Hawkins shuffled the deck again, giving instructions to the subordinate beside him.
Standing next to him was a burly giant of a man with a pair of axes on his back and a rough, rugged face. The bloodstains on his body hadn't even been wiped clean yet; clearly he'd just gone through a fierce battle.
"Double Axes" Balrog, one of the Disaster Pirates' division captains, bounty 190 million. He'd originally been the chief officer stationed on an island, but because of this conscription, he'd been selected to join the force conquering O'hara.
At the same time, this guy's name often appeared on Lily's blacklist. The island he was stationed on had almost suffered ecological Destruction because of him—he was the very definition of someone who caused chaos the moment you loosened your grip, and killed people the moment you tightened it.
But there was no helping it—talent was scarce.
Only those who could hold down a territory had the qualifications to manage it. If you couldn't even keep a place under control, what the hell were you managing? One emergency and it'd all be over, so he had to be used.
"Lord Hawkins..."
Balrog said, puzzled, "If we need to watch out for ordinary people, can't we just drive them away? Worst comes to worst, we can..."
He hadn't finished when Hawkins already shook his head. "If we do that, it's not called ruling, it's called wiping out a Kingdom. The Captain's order to us was rule. What you just mentioned is the final step, but if we really end up doing that... I don't want to lose face."
The other fronts might have had difficulties advancing, but they all ultimately completed their missions. He knew this place was a tough nut to crack and had投入近乎一半的兵力,这不是征兵的,这全是Pirates.
And if in the end they discovered it was too hard to chew and just stopped chewing, going straight to total Destruction instead...
That would be throwing their pride away completely.
"The Hyrule Kingdom, according to the intel we've got, its population is no less than the old Wano Country. Roughly counted, that's a million people. The reason we didn't take it before was because we considered that our forces couldn't digest such a huge population—most of our energy would get bogged down here, so we didn't move. Now it's different. We have to take them."
"But it's foreseeable that the other side wants to drag things out until we voluntarily withdraw. Especially their commander—Sivier, right? Very smart. He targets us from the smallest angles instead of focusing on a final decisive battle. He's practically cutting us into pieces and fighting us with local superiority. Even if he loses, he can still achieve strategic goals, like destroying our supplies."
Hawkins said calmly, "It really is a tough bone to gnaw, but..."
...
"Pirates are a bunch of profit‑chasing bastards, and the Disaster Pirates' reputation is even more so. If it's too much of a loss, they won't want to do it! As for the people of the Kingdom, if the Disasters attack them, that will only add to our strength, give us more manpower! They'll be thrown into an even fiercer counterattack by all Hyruleans, and all those devoted to resisting the Disasters!!"
The girl shouted, "We are not the slaves of Pirates, and we are not the servants of the King! We belong to Hyrule, we belong to all the citizens of Hyrule! What we are doing is to let us live in this country guided by our free will, not controlled by anyone!"
"This place was ours to begin with! Our ancestors have lived here for generations. Whatever we want to do, we don't need outsiders meddling! Those people are invaders! Defeat the invaders, protect our homeland! All Hyruleans, all whose homes have been invaded, there is no need to fear—I will lead you to fight! Fight anywhere!"
"Fight on the beaches! Fight on the plains! Fight in the mountains! Fight in the villages! Fight in the towns! Fight in the Royal Palace! For our homeland, for our land! We will not let anyone set foot in Hyrule!!"
The girl raised her flag high, her other hand clenching into a fist and thumping heavily against her chest. The sound of that blow seemed to stir a heavy throb in every heart, like a drumbeat, echoing through the main tent and out into the camp, reaching those soldiers who had been weary and worn.
Thump, thump!
The pounding "drumbeats" made everyone's hearts jump, as if stirring up immense courage, making them all stand and look feverishly toward the main tent.
"Saintess, we will follow you forever!!"
No one knew who shouted first, but everyone raised their weapons and roared, as if they'd caused an earthquake right there.
And high in the sky, that bird‑man didn't know when he'd arrived. Hearing this mountain‑shaking roar, he couldn't help tightening his grip on his spear, a tremendous resolve flashing through his eyes.
...
"...We're not just some ordinary Pirates."
Hawkins flipped over a Tarot Card and said, "Upright 'Emperor.' It's not even the 'Chariot,' which symbolizes overcoming obstacles. A quagmire on a local battlefield can't affect the big picture. Even if the other side throws everything they have at us, all they can manage is a slow death."
