"We can have as many elite soldiers as we want."
"But we lack the 'blades' to tear through enemy formations."
And the faces gathered in the arena now were precisely the spearheads he would need for his future conquest of the North Blue.
As for whether anyone might refuse to cooperate?
Judge had never considered that question.
Once he controlled the entire North Blue, money, territory, power... he could bestow them all.
If anyone failed to recognize the situation, the Vinsmoke Family naturally had ways to make them face reality.
At the edge of the arena, five fingers slowly spread, as though to gather the entire fighting ground below into one palm.
High on the platform, the young prince narrowed his eyes.
The figures milling about that patch of ground seemed to have become faint lines on his palm.
"-Isn't there even a single worthy opponent?"
A deep laugh erupted across the grounds.
A man clad in golden armor stood with his head held high, sunlight splashing across his armor plates in dazzling spots.
It was as though he already held the stone-carved fruit offered as the prize.
"Rock?"
He scoffed, knocking his fist against his breastplate with a dull metallic echo. "This stuff is a lot harder than stone."
He had never intended to swallow that fruit.
Trading it for Beli, for brighter, tougher armor-that was what he wanted.
A Devil Fruit? Those things were too troublesome, too dependent on luck and talent.
Good armor and a sharp blade were tangible power.
"Since no one dares to come forward, the winner-"
"Wait."
The voice rang clear and cool, like a sliver of ice falling onto a jade plate.
A figure had already landed lightly inside the arena, her skirt spreading like an ink-black butterfly's wings before folding back in.