"If there are no objections, let's settle on this."
Kuro sat back down, arrogantly puffing on his cigar. "No war is allowed in the waters around Moe Island or in the shipping lanes to and from it. Of course, I have no objection if you want to go around in circles and continue fighting. I'm a marine, not a minister of your kingdom. I can't control that."
“That’s true, but Mr. Kuro…”
Salor organized his thoughts and said, "I have no objection to you saying this is a naval base, but the kingdom's higher-ups may not agree. After all, you don't even have a base here. If you just say this is a base, you don't have any evidence, do you?"
"That's right!"
Enoch, who had been convulsing on the ground, scrambled to his feet and slumped onto the table. "You say this is a naval base? Where are the permits? Where is the base? One warship doesn't mean anything. Can you stop us? Can you stop the entire power of our kingdom? Can you stop those armed merchants who can turn into pirates at any time? Not to mention those inherently evil pirates!"
"Whether we can stop it or not, that's our navy's business. As for the base..."
Kuro got up from his seat and walked outside. "Who said there's no base? Come and see, isn't that the base?"
He went outside, pointed to the empty hillside in the upper district, and spoke with an air of seriousness.
The group went out together. Salor remained silent. Enoch paused for a moment, then covered his swollen cheek and gritted his teeth, saying, "This is an insult to me. Even if I die, I will never admit that you have a base here!"
As soon as he finished speaking, Kuro raised his hand.
Enoch let out a strange cry and covered his head, hiding behind Salor.
"What's the panic? I'm not going to hit you."
Kuro glanced at him, clenched his fists, and said, "If I say it has it, then it has it!"
boom!
The ruins that had been floating in the sky crashed down onto the hillside. As they landed, the ruins began to arrange themselves and eventually formed the shape of a naval base fortress. A huge lion's head hung on top, and two large stone lions sat on either side of the entrance. At the very top was the naval peace gull emblem.
"Look, here it is."
Kuro said, and his captain, completely oblivious to the situation, said, "Send a report later, saying that I, along with the nobles of Norman and Suknee, held talks in a cordial and friendly atmosphere, and the two countries have tentatively decided to designate Meng Island as a base for our navy. The specific details will be finalized by the higher-ups."
He emphasized the words "kind and friendly" very heavily.
Salor: "..."
Enoch: "..."
So, where is the friendliness or warmth?
"I will report this to the World Government!"
Enoch gave Kuro a deep look, then left with his men.
A fight is out of the question. Under the strong pressure from the navy, the island will not suffer any damage, so there's no point in staying any longer.
"I'm taking my leave now. You can wait for your superiors to punish you. The World Government will not tolerate such willfulness."
Salor paused, watching Enoch lead his men away, and said in a low voice, "To be honest, I'm very grateful to you. Neither Norman nor Suknay really want to fight anymore, but this is our tradition, and we can't change anything. If you really have the ability to bring peace between the two countries, that would be a great thing. If you can't... you'd better be able to. Nobody wants to waste their life recklessly."
He left with his men.
The fleets of the two countries, one after the other, sailed into the sea.
Only after they left did the nearby residents dare to come out.
Several older people trembled as they watched the direction they left, tears streaming down their faces. "How could this be? Why did they come? Is Meng Island about to suffer another war?"
Twenty years of peace have made the younger generation forget the horrors of Meng Island back then, but they still remember the place where there were corpses everywhere, no production, only chaotic pirates and merchants who took the opportunity to capture slaves.
Flames, charred remains, and corpses—the older generation still vividly remembers that environment, and they have no desire to experience such a hellish scene again.
Why did this happen?!
An old man roared, "We've already given our lives to Lord Boropa! My son, my daughter, all of them to him! He promised to bring us peace! Why are the fleets of both nations here?! What was the point of everything we did? If they were destined to come, then give my children back to me!!!"
“My child too… Lord Boropa summoned my child back then, and I never saw him again. But now, where is peace? Where is peace!”
A group of elderly men were shouting, while several middle-aged women huddled together, weeping silently. Their children, or their husbands, had also been conscripted by Boropa and never returned.
All of this was for the sake of peace. They were willing to endure and 'pay tribute,' but now that peace is gone, what was the point of all that before?
The crowd grew noisy, and grief and indignation began to appear on everyone's face.
Kuro glanced at it, silently exhaled a puff of smoke, and gripped the hilt of the Shusui sword, revealing a small gap with a 'clang'.
call!
The murderous aura materialized, pressing down on everyone's nerves. This sudden and powerful aura silenced them all.
"Listen up, everyone."
Kuro put away Shusui and said loudly, "Poloppa, your knight here accidentally fell off a cliff and died. He was swept away by the sea and his body was never found. This means that you no longer need to 'pay tribute' to him, because this place will be taken over by our navy. From now on, this place will become a naval base."
"It will be more peaceful here than before. You won't have to pay anything except your taxes, and we will protect your personal safety!"
"Lord Boropa is dead?"
"The Navy will protect our safety?!"
"So, does that mean no one will force us to send people anymore...?"
The crowd bustled about, whispering amongst themselves.
Some showed joy, while others revealed worry.
The joy came from no longer having to hand over people to the ruler, while the worry stemmed from whether the navy could maintain the prestige of Boropa and whether it could preserve the peace here.
"Is he really dead, that Bonaparte Borupa...?"
An old man stepped forward, trembling, and asked repeatedly, "That fellow—no, that dwarf—is he really dead?"
Upon seeing Kuro nod, the old man immediately beat his chest and stamped his feet, dancing wildly for a while before covering his face and weeping.
He is the old man whose son and daughter were summoned by Boropa just now.
"Sir, can you really protect our safety?"
He looked up, his old face as if it had been soaked in water.
Kuro looked around at their worried and frightened expressions and slowly said, "I guarantee with the honor of the Navy that you will be alright."
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