Ancient Weapon—Pluton

In the pitch-black darkness, neither of them could make out the full appearance of the object. It was only natural for Junhe to have such doubts.

Nova did not say it aloud, but he already felt as though he might be dreaming.

It was truly unimaginable. The Pluton weapon that everyone sought was actually hidden within the Tru Kingdom.

No matter how he thought about it, it made no sense. Why would such a crucial thing be stored in the godforsaken South Blue?

There was almost no rust on it. A colossal warship built almost entirely of steel lay spread out beneath their feet. Given the technological level of this era, its existence was truly baffling.

"You don't need to know where this thing came from. At least for now, all it can bring to you, me, and the entire country is disaster," Nova said with a frown.

"Then what do we do now?" Junhe asked, unable to believe it.

"We leave. Bury this matter here for now. When our country has enough strength, we'll bring it out. At the very least, it can make our entire country completely different," Nova said.

"Yes, Your Majesty..."

It seems Pirate King Roger knew about this too. I never expected this thing to be here, Nova thought to himself.

After taking only one look, Nova immediately led Junhe back upward.

There was no need to say where the magnetic interference came from. It was clearly being emitted by this ship.

Such an enormous steel warship—forget about building it hundreds of years ago, even in the present day, Nova had every reason to believe it was a product far ahead of its time.

After much effort, the two finally climbed back up. They exchanged a glance and saw the same grave expression in each other's eyes. Junhe hurriedly replaced the stones where they belonged. From the outside, everything looked exactly as it had before, without the slightest change.

Standing atop the mountain once more, Nova slowly let out a sigh and gazed into the distance. The agitation and unease in his heart were written plainly across his face.

"Your Majesty, should we send people to guard this place from now on?" Junhe asked.

"No. Leave it as it is. This thing has remained here for hundreds of years without being discovered. If we guard it too deliberately and someone notices, we won't have the ability to deal with the consequences," Nova said calmly after taking a deep breath.

"Understood, Your Majesty."

"Let's go. We'll head back now. Don't alert anyone on the island along the way," Nova said.

They had come here full of excitement, hoping to find some treasure. He had originally expected perhaps a warehouse full of gold, but it turned out to be something so useless.

At least given the Tru Kingdom's current circumstances, it was utterly useless. Instead, it could bring about enormous trouble.

Royal Palace

After that incident, Nova and the others never mentioned a single word about their treasure hunt after returning.

Two years slowly passed. During those two years, Nova continued his daily exercise without interruption, completing the tasks provided by the system.

At the very least, he needed to obtain the things the system had promised him as soon as possible. The Three Types of Haki were the most important things to possess in this world.

Inside his room, Nova looked at his pitch-black hand. It was now hundreds of times harder than steel. Whether in terms of strength or speed, Nova had grown countless times stronger than his former self.

At this age, Nova had officially turned sixteen. He had grown to around 1.9 meters tall and had become a handsome young man with an imposing presence.

He now wore noble clothing every day. Without a crown, however, his short hair made him look especially refined and handsome.

Yet over those two years, the entire Tru Kingdom had undergone earth-shaking changes.

From the very beginning, the Perfume Trade had swept across the entire Pirate World. A bottle priced at 50,000 Beli intimidated many people, yet in numerous places, they still could not get their hands on any stock.

A single perfume product had already filled the Tru Kingdom's coffers, while also transforming the living conditions of the kingdom's citizens.

The hunger and poverty seen two years ago could no longer be found anywhere in the kingdom.

At the very least, smiles had begun to fill everyone's faces. Low production costs had created such expensive goods. The cost of producing a bottle of perfume was probably no more than one hundred Beli, and the kingdom produced enough every day to supply the entire Pirate World.

However, relying solely on a perfume processing plant was far from enough to raise the living standards of the entire population. So after the first year, perfume production had become a side business. The true main industry became the Loom that Nova had purchased from the system.

The cloth produced throughout the Tru Kingdom could not be found anywhere else in the entire Pirate World.

That was not merely because of the cloth itself. More importantly, even the threads used for weaving were all purchased from the System Space.

"Your Majesty, Your Majesty..."

Nova was in his room feeling out his Armament Haki when someone urgently knocked on the door.

Glancing at his iron-black hand, Nova immediately withdrew his Haki. As the black Haki slowly receded, his entire hand returned to its original appearance.

"What happened? Why are you in such a hurry?"

Nova opened the door and looked at the maid outside.

"Forgive the interruption, Your Majesty. The National Guard has just sent word that a shipload of goods dispatched seven days ago was seized by a group of pirates. Lord Gogoya and Lord Junhe sent me to ask for your instructions!" the maid said anxiously.

"Have they found out which pirates took it?"

Nova remained calm, without the slightest expression on his face, as though the matter had nothing to do with him.

"Your Majesty, they did not provide the exact details. But Lord Junhe is currently waiting for you in the royal hall."

"I understand. I'll go over now," Nova said with a slight smile.

Seeing Nova's smile, the maid became instantly infatuated. Her earlier nervousness vanished without a trace, and she stared at the king before her with a face full of admiration.

Nova did not waste any words. After giving her a glance, he headed toward the royal hall.

A shipload of goods could be considered nearly a week's income for all the people of the Tru Kingdom. It truly could not be lost.

