Nero’s sudden collapse threw everyone aboard the ship into panic.
Gogoya froze in place, too frightened to move.
The battle had lasted only a short time, yet their king had suffered such serious injuries.
It made everyone realize just how powerful Camoron truly was.
When Nero finally woke up, he was already mostly recovered.
No matter how severe his injuries were, death was never really a concern for him.
After all, he still had the system.
Slowly opening his eyes, Nero stared at the blue sky and drifting white clouds overhead.
The National swayed gently with the waves.
“Careless…”
The thought immediately surfaced in his mind.
He really had been careless.
To gain combat experience, he had deliberately pushed himself into a dangerous fight and ended up covered in wounds.
But after this battle, he finally understood something.
The next time he had enough money, the first thing he would buy would be combat experience.
At the very least, he wouldn’t find himself in such a passive position again.
Who knew what might happen next time?
A single mistake could easily lead to consequences far worse than a few injuries.
Unfortunately, he was broke at the moment.
There were only a few tens of millions of Baileys left aboard the ship, and that amount was practically worthless to the system aside from purchasing food.
“Your Majesty!
You’re finally awake!”
Gogoya cried out.
She had remained by Nero’s side almost constantly during the two days he had been unconscious, afraid to look away even for a moment.
If anything had happened to him, she doubted she would have survived the return to the Tru Kingdom.
“What happened?
How long was I unconscious?”
Nero sat up with a smile.
“Two days, Your Majesty!
Gogoya was terrified!”
If he hadn’t spoken, she might have held back.
But hearing him casually ask about it only made her cry harder.
The guards standing nearby wore equally gloomy expressions.
Every one of them looked deeply troubled.
“I’m fine now.
There’s nothing to worry about.”
Nero smiled reassuringly.
“It’s fine?
After you collapsed, your whole body turned green!
Even the ship’s doctor thought you couldn’t be saved!”
Gogoya’s tears flowed even harder.
Nero could only shake his head helplessly.
Then he looked around.
“Where are we now?”
“Huh?
Let me ask!”
Gogoya froze before immediately running off toward Barro.
Watching her leave, Nero closed his eyes in exasperation.
He still couldn’t understand how he had entrusted the kingdom’s shipping operations to someone like her.
A short while later, she came running back.
“Your Majesty, we should be arriving at Loguetown soon.”
“Good.
I understand.”
Nero nodded.
Yet his thoughts remained on Camoron.
Why had Camoron allowed them to leave?
And why was someone that powerful stationed near Reverse Mountain in the East Blue?
The questions lingered in his mind.
After confirming that Nero had recovered, the former members of the Barro Pirates quickly returned to their usual carefree behavior.
Many of them had already dragged the National Guard into drinking, shouting, and celebrating.
Although they were no longer pirates, Nero didn’t stop them.
Life at sea was incredibly dull.
A little excitement helped relieve the boredom.
The most disciplined person aboard remained Barro.
As the ship’s navigator, he was responsible for maintaining their course.
Even with favorable winds, a small navigational error could send them far off course.
There was no reliable navigation system in this world.
Once you missed your destination, there was no telling where you might end up.
About two hours later, Gogoya suddenly shouted from the deck.
“We’re here!”
Nero opened his eyes.
After spending over a week at sea, everyone immediately became excited.
Even those who had been drinking stopped and looked toward the approaching shore.
Loguetown.
The last stop before the Grand Line.
The harbor was packed with ships.
Merchant vessels and pirate ships sat side by side.
Numerous pirate flags fluttered in the wind.
Although the East Blue had relatively few pirates compared to other seas, Loguetown served as the final supply point for countless crews preparing to enter the Grand Line.
Seeing so many pirates here wasn’t surprising at all.
In fact, it was expected.
Most pirate crews maintained an unspoken understanding while in Loguetown.
They generally avoided large-scale conflicts.
Of course, there were always exceptions.
“Your Majesty, can I look around after we go ashore?”
Gogoya asked cautiously.
“Of course.”
Nero nodded.
“But don’t wander too far.
There are plenty of pirates here.
Someone as weak as you could easily get kidnapped.”
Gogoya immediately became nervous.
The sight of so many pirate ships already had her on edge.
“Then I’d better stay with you.”
“Do as you like.”
Nero shrugged.
Then he issued another order.
“Tell everyone to remain on the ship.
The others can go purchase supplies.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Although many people had little interest in the Pirate King himself, now that they had reached Loguetown, everyone wanted to see the place where Gol D.
Roger had been executed.
After all, he was the man who started an entire era.
The town itself wasn’t particularly large.
Aside from the Marine base stationed here, it seemed fairly ordinary.
