After leaving half of the cadres behind, Shanks took the remaining half of the cadres and boarded the fleet of Whitebeard.
When he saw the mermaid family on the boat, he was not surprised. New World All pirates knew that Fish-Man Island was protected by their Whitebeard.
This time Whitebeard surrendered to the Empire, and Fish-Man Island couldn't possibly be without movement.
The fleet braved the wind and waves and soon arrived at the customs of the Empire, after conducting some routine inspections.
Garp personally led the fleet of Whitebeard towards the core area of the Empire.
Garp looked at Whitebeard and sighed in his heart.
"Hahahaha, Whitebeard never thought that one day we would be in the same camp, but you come here as soon as you come, why are you taking this brat with you!"
Garp pointed at Shanks who was not far away eating meat and drinking alcohol with the Whitebeard crew and asked.
Whitebeard also had a smile on his face, "That brat wants to find the successor of Roger. Since he wants to go, let him go. There are always some missions in this sea, and some people will not give in until the end!"
"Hmph! You are still the same as before. What I dislike the most is your indifferent boldness!" Garp looked at Shanks with sharp eyes.
"It's best that what he wants to do has nothing to do with my grandson!"
"Oh ho ho ho!"
"Garp Are you so unconfident in the Empire? An era must have its final afterglow. I just want to see how brilliant the afterglow of our era will be!"
"What kind of afterglow can pirates have? I will report this matter to His Majesty!" Garp said with a solemn expression.
"Go and report it! With His Majesty's mind, I don't think he will care about this!"
Garp pursed his lips and didn't say anything more. But his eyes never left Shanks. He always felt that this kid had some bad intentions.
If he hadn't been on Whitebeard's ship at this time, he would have been unable to resist arresting Shanks, the big pirate.
Three days later.
Sabaody Archipelago.
Adventurer's Guild's current headquarters.
Yu met with Whitebeard and other people here, and held a grand medal awarding ceremony for S-Class Adventurer Group on the island.
This ceremony was attended by reporters from almost all news agencies around the world, making it quite grand.
When hanging the medals engraved with the spherical S symbol on the chests of Whitebeard and others, Whitebeard solemnly declared his allegiance to the Empire to Yu and his loyalty to him, the Emperor Empire.
This ceremony gradually reached its climax.
With Yu's speech under numerous flashing lights, he was completely pushed to the top.
"Some people say that Empire is a dictatorship. It is undeniable that Empire's system is a centralized model."
"But in the places ruled by the Empire, people have not fallen into oppression because of the Empire's dictatorship. We can see that all Empire's territories are open to the Empire people."
"Freedom! Because of this slogan, the world has fallen into an absurd era that started with pirates."
"But what I want to say is that freedom has never been something only pirates can possess. This world is colorful and beautiful, with vast seas, islands with different scenery, and various races with versatile talents."
"The combination of all this gives the world a beautiful picture. This picture never belongs to a certain person or a certain force."
"The world belongs to the Empire, and it also belongs to the people of the Empire. If you want to obtain freedom through crime, then whose freedom is this kind of freedom? Is it true that only the strong can have freedom?"
"And where does the freedom of those ordinary people come from? Do they deserve to be captured as slaves and someone's private property because of other people's freedom!"
"No! The world should never be like this. Everyone should have the power of freedom. Empire uses powerful power to limit the evil in people's hearts!"
"So we should not condone crime. This kind of freedom is always immoral. The real freedom should be to want to see every scenery in the world, to explore the footprints of our predecessors, to understand the customs of all races in the world, to respect them, and to treat them equally.
"This is the meaning established by the Adventurers Guild, the freedom to not harm others while pursuing freedom! Empire protects the freedom of every kind person with absolute power and absolute strength. I also hope that all adventurers understand that your freedom today is the freedom established by thousands of people who support Empire!"
When Yu finished speaking, there was silence below, and everyone looked at the figure on the high platform with either excitement or shock.
For the first time, they understood Empire's explanation of freedom, and also understood Empire's determination to fight against pirates.
Yes! Shouldn't freedom mean seeing the scenery you want to see, understanding the secrets of the world, and witnessing the glory of civilizations created by different races?
At this moment, everyone including Shanks who came with Whitebeard and others were a little touched by Yu's words, including a figure hidden under a black cloak.
