But Sarie knew, as she looked at the bodies of her treacherous husband and his ambitious father, that there was no room for reversal.
The two men before her—the terrifyingly powerful Rear Admiral Lancelot and the ruthless assassin Golass—were both far beyond her ability to handle.
Still, she thought, a cold pragmatism settling over her grief, this was a far better outcome than falling completely into Stelly's hands.
At least the blood debt of her father, brothers, and nephews had been avenged.
Lancelot seemed to see through Sarie's turbulent thoughts.
"Don't worry," he said, his voice surprisingly gentle. "I won't mistreat my woman. Although maritime transport has been entrusted to me, as long as I'm here, the monarchy of the Kingdom of Goa will always belong to the Nefertari—ah, the Nantokanette family."
He continued, "Moreover, this maritime transport plan isn't just targeting your Kingdom of Goa. The Celestial Dragons have ordered me to establish the Four Seas Exchange at Whiskey Peak, near the entrance to the Grand Line. So, my true target is the economy of the entire Four Seas. The East Blue is merely the beginning, and the Kingdom of Goa is the beginning of the East Blue."
"What?" Sarie's expression changed drastically.
She was clever and immediately understood what the Four Seas Exchange represented.
This was an attempt to control the entire economy of the Four Seas.
This was playing with fire... but, given his explanation, it also seemed horrifyingly reasonable.
Celestial Dragons, after all!
They were always so insatiable.
No matter how absurd, excessive, or shameless their actions were, when it came to them, it all seemed justified.
...
In three short days, a whirlwind of change swept the Goa Kingdom.
Golass, true to his word, had enacted a bloody, silent purge, eliminating every noble who had been complicit in Outlock III's and Stelly's coup.
With the old, corrupt power structure decapitated, Lancelot officially "restored order" and placed Sarie Nantokanette on the throne as the sole, rightful Queen.
The entire Kingdom of Goa was revitalized.
Without the parasitic nobles sucking the lifeblood of the people, the burden on the populace was instantly reduced by at least half.
Queen Sarie, by abolishing Stelly's tyrannical decrees, quickly won the hearts and minds of the entire kingdom.
The official news that reached Marine Headquarters was that 'Outlock III's and his son Stelly, died protecting Princess Sarie Nantokanet from the notorious assassin Golass, who had infiltrated the palace.'
Meanwhile, Lancelot lay on the opulent, dragon-themed bed of the Goa Kingdom's royal suite, enjoying Queen Sarie's... attentive... service.
'What bliss.'
A true man, he mused, should live like this.
This was how life ought to be.
One word described it: "Heavenly!"
'Buru buru... Buru buru...'
But sometimes, there were always spoilsports. Just then, the encrypted Den Den Mushi that Lancelot always carried with him rang.
Sarie paused.
But Lancelot, his expression unchanging, simply pressed her head back down and answered the Den Den Mushi
A deep, authoritative voice came through.
"This is Sengoku!"
Lancelot was momentarily stunned—the Fleet Admiral himself? He quickly replied with the appropriate respect.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, sir."
Sengoku spoke, his voice tinged with the anger Lancelot had expected.
"Rear Admiral Lancelot, why did you involve yourself in the internal affairs of the Goa Kingdom?"
Lancelot, however, merely laughed upon hearing this.
When he had decided to intervene, he had already prepared his explanation.
He said softly, "Fleet Admiral Sengoku, the Kingdom of Goa is a member nation of the World Government. And Queen Sarie is the sole, rightful heir to the throne. After her entire family was assassinated, she contacted most of the Navy bases in the East Blue and sent us a distress call."
"As the Governor-General of the East Blue," Lancelot continued, his voice now laced with righteousness, "how could I possibly ignore it? If we truly turn a blind eye to the legitimate heir of a member nation being usurped, what would the other member nations think? Even though they pay large sums of taxes and tributes every year, they still can't receive our protection?"
Upon hearing this, Sengoku frowned and said with a stern face, "Nonsense. As long as a member nation is attacked by pirates or the Revolutionary Army, we Marines will immediately dispatch reinforcements. How can you say we don't protect them?"
