forth in distress, continuing, "I didn't take it seriously before, thinking it was just a ridiculous rumor, but now that the Slave King has been arrested, I have to be cautious."

Prince Pericles frowned upon hearing this, and seeing the king's agitated figure, raised his voice to remind him, "Calm down, Father!"

The latter was taken aback, realizing his lapse in composure. He shook his head and smiled bitterly, "I truly don't know what to do now. Without slaves, what will become of our kingdom? And what about..."

Finally, the king hesitated, and Prince Pericles asked in confusion, "Add what?"

"Well, I already told you. Margery III of the Saint Margery Kingdom just called me, hoping that our Yanade Kingdom can join their alliance."

"An alliance?" Prince Pericles immediately sensed something was wrong and quickly pressed, "Tell me in detail, what does he want to do?"

The king stepped onto the platform, sat back on his throne somewhat wearily, and said to his eldest son below, "He plans to secretly form a South Blue Alliance. He said that if this year's Reverie proceeds as usual, that's fine, but if the decision to completely ban slavery is passed, then they will respond through an alliance."

"They want to challenge the World Government?" Prince Pericles gaped, staring at the king in shock.

"No, what Margery III means is that she will not confront them directly and will try to avoid conflict as much as possible. However, the ban on slavery will be treated as non-existent within the alliance. Her attitude towards the World Government is to delay as long as possible. If there is really no way to retreat in the end, then she will fight them with the combined forces of various countries."

Prince Pericles paused for a moment, then said, "So, have you joined?"

"No, I just told him I needed to think about it, and that's why I'm so troubled by this!" The king shook his head and smiled wryly.

"Would you be willing to listen to my opinion?"

"I summoned you here to ask for your opinion." The king looked expectantly at Prince Pericles, for he knew that the other was far superior to him.

The latter raised his head and said decisively, "Then my opinion is to refuse, because this is an extremely foolish path to death, a path to the extermination of one's clan, and even a path to the destruction of one's country!"

The king was stunned by these words, while Prince Pericles continued his explanation.

"Back then, the Germa Kingdom was incredibly powerful, even dominating the entire North Blue Sea. More than twenty kingdoms were willing to follow them."

"But what was the result?"

"Sixty-six days, just sixty-six days, and they were completely crushed by the naval fleet sent by the World Government. How many more days can this so-called South Blue Alliance, composed of only a few kingdoms, last?"

The king nodded subconsciously after hearing this, but still felt unwilling and hesitated, saying, "What about the slaves? Our kingdom cannot be without slaves!"

"Father, which is more important, serious injury or death?!"

Prince Pericles shouted, "Free the slaves! We can hire them, and we don't treat them harshly. They are provided with basic food, drink, clothing, and shelter, and they are not allowed to be whipped arbitrarily. I believe some of them will be willing to stay and work."

"Even if we don't, doing so would only cause discomfort for a few years or a decade at most, which we can gradually adjust to. But if we were to confront the World Government, the best outcome would be to build a bridge in the East Blue together with all our citizens!"

This was the first time the king had seen his eldest son so excited. He suddenly laughed and said, "Pericles, tell me the truth, if I had told you just now that you've decided to join the South Blue Alliance, what would you have done?"

"."

Prince Pericles paused, then said softly after a moment of silence, "I will leave alone tonight, and then change my name and find a way to join the navy."

The king's lips twitched, and he asked, "Aren't you going to try to persuade your father?"

"Good advice is useless to a damned devil; once a decision is made, there's no need for further explanation."

A huge thank you to reader "Youqin Siwang" for the 500 Qidian Coin! bows Thank you so much!

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Thank you both so much for your encouragement and support. I hope we can continue to walk together in the future!