The Aftermath of the Goth Kingdom

Just as Ryan and his group were heading toward Reverse Mountain, Kuzan, the Marine Headquarters vice admiral known as Aokiji, finally arrived at the Goth Kingdom with the Marines.

At this moment, the Goth Kingdom was at a crucial point in the struggle for the throne. Some of the princes had already been defeated and were no longer capable of competing for the throne.

The Goth Kingdom was now mainly divided into two factions. One was the faction supporting the legitimate crown prince, while the other was Jarvan's faction, which had recently risen rapidly with the support of the minister of the interior and several powerful nobles.

After the king's death, the minister of the interior recruited several powerful nobles. After all, as long as Jarvan ascended the throne, the Goth Kingdom would be theirs to control.

The eight-year-old Jarvan was merely a puppet they supported. Thus, the vast majority of the nobles in the kingdom joined Jarvan's faction.

Two princes had already been dealt with, leaving only the crown prince. Given the current situation, it seemed the crown prince would not hold out much longer either.

The dead king might never have imagined that after his death, his throne could be inherited by Jarvan, whose impure bloodline he had always despised.

While the king had been alive, the nobles naturally would not have dared harbor any rebellious thoughts. After all, the king's rule was deeply rooted in the people's hearts, and while he was alive, no one would have dared oppose him. But he was dead, and his death had come far too suddenly.

The Royal Guard, which had been controlled by successive kings, remained neutral in this struggle for the throne. They were all descendants of the king and qualified to inherit the throne. When the king died, he had not designated his successor.

Without the Royal Guard, the strongest trump card belonging to the palace, the princes naturally could not defeat Jarvan, who was supported by most of the kingdom's nobles.

As for Pofitas, he had already gone out to sea to chase after Ryan once he had finished handling the king's funeral arrangements.

It was precisely because the minister of the interior had sealed away news of the king's death that Kuzan had not received any information on his way there. By the time he arrived, Ryan had already left.

After arriving at the port, Kuzan did not linger and went straight to the Marine branch. His arrival naturally drew the attention of interested parties.

Inside the palace, a young man in his twenties was whipping a servant kneeling on the ground while cursing him.

"Damn it, damn it! I'm the first heir to the throne, yet those nobles actually support that bastard!"

Just then, a middle-aged man walked in.

Perhaps he had grown tired from beating the servant. After seeing the newcomer, the crown prince waved for the servant to leave. The servant kneeling on the ground hurriedly crawled away.

"Uncle, you're here. Is something the matter?" the crown prince asked first.

The middle-aged man found a chair and sat down before saying calmly, "Crown Prince, have you already given up?"

Hearing this, the crown prince said angrily, "How could I? I will never let that bastard become king."

"It's just that the power formed by those united nobles is too strong." As he said this, all the strength seemed to drain from the crown prince.

"There is still hope." The middle-aged man smiled mysteriously.

"What hope are you talking about, Uncle?" Hearing that there was still hope, the crown prince immediately rose from his seat and asked anxiously.

The middle-aged man then told the crown prince about Kuzan and the others.

"You mean we should ask the Marines for help?" the crown prince said thoughtfully.

"That's right. With our current strength, we certainly can't defeat them. But with the Marines' support, things will be different. You should know that Aokiji is known as a monster!"

"But I've never heard of anyone asking the Marines for help in a struggle for the throne." The crown prince appeared somewhat hesitant.

It was clear that the crown prince had already been tempted. The middle-aged man continued, "This is our final hope, Crown Prince."

"No matter what conditions the Marines demand, we must agree. Otherwise, that bastard will become the king of this country."

Hearing this, the crown prince finally stopped hesitating.

The crown prince then took the middle-aged man to visit Aokiji at the Marine base that very night. No one knew what they had discussed. They only knew that when the crown prince came out, a smile that had not appeared for a long time was on his face.

After the crown prince left, someone in a dark corner witnessed this and quickly headed toward the inner city.

"What did you say? The crown prince went to seek help from the Marines?" The minister of the interior was furious when he learned the news.

The news had come from the people he had sent to monitor the crown prince, so its authenticity was beyond doubt.

The minister of the interior had not expected the crown prince to seek outside assistance.

Jarvan, watching the enraged minister of the interior, sat there with a look of panic on his face.

How long did it take for someone to go from a lowly bastard to the person with the greatest hope of inheriting the throne? The answer was ten days.

Although Jarvan was still young, having suffered hardships from an early age had made him more mature than some children in their teens. Hardship would make you lose certain things, but it would also give you other things in return.

Jarvan had lost his childhood and gained an unyielding will and a mature mind. Without these two things, Jarvan would have died in this cold palace long ago.

If one asked whom Jarvan most wanted to thank now, the answer was—

It was not the minister of the interior, who was standing there in anger, but Ryan, the man who had changed his fate through his own efforts.

Without the king's sudden death, he would never have had an opportunity. Without Ryan's rampage in the palace, Jarvan would never have come into contact with someone like the minister of the interior.

As for the king's death, Jarvan was not sad in the slightest. He was even happy.

Just as the king had never treated him as a son, Jarvan had never regarded the king as his father. Besides, the king had killed his mother.

Jarvan's feelings toward Ryan were complicated.

There was gratitude—gratitude that Ryan had changed his fate.

There was admiration—admiration for Ryan's formidable strength.

