The thought sent a chill down Gawain's spine.
If the Five Elders really all possess Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit.
That...
So, if they never intended to give me a Mythical Zoan in the first place, did they fundamentally... intend to...
No!
Wrong!
Gawain changed his mind after some thought, because he remembered something Shanks had just said.
Shanks once said that each of the Celestial Dragon families has its own customs!
So, perhaps not eating Devil Fruit, or even Mythical Zoan Devil Fruit, is what they believe to be... a tradition of their intruded Gawain Family?
While Gawain was pondering silently, Shanks noticed that Gawain was somewhat puzzled.
Shanks was stunned for a moment. This was a tradition among the various Celestial Dragon families, an absolute secret that every outstanding member of Celestial Dragon family had to know!
How could Gawain not know...?
Profound!!!
Suddenly, Shanks had an epiphany; he remembered Gawain's background!
The poor young man's parents died suddenly during a sea voyage.
So, perhaps this is why the secret of the Gawain Family has not been completely passed down!
With that thought in mind, Shanks let out a long sigh.
Why.
Putting aside Gawain's astonishing Conqueror's Haki and ideals, Gawain is just a young man in his early twenties.
What was I doing in my early twenties?
Back then, I was probably still trying to recruit this group of partners from Four Blues.
As he pondered this, Shanks narrowed his eyes, flapped his wings, and came to Gawain's side, gently patting Gawain's shoulder.
"In short, Gawain, you should know."
The vast majority of Celestial Dragon are useless.
But every Celestial Dragon family is an indispensable part of Mary Geoise.
Each family has its own way of driving and guiding the ocean economy, while also ensuring that the world remembers the Celestial Dragon's majesty.
Meanwhile...
Each of our families also has a member who participates in the most important work in Mary Geoise.
There's no need to elaborate on the Five Elders; these five martial gods have always competed to select five from the eighteen Celestial Dragon families to sit in the highest positions in Mary Geoise.
As for families without the Five Elders, the outstanding members of those families will join the God's Knights, becoming a supreme authority independent of the Five Elders system, qualified to judge the Celestial Dragon.
In this way, the thirteen families represented by the thirteen members of the God's Knights, together with the five families of the Five Elders, make up the eighteen families of the Celestial Dragon.
As for the remaining nineteenth family, and the last twentieth family...
As the last descendant of the Gawain Family, you should know about those two families, right?
"Certainly!"
Seeing how confident Shanks was, Gawain couldn't possibly show weakness at a time like this.
Meeting Shanks's intense gaze, Gawain looked up and glanced at the sky.
"The rest, apart from the Nefertari Family of Alabasta."
It's just... ha.
Are there only rulers who do not exist on that Empty Throne?
"But Shanks, are you sure that person won't find out about what you're telling me?"
"How could that be?"
Shanks chuckled at Gawain's question.
"Imu possesses the power of Zoan Dragon- Dragon-Dragon Fruit, Mythical Zoan, Nidhogg form, and also wields Uranus as a weapon."
But all that she had couldn't help her hear the whole world.
As for the bird that he had already mastered.
The News Coo that impersonated Morgans but was actually a member of the Marcus Family.
His seagulls are useful, but the area around us isn't a place any seabird can get close to!
So, feel free to chat; Imu will never know what we're talking about.
Although what you and I are doing is different, we are no different in that it is utterly rebellious.
I've always been careful about these things, don't worry.
As soon as he finished speaking, he reached out with his only hand and pulled out Gawain's wine gourd from his waist.
After taking a small sip of his drink, Shanks raised his gourd and clinked it against the flask Gawain had just taken out.
As Gawain clinked glasses with Shanks, his heart pounded wildly.
Damn it!
Damn it!
I think I've only been in this world for about a year, right?
Has Old Thief Oda suddenly become overpowered in the past year?
Just how many holes did he fill in and how many holes did he dig in that year?!
Shanks has become Devil Fruit User, and he's even named Griffin, the Gryphon, just like his Supreme Grade Sword!
The Five Elders have become... war gods?
