Chapter 169: Elbaf's Mural! The King's Arena!
"So huge! It's as tall as a Brute!"
Yamato craned her neck as far as it would go, voicing unfiltered awe.
Then she pointed at her chin with a pale finger, puzzled. "Weird. Why do you have a sword stuck in your head?"
"Hold on! Shouldn't the question be how you're still alive with a sword stuck in your head?!"
Viola felt her common sense shatter. Her eyes were about to pop out.
"Oh, that?" Jarul tapped the hilt embedded neatly inside the helmet above his brow and said calmly, "Thanks to this helmet, I barely managed to keep my life."
"But the sword already went in!"
Viola shouted, exasperated.
In this situation, what exactly did the helmet protect?
"Hmm, that's true," Jarul blinked belatedly, as if just realizing the issue.
Viola's eye twitched. She leaned toward Kai and whispered, "Did that sword rattle his brains? Is he senile? Can he really run Elbaf like this?"
"Maybe he's just really old."
Kai shrugged, noncommittal.
Jarul was four hundred and one. In human years, that was like being over one hundred thirty. The fact that he could hold a smooth conversation at all was a small miracle.
At that moment, Sigvald stepped forward and respectfully explained their purpose to Jarul.
"Capture Loki?"
Jarul stroked his long, snow-white beard, trailing the ground, and pondered for a moment. "Then I must trouble you. Embarrassing as it is to admit, Elbaf can't find a warrior stronger than Loki at present."
"But." His tone softened with a sincere appeal. "If possible, take him alive. For some reason, I feel there may be hidden truths behind what happened back then."
"Of course," Kai agreed without hesitation.
He knew perfectly well Loki had been wronged. The man was just unlucky.
The only one who could prove Loki's innocence was Jarul himself—and he had lost all memory of that incident after taking a grievous head wound.
With the Loki task secured, Kai smoothly raised his second purpose for coming to Elbaf.
"Since Elbaf has decided to open its gates and build friendly ties with human nations, why not consider an alliance with the Beast Pirates?"
"Our influence covers fully a quarter of the New World. An alliance with us is tantamount to establishing friendly relations with dozens of human kingdoms at once."
His voice rose, persuasive and tempting.
"Alliance?"
Jarul frowned and slowly shook his head. "Elbaf has resolved to cast off past violence. We will not help the Beast Pirates wage war."
But he did not make it absolute. He added a caveat. "Of course, if you can convince other giants to help you of their own will, I will not block them as elder."
The core meaning was clear. A giant warrior's personal choice was his freedom—but Elbaf would not officially bind itself militarily to a pirate crew.
If Kai's goal, like the World Government's and Charlotte Linlin's, was simply to form a powerful giant army, Jarul's words already granted what he needed.
But Kai's ambition went much further.
He would hitch all of Elbaf to his chariot.
"The alliance, I mean, isn't a military pact. It's a deeper industrial partnership."
Kai began painting his blueprint. "From what I understand, beyond basic subsistence goods, Elbaf relies on imports for almost all manufactured products. And because of the giants' unique size, you can hardly procure equipment that truly fits."
"Why not make your own?"
To be blunt, Elbaf was still stuck in a self-sufficient feudal age, ten Watts away from its first industrial revolution.
Jarul's eyes grew intent. "You can help us?"
"Of course," Kai said firmly. "Work with me, and I'll lead you into modern life."
Then he flipped the griddle and laid out big, fragrant promises.
Steady electric lighting. Tractors to massively boost farm output. Refrigerators to preserve food across seasons.
Kai went all out, drawing scene after scene of prosperity. The giants present were enraptured, eyes shining with dreams of the future.
Even the steady Jarul almost agreed on the spot.
But he reined it in and spoke as calmly as he could. "This is a grave matter. We need time to deliberate."
"Please," Kai said breezily, unhurried.
Once Jarul returned, his scholars would do the persuading.
He had not toured Wano with Dorry and the others for nothing.
The deliberation took a full day.
After nightfall, Kai's group gathered again at the tavern.
Robin shared her discovery from the day with bright excitement.
"The giants preserve an ancient mural passed down from the Void Century. It depicts three progressing worlds. According to giant legend, the first two worlds have already perished, and we live in the third."
Her voice took on the cadence of an epic as she recited the inscription. "The Sun God dances and laughs, leading the world to its end."
Kai listened quietly without interrupting.
To him, the third panel's meaning was not complex—likely the Sun God Nika leading the races to strike down the 'demon' Imu.