After a moment of silence, the lights suddenly flashed more frequently, and an overwhelming roar sounded.
"Long live Empire!"
"Long live His Majesty the Emperor!"
"Long live freedom!"
Various shouts are conveyed to the entire world through the unique communication equipment of this world.
Everyone couldn't help but start to think about the meaning of Yu's words.
Freedom has always been the main theme of this world, but it is precisely because of freedom that it has also brought countless pains to this world, the pain of the weak, the pain of weak countries, and the pain of weak races.
However, because of these pains, it brought more intense pain to the world.
No matter how passionate the pirates in this world are and how much they love and care for their companions, it is still the pirates who have hurt this world the most from the beginning to the end.
But today, in Sabaody Archipelago, there is a dictatorial emperor who shouts that the world belongs to the people of the Empire, and freedom is established by the people.
This kind of inclusive and understanding mind almost instantly touched many ordinary civilians who yearned for freedom but were unable to change.
After Dang Yu left the ceremony, he went to see King Fish-Man Island's family.
At this time, Queen Otohime looked at Yu with a kind of yearning in his eyes.
Before coming here, he had always believed that the emperor of the Empire was domineering and would not allow others to rob him of his authority.
But after Yu gave a speech about freedom, she looked at the young Emperor Empire in front of her again, and she had a new understanding.
"Fish-Men King pays homage to His Majesty!"
"No need to be polite!" Yu nodded slightly, and then said bluntly.
"Whitebeard has already reported to me your purpose of coming. Regarding this, I can only tell you that Empire will carry out his decree as always."
"Empire will never allow another royal family besides me to exist. I hope you understand that this is not because Empire is greedy for power, but that there are no two days in the sky, and the country cannot have two kings!"
"But Your Majesty the Emperor, how can Fish-Man survive on his own without the royal family!" Otohime asked with some confusion.
"You think that without the royal family, the Fish-Man family will lose its backbone, but I feel that if the Fish-Man family really wants to integrate into the Empire, the royal family will be an obstacle."
"Do you know why Empire does not allow other royal families to exist? Because if there is a royal family under the Empire, then I would like to ask, does Fish-Men listen to the Empire or the royal family!"
"I know you will say that you will abide by the laws of the Empire, but in the Empire's view, having a royal family means that you are a complete country. A complete country means that you and Empire have different identities in addition to different races."
"In this way, you have negotiated to integrate into mankind and live in peace with mankind! I hope that in the future, you can call it Empire Fish-Men instead of Fish-Man Island Merfolk.
The former allows you to gain identity from the Empire, while the latter just keeps excluding you from the Empire center! You cannot obtain comprehensive protection from the Empire law."
As Yu explained, Queen Otohime fell into deep thought, and she gradually understood what Yu meant.
If Fish-Man Island continues to maintain the royal family, then Empire will be treated as a country, and then it will naturally be excluded from the Empire center of power.
But once the royal family is removed, it means that Merfolk has the same rights as the people of the Empire, can participate in everything of the Empire, and is fully protected by the Empire laws.
Thinking of this Otohime couldn't help but look at her husband.
The mermaid king's eyes kept flickering, and he understood that his choice today was very important to the future of the mermaid clan.
After a while, the Mermaid King finally made his decision, "Your Majesty, I, Merfolk, am willing to fully join Empire! I sincerely hope that in the future, Merfolk can walk freely in any Empire territory just like the Empire people!"
The Mermaid King suddenly crawled in the tunnel.
"Haha! Mermaid King, I said it doesn't have to be like this. There is no such thing as a kneeling ceremony in the Empire. We respect everyone's dignity."
Yu used his magic power to gently drag the mermaid king up.
"You can make such a choice, and I can also give you Merfolk a promise from my own mouth. Once Merfolk fully joins Empire, in the future, as long as it is within the territory of the Empire, it will not be subject to any discrimination!"
Faced with Yu's promise, both the Mermaid King and Otohime were trembling with excitement at this moment. They had learned through the navy that the emperor of the Empire once said that he was talking about the Constitution of Heaven.
The Fish-Man family finally no longer have to live with that little Fish-Man Island.
At this moment, the door to the world officially opens for them.
Shirahoshi on the side showed a trace of longing in his eyes.
This human being is so gentle!