---
Hearing the noise, Daiki immediately turned his head.
When he saw Anos's face, he respectfully said, "Your Highness, why are you here?"
"Something big has happened. How could I not arrive?" Anos replied, slightly exasperated.
Daiki took a deep breath, chuckled softly, and then became serious. "The other side has eight ships and around a thousand men. It's quite a challenge for us."
"Perfect," Anos said nonchalantly. "Keep as many alive as you can, we're short on construction workers."
Daiki and the others were left speechless. What could be going through His Highness's mind?
As the enemy fleet neared, many of the five hundred men in the army began to panic. Most had never seen battle before.
The lead ship bore a skull and crossbones flag, its ominous symbol growing clearer by the minute.
Before the army could react, enemy cannon fire was already raining down.
"How's your training with the techniques I taught you?" Anos asked Daiki.
"I've nearly mastered it, but didn't you say not to use it in front of others?" Daiki responded, puzzled.
"Doesn't matter when it's on your doorstep. Capture them alive if you can, we'll need them for rebuilding the kingdom," Anos said with a grin.
While Anos and Daiki stayed calm, the soldiers behind them were far from composed. Only a select few, personally trained by Anos over the years, stood firm, exuding confidence.
The pirate cannons continued to roar, but their accuracy was inaccurate. Despite the bombardment, not a single soldier on their side was hurt. Those who had been fearful began to feel emboldened.
"I'll observe from here. You go and capture them. If they resist, feel free to kill them, but try to keep the pirate ships intact. Our kingdom isn't wealthy, and those ships are valuable. Keep them alive if possible, they'll make fine workers for us," Anos ordered Daiki with a sly smile.
Daiki smiled in return and replied confidently, "Understood."
He turned to his troops and shouted, "We've trained long enough! Now it's time to show them what we've got! Follow me!"
With that, Daiki charged forward, followed closely by several dozen men, all showing no signs of fear.
As they reached the shoreline, they leapt into the air, running toward the pirate ships as if walking in the air.
The sight left not only the pirates but even the soldiers behind Daiki dumbfounded.
These men were the best of the best, handpicked by Anos himself, and had undergone rigorous training.
For the rest of the soldiers, it was like watching a dream. And the pirates? When they saw men flying through the air, fear gripped their hearts.
"Fire the cannons! Don't let them near the ship!" a pirate commander shouted in desperation.
But it was already too late. Numbers wouldn't help them now.
Despite the many pirates and the barrage of cannon fire, none of Daiki's men were touched. They landed on the pirate ships effortlessly, cutting through the crew as if they were in an uninhabited land. No one could stand against them.
Even the pirate captain, who had initially appeared somewhat imposing, fell just as easily.
But just as the battle seemed over, one pirate leapt a hundred meters into the air, moving faster than even a Marine using Soru.
"Devil Fruit, huh?" Anos mused, watching from a distance. It was obvious this was the power of a Devil Fruit.
But it was just one man and no match for the overwhelming force on their side.
To make things worse for him, the pirate charged directly at Anos.
"Do you know who I am? I'm the Jumping Man, user of the Jump-Jump Fruit! Uncle Defa Mo..." the pirate captain boasted, clearly unaware of his precarious situation.
But before his feet even touched the sand, a boot appeared out of nowhere and kicked him square in the face. He flew hundreds of meters before crashing to the ground, unconscious.
The soldiers watching from the sidelines were left in shock, their jaws practically on the floor. They had been surprised when Daiki's men took to the sky, but Anos's speed was something else entirely.
In an instant, Anos had crossed hundreds of meters and knocked the Devil Fruit user out cold.
"I thought he'd be stronger," Anos muttered, unimpressed. "Even with a Devil Fruit, he's still weak."
Still, it was surprising to see two Devil Fruit users appear in such quick succession in the South Blue.
Within half an hour, the thousand-strong pirate crew was defeated. If not for Anos's order to preserve the ships, it might have been over in ten minutes.
Daiki returned to Anos using Geppo and landed beside him with a grin. "Your Highness, it's done."
"Good," Anos replied calmly. "Have them check the supplies on the pirate ships. As for the prisoners, take them back for evaluation. They'll be useful later."
There was no surprise in Anos's voice, this outcome was exactly what he expected after putting so much effort into training these men. If they couldn't handle a group of pirates, that would have been disappointing.