"Sun God? That's Nika, right? He will destroy the world?!"
Bonney's small face filled with fear. She tightened her grip on her father's arm. "Papa, isn't Nika the liberator who brings freedom?"
Kuma patted her pink head gently, smiling with broad warmth. "Don't worry, Bonney. It's just a mural tale. Even if the end truly came, Papa would protect you."
Robin offered another reading. "Nika's tale appears across the world. His image is consistently positive."
"My guess is that 'the end' in the mural doesn't mean Nika destroys the world. It means he ends the old order."
She paused, and her expression hardened. "The Celestial Dragons."
The air in the tavern seemed to freeze.
They exchanged looks, faces turning grave.
The Celestial Dragons had ruled for eight hundred years.
Yet the mural said the Sun God would topple them?
Just then, Yamato blurted out, "Isn't that what we're doing now?"
The heavy mood cracked. They stared for a beat, then could not help but laugh, returning to their usual ease.
Right. Wasn't that exactly what they were doing?
Viola nudged Yamato with an elbow and teased, "Maybe you're the Sun God, Yamato. Always grinning that big. Dancing and laughing, aren't you?"
"So I'm the Sun God Nika!"
Yamato crossed one arm and cupped her chin with the other, actually considering it seriously.
"Hey, don't take it seriously."
They all piled on in unison.
Enel lifted his chin haughtily. "If the mural doesn't depict this god, then the prophecy is false and not worth believing."
Kai glanced at him. Same old confidence.
But to say it had nothing to do with Enel was not quite true. The mural did show moonfolk.
Sanji spotted a loophole. "Hold on. If that mural is actually a prophecy, then it means the one to overthrow the Celestial Dragons in the future wouldn't be Brother Kai?"
Kai smiled and patted his shoulder. "Disappointed?"
Sanji nodded reflexively, then shook his head quickly and spoke with conviction. "No! Whoever painted that mural can't prophesy. The one to topple the Celestial Dragons will definitely be Brother Kai."
Confident, aren't you?
Kai laughed. He looked around the circle—faces with different expressions, but all eyes shining with unconditional trust and support—and could not help the upward curve of his lips.
"Prophecies are excuses for cowards to avoid reality. The only thing to believe is that people can conquer fate."
He threw back his head and laughed, the sound brimming with undeniable force.
"Exactly!"
"Only you can be king of the world, Kai!"
Blood ran hot. They cried out together.
Forget prophecies. Forget chosen saviors. Even if a chasm yawned ahead, they would follow Kai's steps and charge through, laughing.
Even Enel, often the most resistant, snorted once. "Until this god defeats you, I will accept your arrangements."
"Quite lively."
Jarul's booming voice sounded.
Dorry and Brogy stood behind him.
He was too tall to fit. Jarul had to speak with Kai from outside the tavern.
"Kai, Dorry, and the others have told me what they saw in Wano."
Jarul's expression turned solemn. "In principle, I agree to establish friendly relations with the Beast Pirates, but—"
The word tightened every heart.
He continued, "Because we have no king, many giant villages scattered across the land don't fully heed my commands."
As Kai had said, Elbaf remained a loose, feudal land.
Big and small giant villages studded the Treasure Tree, Adam. In name, they were under the king. In truth, the giants' fierce nature meant that riots were commonplace when their policies did not suit them.
When Harald decided Elbaf would renounce violence and stop raiding, many villages opposed it hotly—even with arms.
Only Harald's overwhelming might suppressed the revolts.
Now, Kai faced the same problem.
Not all giants were enthralled by "modernization" and "change."
To many traditional warriors, true honor lay in raiding outward, proving strength, not in farming at home or punching a clock in a factory.
"Simple. Then let's fight."
Jarul, Dorry, and Brogy stared, stunned, as Kai smiled lightly. "Elbaf was a warrior nation. What proves more persuasive than fists and battle?"
"This…"
Deep wrinkles furrowed Jarul's brow. He hesitated visibly.
After Harald's age, he came to dislike solving problems purely through violence.
Dorry's eyes lit up. He boomed, "Elder Jarul, doesn't Elbaf have an ancient trial? It fits perfectly now."
"You mean—the King's Arena?"
Jarul dredged the iron-blooded words from a distant memory.
"King's Arena? What's that?" Yamato's curiosity snapped taut.
"Gababababa—turn that on?!" Brogy rumbled with excitement. "It's an ancient trial passed down through the ages in Elbaf."
"Whenever the throne stands empty and a new king is needed to lead Elbaf forward, and the giants argue endlessly, this trial begins."