Lancelot replied smoothly, "Then, sir, who rules a kingdom?"
"...The royal family," Sengoku replied, his voice wary.
"Exactly. This time, Sarie Nantokanette, as the last member of that royal family, sent a distress call to us, the Navy. If we don't rescue them... what would the kings and royal family members of all the other member nations think? My actions this time are meant to show all of them that we not only protect their kingdoms from pirate attacks, but we also safeguard their royal families' right to rule over their kingdoms. So, when all the kings learn about the situation in the Goa Kingdom, they will only grow closer and more loyal to the World Government."
Upon hearing this, Sengoku, on the other end, narrowed his eyes.
The corners of his mouth, hidden by his beard, raised slightly.
"That... actually makes sense."
After exchanging a few more brief pleasantries, he ended the call.
"????" Lancelot was left somewhat bewildered.
That... was it?
This hurdle had been cleared far too easily.
He still had a lot of prepared arguments left unsaid!
....
Back at Marine Headquarters, Sengoku placed the receiver down, looking at Vice Admiral Tsuru.
"Just as you predicted, Tsuru-chan. This kid is very clear-headed. It wasn't due to an excess of 'justice' or him acting impulsively."
Vice Admiral Tsuru nodded.
"After this kid took down Moria and Crocodile, I investigated every single thing he did after arriving in the East Blue. I found that his strengths and weaknesses are both very pronounced. Take this matter, for example—he possesses a strategic, political vision far beyond ordinary people. And from his actions in the Goa Kingdom, he is very friendly toward civilians. Coupled with his strength... he truly has the makings of an Admiral. As long as he is given enough time to grow, perhaps in the future, he could become one of the next generation's three Admirals."
She paused, her expression turning critical.
"However... this guy has a very strong desire for power. At the same time, he is extremely greedy for wealth... and lustful. To the point where he would go to any lengths for these things. What a contradictory fellow!"
"Bwahahaha! GWAHAHAHA!"
Garp, who was sitting on the couch eating rice crackers, couldn't help but burst into loud laughter.
Sengoku and Tsuru both turned to glare at him.
After stopping his laughter, Garp said with a nonchalant expression.
"What's the big deal about being lustful and greedy? From what I know, since this kid arrived in the East Blue, he's only really 'taken' one woman, that Lise. And afterward, he made that woman's nephew the base commander in Syrup Village. At this point, that woman couldn't be happier!"
"And as for that woman's sister, Lina," Garp continued, shocking them with his level of detail.
"Lancelot actually gave her the Zoan-Type: White Tiger Fruit that old man Burns managed to get. Now, she's utterly devoted to him. As for greed... hehe... how many of those guys in the World Government aren't greedy?"
Garp finished his cracker.
"Based on this kid's actions of considering civilians when dealing with that Krieg pirate alongside Smoker, he's already much, much better than that magma-brat, Akainu."
Upon hearing this, Sengoku and Vice Admiral Tsuru's expressions changed slightly.
It wasn't surprising that Garp knew all this; after all, the East Blue was his hometown.
It would be strange if he didn't have informants there.
What made their expressions shift was what Garp had said.
Indeed... Compared to Akainu's brutal approach of disregarding civilian and even fellow Marine casualties in the fight against pirates, Lancelot was far more "compassionate."
"Hah..."
The two took a deep breath, then exchanged a meaningful glance.
Finally, Sengoku spoke, his voice low.
"Do you think... he's suitable?"
He was already 77 years old.
Though his hair appeared jet black, it was actually dyed.
Thus, he had long begun scouting and grooming potential successors.
He could only remain in his position as Fleet Admiral for a few more years at most.
Eventually, like the former Fleet Admiral Kong, he would be "promoted" to a high-ranking position and sent to work at the Holy Land.
Before that, he not only needed to identify a suitable candidate for the next Fleet Admiral but also someone to fill the resulting vacant Admiral position.
Although there were two current reserve Admirals (Momousagi and Chaton), while their strength barely met the requirements, they lacked the broad strategic vision and overwhelming presence expected of a true Admiral.