No other Celestial Dragon has ever mentioned this title to me!
The Five Elders themselves couldn't possibly emphasize their respective titles of War God to Gawain.
So, isn't the world's background changing way too fast?
Only Imu...
Imu is actually the owner of the Mythical Zoan of the Dragon-Dragon Fruit!
Damn it, the Dragon-Dragon Fruit is incredibly powerful, because there's no such thing as an ordinary Dragon-Dragon Fruit that appears in the ocean!
The Dragon-Dragon Fruit is at least an Ancient Zoan dinosaur!
And the Mythical Zoan of the Dragon-Dragon Fruit...
It's still Nidhogg, the one who was entangled with the World Tree throughout his life in mythology!!!
Damn it, just a slight association with the story of Nidhogg and the World Tree.
Gawain always felt that Imu's abilities seemed to be filled with malice towards this Pirate World centered around the trees of Adam and Eve!
Beside him, someone seemed to have noticed from Gawain's expression that Gawain was actually unaware of these things.
Shanks chuckled, pursed his lips, and continued speaking to Gawain.
"I know that Alabasta is now your territory."
Although their king, Cobra, still sits on the throne, he not only cannot fully control his country, but he has also tied his daughter to your ship.
So be careful, Gawain.
After all, Alabasta holds a very special significance for Mary Geoise and Imu.
After all, there was Princess Lily back then.
His full name is... Nefertari D. Lily!
It is conceivable that the existence of Alabasta is a manifestation of some kind of conspiracy by Imu.
You should keep an eye on your little princess.
Gawain!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Shanks raised his wing and patted Gawain on the shoulder again.
And Gawain...
Everything Shanks revealed next really made his CPU burn out!
Nefertari D. Lily?!
So, this one of the twenty Celestial Dragon that refused to join Mary Geoise is actually Clan of D?!
Then... how did the Clan of D become the creators of Mary Geoise?
At the same time, why would the Clan of D become Mary Geoise's greatest enemy in the future?
Did Princess Lily betray Imu, or did Imu betray Princess Lily?
What exactly is this story?
After much thought, Gawain realized that he couldn't possibly find the answer based solely on everything he had come across.
Imu was too well hidden; even the Five Elders remained silent about Imu existence.
Without Shanks' explanation, Gawain wouldn't have had access to that information until he had already infiltrated Mary Geoise!
Thinking of this, Gawain's brows suddenly furrowed. He looked at Shanks and asked hesitantly.
"That's interesting information, Shanks. If the sea knew about this, it would be quite a spectacle!"
But... I want to know.
Information like this, which even I don't understand...
How did you know that?
It's not about the Five Elders or the Mythical Zoan; I could know those things too.
I'm talking about... Imu!
How do you know so much about Imu, Shanks!
What role did you play in it?
As he finished speaking, Gawain's gaze towards Shanks became more scrutinizing.
Meeting Gawain's scrutinizing gaze, Shanks smiled slightly and then responded.
"It's very simple. Although I've been on Captain Roger's ship since I had my memories,..."
But no matter how infectious the pirate lifestyle may be, in the eyes of my blood relatives, I am still just a Celestial Dragon has had a more decadent experience.
And my blood relatives...
Their identities are rather unique.
Moreover, my father...
Ha, that foolish man happens to be the current commander of the God's Knights.
And the God's Knights.
Although they do not have the power to control Mary Geoise, or even the entire world, like the Five Elders.
But they serve only one person and obey only one person's orders!
The positions of the Five Elders have changed constantly over the past eight hundred years. For example, you and your Gawain Family will probably become one of the Five Elders families in the future.
But no matter how time changes, the Figarland Family remains the master of God Valley and the leader of the God's Knights.
This identity obviously allows me to obtain more information.
The prerequisite for obtaining this information is that my father, other elders, and Imu believe that I am...
"I'm doing something that, while willful, will definitely benefit Lord Imu!"
At this point, Shanks put his right hand into the pocket of his shorts.
His wings trembled slightly.
