The Fourth Emperor

After watching Gawain enter the captain's cabin, Tiago clenched his teeth and balled his fists tightly.

Pulling the whip from his back, Tiago turned around and slowly walked toward the slave traders, who were so terrified they looked dazed.

Doberman followed Gawain toward the captain's cabin. As he passed Tiago, he could not help quietly advising him.

"Although Saint Gawain hasn't sheltered these bastards, don't make too much noise either."

"I know!"

Tiago nodded in response, a cold smile appearing on his face.

"Saint Gawain is far more decisive than you, Vice Admiral. I like his orders!

He's different from the other World Nobles. I've already begun to respect him!"

With that, Doberman nodded and left, entering the captain's cabin.

Meanwhile, Tiago carried his whip over to the nearest slave trader.

Looping the whip around the slave trader's neck, Tiago pulled hard while ordering the surrounding Marines.

"Take these damned bastards off the deck and execute them on the dock. Don't disturb Saint Gawain."

"Yes, Lieutenant Colonel Tiago!"

The Marines immediately grew excited. Suppressing their cheers, they gagged every slave trader.

During that morning's battle, they had all lost comrades they had lived and fought alongside.

Of course they had anger in their hearts!

At the same time, inside the captain's cabin, Gawain stood by the window when Doberman entered, looking out at the sea beyond the dock beside the ship.

Looking at Gawain's back, Doberman swallowed. Although Gawain smiled most of the time, he always felt that this man was far more frightening than other Celestial Dragons!

Suppressing his nervousness, Doberman spoke softly.

"Saint Gawain, the warship will set sail shortly, and the process may cause the deck to sway slightly.

You should rest in my office chair for a while."

"Fine."

Gawain nodded and calmly sat down on the sofa. Only at that moment did he realize his legs had gone weak.

As a modern person, even though his experience as a diplomat had exposed him to small-scale wars and casualties, he still had not grown used to corpses right before his eyes.

Doberman did not know what Gawain was thinking. Seeing him sit down, he walked to his desk and bent down to rummage through a drawer for liquor and snacks.

Gawain did not recognize the liquor, but the snacks were very familiar: potato chips, shrimp crackers, crab sticks, and takoyaki.

After placing the snacks before Gawain, Doberman brought over a stack of newspapers.

"Saint Gawain, please have some modest liquor. Here are newspapers from the past few days for your reading. If you have any other requests, please feel free to give me your orders."

"This is enough already."

Gawain nodded and accepted the newspaper Doberman handed him. As he placed it on the table, he continued.

"I don't have any special requests. Just get us to Marineford as quickly as possible."

"Thank you for your tolerance and generosity, Saint Gawain."

Doberman let out a sigh of relief, then silently stood beside Gawain without moving.

Gawain did not actually like this atmosphere, but there was nothing he could do. After all, neither of them knew the other well.

So Gawain silently began reading the newspaper.

These newspapers were from the World Economic Journal, the only newspaper in the Pirate World.

That's right, the only one!

The Pirate World was vast, and transportation was incredibly inconvenient. By all logic, this world should not have had the conditions to sell newspapers.

After all, even if newspapers were printed, no one could find every ship and every island to deliver them.

But the World Economic Journal was different.

The president of that newspaper was named Morgans, a gigantic Albatross dressed in a suit and top hat.

Judging by his appearance alone, there was no way to tell whether he was a person who had eaten an Animal-Type Bird-Bird Fruit, Albatross Form.

Or a bird that had eaten a Mythical Zoan Human-Human Fruit, Jingwei Form.

In any case, he looked like a bird, and he truly could command countless seagulls.

Under Morgans's leadership, tens of millions of seagulls gathered outside the World Economic Journal's headquarters every day, waiting for reporters to hang the newspapers they were to sell around their necks.

Then the seagulls flew across the entire sea, delivering newspapers to every island and every ship.

Even if you were merely sitting in a small skiff, you would definitely receive a newspaper from a seagull. There were no exceptions.

Thus, ever since Morgans appeared, the World Economic Journal had rapidly grown into a necessity of daily life.

And at that moment, the very first page of the World Economic Journal Gawain was reading featured someone he knew extremely well.

The headline accompanying the photograph read:

<One Year Later: The Changes the Fourth Emperor Has Brought to the Seas!>

That was right. The man in the photograph was Red-Haired Shanks.

Seeing this, Gawain did not continue reading. Instead, he casually asked Doberman.