The strange thing was how relaxed the local security appeared.
Pirate ships filled the harbor, yet the Marines showed no signs of intervening.
That alone spoke volumes about Loguetown’s current state.
As the hundred-meter-long National slowly entered port, it immediately attracted attention.
Most of the onlookers were pirates.
The greed in their eyes was obvious.
Compared to the small pirate ships surrounding it, the National was enormous.
Many nearby vessels were barely a dozen meters long and could be overturned by a powerful storm.
The National was easily the largest ship to enter Loguetown in recent memory.
Along the docks, countless pirates stared at it with varying expressions.
“Captain, that’s a nice ship.”
A burly pirate grinned.
“Should we make it ours?”
“Not here.”
The captain beside him smiled coldly.
“If the Marines get involved, it’ll be troublesome.
We’ll wait until they leave town.”
Many pirates shared the same thought.
To them, the National looked like a prize waiting to be claimed.
When the ship finally docked, a gangway was lowered onto the pier.
Nero stepped ashore with his people.
Faced with countless pirates, he remained completely calm.
“Hey, brother.”
A short, scruffy-looking pirate carrying a long blade stepped forward.
“That’s a fine ship you’ve got there.
How about sharing it with us?”
Nero tilted his head.
Then he looked at the captain of the guards behind him.
“Ask them if everyone here feels the same way.”
Before disembarking, the guards had already changed into their standard blue combat uniforms.
Tailored from the fabrics produced by the kingdom’s weaving machines, the uniforms made them appear imposing and disciplined.
Receiving Nero’s instruction, Captain Zhiye stepped forward.
With a fierce expression, he looked around at the gathered pirates.
“If anyone else has the same idea, step forward.
We can discuss how to divide it.”
The crowd burst into laughter.
A pirate in the crowd shouted back.
“We like your attitude.”
“Do we want the ship?”
“I’d say everyone here wants it.”
“That thing’s far too valuable for people like you.”
“Leave it to us.
We’ll take good care of it.”
More laughter erupted.
Thousands of pirates seemed to share the same thought.
“Captain Zhiye.”
Nero smiled.
“It sounds like they’re all interested.”
“Looks that way, Your Majesty.”
Zhiye grinned.
At that moment, a familiar idea formed in Nero’s mind.
A sinister smile appeared on his face.
“Then stay here and entertain them.”
He glanced at the many pirate ships filling the harbor.
“Those ships look pretty valuable.
Remove the sails and auction them off later.
That’ll save us the trouble of finding buyers.”
Now that they were at sea, there was hardly a faster way to make money than robbing pirates.
Zhiye immediately understood.
After following Nero for so long, he knew exactly what his king was thinking.
Without another word, Nero continued walking deeper into town.
Gogoya followed close behind.
Meanwhile, the National Guard remained where they were.
Not long after, sounds of fighting erupted behind them.
The crackling noise of battle echoed throughout the harbor.
The pirates had numbers, but compared to Camoron’s crew, they were vastly inferior.
“Your Majesty, this is a Marine town.
Is it really alright for us to do this?”
Gogoya asked nervously.
“What is there to worry about?”
Nero smiled.
“We aren’t pirates.”
“We aren’t Marines either.”
“This is simply a conflict between a sovereign nation and a group of pirates.”
“The Marines should be happy about it.”
“Why would they object?”
“I see…”
Gogoya finally relaxed.
What Nero didn’t know was that this clash with the pirates would soon reach Marine Headquarters.
At the moment, however, he couldn’t care less.
What mattered most was making money.
Robbing pirates was far more profitable than doing business.
There were countless pirate crews on the seas.
Some possessed wealth comparable to entire kingdoms.
Best of all, defeating pirates earned praise from ordinary civilians rather than criticism.
At worst, they would simply be viewed as bounty hunters.
And Nero didn’t mind capturing a few pirates for entertainment.
The streets of Loguetown weren’t particularly wide, but the commercial district was thriving.
For all their faults, pirates spent enormous amounts of money here.
As long as a pirate wanted supplies, repairs, food, or equipment, Loguetown gladly accepted their business.
Nero stopped and looked at Gogoya.
“You should go help purchase supplies.”
Then he added,
“I’ll visit the center of town and look around.
We’ll meet back at the ship later.”
“But Your Majesty, aren’t there a lot of pirates here?”
“There are.”
Nero smiled.
“But Captain Zhiye is currently cleaning out the pirates at the harbor.”
“Anyone staying in Loguetown will hear about it soon and head there.”
“So there’s nothing to worry about.”
“Alright.”
Gogoya understood immediately.
Nero clearly wanted to separate from the group.
She didn’t ask any further questions and followed Barro toward the market district.