Though his face remained calm, Nova was still very curious inside.

But in this era, cargo being robbed at sea was hardly something surprising.

After all, in an age when pirates ran rampant, aside from the Marines, there were practically only pirates on the seas. Where would ordinary merchant vessels even come from?

The moment he entered the hall, Nova saw Junhe pacing back and forth inside. The unease in his heart was already visible on his face.

"Your Majesty, you're here..."

Though Junhe was clearly anxious, he still restrained his emotions when he saw Nova arrive and respectfully greeted him.

"Where is Gogoya? Wasn't she responsible for the merchant ships? Such a serious incident happened to one of them, so why is she nowhere to be seen?" Nova asked calmly.

Junhe visibly lowered his head in embarrassment, his fists clenched tightly. He clearly looked furious.

"Your Majesty, Gogoya was worried that you would blame her. The moment she received the news, she ordered an investigation into which group of pirates had done this. She cannot come over for the time being, so I came to ask for your opinion," Junhe said.

"There is nothing much happening in the kingdom right now. And it seems someone may be deliberately targeting our country. Prepare a ship. Have Gogoya accompany me, and we'll take a look out at sea," Nova said.

"Your Majesty, let me handle this. The Tru Kingdom cannot do without you right now!"

"Say no more. You will stay here from now on. Protect the people of the kingdom well. Your strength is not weak either, so do not disappoint me."

Nova spoke with a smile.

He truly was not angry over the stolen cargo ship. There was no need for that.

But the goods aboard that ship were worth at least several billion Beli in total. That was a considerable sum, so he naturally could not simply abandon them for nothing.

"Your Majesty, how about I accompany you instead? As for guarding the kingdom, the people below are all quite strong now. They are more than capable of handling it!" Junhe said again uneasily.

"I don't trust them as much as I trust you. Stay in the kingdom. I won't be gone long, so just remain here and do your job," Nova said with a smile.

"Yes, Your Majesty..."

Junhe agreed helplessly.

If it were not for the Tru Kingdom, Nova would have long since gone who knew where. For someone who had always yearned for life at sea, staying in the country was truly boring.

"Oh, right. Where is Gogoya now? Tell her to find a ship and set sail at once. By the time we actually find the place, our goods might already be gone," Nova added.

"Rest assured, Your Majesty. I'll make the preparations immediately."

With that, Junhe hurriedly left the hall.

"The One Piece World belongs to my era, Nova's era. It is about to begin."

Standing in the hall, Nova smiled and muttered to himself.

The country now carried too many things for Nova. Since he had become its king, he naturally had to value everything connected to him.

Now that the entire kingdom had mostly stabilized, it was time for him to go out and take a proper look at this world.

The One Piece World was filled with unknowns, but in Pirate Era 1908, many of the remarkable people and events had yet to appear, let alone anything else.

Sitting on the ground, Nova began calculating the ages of the future protagonists of the Pirate World. He was seven years older than Luffy and five years older than Ace. So at this point in time, the Pirate World did not yet feel nearly as exciting as it would when the story began.

But precisely because of that, whatever excitement there was would be something he created himself.

As he continued thinking, Nova suddenly felt just how dull and boring the One Piece World was at this moment.

When Nova set out, nearly half the people of Lokaka City, which belonged to the royal palace, came out to see him off. Learning that their king was leaving on a long journey, every one of them was filled with excitement.

Most importantly, their king was setting out to sea because their country's goods had been stolen.

The streets were now packed with crowds on both sides. Every pair of eyes was so pure. To the children, Nova was practically their greatest idol.

The carriage slowly passed through the streets, and Nova continuously greeted the citizens along the way. The King's Guard followed behind him, and these people were now the strongest forces in the entire kingdom.

As the nation grew stronger, the Tru Kingdom National Guard had become far more powerful than any comparable Marine force.

They would depart through Naniwa Port. Gogoya had already fully prepared the ship needed for their voyage.

After several years of development, the Tru Kingdom had become far wealthier than before. At the very least, it was now capable of building an exceptionally luxurious ship exclusively for its king.

However, Nova had not seen it even once since it was built.

Looking at the enormous ship docked in the harbor, it was at least a hundred meters long from bow to stern. The Tru Kingdom's flag flew above it, swaying in the wind with a solemn and majestic air.

"Your Majesty, this is your exclusive ship. It has not yet been named, so please give it a name first."

Junhe spoke with a smile.

Two record keepers stood behind him, ready to preserve this moment for future generations.

Nova stared at the large ship before him. After thinking for a moment, he said, "Call it the National... the Tru Kingdom's Ship."

"It suits it perfectly..."

Junhe froze for a moment, then said excitedly.

"Enough of that. Where is Gogoya?" Nova asked Junhe directly.

"Your Majesty, Gogoya is somewhat afraid to face you. She is standing behind the crowd," Junhe said.

But upon hearing that, Nova's expression instantly turned cold. His voice carried anger as he said, "If everyone acted like this, how could the country continue? Making mistakes is not frightening. What matters is that she does not even dare face them. Is that acceptable?"

"My apologies, Your Majesty. I'll bring Gogoya over immediately."

Seeing Nova's anger, Junhe did not dare say anything else and could only hurriedly bow.