"Vice Admiral, could you tell me what you know about Red-Haired Shanks?"

"Of course."

Doberman thought for a moment before speaking softly.

"Red-Haired Shanks gained some fame in the New World long ago, but at the time, he did not even count as a Supernova and did not seem likely to amount to much.

Who would have thought that he would return directly from the New World to the Grand Line, brazenly break through our blockade, rob a World Government transport ship, and then hide in the East Blue for a full two years.

Because of that incident, his bounty rose to the level of 800 million for the first time.

When he reappeared from the Reverse Mountain direction of the East Blue, he did not linger in the Four Blues or the Grand Line. Instead, he quickly returned to the New World and immediately challenged Kaido and Big Mom at the same time.

After several years of war, it was only one year ago.

The Red-Haired Pirates tore enough territory away from Totto Land and the Beasts Pirates. Their vice-captain, Benn Beckman, had even fought Big Mom alone without falling behind.

After confirming the Red-Haired Pirates' achievements, Morgans used the title Fourth Emperor for Red-Haired Shanks in a newspaper for the first time around a year ago!"

"Wait."

Gawain noticed something.

"You're saying Red-Haired Shanks became the Fourth Emperor one year ago, rather than becoming one of the Four Emperors?"

"That's right, Saint Gawain. Before that, pirates had only ever had three so-called Emperors.

Long ago, the Three Emperors were Roger, Whitebeard, and Shiki.

After Roger became the Pirate King and was then captured and executed by the hero Garp, Shiki was also captured after storming Marineford alone.

From then on, the Three Emperors became Whitebeard, Kaido, and Big Mom.

The three pirate Emperors and our three Marine Admirals had maintained that balance of confrontation for a very long time.

Only after Red-Haired Shanks established his position one year ago and Morgans publicized it did the concept of a Fourth Emperor appear on the seas."

"Oh, Red-Haired Shanks only became the Fourth Emperor a year ago?"

After hearing Doberman's explanation, Gawain muttered thoughtfully.

"Then, Doberman, what year of the Sea Circle Calendar is it now?"

"Uh, Saint Gawain, it is now Sea Circle Calendar 1517."

"1517... I understand!"

Gawain nodded, then continued reading the newspaper.

Seeing that Gawain had stopped speaking and was absorbed in the newspaper, Doberman fell silent once more.

Before long, the warship gradually began to sway.

Feeling the movement, Doberman softly asked Gawain for permission.

"Saint Gawain, the warship is ready to depart. I need to go to the helm and give the order to set sail.

Please allow me to leave for a moment."

"Mm, do as you please. Just act as though I don't exist."

Without even turning his head, Gawain waved his hand. Doberman immediately left.

The moment he left the captain's cabin, Doberman hurriedly wiped his forehead. After wiping away the fine sweat, he looked at the tightly shut cabin door with lingering fear.

"This one's presence is truly overwhelming!"

After sighing, Doberman came near the helm and spoke to Tiago, who was currently smoking a cigar with a relieved smile on his face after taking revenge.

"Luckily, you dealt with the slave traders quickly enough for me to get a chance to come out and sail the ship.

If I'd had to stay in that cabin any longer, I probably wouldn't even have been able to stand!"

"How could that be?"

Tiago laughed heartily. At the same time, he waved his hand in a gesture to set sail. As his hand came down, the thunderous horn made Gawain in the captain's cabin jolt.

Once the horn faded and Gawain resumed reading the newspaper.

Tiago continued speaking to Doberman.

"Don't joke around, Doberman. Are you showing off because you can chat and laugh with Saint Gawain, whom I've decided to respect?"

"It isn't a joke. Saint Gawain gives off a very strange feeling. When facing him, I feel more pressure than when facing the Five Elders!"

"Aha, you've met the Five Elders?"

"I have. Three years ago, during the previous Reverie, I was responsible for guarding the member states of the World Government. That was when I met the Five Elders."

As he spoke, Doberman reached into his coat pocket and took out his Den Den Mushi.

Dialing, he continued.

"I won't chat with you anymore. I need to quickly inform Fleet Admiral Sengoku that Saint Gawain wishes to go to Marineford.

Oh, and after the call, I still need to return to the captain's cabin to attend to Saint Gawain. While I'm gone, make sure you keep the ship on course."

"Don't worry. I'll try to keep the ship as steady as possible," Tiago replied.