The Benefits of Status

Even if Dawn wanted to set out to sea and become a pirate, it would not have been realistic for a child. He would have been wiped out in minutes.

Ever since arriving in this world, Dawn had been planning for his future.

He was "lawful good," but that did not mean he had to devote his life to serving one faction, especially with a bunch of scum sitting above him.

At the very least, Dawn would need the identity of a Marine for a long time to come, both to move around freely and to build up his strength and reputation.

After all, you had to take things one bite at a time.

However, the change in status Adolf had brought Dawn could be said to offer him tremendous help.

Although it disrupted Dawn's plans for development, this identity would allow many of those plans to be carried out ahead of schedule.

As for Dawn's plans...

Before they were put into action, they were nothing but worthless fantasies! Dawn had not even accomplished the first step of his plan—growing stronger to protect himself. Losing those plans meant no loss at all!

On the contrary, the status of a kingdom's heir could give Dawn better prospects.

Having quickly accepted his new identity, Dawn was now talking with Adolf. Something as bizarre as transmigration had already happened, so what was so strange about his original body being a prince stranded overseas?

Some people transmigrated straight into becoming Celestial Dragons, or came with systems built in. His little bit of status was nothing worth mentioning.

Having swiftly accepted his new identity, Dawn began proactively asking Adolf about the Ishtar Kingdom. Through Adolf's explanation, Dawn gained a more direct understanding of it.

First of all, his country stood with the Marines and was considered fairly powerful in the North Sea. The king—his father, in other words—was a wise ruler who loved his people like his own children.

Thinking about it, that made sense. If he were some absurd Tyrant, the people would already be living in misery, let alone the kingdom selling grain abroad. They probably would not even have enough to feed themselves.

Second, his identity did not bring him many negative effects. Being a prince would not conflict with his staying in the Marines; on the contrary, this connection would earn him special consideration.

Did that mean he seemed to have become a little freer? He had people backing him now~

"Then can I recruit some crew members? Put them under the guise of guards, have them become Marines, and let them sail the seas with me as companions?"

The general idea was that, as a prince, the king would certainly send people to protect him. But since he was a Marine soldier rather than a prince within the Marines, those guards would need to wear Marine uniforms to save the Marines' face.

Meanwhile, Dawn could make some moves when selecting those guards and train them into his own crew.

Though the roundabout explanation was a little dizzying, the advantage was that it would let the Marines acknowledge Dawn's right to have a private force.

After all, what would it mean for Dawn to have guards within the Marines? But if they wore Marine identities, things would become much easier.

As long as it looked acceptable on the surface, that was enough.

But this would bring Dawn far more benefits. Many things would become much easier to arrange.

For instance, if the crew he recruited were Marines in name, he could still use the Marines to train his companions. Even if it required merit, as long as they were allowed to learn the Marine Six Powers, it would be a good thing.

After all, if you were not a Marine and wanted to learn the Six Powers, the Marines would probably see you as a thorn in their side and hunt you down.

At that thought, Dawn's eyes lit up. Previously, all he had in the Marines were factional ties and the Marines' influence. But if he could recruit his own crew, they would definitely be more like true companions.

Then he would be in a semi-independent state, answering orders but not every summons, preserving his own independence. That would give him far more room to maneuver.

Just thinking about it felt wonderful.

Shaking his head, Dawn cast aside those unrealistic thoughts for the moment. Strength was indispensable if he wanted to achieve that.

Besides, even if he could use the memories in his mind to lure people over, he could not just casually take anyone away. To recruit some people, the most basic requirement was sufficient strength.

So in this world, without strength, everything was difficult.

Still, some necessary planning could be done... Dawn could not help rubbing his chin as he thought.

"Prince Dawn, after you drip blood onto your nameplate, a special mark will appear. Please be careful not to reveal it casually." Adolf, who had been watching Dawn lost in thought, suddenly spoke in a somewhat serious tone.

"Oh? So this nameplate has secrets I don't know about? Was that how you recognized me?"

Dawn had noticed earlier that Adolf had stepped forward and covered the nameplate in his hand, then directly tucked it into his clothes. He had guessed there was something that could not be shown to others.

"My apologies, Your Highness. Prince Gaius must personally explain that matter to you." As he spoke, Adolf bowed in apology.

"It's fine. Then we'll wait... wait until we reach the Ishtar Kingdom." After thinking about it, Dawn decided that since they treated it so seriously, he should wait until he got there.

Besides, cutting himself for no reason would hurt. Looking at it would only leave him with more questions, so he might as well wait and see the answer directly.

"Mr. Aokiji is on the phone right now. Don't worry. Once this matter is handled, there should be a ship to take us to the North Sea."

As he spoke, Dawn scratched his head. Suddenly having someone so respectful beside him felt incredibly awkward, and the two fell silent for a moment.

In that strangely awkward atmosphere, Dawn could not hold back any longer and was the first to find a topic.

"By the way, Adolf, how did you get captured by pirates?" Dawn was very curious about that. As a royal butler, Adolf should have been in somewhere as safe as the palace.

"It is embarrassing to say. His Majesty saw that I had been working hard and gave me leave to rest and relax properly. I arranged to go sea fishing with an old friend, but I was captured, while that friend was shot and fell into the sea. I don't know whether he lived or died..."

As he spoke, Adolf's expression darkened somewhat. Watching his friend fall into the sea with his own eyes while being powerless to help was a painful thing.

Well, the state of the world was truly something else if pirates could show up even while people were out sea fishing.

"Sorry, Adolf." Dawn felt even more awkward. He had randomly picked a topic, only to end up poking at a wound.

"It's all right, Your Highness. Meeting you was a blessing amid misfortune. I imagine His Majesty and the queen will be very excited when they receive the news as well," Adolf said with a sigh.

"Oh, right... You said our family has experience training in the military. What level is the old man's strength at?" Dawn asked curiously.

"Your Highness once said that he had sparred with several Commodore friends in the Marines. At most, he could only fight them to a standstill. As for victories, he had none."

Adolf sighed. "It is truly unimaginable that the Marines are already so powerful, yet they still cannot stop those pirates sailing the Grand Line. I wonder how terrifying someone like Whitebeard, who is sung of as an evil demon, must be."

Dawn could only shrug at that. Perhaps for most ordinary people, they truly could not understand why someone as terrifyingly powerful as Whitebeard existed in the world.

After coming to this world, Dawn had realized that ordinary people's demands for life were truly very low.

So low that they were humble to the point of wretchedness.