It could be said that over the past three hundred years, the island's hidden gold mines have been nearly fully excavated. Perhaps with careful searching, one might still find gold ore, but the time it would take would not be measured in days.
The Golden Country was real, three hundred years ago.
The Golden Country is fake, damn it, right now!
Sage had high expectations, only to be told that the gold was gone.
If he had known this would happen, he should have done his utmost to kill that Granny when he first arrived, to prevent him from becoming some 'Yellow Diamond Man', causing the mountain of gold coins to disappear!
"Is this really all there is? Didn't you search more thoroughly? There might be a treasure vault of the Royal Family somewhere, like the tombs of Alabasta."
Sage's words made Gin wipe the cold sweat from his forehead; he didn't dare meet Sage's gaze and remained silent with his head down.
"Even if there is, it's too late now."
Lily shook her head and said, "Anu Country isn't small. We've taken out the king and caused such a commotion in the Royal City. The citizens will surely notify the Navy, and we can't stay here for long."
Not to mention the actual size of Anu Country, it's impossible to search it piece by piece. Moreover... typical royal tombs are usually near the Royal City, with some even beneath the castles.
Sage destroyed a third of the Royal City's area; even if there were a tomb, it's been reduced to rubble.
"That's true, and we haven't come away empty-handed."
Hawkins agreed and glanced at Las, who mingled with the Demon Race, saying, "These Demon Race members are excellent subordinates. They also hold you in high regard, Sage."
The Demon Race, according to their own ancestral bloodline, possesses the blood of Ancient Giants.
Ancient Giants, also known as 'Demons' on the sea, are genuinely Ancient Giants, unlike the current Demon Race, who only have the bloodline.
This bloodline endows them with immense strength and abundant stamina. Besides, Sage could see that the bodies of the Demon Race are extremely resilient, which enabled them to adapt to any environment.
Bodies like theirs are most suitable for training in the Six Styles and can even master all aspects of them.
They indeed make excellent subordinates.
Only their numbers are insufficient.
Lily previously counted, and there were only 305 in total. According to these Demon Race members, this is the entire Demon Race gathered here.
Because of the tidal currents, not only do the channels dug upwards collapse, but the lower-level mine tunnels also cave in. Each time this happened, apart from crying over their lost labor, they gathered together, waiting for the tides to recede.
Centuries ago, there were still quite a few Demon Race members. But back then, there were many underground gold mines, and after they were buried underground, they relied on gold mines to trade with Granny's ancestors for food and supplies. Later, as gold mines dwindled, what they could obtain lessened, leading to a gradual decrease in the Demon Race's numbers.
Currently, these just over three hundred members are making every effort to survive, seeking out gold mines. If they don't emerge soon, in a few more years, the entire Demon Race might vanish.
Sage thought that the Yellow Diamond scum probably wanted to exhaust their final value before letting them disappear so that the truth of this country remains buried forever.
"They were mine, to begin with!"
Sage rolled his eyes at Hawkins, "I took the Golden Country; they, as citizens of the Golden Country, once I saved them, they should be my property! Private property! You're telling me this as if it's a gain; I gain nothing!"
Hearing this, all the Demon Race members knelt on one knee. The elderly Demon Race member who spoke earlier solemnly said, "The ancestors said whoever leads us to find the light, we will regard as our master. Milord, from now on, you and your bloodline are the eternal masters of our Demon Race!"
"Listen, listen to that!"
Sage pointed at them, "They admit it themselves!"
One doesn't just make oaths at sea lightly, especially collective oaths, which are serious declarations.
This is unlike pirates, who can leave the ship at will. More orthodox pirates require the captain's consent. Of course, even more pirates, when wanting to disembark, the captain can't always find replacements.
In fact, sometimes even the captain doesn't notice the crew members missing. The larger the pirate crew, the more this holds true.
For instance, if a few people were missing from the Death Star's thousand-member crew, Sage wouldn't even know.
Cadres are the backbone of a pirate crew, but even the most loyal cadre, though they can guarantee personal fidelity for a lifetime, can't ensure future generations' service.
Sage isn't a king, nor does he possess a lineage. In this world where bloodlines hold significant sway, lack of a lineage renders one insignificant. No one would acknowledge it; even if a royal family were overthrown, the successful rebels would first kindly persuade the imprisoned king to reflect.
Now, with the Demon Race pledging allegiance through generations, Sage is metaphorically crowned.
Hawkins' eyes were filled with amazement, "Household servants?"
"Oh! It's like the ancient stories of our tribe, venerating the Kozuki Clan of Wano Country! We of the Fur Race, reputedly were household servants of the Kozuki Clan. But I don't acknowledge it because I was born in the North Sea," said a human-shaped black cat, eyes gleaming.
This thing is indeed a black cat, standing, capable of speaking human language.
It's called Faust, a former member of Hawkins' pirate crew, much like the pirate with three braids on their head, also one of Hawkins' deputies.
But it isn't an Ability User of the Devil Fruit; it's purely a cat.
When Sage first saw it, he thought it belonged to a Zoan-type, only to find it was a member of the Fur Race from Zou.
But it had been adrift in the North Sea since childhood, with no attachment to the Kozuki Clan.
It was quite popular onboard; at least, Renedia liked to tease it, often playing with a cat teaser stick.
"That does sound agreeable,"
Sage laughed lightly, "As a landlord, of course, one should have personal dependents."
These people are hereditary household servants.
This is far superior to the subordinate relationship of pirates!
As long as these people continue to thrive, Sage and his descendants, from now onwards, will always have someone to serve them.
With this thought, most of his frustration over not obtaining gold dissipated.
The Death Star can make room for three hundred people, still short of its maximum capacity of fifteen hundred, so they can be accommodated.
"Once you're done eating, let's head to White Harbor, and while you're there, change your clothes. Wearing stone-skin clothes makes it seem like I'm a harsh lord,"
Sage downed a bowl of stew and, smashing the bowl to the ground, opened his arms wide to the crowd, "Alright, everyone, get moving!"
The looting of the Royal City was almost complete. Sage trusted Gin to lead the team. Since they started piling up the spoils, it indicated the wealthy had been mostly plundered. Staying longer would yield little benefit while giving the Navy time to prepare, so it was necessary to conclude swiftly.
Sage intended to wait for a Devil Fruit...
But waited for ages, only to discover Granny didn't seem to have any relatives, merely a single person, so the generational inheritance of the Devil Fruit naturally didn't exist.
Granny himself had been shattered to bits, of course with no chance of survival, and the Devil Ability in his body probably fled long ago.
It was a pity for that Smelt-Smelt Fruit, its ability wasn't bad. Although merging with the castle was possible only after awakening, overall, it wasn't inferior. If it hadn't died, he would've liked to seize it and present it to Teach to extract a fruit.
"Next time I encounter an Ability User, I'll try not to slay them,"
Sage shook his head, striding forward out of the pit. Once everyone had eaten and collected their loot, they advanced towards White Harbor.
The vast Royal City, with its central perimeter dotted with scattered building rubble, and at the very center, a massive crater.
As dawn broke, all that remained was complete desolation.