Fellow Townsmen, Open Up! We're Here to Talk Business!

Kael's voice quickly carried outward, soon stirring up a commotion among the crowd.

Although Kael's group had subdued Alvida the moment they appeared, the civilians present did not feel relieved. Instead, they grew even more worried.

By now, quite a few people had recognized Kael and spotted the pirate flag flying on the Tiga...

No one could guarantee that Kael and his group would be kinder than the Alvida Pirates.

At the very least, Alvida only wanted money, not lives.

Who knew what Kael, who had committed crimes in Loguetown, wanted from them...

What if he really did like young girls, just as the rumors claimed...

Then things would only get worse!

At that moment, a restless murmur suddenly rose from within the crowd.

Before long, a middle-aged man in his forties or fifties slowly stepped out of the crowd.

From his gait, it was obvious that he was deeply reluctant.

Still, he slowly made his way beneath the platform, removed his hat, and said tremblingly:

"Th-this, sir... I'm the mayor of Ville Town..."

"May I ask what you require?"

"Oh? So it's you?"

Kael paid no attention to the townspeople's reactions. He merely smiled at the mayor, then gestured with his chin.

"Come up and talk."

"Ah?"

The mayor froze for a moment, but after a brief pause, he made up his mind and shakily walked onto the platform.

Yet the moment he stepped onto it, a massive object was tossed down in front of him.

"Alvida, a pirate with a bounty of 5 million Beli. You know her, right?"

Kael narrowed his eyes as he watched the mayor of Ville Town.

"I-I do. I know her."

Unable to make sense of the situation, the mayor nodded repeatedly, afraid that if he nodded too slowly, he would be turned into a golden dumpling like Alvida.

"Good. It's good that you know her."

Kael smiled and murmured lightly, then kicked Alvida and rolled her onto her back.

"I'll sell her to you for 4 million Beli. How about it? Pretty cheap, right?"

"Ah?"

The mayor was stunned, staring blankly at Alvida on the ground.

Before he could figure out what was going on, a disdainful voice suddenly rang beside his ear.

"What? Don't tell me you're unwilling?"

The mayor looked up at the sound and met a pair of threatening eyes, as though he would be devoured if he dared say no.

Frightened out of his wits, he nodded again and again.

"I'm willing! Very willing!"

Aside from being intimidated by Kael's presence, he truly was willing to make this deal.

He could resell her for an immediate profit of 1 million Beli. Who would turn down a deal like that?

Except...

Would this pirate really be so kind?

The mayor's heart was uneasy.

But just then, an arm suddenly landed around his shoulder.

"That's more like it!"

At the mention of money, Kael's expression immediately returned to normal, as if he had not just been threatening someone.

After being transported here for so long, this was the first time Kael had truly earned Beli.

It could be considered his first pot of gold.

Of course.

These 4 million Beli were merely an appetizer.

The real main course came next.

After settling Alvida's ownership, Kael draped an arm around the Ville Town mayor's shoulders and forcibly turned him around, then pointed at the Alvida Pirates' ship with a smile.

"Mr. Mayor, do you know why you have over a thousand people, yet you were still persecuted so badly by a pirate crew with only a few dozen members?"

The mayor blinked blankly.

Then, in an uncertain tone, he answered:

"Because... because we don't have weapons?"

"That's right!!!"

Kael suddenly raised his voice. One hand pointed at the cannons on the pirate ship, while the fingers of the other curled into claws and dug into the mayor's shoulder.

"Look at that ship..."

"Right now, you're like sheep penned up in a pasture."

"And that pirate ship is a hungry wolf that has entered the pasture!"

"When gentle sheep see hungry wolves approaching, all they know is to run away and seek help from the shepherd..."

"They never think of growing sharp horns of their own and piercing those wolves' bellies!!!"

As he spoke, Kael suddenly tightened his arm around the mayor, making him feel the swelling heat in his veins and allowing him to better immerse himself in what Kael was about to say.

"Imagine it with me..."

"If your harbor were not a place anyone could land at whenever they pleased, but had a row of cannons with a range of several nautical miles; if your townspeople were not merely farmers who bent over in the fields, but soldiers who could pull out muskets at any time and give their enemies a volley..."

"How would those bandits, who were only fit to wave around swords, spears, and clubs, dare invade your homeland!?"

"You must understand!"

"Truth exists only within the range of cannon fire! Dignity exists only upon the edge of the sword!"

After practically roaring out this warning from his previous life, Kael immediately turned his gaze toward the mayor.

Seeing that the middle-aged man seemed stunned by his momentum, he pressed his advantage at once, his tone becoming weathered and wistful.

"Mr. Mayor."

"As far as I know, because there are few islands around Ville Town, you rarely interact with the outside world. You can only survive by selling crops, fruits, vegetables, and other goods to passing merchant ships..."

"And because the nearest Marine base is three days away by sea, pirates visit this place several times almost every year."

"I'm not wrong, am I?"

"...Th-that's right." The mayor lowered his head painfully.

No one knew their own affairs better than they did.

As the mayor, he had the most to say about how difficult life in Ville Town was.

Yet Kael simply grinned, and his tone became impassioned once more.

