Ishtar Kingdom

Ishtar Kingdom.

This was a country in the North Sea that relied primarily on agriculture and animal husbandry.

But that did not mean its technology and development were backward.

On the contrary, it had highly advanced research in genetics and biology, using scientific planning for breeding and cultivating crops with superior genes to increase food production.

Then came mechanized crop harvesting and assembly-line livestock operations, all of which people could easily accomplish with machines.

Raising livestock merely required a bit more effort.

It could be said that in this country, even the poorest families would not go hungry as long as they were diligent and willing to work.

Besides its nickname, the Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Country, it also had another: the Island of Gourmet Food.

With an abundance of ingredients, people were free to use their imaginations to research and develop cuisine. Over time, this became a country where new dishes continually emerged.

It could be said that this was one of the highest-ranking countries in terms of happiness, not only in the North Sea but even among the Four Seas. Under the king's leadership, the people lived very satisfied lives.

Because the Ishtar Kingdom had not used its near-black-tech knowledge to do evil like the Vinsmoke Family, but instead applied it to improving people's livelihoods, the citizens deeply loved the royal family.

Not only that, the royal family placed great importance on national defense. Their tradition was for heirs to temper themselves in the military in order to protect the people.

In such an environment, where those above set the example, the people willingly enlisted to protect their homeland from pirates and even considered military service an honor.

At the beginning of this era's upheaval, the Ishtar Kingdom seemed only to have tightened its security. Internally, it appeared untouched by pirate raids, which was enough to show the nation's strength.

That day, a warship flying the Navy flag slowly sailed into the harbor of the Ishtar Kingdom.

"Oohhh~~~!! Is this the Ishtar Kingdom? Dawn is a prince from here??"

The moment she got off the ship, Sola, who had long been bored aboard it, could no longer contain herself. She grabbed Hina and jumped down, bouncing around the harbor.

"Sola, calm down." Hina was helpless before Sola's lively personality, though the two got along quite well.

"Ara ara, how does it feel to be home, Dawn?" Aokiji teased Dawn, who stood at the bow with a complicated expression. Dawn could only shrug helplessly.

"To be honest, this is all too sudden. I wasn't mentally prepared at all. If someone suddenly appeared one day and told you that you were the prince of some country, you'd be at a loss too, wouldn't you?"

As he said this, Dawn could not help sighing. Then he glanced at the excited Adolf beside him, unsure how to face this important figure at the "beginning of the story."

Honestly, Dawn still had not figured out how to deal with this outcome. He had never considered such things before; all his plans for the future had been built around improving his own strength and making plans based on what he knew of the future.

But suddenly having parents, and finding out they were royalty... that was rather panic-inducing. After all, Dawn had no desire to become his parents' little boy.

On the other hand, this had disrupted Dawn's previous plans. Yet it could not be denied that this country held a considerable position in the North Sea and even within the Navy, and this identity would bring Dawn many benefits.

The nation was not only wealthy, but its king was deeply loved by his subjects. Its technology was also sufficiently advanced. Even the Marine Branch of this country was staffed by the nation's own soldiers; once they took off their Navy uniforms, they were the king's soldiers.

Whether in terms of national strength or influence, it would be a great help to Dawn.

Even the Navy would not be able to treat him as an ordinary officer and order him around, because his primary status was heir to the royal family.

Of course, this also imposed some restrictions on Dawn. For example, he had to guard against enemies taking revenge on the country and pay attention to the nation's reputation and influence.

Taking in slaves, or doing certain gray-area things that even went against the World Government, would all require Dawn to be careful. His status had reached the point where a single misstep could affect the entire country.

That could be considered both gain and loss, but comparatively speaking, the gains outweighed the losses.

For example, as mentioned before, his future crew members could be placed on the roster of his own Marine Branch, while in reality remaining his own soldiers.

Both the Navy and the World Government tacitly accepted this right, since the two sides cooperated closely. Besides, the king himself had trained in the Navy, so he was considered one of their own.

Doing each other a favor was not a bad choice.

Of course, there were also Navy soldiers stationed at the branch. In truth, the king held only a nominal position; someone else was actually in charge.

However, the people of this country were not particularly enthusiastic about joining the Navy, because the king's army was more attractive to them.

After all, if they could eat and drink well in their hometown, how many people would be willing to leave their native land?

Another major reason was that the Navy could not participate in wars between nations.

The North Sea had never been a peaceful place. They also had to face invasions from neighboring countries, and being unable to defend their nation was something the people born here could not tolerate.

They held an unparalleled love for this country and felt proud and devoted to having such an enlightened ruler.

At branches throughout the Four Seas, the Navy generally recruited locally and stationed those recruits in the area. But in a country like this, the Navy was in an awkward position. The roles of both sides overlapped, and people valued their own army more than the Navy.

Furthermore, most of those who joined this country's Marine Branch were people of the Ishtar Kingdom themselves.

If you forcibly ordered them not to participate in wars between nations, they would apply to leave the service the next moment, then become soldiers of the king's army in the blink of an eye.

Fortunately, the royal family had close ties with the Navy, and even the king held a nominal position in it, so the Navy was happy to let things remain as they were.

Not only could it offer goodwill and preserve relations, but it could also save manpower to deal with the pirates of the North Sea. It was a win-win arrangement.

Naturally, the Marine Branch also had a contingent dispatched by the Navy stationed there. But most of the time, this place served as a transit and rest stop for pirate-hunting operations throughout the North Sea.

At the same time, it supplied food to all parts of the North Sea and to Marine Headquarters.

When Adolf had told Dawn about the Ishtar Kingdom, his face had been filled with pride.

From what Dawn understood, in this world of constant warfare, the Ishtar Kingdom truly gave its people every reason to be proud.

After all, a ruler who could protect his people and ensure they were well fed and warmly clothed was exceptionally rare in this world.

And he, Abraham Dawn, had become the heir to this country!