If it weren't for the constraints of this land, Mantis would have been willing to follow Vic on his adventures. However, when faced with a greater goal, appreciation and freedom had to take a backseat. But he had always remembered Vic's leniency and would definitely go when Vic needed help, but not now, and not on this island.
"But I brought some good wine! If they don't open the door, I'll have to drink it all by myself, what a pity!"
Vic didn't say anything more, just sighed, and then with a "pop," he popped the cork off the bottle with his thumb, took a sip, and clicked his tongue. Olvia, who was watching from the side, was stunned. She had never seen Vic like this before, and she was very curious about who the man in the room was that deserved such treatment from Vic.
Olvia quickly spotted the man. Aside from his tall stature, he looked quite ordinary, dressed like a farmer, with tanned, oily skin, a blackened towel tied around his head, and straw sandals on his feet. Only his eyes were unusually bright. People like him were a dime a dozen in this world, and she didn't know why Vic had such a high opinion of him.
Mantis opened the door and walked straight to Vic, then snatched the wine from his hand without hesitation, took a big gulp, narrowed his eyes, and shoved the wine back into Vic's hand. He then strode back into the house, but didn't close the door. Vic followed him in with a smile, and Olvia followed closely behind.
"With your love of alcohol, it's a shame you're not a pirate. Every sea has its own unique flavor of alcohol, and every sea has its own different scenery and people."
Are you really content to stay here, facing the same sky and land? Are you willing to waste your whole life here? This world is so wonderful, are you really willing to be an unknown passerby?
After entering the house, Vic placed the wine on the table and sat down, beginning his persuasion. Olvia didn't know why Vic had asked her to come along, so she remained silent and found a chair next to Vic to sit down.
Everyone has a different attitude towards life. Some people like excitement and novelty, while others prefer simplicity and authenticity!
What you see as just a passerby is enough for him to be the main character. As long as you can please yourself, your life isn't wasted; there's no need to care about what others think of you.
Although I enjoy drinking, I can drink both good and bad wine. I opened the door for you not because I wanted your wine, but simply because I wanted to make things clear with you.
Mantis sat down opposite Vic, and after speaking, he seemed a little thirsty, picked up the wine on the table and took a swig.
Olvia's eyes widened upon hearing Mantis's words, finding them profoundly philosophical. A few simple sentences clearly articulated the value of each person's existence. No wonder Vic held this man in such high regard; seemingly ordinary, he was actually a master. Perhaps this was true returning to simplicity, Olvia thought to herself.
"Speak plainly, don't drink my wine, go drink your own inferior wine. I'm not beating around the bush, join my pirate crew! Let's travel together!"
Mantis's words convinced Olvia, but Vic didn't believe them. When Mantis spoke, his eyes were constantly on the bottle, and he reached for it as soon as he finished speaking, which was not at all like his indifference to good or bad.
How can you talk about letting go when you haven't even fully experienced it? Although Vic only spent one day with Mantis, Vic knew Mantis well; she was a bit arrogant.
"Fine, I'll drink it. I'm too lazy to get up and get it. Joining a pirate crew is out of the question; I can't leave."
Mantis dropped the pretense and grabbed the bottle tightly, leaving Olvia stunned. Where had the supposedly wise man gone? How had he suddenly fallen from grace? She looked at this person, then at that person.
"Do you think you can protect this island forever? Staying on the island like this will only make you weaker. When you get old, anyone can trample on you."
Furthermore, your wanted status remains in effect. If the Navy discovers you one day, you'll be on the run again. Last time we were here, quite a few Navy personnel knew you were here.
"Zephyr and I certainly won't interfere with you, but we can't stop other people who want to make a name for themselves. Once they feel their strength is about right, they'll definitely come looking for you. Even if they're not as strong as you, they can threaten you with those villagers. Can you abandon them and run away alone?"
"Even if you maintain your fighting strength and can single-handedly withstand all threats, what happens after you die? You're free after death, but what about them? What about their descendants?"
In such a chaotic world where the strong rule, how long can they and their descendants survive? Are you protecting this place merely for your own psychological comfort? After you die, do you simply not care about the raging floods and the upheavals?
So isn't your act of protecting others just for show? Isn't it just for your own benefit? That's self-deception.
Your long-term protection will create dependency among the people here. Once you're gone, they'll be as fragile as eggs! If you can't solve the problem at its root, don't easily take over and give others hope, only to disappoint and even drive them to despair in the end!
Every word Vic said felt like a knife stabbing into Mantis. His tanned face turned pale, his eyes lost focus, and sweat beaded on his forehead.
He began to doubt his actions over the past twenty years. Had he truly been wasting his time? Would the final result be the same?
After listening to Vic's words, Olvia felt that Mantis's great deeds were really just to please himself. But to spend a lifetime protecting a place is truly great, yet in Vic's mouth it becomes self-deception. The key point is that she felt that what Vic said made a lot of sense and she couldn't find any way to refute it.
Mantis was certainly not doing something in vain; Vic was exaggerating. If Mantis nurtured the next generation of islanders while protecting the island, as long as there was a continuous stream of powerful individuals, the island could continue to exist.
However, strong individuals don't appear easily, especially since the island's population is small, making it even harder for them to emerge. Furthermore, Mantis doesn't yet have the awareness to do so, and the entire island is being supported by him single-handedly.
Therefore, as long as the world's system doesn't change, it's only a matter of time before this island is destroyed. There are many islands that have disappeared like God Valley, and quite a few have been destroyed by pirates.
"How can we fundamentally solve this problem? Do you have a solution?"
Mantis asked in a trembling voice. He knew this ocean well. Not to mention the civilizations destroyed by nature, or those that couldn't compete with other creatures, there were countless civilizations destroyed by humanity itself.
It's not difficult for a pirate crew to wipe out an island. An island without strong leaders is just a sitting duck. You might ask, why would pirates want to destroy an island? Can't they just eat and drink well, plunder some food, and leave?
Most pirates are indeed like that, but there are also some who are really crazy, and others who get angered by something. This was common in ancient times in Vic's previous life, and there were quite a few instances of war and massacres.
"Solving the problems here is something you can't do alone, and it's something I can't do alone either. It's not something a few people can do, and it's not something that can be solved by just one island."
The problem lies in the system. The entire world needs to be changed to fundamentally resolve this chaotic situation. The World Government is the biggest cancer; only by overthrowing them can the world be reborn. Do you dare?
Now that Vic is a pirate, he no longer hides his true thoughts from his chosen crewmate.
These words startled Mantis and Olvia, who stared at Vic in shock. They hadn't expected that after defecting from the Navy, he would want to overthrow the World Government. What kind of grudge did he hold against him?
Who gave him the audacity to dare touch that behemoth? Vic's words are truly terrifying; what would happen if the World Government found out?