The Role of Reputation

Colonel Susa was ultimately disappointed.

His Majesty the King had not come in person. The one who disembarked from the ship was Crown Prince Aleus.

"His Highness Aleus, the Northern Army's Whale Tail Island branch welcomes you!" Suppressing the disappointment in his heart, Colonel Susa greeted Aleus with the utmost respect. However you looked at it, reinforcements were better than none. And, on second thought, the person who had come was the Crown Prince. How could he possibly be without powerful protectors?

At that thought, his disappointment gradually faded, and a glimmer of hope sprouted once more.

"Colonel Susa?"

Aleus studied the uniformed man standing at the head of the crowd.

The Ekmondo Kingdom's military system had been modeled after the World Government's Navy, though some changes had been made to avoid confusion with the World Government. The rank and file were still divided into first-, second-, and third-class soldiers; noncommissioned officers into upper, middle, and lower ranks; and junior officers into ensigns, lieutenants, and captains.

At the field-officer level, the ranks of major, lieutenant colonel, and colonel were the same as usual. But the kingdom also had an additional rank: senior colonel, which stood above colonel and was the highest field-officer rank.

Above that, there were no distinctions between commodore, rear admiral, vice admiral, admiral, or fleet admiral. There was only the General Rank.

Yes, General Rank was the highest.

The Ekmondo Kingdom currently had only two generals: the Minister of the Navy and the Imperial Guard Commander. As for senior colonels, there were only about a dozen high-ranking officers at that level, including the deputy commander of the Imperial Guard, the commanders of the Four Great Armies, and the captains of the various fleets.

By that measure, a colonel was already an absolute mainstay of the Ekmondo Kingdom.

There was one other thing: military rank was not determined entirely by personal strength. Naturally, a person with enough strength would be promoted, but even someone whose personal strength was nothing special could rise through the ranks as long as they had genuine achievements to their name.

Colonel Susa was one of the capable ones, and a loyal member of the Ekmondo Kingdom's own forces.

His personal strength was quite respectable. Even in the Navy, with a little luck, he could have made commodore. Otherwise, he would not have been assigned to Whale Tail Island to guard the last of the three northern gateways.

Seeing the troops behind Colonel Susa standing straight as pines in neat ranks, so quiet that not a sound could be heard, Aleus's eyes flashed with approval.

A talented officer who knew how to train his troops!

That was much rarer than an officer who could fight.

"Colonel Susa, General Foy has told me about you. You're very good at training troops. Five years ago, you represented the Northern Army in the joint military exercises of the Four Great Armies and took first place. Having seen you today, I can say the praise was well deserved. Your men are excellent."

"You're too kind, Your Highness. It's my duty. I was only doing what I was supposed to do."

Susa did not let such casual praise go to his head.

As a qualified soldier, he was still focused on how to face the approaching enemy. His sidelong glances kept wandering among Aleus's entourage, trying to spot the powerful person who had come to protect him.

"Colonel Susa, do you know any of these men of mine?"

Aleus had noticed Susa's rather clumsy little movements. He turned to look at the attendant officers and other assorted subordinates following him.

"Ah? No... I'm sorry, Your Highness Aleus. Please forgive my rudeness. I'm still thinking about how we should fight the battle ahead." Susa decided not to hide it. Being direct suited him far better than being tactful. He widened his eyes and scrutinized the entourage behind Aleus, then spoke bluntly to him:

"I'm not very good with words, but I still have to say this: the enemy is coming on strong. Without someone truly powerful, guns and fortifications alone won't be enough to stop them."

What he said was, in truth, quite an affront to a soldier's pride.

But that was simply how the world worked. Setting aside the level of the Four Emperors and the Three Admirals, any Great Pirate with a bounty of over a hundred million could mow down armies single-handedly. No matter how many ordinary soldiers with guns you had, it made no difference.

The overwhelming strength of individuals had created a different set of rules for warfare.

Soldiers fought soldiers, and generals fought generals. That was how things were usually done in this world. Of course, if one side didn't have enough powerful fighters, they could only make up the shortfall with the lives of their troops.

And Susa had not seen a single famous powerhouse from the kingdom among Aleus's entourage.

They were all young people he barely recognized.

"I see."

Aleus nodded to show that he understood.

Susa had not recognized anyone among the men he had brought. He had been looking to see if there was some hidden big shot among them.

So,

this was the role of reputation.

His Majesty the King and the ministers had seen the Crown Prince's abilities with their own eyes, which was why they had felt confident entrusting Aleus with the war. But Colonel Susa had no idea how formidable the Crown Prince, who had always kept a low profile, really was. He only knew the kingdom's few renowned powerhouses.

"I understand your concerns, but... don't worry, Colonel Susa. This war will be over soon." Aleus smiled and patted him on the shoulder. Colonel Susa wasn't very tall, only a hundred and ninety-seven centimeters, so patting him on the shoulder was easy.

The attendant officers behind Aleus all broke into brilliant smiles as well, looking at Colonel Susa with cheerful grins.

Colonel Susa furrowed his brow, puzzled.

Could one of these people be a mysterious expert he didn't know about?

Whale Tail Island was exactly as its name suggested.

The island was shaped just like a whale's tail, a little like an underdeveloped three-leaf clover. Its narrow base pointed toward Whale Belly Island to the north, while the space between its forked tail fins formed a natural harbor facing south. It had only one harbor, so whether you came from the south or the north, anyone hoping to land a large force had to make their way to Whale Tail Port.

Therefore,

whenever war broke out, Whale Tail Port often became the main battlefield.

Aleus had only disembarked to meet Colonel Susa and make an appearance to boost the morale of the troops on the island.

In the end, he returned to his flagship.

He had not moved his quarters to the island. As Crown Prince, he was confident that his flagship's luxurious interior could not be matched by any estate or hotel Whale Tail Island had to offer. He was comfortable on the ship, so there was no need to move back and forth and make a fuss.

He would simply wait for the Amento Kingdom's fleet to come to him. After the battle, they would still have to head north to retake Whale Belly Island and Whale Head Island. Depending on the situation, they might even be able to go farther.

On the deck,

a large parasol had been set up.

Aleus reclined in a lounge chair, looking through the materials his father had given him before he left.

"Ghost Sword, Venkura, bounty of 105 million Berry... I remember this guy has been pretty active these past few years. I didn't expect him to be one of Umit's men. And then there's Skull Hunter, Magic Ball Sorcerer, Strangling Ghost, Black Beast... The King of Maritime Transport really does have formidable forces!"

Every name belonged to a Great Pirate with a bounty of over a hundred million.

Moreover, none of them were publicly known to have any connection with Umit. In other words, all these pirates were Umit's secret agents, hidden from the world. If the Ekmondo Kingdom hadn't paid a hefty price to buy the intelligence from the Queen of Pleasure District, they might never have learned that Umit was behind it all.

Just looking at these hidden agents was enough to make anyone marvel at how formidable a giant of the Dark World could be. He was no paper tiger.

Umit had the nerve to reach out to the Ekmondo Kingdom because he truly had the strength to back it up.

"But there's always a risk in reaching too far."

Aleus tossed aside the file and gazed at the setting sun sinking toward the horizon. The boundless sea had taken on a hazy golden glow.

Just then,

the Den Den Mushi rang.