"In that case, why not arm yourselves and become strong on the sea!!!"

"Think about it..."

"When those people who live without working remember this town again and come here looking for another easy score..."

"What greets them will be deafening cannonballs and bullets that bore straight into their bones!"

"What they bring is their greed!"

"But what they leave behind is their lives!"

"Tell me, under such circumstances, what pirate would dare set foot here!?"

"As long as you have a life of lasting peace and stability, what is there to fear for Ville Town's future!?"

"Th-this..."

As though he had been drawn in by the future Kael described, the mayor's eyes suddenly brightened.

But soon, his gaze became clouded again.

Perhaps afraid that refuting him would bring trouble upon himself, he hesitated for a long time before speaking.

"That won't work, sir."

"Even if we had cannons and muskets, we simply couldn't afford cannonballs and bullets."

"Without enough cannonballs and bullets for practice, even if we had cannons, we still wouldn't be a match for pirates."

"Oh? Is that so?" Kael smiled faintly, showing no displeasure at the mayor's words.

He brushed the dust from the mayor's shoulder and said frivolously:

"Then, would you like to make a deal with me?"

"A deal?" The mayor was puzzled. "What kind of deal?"

Kael smiled. "What if I could provide you with cheap cannonballs and bullets year-round..."

"Would you have the confidence to protect your own home with your own hands!?"

"What?"

The mayor was stunned again. Looking at Kael's expression, he bent slightly at the waist and respectfully asked:

"May I ask, sir, just how cheap would the ammunition be?"

"How about half the market price?"

A foxlike glint appeared in Kael's eyes.

Upon hearing his words, the mayor's eyes immediately lit up, and he hurriedly looked up at Kael.

"Do you mean that, sir!?"

Half the market price?

Wouldn't that mean that even if they did not use it to arm themselves, they could make a fortune just by reselling it?!

Of course, he would not do something as foolish as draining the pond to catch the fish.

But no matter how he looked at it, his side stood to make a huge profit from this deal.

The only question was...

The person making this business deal with him was a pirate.

And not just any pirate, but a famous one!

Wait...

Thinking about it that way, didn't he have even less reason to refuse?

If Kael got angry and simply looted Ville Town clean, the ones suffering would still be him and the townspeople.

After only a brief consideration, the mayor made up his mind.

"Fine! I accept the deal you've proposed, sir!"

"Excellent! Excellent!"

Kael put an arm around the mayor and patted his shoulder affectionately.

Anyone who did not know better would have thought they were old friends reunited after years apart.

But then, Kael abruptly changed the subject again.

"Oh, right! While I can sell you things like cannonballs at half price..."

"I can't sell those cannons and muskets at a loss..."

"At most, I can give you a little discount!"

As he spoke, Kael pointed at Alvida's pirate ship again.

He was clearly borrowing another's offering to honor a guest, yet he acted as though it had always been his property.

"Alvida's bounty, along with that sailboat and all the guns, cannons, and ammunition aboard it, comes to 25 million Beli..."

"What do you think?"

"This..."

The mayor of Ville Town's eyes shifted.

The instant Kael pointed at Alvida's pirate ship, he had already guessed what Kael intended to do.

Honestly.

With Alvida's bounty deducted...

20 million Beli for all those things was already quite cheap!

But the problem was...

Ville Town was merely a small island that survived on agricultural and related products.

For them to produce so much money at once would practically empty their savings.

Fortunately, they had not been ruled by pirates like Arlong, so the townspeople still had some savings in their homes.

After thinking it over for a long time, the mayor finally gritted his teeth and agreed to Kael's offer.

"That price is very fair. Could you please wait a moment, sir? I'll gather people to raise the money right away."

"Mm, just don't make me wait too long."

Kael chuckled as he released the arm around him and patted his back, signaling that he could leave.

Having received his instructions, the mayor did not dare delay. He immediately jogged off to discuss the matter with the townspeople.

After hearing the mayor relay Kael's demands, they held a quiet discussion and quickly reached the same conclusion as the mayor: this was a deal that would bring Ville Town nothing but benefits!

With this medium-sized sailboat, they could sell their products to other islands themselves in the future.

They would no longer have to wait for merchants who drove prices down mercilessly to come buy from them!

That way, they could earn more money!

With more money, they could buy more weapons and gain greater security!

It was a positive cycle!

Very soon, with Kael's permission, the residents of Ville Town who had gathered at the harbor began heading back into town to raise money for the weapons that would protect them.

Under Tashigi's swift assault, the few dozen minor pirates in town, who were not even worth bounties, had long since been cut down and left sprawled across the ground.

Some were dead, while others were wounded...

The entire Alvida Pirates had, at this moment, been completely erased from the stage of history.

Meanwhile, Kael focused his gaze on the only man from the Alvida Pirates who could still stand...

Small and slightly pudgy, barely able to remain upright as he trembled, his eyes filled with terror and tears...

This person was Coby, the pink-haired boy who would one day earn the title "King of Deserters," yet was now so frightened that he did not even have the strength to run.

Kael had not forgotten that Alvida's pirate ship carried such a...

"Big shot."