Beside him, Gawain took a thoughtful breath.
"So, what so-called Air Force, Army, or even the largest navy and CP agencies."
These military forces that seem to support Mary Geoise actually have no real impact on the Celestial Dragon's rule over Mary Geoise, right?
The God's Knights, a knightly order composed of all the remaining Celestial Dragon families.
And... it could even be the Five Elders themselves.
These eighteen people are Mary Geoise's true trump card!
It is also the manifestation of Mary Geoise's supreme power!
"That's right!"
Upon hearing Gawain's words, Shanks nodded readily.
Shanks nodded and continued Gawain's words.
"So, Gawain, everything we're doing now is just a small fry."
Just as the World Government can let Garp's son become a Revolutionary Army leader, they are still willing to let Garp be a naval hero.
Because they don't care.
Just like they don't care whether you've unified the Navy and the Dark Bird Ship, or even half of the Grand Line.
Just like them, they don't care that I become the Emperors of the Sea, and now they've even stolen the Dyna Stone, bringing what I thought was pressure to Mary Geoise.
In their eyes, everything we do is just a boring game played by the younger generation.
We can't even make them nervous!
Shanks pulled his right hand out of his pocket and then ran his fingers through his hair.
While fixing his hair, Shanks looked at Gawain and continued speaking.
"For Mary Geoise, unless the God's Knights are mobilized, any unexpected event is nothing but a joke!"
Even if our war detonates the Red Line beneath Mary Geoise, the Five Elders' Mythical Zoan powers can easily reshape part of the Red Line's landscape, thus ensuring Mary Geoise's safety.
To date, even with our war reaching this point, not a single member of the God's Knights has appeared.
It's easy to imagine that even with so many powerful individuals gathered here, we are still just a joke in the eyes of Mary Geoise and Imu!
So, Gawain, you can't win this war, and I can't lose it either!
Even if it greatly affects our mutual respect, we both need to preserve our high-level combat power as much as possible if we cannot force the God's Knights to come out!
You should know that my ideal is not to lead pirates to defeat the Navy. The reason I stand up and stand at the forefront of the pirates to try to maintain an undefeated situation is because I need them to become my strength in the future!
The same applies to you. Even if you seem to have an excellent hand, in reality, a lineup that even the God's Knights couldn't force out is simply not enough to break Mary Geoise's absolute dominance over the world!
Even if pirates are indeed in your way right now!
You should think about it more.
Could these pirates blocking your path now become tools to pave your way in the future?
As soon as he finished speaking, Shanks took out a drink and clinked glasses with Gawain.
As he drank, Gawain took a deep breath.
"The God's Knights, the Five Elders' Mythical Zoan, and Imu, the shadow that lies beneath the world."
Wow, the secrets of this world are truly astonishing.
But even the most surprising content wasn't enough to change my mind!
At this point, Gawain took out his wine jug, which he had used for over a year.
Gawain casually tossed a flask to Shanks as he spoke.
"I intended to use these things at a more appropriate time."
But now, it's time for them to play their role.
Let us take our token and then fulfill the gentleman's promise between us.
Do not continue to lead your pirate forces in a desperate resistance.
I wouldn't ask you to cheat for me, Shanks, because I don't need to cheat. The ones who need to are you and your pirates.
Let's abandon all underhanded tactics and let the Navy, my subordinates, and the pirates fight it out.
"Winning or losing... that's up to them, but I don't believe I'll lose."
"Um."
Shanks nodded slightly in response to Gawain's words.
"It seems you have absolutely no intention of backing down in front of me, Gawain."
"But that's true, your age is truly enviable. At this age, you really shouldn't be doing anything that requires compromise or playing the victim."
As he spoke, Shanks pulled out a gourd.
Shanks casually tossed the gourd of wine to Gawain and said with a smile.
"Without my underhanded tactics, pirates would have a really hard time winning, so as a promise, don't hunt down future pirates."
Trust me, with a little guidance...
Those vicious and ruthless individuals will become a vital force standing in the way of the God's Knights!