Under Robin's command, the casino was quickly cleared out.
So, in the vast space, only Luo Lan, Robin, and Issho remained.
"Uncle Issho, I've been looking for you for a long time!" Luo Lan smiled.
Issho frowned slightly.
"I sensed someone watching me for the past hour. I guess…"
"Those are your people, right?" Issho asked calmly, leaning on his sword staff.
"Exactly. I've had them searching everywhere for you for quite some time now."
"Searching for me? Why?"
"To invite you to join Jun Lin."
"So, you're the leader of that rising organization called Jun Lin?"
"Yes," Luo Lan said frankly.
"Why should I join?"
From Luo Lan's confident tone, Issho sensed something interesting. He wondered what gave this young man such certainty to convince him to join Jun Lin.
"How about I tell you a story?"
"A story?"
"Yes, about the origin of the name Jun Lin."
"Alright, I want to know why you chose Jun Lin as your organization's name!"
Issho had heard about Jun Lin for at least three months. Among the groups he knew, this was the only one that didn't harm civilians—something neither the Navy nor the Revolutionary Army could claim.
But what puzzled Issho was why a group like this would choose the name Jun Lin. The characters literally mean "Monarchs Descents," implying boundless ambition. It even immediately brings to mind the Celestial Dragons.
Now, he was curious how Luo Lan would explain it.
"Uncle Issho, what do you think currently rules this world? Or, rather, who?"
"The Celestial Dragons!" Issho answered without hesitation.
If you asked a hundred people in the pirate world, they would all say the same thing without exception.
"Yes, the Celestial Dragons."
"But there once was a man who believed that no one should dominate this world—only justice."
"That's right. Only justice has the right to stand above everything. He even wrote a calligraphy piece and hung it on the wall to remind himself constantly. It read…"
"Justice Reign Supreme."
"For a long time, he held to this ideal, until one day, when he rose to a high position, he discovered the truth of this world…"
"That truth was unbearably heavy, suffocating even, and in the end, this man had to choose between total justice disappearing or holding on to a fraction of it."
"Yes, he became desperate. Rather than seeing justice vanish completely, he chose to preserve the limited justice left. The price was…"
"To bow before evil, to submit, and from then on, to maintain the most basic justice within the tiny scope allowed by evil."
"That man is none other than the current Navy Admiral Sengoku!"
Issho was surprised. He hadn't expected Luo Lan's story to be about Admiral Sengoku—and this story had never been told before.
Could there be some connection between this young man and Sengoku?
Issho wondered but didn't ask.
Luo Lan continued.
"When Sengoku became Admiral and finally understood how insignificant he was before the Celestial Dragons, just as I said, he submitted."
"Because any rebellion would be crushed without question, and the World Government would simply appoint a more obedient Admiral."
"Then the Navy would lose all justice and become nothing but the World Government's killing machine."
"Yes, to let the Navy keep the limited power to uphold justice, he bowed to the Celestial Dragons."
"And on the day he submitted, he personally took down the calligraphy from the wall."
"That same day, a child barged into his office and stole the calligraphy he had just taken down."
"Today, that very calligraphy hangs in my room."
"This..."
"Is the origin of our organization's name, Jun Lin."
"Our organization will not dominate the world, and neither will I. But…"
"Justice will Reign Supreme all over the world!"
Issho was silent.
So, naming the organization Jun Lin wasn't about dominating the world or himself becoming a sovereign.
It was about letting justice rule the world.
"What is your relationship with Admiral Sengoku?"
"I am Sengoku's adopted son."
"I see..." Issho nodded.
No wonder he knew things outsiders didn't.
Being Sengoku's adopted son explained a lot.
"The story you told surprised me, but it still doesn't convince me to join."
"Because according to you, Admiral Sengoku had the same ideals when he was young, so…"
"How can you guarantee you won't compromise with power like Sengoku did in the future?"
Issho posed the question.
Indeed, many young idealists exist. Just look at the Navy—who joins without grand ambitions?
But over time, as their position rises and they face more harsh realities...
In the end…
Don't they all compromise or go with the flow?
So how could this young man guarantee he wouldn't be the same?
This was a tough question to answer or prove.
But Luo Lan replied,
"I can't prove the future, but…"
"You can witness my future from the sidelines, can't you?"
"And if you find I fail or forget my original intention, you can leave anytime."
"With your strength as a great general, no one can stop you if you want to leave, right?"
...
Issho was silent again.
He knew how difficult his question was.
But he hadn't expected Luo Lan to completely avoid answering directly and instead say:
"I can't prove it, but you can witness it."
This was quite an interesting young man.
Although Issho had thought about joining the Navy's higher ranks to change it from within, it seemed Jun Lin was also very interesting.
Maybe, this young man really could do it.
For some reason, this thought suddenly popped into Issho's mind, startling even himself.
But he quickly made up his mind.
Just like Luo Lan said, what was there to lose by giving it a chance?
If Luo Lan failed or forgot his original intention, Issho could just leave.
"Lead the way."
"Alright!" Luo Lan replied.
---
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