When Norton I heard the ministers' words, his expression remained calm. From the moment Smoker suddenly led his troops toward the prison, he had realized that something was amiss. The riot at the execution plaza, the rebellion of the garrison troops, and even the chaos within the Marines—all these signs pointed to one thing: Morgan William was finding a way to escape.
Norton I also understood very well that once William broke out of prison, he wouldn't even need to lift a finger. His sheer reputation alone could easily overturn the entire nation's situation. And with William's domineering and ruthless nature, he certainly wouldn't spare Norton and the other ministers who had taken advantage of his imprisonment to undermine him.
While many of the ministers still clung to a sliver of hope—or rather, delusion—that the palace guards could hold off William's forces until the Marines arrived, Norton I had long since abandoned all hope.
These rulers, who had enjoyed unlimited power in William's absence, now cowered in the palace, utterly at a loss. It wasn't long before the tightly shut palace doors were pulled open from the outside.
William strode in slowly, followed by Gin, Oliver, and others, along with the garrison troops and soldiers who had defected.
As William entered the grand hall, the ministers instinctively took a few steps back. Norton I, however, rose from his throne, straightened his back, and tried to maintain the dignity of a king. Looking down at William, he said, "Morgan William, you treacherous scoundrel, you must be feeling very pleased with yourself now! You've finally found the excuse and opportunity to usurp the throne!"
"Pleased?" William glanced coldly at Norton I, then swept his gaze over the trembling ministers. "If I wanted to seize the throne, I could have done so at any time. Who do you think you are? Do you think removing you is some great achievement? A pig sitting on the throne would do a better job than you. At least a pig wouldn't ruin everything."
Norton I, having already resigned himself to his fate, had hoped to retain some semblance of dignity. But William's words were so cutting that his face turned red with anger, his eyes bulging as if he wanted to tear a piece of flesh from William. "You criminal! Don't get too complacent. The Marines will eventually—"
Before he could finish, a flash of a blade cut through the air. His curse was abruptly silenced. He swayed unsteadily, like a drunkard, before collapsing with a thud. Blood spurted from his neck, and his head rolled off his body, coming to rest at the feet of the ministers. The sight sent them scrambling backward in terror, with some unable to withstand the fear, crying out and begging William for mercy.
"Gin," William said, ignoring the ministers as he turned to Gin and gave him a look.
Gin understood immediately. He led the others out of the hall to secure the palace and restore order amid the chaos.
Once Gin and his men had left and the doors were shut, William turned back to the ministers. He sighed and said, "Under my rule, all you had to do was show up at the council meetings. That alone made you far better off than the common folk who have to toil just to make ends meet. I didn't confiscate your wealth; I simply prevented you from continuing to govern this country. After all, you were doing a terrible job. What is there to resent? I worked so hard to improve this city's condition, and yet you tried to drag it back to the half-dead state it was in before."
During William's rule, while he had struck hard against the nobles politically, he hadn't been excessively harsh on them economically or in terms of their property. Of course, since he had abolished many of their political privileges, some businesses that relied on those privileges naturally couldn't continue, leading to a reduction in their wealth. But even so, their living standards remained far superior to those of the average commoner.
The ministers, glancing at the tightly shut doors and then at William, who was slowly approaching with clear malice in his eyes, were filled with despair. One of them cried out, "Why are you doing this? We never provoked you! We were the ones who elevated you from a lowly pirate to a noble!"
William chuckled and casually replied, "'I fear the arrogance and cruelty of the rich, and the discontent and desperation of the poor. Therefore, I must curb the wealthy and aid the weak.' That's what Solon said. Do you know what it means?"
The ministers looked bewildered. They had no idea who Solon was, let alone what his words meant.
William continued to smile, but his smile was tinged with disdain. "Even without me, if this country were left under your rule, it would eventually collapse. Either you'd fall, or you'd drag the entire nation down with you."
William's suppression of the nobles wasn't born out of hatred for the wealthy or some grand sense of compassion for the downtrodden. It was simply a pragmatic decision as a ruler to ensure the stability and development of his regime.
The goals and ambitions of these nobles were at odds with William's. They contributed nothing to the nation's progress, yet they wielded immense power and hoarded vast societal resources. If William didn't suppress them, who would he suppress?
This world had already seen the rise of revolutionary armies—radical organizations aiming to overthrow regimes through force. In a world where individuals could wield extraordinary power, that didn't mean grassroots uprisings were impossible.
The common people's fear of the Marines, the World Government, the kings and nobles, and those overwhelmingly powerful figures ultimately boiled down to one thing: fear of death.
But when the common people are pushed to the point where "to live is to die, and to rebel is also to die," the choice becomes obvious.
The Marines and the World Government, with their formidable military power, were not easily toppled. But countries that relied solely on the World Government, the Marines, and their past authority to enforce brutal rule were far less secure. The revolutionary army had already overthrown several such World Government-affiliated nations.
If William had chosen to collude with these nobles, it might have seemed easy at first. But in reality, it wouldn't be long before he'd be constantly on edge, fearing the revolutionary army or widespread unrest within his borders.
Just look at what Garp was dealing with in the East Blue. There were many problems in this world that couldn't be solved by brute force alone.
A faint mist had unknowingly filled the hall, and the temperature had risen slightly. A thin layer of sweat began to form on the noses of a few of the more corpulent ministers.
William had no interest in continuing a political discussion with these short-sighted feudal rulers. He was about to leave this city again soon. Before dealing with Garp and the other Marines, staying confined to the city would be a death sentence. On the battlefield, the first rule of defeating a stronger opponent is to avoid a direct confrontation with the enemy's main force without preparation or confidence.
The Marine Headquarters had sent four vice admirals this time. Even though William had already dealt with one, three remained, including Garp, a legendary Marine whose strength rivaled that of an admiral. In terms of high-level combat power, William's group was no match.
But the East Blue was William's home turf, and the Marine Headquarters couldn't deploy unlimited manpower. William wasn't foolish; he intended to leverage his strengths against the enemy's weaknesses, using the terrain and his manpower advantage to wage a war of attrition, exhausting Garp and the others before luring them into a carefully prepared ambush to annihilate them.
With that in mind, William decided that to prevent the nobles from undermining him or exacting revenge while he was away, he wouldn't leave any of them alive.
(There will be more updates later. To avoid keeping everyone waiting, I've posted these two chapters first.)
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