There was envy—envy that Ryan could live freely and do whatever he pleased.

There was fear—fear that the king's fate would one day befall him as well.

Looking at the furious minister of the interior, Jarvan said weakly, "The Marines aren't the World Government. How can they interfere in a struggle for the throne?"

The minister of the interior was just about to scold Jarvan when he suddenly thought of something and burst into laughter.

"That's right. If the crown prince can seek help from the Marines, then I can seek help from the World Government as well."

He then went out to arrange the matter.

This left Jarvan alone in the vast room, silently contemplating, having deeply concealed his contribution.

Inside the palace, the crown prince happily told the middle-aged man what he had just discussed with Aokiji. After hearing it, the middle-aged man also laughed.

"Your Highness is wise. The Marines certainly won't be able to refuse the conditions you offered."

"Of course. Military funding has always been a problem troubling the Marines. I offered them one billion in military funding every year."

"With one billion in funding every year, they'll be able to lose far fewer men. Of course, that's assuming I become king."

The two exchanged a smile and drained the wine from their cups.

As for where the money would come from, neither of them said. In their hearts, exploiting the common people was only natural.

Marine Headquarters—Marineford.

Sengoku was reporting the news Aokiji had just conveyed in Kong's office.

"Marshal Kong!" Sengoku looked expectantly at Kong, who was sitting in the marshal's chair.

"Sengoku, you should know that our Marines have never set a precedent of interfering in a struggle for the throne."

"I know, but Marshal Kong, one billion in military funding every year can help us recruit many more Marines. We can also replace our weapons, which will allow far fewer people to die each year."

Sengoku continued, "There are more and more pirates now, but our annual military funding remains the same. With this money, things will be easier for us."

Kong fell silent. How could he not understand this reasoning? The Marines had it too hard during the Great Pirate Era.

After a long while, Kong sighed. "Then go ahead and do it. If the World Government holds us accountable afterward, I'll take full responsibility."

"Understood." Sengoku spoke excitedly.

Watching Sengoku leave, Kong sighed. "This is the last thing I can do for the Marines."

If the World Government did not pursue the matter, that would be fine. But if it did, he, the Marine admiral, would have to step down early.

"Looks like the plan to capture Redfield, the Crimson-Haired Lone Wolf, will have to be carried out ahead of schedule. We've prepared for so long, so there shouldn't be any problems."

Looking at the starry sky, Kong muttered to himself.

Two days later, in the Goth Kingdom's palace.

The minister of the interior had brought Jarvan and a group of nobles to confront the crown prince and the other royal forces. Both sides wore faint smiles, as if victory were already assured.

"Crown Prince, stop resisting. This is the inevitable trend. All the kingdom's troops are in my hands now. What can you use to resist?" The minister of the interior gestured toward the soldiers behind him with the swagger of a victor.

"I am the legitimate heir. That bastard can never become king. You have an army, but do you think I have no support?" After saying this, the crown prince quietly asked his uncle, "Uncle, hasn't Aokiji arrived yet?"

His uncle replied, "We already notified him. Everything was agreed upon yesterday, so he shouldn't go back on his word." He gave the crown prince a reassuring smile.

The soldiers of both sides immediately began slaughtering one another inside the palace.

The minister of the interior looked at his trusted subordinate and asked, "Has everything been arranged?"

"Rest assured, my lord. The Marines definitely won't interfere. That lord has already agreed."

"Good."

The minister of the interior then quietly watched the soldiers fight in front of him.

Suddenly, everyone felt the temperature drop sharply as a chill swept over them. In the next moment, all the soldiers engaged in battle turned into ice sculptures, and a Marine wearing a justice cloak appeared at the palace entrance.

"Ah la la, stop fighting."

Seeing Ryan, the crown prince immediately straightened his back.

Someone cried out in alarm, "The monster known as Aokiji!"

The minister of the interior shouted, "The Marines cannot interfere in the internal affairs of an allied country!"

Aokiji remained silent. There was nothing he could do—the price they had offered was simply too high.

The crown prince laughed arrogantly. "It seems the final victor is still going to be me."

Just then, the Den Den Mushi inside Aokiji's clothes began to ring.

"Bili-bili."

Seeing it, the minister of the interior said to Aokiji, "Vice Admiral Aokiji, aren't you going to answer the call?"

Aokiji picked up the Den Den Mushi and answered it. Kong's voice came from the other end.

"Kuzan, you cannot interfere in another country's internal affairs. Come back."

"Marshal Kong!"

"Come back. This is the World Government's order."

Ten minutes earlier, people from the World Government had found Kong and explicitly warned the Marines not to interfere in the Goth Kingdom's internal affairs. Otherwise, next year's military funding would be halved. They had also expressed that the five lords above were very displeased with the Marines' actions this time.

After Aokiji left, the crown prince also died in the palace.

Looking at the dead crown prince, the minister of the interior laughed loudly. "This kingdom belongs to us from now on."

He did not notice the killing intent radiating from Jarvan beside him in the slightest.

The minister of the interior was completely unaware that Jarvan, whom he had supported, was not a puppet, but a beast that had been suppressed for far too long!

After nearly two days of traveling by sea, Ryan and his group finally reached their destination—Reverse Mountain.

Ryan did not know, however, that at the entrance to the Grand Line ahead, a man sitting quietly on a coffin ship had already been waiting for him for a long time.