Furious Massacre

Wars between nations might retain some semblance of humanity, but these pirates had no such concept.

Wherever they went, they burned, killed, plundered, and looted, causing severe damage to the Tru Kingdom's overall economy. No one knew how many people had already died at the hands of pirates.

Junhe led the remaining members of the King's Guard in resisting the pirates' invasions one by one, but a few hundred people could only do so much.

According to their estimates, roughly forty pirate crews had invaded the Tru Kingdom so far, totaling nearly seven or eight thousand men.

This had placed them under tremendous pressure, forcing them to constantly scramble to respond.

During the five days Nova spent returning, news arrived from the Royal City almost every two hours. Yet every report was enough to fill one with rage.

While Junhe arranged for people to retreat toward the Royal City, he also had to organize resistance against both the pirates and the Roa Kingdom. The hardship involved was difficult to imagine.

The Roa Kingdom began attacking the Tru Kingdom just as Nova and the others arrived in Loguetown. Although the return journey took only five days, that was enough time for many things to unfold.

Fortunately, by the time they had pushed into the kingdom's interior, the giant ship National had already entered Tru Kingdom waters.

When it arrived at Naniwa Port, no one came to welcome Nova. Through the Den Den Mushi, he learned that at least thirty pirate crews remained within the kingdom. Their whereabouts were still unknown, but their target was clear: the royal palace.

"Pururururu..."

Nova picked up the Den Den Mushi and called Junhe. The moment the line connected, he asked sternly, "How far has the Roa Kingdom advanced?"

"Yes, Your Majesty..."

Noisy voices came from the other end, but Nova could tell it was not Junhe. It sounded more like other guards, and they seemed extremely agitated.

The Den Den Mushi mimicked their expressions in an exaggerated manner.

"Your Majesty, we are currently holding the Royal City. There are roughly three thousand pirates outside, and they are preparing to attack. Guard Captain Junhe is currently resisting the Roa Kingdom's assault."

Hearing the report, Nova's anger immediately flared. The thing he had worried about these past few days had finally happened.

The pirates had actually reached the Royal City. That meant most other places had likely fallen already. This kingdom had been in his hands for less than three years, and yet it had reached this state. It was undeniably his failure.

Nova's expression turned icy. Even his usual good temper seemed to have vanished without a trace. Back then, even when others made mistakes, he could not bear to kill them. He had never expected his restraint to invite such a disaster.

After getting off the ship, Nova did not wait for anyone. He headed straight for the Royal City at full speed.

The guards behind him also rushed toward the Royal City.

As for Gogoya, she remained aboard the King. The treasures on board were now worth two billion Beli in total. If she left too and pirates came, they would have no fallback at all.

At Nova's current speed, Naniwa Port was only ten minutes away from the Royal City. The fury within him had reached an indescribable level, and he no longer bothered to hide it.

He had no intention of sparing anyone who had committed crimes in his country!

The moment he reached the outskirts of the Royal City, he saw two sides locked in a fierce artillery standoff. Gunfire and cannon fire rang out without pause. Several thousand pirates stood below the city walls, each wearing an expression as though victory were already assured.

Nova noticed several Devil Fruit users among the pirates. They were not particularly powerful, but they were still enough to inflict considerable losses on his guards.

Only three days had passed since the fighting began, yet the entire kingdom had already become like this. Nova found it difficult to accept. They had trained for so long, but their actual combat experience was far too lacking.

They possessed great strength, yet in real battle, these guards were like ordinary people holding guns without knowing where to aim.

Nova's expression instantly grew sinister as he watched the pirates. Demon Blade Muramasa at his waist sensed his fury as well, and a crimson glow began to spread across its blade. The blade, eager to be drawn, seemed to form a whirlwind.

As Nova slowly stepped onto the battlefield, the guards and civilians atop the walls saw him and immediately began shouting. Every face was filled with excitement. No matter what, their king was the spiritual symbol of the entire kingdom.

Nova stood directly before the pirates. The momentum of thousands of pirates could not suppress him in the slightest.

"You pieces of trash dared to enter my country. Then from this day onward, I, Genji Chōno, in my capacity as King of the Tru Kingdom, sentence you all... to death..."

The moment Nova spoke the words "to death," the people throughout the Royal City erupted.

The Royal City had walls roughly five meters high. Besides the guards, many civilians who had come to help stood atop them as well. Every gaze was fixed below, eager to witness just how powerful their king truly was.

Of course, many among them were deeply worried as well.

More than a hundred guards leaped down in unison, preparing for a fight to the death. But just as they were about to act, Nova shouted, "All of you, stand down! Your duty is to protect the civilians inside the city. Leave these pieces of trash to me alone..."

Nova's voice was cold as his eyes fixed on the thousands before him as though they were already corpses.

Demon Blade Muramasa trembled constantly at his waist. It could no longer restrain its bloodthirsty desire.

Nova lightly placed a hand on the hilt. He stood still without moving, yet a gust of wind rose from nowhere. Then Nova vanished in an instant.

