Aokiji Arrives

Nova glanced at Gogoya, who was blocking his path. Judging by the nervous look on her face, she had clearly been waiting here for quite some time.

"What happened?"

Nova asked directly. It was already so dark that faces could barely be seen, though the courtyard lights still made it possible to make out her expression.

"Your Majesty, what happened in Loguetown has made the newspapers. The Marines have probably discovered it as well!" Gogoya said nervously.

"Go back and get some rest. I already knew about this."

Nova had indeed anticipated it long ago. Loguetown was the Marine base in the East Blue, so it was perfectly normal for many people to be watching it.

"But, Your Majesty, shouldn't we be worried about this?" Gogoya asked again.

"There's no need to worry about the Marines. Going by the usual timeline, they'll probably send someone over to investigate in the next few days. Even if this matter has been exposed, it won't be a problem," Nova said calmly.

"I understand."

The weight in Gogoya's heart finally lifted. She let out a sigh.

Still, she felt that her king must have been hiding many things from them. Yet it was not her place to ask too much.

Nova merely smiled and said calmly, "Go back and rest early. Don't worry about anything else."

"Then please rest early as well, Your Majesty!"

Watching Gogoya's retreating figure, Nova still did not regard this incident as anything serious.

Since he had dared to take the King's Guard out for a stroll, he naturally was not worried about being discovered by the Marines.

After arriving in this world, he had thoroughly learned about everything. He was hardly the only one who knew the Marine Six Styles.

Zephyr had already left the Marines. As a former Marine Admiral, Nova knew very well what the man intended to do next.

However, he still could not guess who Marine Headquarters would send, nor how they would arrive. In any case, he already had a response prepared. No matter who came, the result would not change much.

For this Roa Kingdom campaign, Nova had no intention of heading to the front lines. He could safely leave everything to Junhe.

In the entire Roa Kingdom, Nova did not believe they could find anyone stronger than Junhe.

Although Roa Kingdom covered slightly more territory than Tru Kingdom, their total military strength was nearly the same.

While their weapons were roughly comparable, Roa Kingdom was severely lacking in almost every other aspect.

The biggest issue was food supplies. Nova had the system, and as long as he had money, he could supply food without limit. Roa Kingdom, however, was different.

The newly appointed king had indulged in personal pleasures to the point that the entire nation was suffering. The people were filled with resentment. This had been especially common a year ago, and many Roa Kingdom citizens had wanted to join Tru Kingdom. Some had indeed already come over.

After hearing of Tru Kingdom's benefits and standard of living, most people had no desire to fight, including some within Roa Kingdom's own military.

Nova had come up with an even more vicious plan for the battlefield. Using the System Space, he produced hundreds of thousands of propaganda leaflets and sent them all to be distributed along the front lines. Before long, Roa Kingdom was plunged into severe internal strife.

War did not always have to rely on force. Other methods could work just as well.

From the beginning of the war until its end, Nova never showed his face even once. In less than five days, Junhe led the King's Guard all the way to Roa Kingdom's Royal City.

This was the westernmost point of Roa Kingdom. Once the Royal City was taken, Roa Kingdom would cease to exist in the Pirate World.

The expansion of Tru Kingdom was not merely an increase in territory. More importantly, its population would nearly double. In this era, that was what mattered most.

To become a regional overlord, one first needed territory, then population. Once the population grew, there would be enough people to cultivate. At the very least, there would be no need to worry about the next generation lacking powerful individuals.

The war had entered its sixth day, and the domestic situation had completely stabilized. At least, the previous state of unrest would no longer appear. The people's economy had also begun to show an upward trend across the board.

However, just as Nova continued familiarizing himself with his Devil Fruit abilities, he suddenly opened his eyes and smiled faintly in the direction of the sea.

He was still in his back garden. Then Nova headed straight for the shore.

As his mental strength increased, his Observation Haki, which the system had granted him in an advanced form from the start, had become much more refined in his hands.

He did not even need to deliberately sense anything to know that a guest had arrived.

Leaving the palace grounds, Nova came to the beach closest to the palace. This was the very place where he had first obtained the system.

After looking around, Nova sat on a fallen dead tree by the edge of the beach and waited quietly, his gaze fixed on the distant sea.

Sure enough, just as he had expected, before long, a man slowly rode over from the sea on a bicycle.

Wherever the bicycle wheels passed, the surface of the sea automatically froze, supporting the man's weight.

"Yo yo... little brother, could you tell me how to get to the Tru Kingdom palace?"

As soon as Aokiji rode his bicycle ashore, he saw Nova resting in the distance and asked leisurely.

"May I ask what brings you here?" Nova asked with a smile.

Aokiji was nearly two meters tall, at least a head taller than Nova.

The moment he came ashore, Aokiji simply laid his bicycle down, then walked over and sat beside Nova.

He sat there lazily, seeming barely interested in Nova's words, but he still said, "I came to find your king. There are a few things I want to ask, so could you take me there?"

Aokiji had seen what Nova looked like. The photograph had been taken recently, so how could he possibly fail to recognize the young man before him?

