Leading the Lords with the Empress

Chapter 20: Using the Empress to Command the Lords

Previously, Leo didn't have a clear grasp of the Kuja Pirates' strength.

To him, the Amazon warriors of the Kuja Pirates were mostly a mix of simpletons and a few clever individuals, not "sharp" enough. Because the Empress liked him, they were all too gentle with him.

But only now did he realize that this was indeed a Shichibukai pirate crew.

Not to mention lone wolves like Jinbe, Hawk Eyes, and Kuma, but everyone else who became a Shichibukai invariably possessed a seasoned crew. For instance, Doflamingo's Spade, Club, Heart, and Diamond each had four top executives who had followed him from the start and were powerful individuals. Crocodile's Baroque Works also had ten subordinates who had eaten Devil Fruits.

Gekko Moria was a bit of an exception, but his subordinates were still strong.

Theoretically, the cadres of the Kuja Pirates, who were stronger than Crocodile and Gekko Moria, were on par with the top executives of Doflamingo's Donquixote Family. In fact, even without the cadres making a move, the ordinary warriors had already terrified the pirate crews who had intruded into the Grand Line.

Some Amazon warriors had not mastered their skills perfectly. Some pirates were nailed to the ship's hull and did not die immediately, instead letting out wails.

The more they heard, the more frightened the pirates became, and the five-meter-tall giant began to tremble.

In the One Piece World, there were even giants around one to two hundred meters tall, and those over two meters were common. It wasn't unusual to see individuals around five to six meters tall.

They had a significant advantage when fighting enemies below their eye level—they were powerful, heavy, and incredibly resilient, making it difficult for ordinary people to get close.

But clearly, in front of true "protagonists," this approach wouldn't work.

For one thing, those who had eaten Devil Fruits, even the weakest Zoan-type Devil Fruit, could easily swell their bodies by a third. The average height in the One Piece World was over two meters, which would become four meters after swelling. Coupled with the enhanced abilities and attributes after transformation, they would instantly be at a disadvantage.

For people like them, if they hadn't eaten Devil Fruits, it would be incredibly difficult to learn Haki in the first half of the Grand Line. Often, they would just become stepping stones for others, and their bounties would only serve to boost others' fame.

But honestly, in the first half of the Grand Line, especially in their hometown, such physiques posed a huge threat. Eighty percent of pirates couldn't defeat them.

The captain of this pirate ship wasn't just a brute with size; he had done his homework meticulously. It was only due to the navigator's dereliction of duty that they accidentally blundered into the Calm Belt. However, even in the Calm Belt, news birds would often pass by and drop newspapers—in fact, it was only by traversing the Calm Belt that news birds could deliver newspapers across the world so quickly.

Even in the Calm Belt, he could see the major announcements issued by the World Government.

One of them was that the Kuja Pirates, an all-female pirate crew located within the Calm Belt, had become one of the World Government's Shichibukai!

Cold sweat poured down his body. Facing death, he thought of many things and quickly made a judgment.

"Please wait a moment!" The body with great lung capacity brought a voice far exceeding that of ordinary people—the loudest in the entire Cutlass Pirates, their captain Big Cutlass William, shouted, "Please spare our lives!" he yelled.

"We have treasures belonging to pirates! Devil Fruits! Please, on account of us offering a Devil Fruit and all our treasure, spare our lives!" His voice echoed across the sea, even attracting the attention of a Sea King. A giant lion surged out of the sea. Its lower body was like a mermaid's, with fins and scales, while its upper body had a lion-like head. It was no more than a hundred meters long, but its head occupied half of its body, appearing incredibly large. It could swallow this Carrack in one bite.

However, suddenly, two slender snakes with black and purple stripes reared up, glaring at it, opening their mouths wide and hissing threateningly.

The lion's face clearly showed fear. It immediately turned and dived back into the sea.

The sea snakes did not return to the water. They stared fiercely at the group of pirates below, who had completely gone limp, with their mouths open, letting out drool.

Clearly, they didn't mind using these humans to fill their stomachs.

"Hancock, wait..." Leo suddenly spoke.

"If you want Devil Fruits, you can take them after we've killed them all." The Empress was about to give the attack order when Leo suddenly stopped her, causing her to turn her head and look at Leo seriously.

During the battle, the Empress had shown Leo a completely different side of herself.

She was heroic and exceptionally wise, ruthless towards enemies without being indecisive. Such a Hancock made his heart flutter.

However, Leo looked at the Empress with a smile. "I'm sorry, but I want to use them for an experiment, so please spare their lives."

"Since you say so..." Hancock looked at the sincere Leo with a blush. "Then let's spare their lives."

"Then let me handle the negotiations," Leo extended his hand to her. "Would you accompany me?"

"Okay, okay..." Hancock's face turned even redder. She was nothing like the heroic figure she had been moments before, as if she had completely transformed.

Time seemed to stand still. But when the attic door opened and Leo slowly walked down the stairs, holding the Empress's hand, all eyes were immediately drawn to them.

The pirates were instantly captivated by Hancock, their faces filled with excitement, their eyes turning into hearts, completely losing their senses to the Empress's radiance.

She could turn them all to stone with a simple snap of her fingers. The Amazon warriors of the Kuja Pirates, who were already somewhat accustomed to Hancock's charm, looked at Leo, who was slightly shorter and weaker than the Empress but showed no less imposing aura, and marveled inwardly: What a perfect couple, has that stinky man finally gotten it together?

"Everyone, please lend me your ears," Leo said, standing on the middle steps, using the Empress to command the lords, speaking loudly with borrowed authority.

His lung capacity wasn't large, but in the now silent setting, his voice easily reached everyone's ears. "The Kuja Pirates have decided to let you all go." He said loudly.

"But..."

PS: Everyone can guess what Devil Fruit it is.

PS1: Requesting recommendation votes, please vote~