When he appeared again, pirates were already collapsing one after another. Before they could even react, their bodies had been torn into pieces.

In an instant, the area before the Royal City gates became a field drenched in blood. Every pirate who saw this was terrified.

The many pirate crews that had been brimming with confidence moments ago all wanted to flee at once.

But now that they had come this far, how could they possibly leave so easily?

"Men, we outnumber him! Don't panic! Charge together! The endless treasures inside the Royal City will all be ours! We've come this far—there's no turning back now!"

Just as the other pirates were preparing to run, a booming voice rang out. The lure of money gave their wavering hearts a sliver of reassurance.

Nova had completely gone blood-eyed with killing. His attacks were indiscriminate. No one could see his movements; they could only watch rows of people fall.

This time, he had no intention of leaving anyone alive. Since they had done such things in his country, there was only one road awaiting them: death.

The civilians and guards on the walls were seeing their king fight so fiercely for the first time. He moved freely through thousands of enemies alone. Though the scene was bloody, it was an incredibly thrilling spectacle for those watching.

When the guards from the National finally arrived and were about to charge in, the other guards stopped them and repeated Nova's orders word for word.

In less than five minutes, seven or eight hundred of the thousands of pirates had already died. But during that brief time, they began considering better ways to deal with him.

Fortunately, they were not a single pirate crew to begin with. Their shares of the profits had certainly not been divided evenly before, and there was resentment among them. As a result, they could not coordinate perfectly.

Though they still had considerable numbers, some of the weaker pirates had already been completely overcome by fear, their steps slowly retreating backward.

For these pirates, profit was all that mattered. But now that they faced such horrific losses, preserving their lives came first.

Yet since they had already come here, retreating was impossible.

Nova stopped amid the crowd of pirates. Not a drop of blood stained his body, and he looked exactly as he had when he first arrived. Only his eyes had turned deep crimson, making him appear exceptionally eerie and terrifying.

After absorbing so much blood, Demon Blade Muramasa had become equally strange. The blood-red glow on its blade was bewitching, yet it filled people with fear.

Having witnessed such a terrifying and bizarre scene, and having felt the overwhelming strength of the King of Tru, how could the remaining pirates still care about how much money they might earn? One after another, they turned and ran.

There were still at least two thousand pirates left. They fled in utter panic, and even the pirates with Devil Fruit powers were no different.

Nova did not hurry after them. There was no need.

Looking at the mess behind him, where not a single corpse remained intact and all had been ripped apart, Nova frowned and forcibly suppressed his nausea.

Such wanton slaughter was something he had never encountered before.

"Go capture every last one of them. They destroyed our country, so they will spend the rest of their lives rebuilding it for us!" Nova stood where he was, watching the scattered pirates flee as he calmly shouted to his guards.

"Yes..."

Hundreds of voices responded in unison. They had been waiting for this moment.

If there had not been so many ordinary civilians before, they could have fought without restraint. They had feared something might happen to the civilians, which was why the pirates had managed to reach the Royal City.

Now, these guards could finally cut loose and have a proper fight.

As for the Roa Kingdom, once they received news of the pirates' defeat, they would likely retreat soon.

This matter did not end with the pirates' departure. On the contrary, it was merely the beginning.

Nova had never intended to invade anyone else's country. Keeping to his own corner of the world had been perfectly fine. Yet some people simply could not stand it and insisted on stirring up trouble. That made him deeply displeased.

Around three thousand people in the Tru Kingdom had begun training in the Marine Six Styles, but only four or five hundred had truly mastered one technique or more. Thinking about it now, all of this needed to be placed on the agenda. A powerful nation could not rely solely on its king.

The Roa Kingdom's invasion was not entirely a bad thing. At the very least, it exposed the kingdom's internal problems. Issues involving administration, military affairs, and many other aspects had all been laid bare, which would greatly benefit future governance.

The Royal City was now completely secure. The alliance of pirate crews had fallen apart, and the King's Guard was pursuing them. At the very least, the people of the Royal City no longer needed to fear for their safety.

As the city gates opened, countless civilians surged out, shouting loudly. Many even began voluntarily collecting the bodies, since leaving them before the Royal City was far too unsightly.

Nova liked seeing the civilians so enthusiastic. At least three years ago, their faces had mostly been numb, devoid of any desire to live, having completely lost confidence in the future.

But now, every face was overflowing with smiles. That was something no one could fake.

As their lives grew more prosperous, Nova's support throughout the Tru Kingdom had reached an unprecedented height.

Though he was only fifteen years old, compared to the old king who had ruled for decades, how many people still remembered the old king's name?

"Long live His Majesty..."

"Long live His Majesty..."

The cries swept over like a tidal wave, including the voices of women and children. The children in particular held Nova in extraordinarily high admiration.

In this world of pirates, it was nearly impossible for women to earn money. But things were different here. There were two huge factories. One produced perfume, though most of its work was physically demanding, so the perfume factory was mainly staffed by men. The textile factory, however, was different. It was staffed almost entirely by women.

With the country now so prosperous, the next main objective was to strengthen the entire population!