"The Emperor stands for power, victory, dominion... and loneliness. A peasant girl who can rally so many people, whose status isn't high enough, yet who doesn't intend to rebel—for some people, that alone is already a crime."
He put away the Tarot Cards and said to Balrog, "Get Moriah and Urouge on the radio. Tell them my suggestion is: no need to attack anymore. In three days, just build up momentum—the other side will fall into civil strife on their own."
"Yes, Lord Hawkins!" Balrog nodded heavily, hugging the Radio Snail as he went to make the call.
"Wait."
Something else occurred to Hawkins, and he stopped him. After pondering for a moment, he said, "Give me the Radio Snail. I'll call O'hara. I can handle this, but I'm afraid the Captain might not be too willing, so I need to ask for instructions."
"Huh? But you just said you'd lose face..."
Balrog didn't quite get it; he wasn't very willing either.
He'd come to earn merit, to serve the Governor. After fighting this far, they still had to ask the Governor for instructions...
Balrog had his pride too.
"Compared to our pride, the Captain's pride matters more."
Hawkins said, "If I lose face, that's fate's choice. If the Captain loses face, fate itself gets trampled underfoot."
...
"So I'm the one getting trampled by fate, huh?!"
On O'hara, in a depression near the seaside cliffs, Sage stood on tiptoe in the hollow, his fishing line stretching out far as he stared at the schools of fish swimming back and forth on the sea's surface, cursing:
"How long has it been since I last fished! I finally get the urge and come out here, and you lot won't bite the damn hook! Other people's bait is bait—what, mine stinks or something?!"
After the Destroyed Beehive Island operation, Sage came back, then let the plan proceed smoothly. As for him personally, of course he holed up in O'hara to rest.
What big landlord does everything personally every day? It's always the subordinates who do the work. This time he'd conscripted so many troops exactly so his men could gain more experience, so they could stand on their own in the future, ruling and making money for him.
The Royal Palace still hadn't been rebuilt. Mainly, he was waiting to catch Teach and Red Hair so he could use their heads as stakes to vent his rage.
And for now, thinking he hadn't cast a line in ages, he'd come find a spot to have some fun.
"Master Sage, how about I use my ability?"
Perona, who'd accompanied him, was floating in the air under her umbrella, staring at the fish below. "As long as a fish jumps up, I'll make it fall into depression and go limp. Then it'll be easy to catch."
She used to laze around in the castle on Vice Island, but when Moriah went to war she got bored, so she came to the main fortress to play. Now that all the officers were so busy their heels couldn't catch up with their toes, this freeloading girl didn't feel comfortable just hanging around, so she decided to come keep Sage company.
"Depressed enough to sink to the bottom, you mean? Cut it out. It's rare to see this many fish, and if you use your ability... I might as well use mine."
Sage said, "What's the fun in that?"
"But you've been here two days already."
Perona said, "There's been no movement at all. Shouldn't you at least catch one fish to comfort yourself?"
"What do you know—fishing is about cultivating your mind! Is the fish what matters? No, it's the process!"
Sage let out a breath, speaking earnestly, "Sitting over this water, quietly waiting for a bite, is also a way of tempering the mind. You know why my 'Life Return' is so strong? Because my mental will has transcended the body, that's why I have this kind of power."
Perona nodded thoughtfully. "Then I'm probably no good. I can only reel fish up, not cultivate anything."
"..."
"If you're bored, go play ghost house or something. Stop being an eyesore!"
Sage shot her a glare, annoyed.
"Boru boru boru."
Just as he finished, the Radio Snail in Perona's arms rang. She connected it, and Lily's voice immediately came through.
"Get Sage. There's a new development in the Hyrule Kingdom."
Hearing that, Perona floated closer to Sage and held the receiver up to his mouth.
"Talk."
"Here's the situation: there's been a problem on the Hyrule Kingdom front where Moriah is leading the force. They can't advance for now, and the strategic objective can't be achieved. A formidable figure has appeared on that side, with pretty good command skills, and they've destroyed a lot of our supply lines. Hawkins' idea is..."
"Hold on."
Sage cut Lily off, pondered for a moment, then said, "Where the hell is this Hyrule Kingdom?"
The sea was so vast—how was he supposed to remember that many places? Lily handled all that.