He merely wanted to probe for information. After all, his purpose in coming here was simply to understand the situation.

"I can, but for a Vice Admiral from Marine Headquarters to come in such a manner seems a little improper, doesn't it?" Nova said with a smile.

It was not as if he did not recognize Aokiji. Even if he had not recognized the man himself, anyone could have guessed who he was from the way he crossed the sea.

"Yo yo... I didn't expect you to recognize me, little brother. That's quite surprising," Aokiji said lazily.

He was not curious about how Nova knew his identity. But now that things had reached this point, there was no longer any need to speak indirectly.

Nova was equally curious. Even before coming to this world, he had held a favorable impression of Aokiji. Among the Marines, Aokiji was one of the few people Nova found agreeable.

The two sat together on the dead tree, chatting easily and casually, like two old friends who had not seen each other in years.

With the sea breeze blowing across the beach, it was not particularly hot. More importantly, Aokiji possessed the Ice-Ice Fruit.

"General Aokiji, would you be interested in accompanying me on a tour of Tru Kingdom?" Nova asked with a smile.

"That sounds troublesome. If possible, I'd rather lie down somewhere and rest for a while. But since King of Tru has invited me, I suppose taking a look won't hurt," Aokiji said.

"Perhaps there may even be something here that satisfies you. After all, once you return to Marine Headquarters, you'll need to report on our country. Naturally, I should give you a proper tour."

Nova's leisurely words made Aokiji turn serious. He had not expected the other party to have already realized why they had come.

Of course, he had already been surprised once, so Aokiji would not believe that the king of Tru Kingdom had simply been relaxing here and happened to run into him by coincidence.

At the same time, he became deeply curious about Tru Kingdom.

When they appeared again, the two were walking one after the other along the streets of the Royal City.

Along the way, people continuously greeted Nova, calling out, "Greetings, Your Majesty..."

"It seems the people of this country deeply admire you. I really can't imagine how a kid like you managed it."

Aokiji saw everything and asked curiously.

He had visited countless countries like this, but none had been able to achieve what Nova had.

The people's simple emotions could not be faked. If that was the case, then either this king was truly capable, or he was extremely skilled at winning people over.

Aokiji had visited this country ten years ago, but compared to now, it was like night and day.

Most importantly, even while stationed at Marine Headquarters, he had heard of many specialties from Tru Kingdom.

"Vice Admiral Aokiji, the feelings of ordinary people are simple. What they want is not complicated. They merely want a stable living environment, a place where they can feed and clothe themselves, and a relatively harmonious and free country.

"I've been working hard to give them all of that. We're still developing, and perhaps life will become even better in the future.

"However, all of this also requires someone to carry the burden ahead of them. Otherwise, how can we ensure that it continues forever?" Nova said.

As he spoke, he continued greeting the people around him.

The street was not particularly wide, but the flow of people was immense. A glance was enough to reveal shops of every kind.

Most of Tru Kingdom's population had now gathered around the Royal City, creating a circulating economy as businesses sprang up everywhere.

A single decision was enough to change the fate of most people.

"What you said is indeed right, but why haven't you considered joining the World Government? Then there would be no need to..."

"You mean why don't I go serve those Celestial Dragons?"

Before Aokiji could finish, Nova directly took over.

The displeasure on his face was obvious.

Nova glanced at Aokiji and continued, "Joining the World Government might mean we would not be attacked in name, but the key issue is that they are too far away. We are located in the South Blue, and Tru Kingdom is such a small country. If we were attacked by pirates or another nation, by the time you finished discussing it over there, the whole country would probably already be gone.

"Besides, most importantly, I will not allow my people to send Celestial Gold to those Celestial Dragons every year. Rather than that, why shouldn't I strengthen my own power?

"Of course, I may consider it in the future. Nothing remains unchanged forever. The premise is whichever choice benefits us more."

Aokiji seemed to nod in agreement, but at the same time, he felt that this young man's mindset was a little too dangerous.

"As Marines, you naturally have your own duties to fulfill. But for a small country like ours, things are not so simple. It is not easy to grow stronger.

"In this corner of the South Blue, all I can do is give these people better living conditions and a more stable environment.

"But now you have seen it yourself. I imagine you received the news long ago. The neighboring Roa Kingdom joined forces with pirates to attack our country, leaving us destitute and our people in unbearable misery."

Nova spoke again, and Aokiji's expression turned alternately pale and red.

It was not as if he did not know the actual situation. Someone had reported it long ago. Tru Kingdom had already reached Roa Kingdom's capital, and at this rate, Roa Kingdom would completely disappear from this world in no more than five days.

In the end, however, he did not say anything. Yet his curiosity toward the young man before him only grew stronger.

"Then what do you intend to do with this country in the future?"

For once, Aokiji asked directly.

"I'll take things as they come. Once everything has settled, we should rest and recover for at least a few years. Otherwise, I'm afraid your World Government will be dissatisfied as well. Once the CP Department comes to investigate, they probably won't be as easy to talk to as you are," Nova said with a smile.

"I didn't expect you to know so much. But that isn't a good thing."