[Ten Days Later]
The news about Rosse in Arabasta quickly spread.
And neither Rosse nor Cobra had any intention of concealing their movements, walking wherever they went through countless civilians.
Occasionally, when Rosse was in the mood, he would even throw money on the street, tens of millions of Berries falling like raindrops, quickly triggering a frenzy among the civilians.
Just these simple actions, coupled with Cobra always standing beside Rosse, quickly caused Rosse's negative image as a Celestial Dragon to dissipate from the hearts of Arabasta's people.
In its place was the image of a Celestial Dragon who was kind to civilians and full of a sense of justice.
In the eyes of the commoners in this world, it was already very just for someone powerful not to oppress them.
As for standing up for justice on their behalf, that was something they didn't even dare to imagine.
In fact, for most people, oppression and exploitation had become the norm, and they didn't even have the concept of resistance.
Even in Arabasta, civilians had to pay about 40% of their income daily as tax to the kingdom, and this way of life had lasted for hundreds of years.
It had been like this since they were born.
With such high taxes, they were already quite content.
In other member nations, it was at least 70% or more.
Upholding justice? They were just living ordinary lives, what was justice?
To ordinary civilians, handing out money actually did count as justice.
Even though Arabasta's taxes weren't particularly high, because of the poor climate, various yields were also low, and the actual income might not even be higher than citizens from member nations that paid 70% in taxes.
Handing out money might be simple and crude, but it was also the most effective means of winning people's hearts.
[Arabasta, Erumalu]
Because of the arrival of Rosse and Cobra, the entire Erumalu fell into a frenzy of celebration.
Rosse and Cobra stood on a high platform, with boxes of Berries being carried up. Under the scorching gaze of the civilians, one box after another was poured down.
The Berries had low face value, prioritizing quantity, so more people could participate.
This amount of money was nothing to Rosse, but the goodwill brought about by the repeated cries of "Saint Rosse" was undoubtedly enormous.
As long as he kept this up, Arabasta would soon stop rejecting him.
Ordinary people think very simply. Whoever gives them food and provides protection, they are willing to follow.
The thinking was simple and perhaps disheartening.
Cobra could at most allow Arabasta to have food to eat, but Rosse could let Arabasta eat their fill and not be disturbed by pirates.
If Rosse had seized power through force, there might have been loyalists who resisted.
And the locals who died in those resistances would have stirred more people to resist.
But if Cobra were to die in an accident, and Rosse were to take over Arabasta, then there would be no more obstacles.
Rosse stood on the high platform, a faint smile on the corner of his mouth.
Seemingly casually looking down, his eyes were actually fixed at the corner of his vision on a certain place.
In that place stood a man wearing a long black robe, with his face covered.
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[Patrick Redfield]
[Overall Rating: S+]
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The person he had been waiting for had finally arrived.
The ability of Hearing the Sea allowed him to sense a large area using seawater.
Arabasta was a dry island country, and he couldn't monitor the entire island at all times.
But since he knew Red Count was coming, he stayed alert at all times. Whenever he was at a crowded location, he would scatter a lot of water droplets around, just to ensure he could find his target.
"Foolish Celestial Dragon…", Red Count, hidden in the crowd, looked at the chaotic scene before him, a sneer playing at the corner of his mouth.
The people on the platform saw the praises of the civilians for those in power.
The civilians below saw the mercy of the high-born to those below.
But was this really the case?
Red Count was born with Observation Haki and could read minds.
Reading the minds of the strong required intense focus, and there was a high chance of being noticed by the other's Observation Haki.
But for the civilians around, he didn't even need to concentrate. Chaotic negative emotions poured into his mind.
'Damn it, why can the guy at the front grab so much?'
'Shit, what a loss. That bastard next to me grabbed a 1000-value Berry.'
'Just wait, once the big shots are gone, I'll "take back" the money that's "mine" from you all.'
'...'
All were negative emotions. Their mouths praised the big shots, but their hearts were full of their own little thoughts.
Humans, as creatures, were simply unworthy of salvation.
Red Count's gaze was cold, filled entirely with indifference.
Precisely because he could read minds since childhood, he trusted no one.
And everything he experienced along the way only confirmed that.
Until now, he had never met a single person without negative thoughts.
These filthy people were not worthy of being his companions.
As long as he had himself, it was enough.
BOOM!
Red Count suddenly burst out, his figure shooting like an arrow toward the high platform. The sword-cane in his hand instantly drew, a flying slash dozens of meters long slashing forth.
He had arrived long ago.
In this entire area, there were only two people whose inner voices he could not sense at all.
Gion and Rosse.
Apart from these two, the rest he didn't even need to focus on, and he could peep into all their inner thoughts.
But for these two, even when he slightly focused, he still couldn't see a thing.
This was the limit he could reach without alerting the other side.
Both of them possessed Observation Haki, and their levels were extremely high, higher than any 1 billion bounty pirate he had ever killed.
Gion's Observation Haki was very strong, likely due to an ability attached to the Vampire Fruit.
But as for why Rosse's Observation Haki was so strong, Red Count couldn't guess.
Red Count knew his goal very well, to kill Gion, and then wait for the Vampire Fruit to reappear.
For rare Mythical Zoan-type fruits like this, there were usually patterns to their reappearance.
Either fixed locations or appearing before a certain type of person.
Thus, Red Count had a simple and brutal method.
As long as he killed enough Devil Fruit users, he would get more information about the fruit.
This time's action was only to kill Gion.
No matter how strong Rosse was, it had nothing to do with him.
As long as he was given a single moment of opportunity, with his strength, it would be enough.
Red Count's sudden move caught the civilians and Cobra completely off guard.
In the field, only Gion and Rosse were able to react.
Gion's Konpira, Rosse's Trident of the Sea God, almost activated simultaneously.
BOOM!
The red flying slash came down, blocked by Gion's Konpira.
"So strong…"
A trace of shock flashed in Gion's beautiful eyes.
Although she had long known that the attacker was Red Count and had made full preparations in advance.
But at the very instant they clashed, she truly experienced just how powerful such a legendary figure was.
BOOM!
The flying slash struck heavily on Konpira, and the surging, unmatched impact force continued forward without obstruction.
Gion couldn't resist at all, her whole body flew like a kite with a broken string, fiercely flung back.
She crashed straight into a cluster of houses, flying backward nearly a hundred meters. Only under the heavy resistance of countless bricks and tiles did she finally stop.
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