"Your Highness, the ships are filled with goods. Would you like to take a look?" Daiki asked.
"Nothing worth seeing. Just gather the valuables and send them to the palace. As for the ships, remove the pirate flags and use them as civilian vessels from now on," Anos replied.
"Understood, Your Highness."
"And make sure to keep that Devil Fruit user under control. We may have a use for him," Anos added with a smirk. Though the fruit wasn't particularly powerful, a Devil Fruit user could still be useful under the right circumstances.
In under an hour, everything was wrapped up. It was almost too easy.
Even Anos found himself somewhat disappointed, feeling like it hadn't even been a real fight.
After Anos left, the soldiers who had been watching began buzzing with excitement. The transformation in their abilities had amazed them all.
Daiki, too, was impressed. He had always thought Anos was powerful, but the speed and strength he displayed had exceeded even his expectations. A Devil Fruit user couldn't even withstand a single kick.
"Handle that guy carefully. Don't let him die," Daiki instructed the soldiers. "His Highness has plans for him."
"Yes, sir!" came the soldiers' unified reply, their voices filled with confidence after witnessing the overwhelming power of their commanders.
---
"Let go, bastards!! Do you know who I am? I am a Devil Fruit user. Jumping..."
Bang!
Before the tied-up pirate captain could finish his words, Daiki kicked him directly in the face. Still reflecting on the precision of Anos's earlier kick, Daiki shook his head helplessly.
"You're in this state, and you still dare to brag about being a Devil Fruit user?" Daiki muttered with a sigh of disbelief.
"Captain Daiki, everything has been cleared. A total of 951 pirates were captured, along with eight pirate ships, a shipload of food, and a large amount of gold, silver, and jewellery," a soldier reported as he hurried over.
"All the gold, silver, and jewellery will be sent to the palace. As for the pirate ships, they will be remodelled. Remove the pirate flags, and from now on, they'll serve as cargo ships for our Kingdom," Daiki responded calmly, adopting a more authoritative tone, much like Anos.
The scene of five hundred soldiers guarding nearly a thousand pirates looked rather comical, but none of the pirates had any thoughts of resisting.
After all, their captain had already been captured right before their eyes what was there to fight for?
More than that, it was the overwhelming strength of the opponent. The sight of those dozen men had truly instilled fear in the pirates.
It was almost absurd, they had barely set sail when they encountered such a formidable group. They were truly down on their luck.
Onlookers began to gather around, watching the spectacle with great interest. Events like these were a rarity in the Kingdom of Tru.
The people's fear of pirates seemed to vanish in an instant.
Daiki led the captured pirates at a slow pace, deliberately giving the citizens of his Kingdom time to witness the state of the once-feared criminals.
He wanted them to see that the pirates, who had once caused so much terror, were nothing more than captives now, and that their Kingdom is strong enough to protect its people.
Anos, meanwhile, had begun laying the groundwork for a new generation of young leaders. After all, once the kingdom was under his full control, changes both in thinking and in action needed to be initiated without delay.
While the Kingdom of Tru had developed some basic self-defence capabilities, there was still a long way to go before it could truly thrive and defend itself against external threats.
Just one month later, a significant event occurred in the Kingdom of Tru: the old king passed away. The impact of this loss was profound, even for Anos.
At 85 years old, the old king had died peacefully of natural causes. In his final moments, he was at peace.
As his only son, Anos naturally succeeded him as king.
"Anos-sama, you will need to assume the throne tomorrow. It would be best if you rested early tonight," a maid reminded him late that night as he stood alone outside the palace, gazing up at the starry sky.
Anos glanced at her but said nothing, continuing to look up at the stars. To others, it might have seemed like he was grieving his father, but only Anos knew what was really on his mind.
The news of the old king's death had not yet reached the entire kingdom, but the people were already aware that a new king would soon take the throne.
Every citizen eagerly awaited Anos's next steps, hoping he would lead the Kingdom of Tru into an era of prosperity and strength.
Bearing the weight of these expectations, Anos stood there under the stars, deep in thought. He understood his mission, and rather than shrink from it, he smiled slightly and began walking toward his quarters.
From now on, no one above him would protect him, everything would be up to him to create.
He is alone, alone in the world of...
---
Thank you for reading!