"The rules are simple. The royal candidate must stand on the sacred arena and accept challenges from all giant warriors, and fight until the very end, still standing. The time limit is seven days and seven nights. That's why it's also called the Seven-Day Trial."
"But it's only a legend. It hasn't been invoked in centuries."
Even with ancient giant blood, withstanding a full-giant gauntlet without falling was no simple feat.
Kai blinked.
It was the perfect pillow for his drowsy head.
Elbaf had such a convenient tradition?
"Only…"
Brogy paused and looked at Kai, voice turning hesitant. "Even as a legend, there has never been a human challenger."
In the crucial moment, Jarul made a quick decision.
"Times change. Elbaf must change as well. If someone can govern Elbaf well, why should we care whether the king is a giant?"
After so many years at the helm, he knew better than anyone—he was too old.
Maintaining Harald's policies did not hinge only on his reputation, but on the giants' nostalgia for the king.
How long would that last? He did not know.
As he had told Loki, leave statecraft to the young.
If Kai could bring Elbaf a better life, then why not entrust him with the rule?
Jarul fixed his gaze on Kai, aged eyes solemn. "Kai, will you take this trial? It is a battle staking warrior honor and life, not a child's game."
Kai's smile faded. His face grew solemn. "For Elbaf's future, and for the Beast Pirates, I will."
He paused. His eyes swept every giant present. "And I promise this. If you find a better candidate for king, I will yield the throne."
He did not hide his intent. He did not want to.
Building Elbaf was about interest. But it would not be one-way plunder. It would be a win-win.
Jarul's taut face eased slightly at the honesty and pledge.
"I'll go persuade the clans."
He decided to work through the night, convincing the elders of the scattered giant villages.
Jarul, Dorry, and Brogy left the tavern in the night.
On the way back, Brogy seemed troubled, his steps not as bold as usual.
"Out with it. A few years at sea and you've gone all wishy-washy?" Jarul cut to the heart.
Brogy clenched his teeth. "Are we really making Kai the king? I—it just feels weird."
In his mind, nothing like this had ever happened in Elbaf.
Kai was his savior. He would die for Kai gladly.
But letting an outsider be king, an outsider who was not even a giant—
"You're wrong."
Jarul stopped and shook his head, a distant light in his eyes. "In a more ancient past, an outsider accomplished the same feat."
"What? Who?"
Dorry and Brogy froze in unison.
How had they never heard of this?
"His name was Joy Boy."
The next morning.
The first ray of the sun pierced Elbaf's sea fog. A deep, resonant horn blast shattered the calm across the island.
"Hm? Assembly?"
"Are we under attack?"
Giants across the land dropped what they were doing at the familiar war horn and rushed to their village squares.
Their elders were already waiting.
Almost simultaneously, the elders of every giant village announced a shocking decision.
"The King's Arena is activated!"
Giants stared, stunned, minds blank.
The King's Arena?
Familiar and strange at once.
When they finally dredged it from memory, fervor lit their faces.
"Who is it? Who dares challenge the King's Arena?"
"The throne's been empty for only a few years, and someone can't wait? Hahaha!"
"Maybe that kid, Hajrudin. He dreams of being the Giant King."
The elders did not tease it out. They announced at once. "The challenger is—Kai!"
"Kai? Who is that?"
Giants looked at each other, murmuring.
After a long moment, one uncertain giant ventured, "I think—he's a human pirate?"
"What? A human?"
"Humans can challenge the King's Arena?"
The square erupted. Voices shook the sky.
A few hot-blooded giants roared on the spot, swearing to tear that arrogant human to pieces to keep him from staining Elbaf's highest honor.
"Ahem. Ahem."
When the noise had run its course, the elders cleared their throats heavily and swept stern gazes across the crowd.
"Enough. This is the decision of all elders together. If you don't want a human to be your king, then use your strength and defeat him honorably in the arena."
An elder's authority was beyond doubt in the giants' hearts.
At those words, the arguments over Kai's qualification vanished.
Their focus shifted in an instant. Giants cracked their knuckles and stoked their fighting spirits, crafting plans to pound the human challenger into the ground.
But if Kai truly defeated every giant and stood at the end—
Then he would be Elbaf's king by right, beyond anyone's power to oppose.
In Elbaf, absolute strength was the hardest pass.
That was Kai's luck.
Under Harald's policies, the new generation had not yet come of age. Those who still held the kingdom's voice were the old guard, who revered warrior honor.