The flames of war in the Shield Card Kingdom ignited without warning. The battle between the Royal Army and the rebel forces erupted, and years of accumulated grievances finally exploded overnight. Many eyes across the East Blue were focused here. Some frowned, others watched the show; some were reminded of the recently concluded war in the five nations, lost in thought. However, most people adopted an attitude of "it's none of my business, hang it high and let it be." The general public mostly discussed it for a bit after meals, as mere conversation fodder.
When the ship Wilder was on arrived, the kingdom was already wreathed in the smoke of gunpowder.
"Purupuru…"
The Den Den Mushi in his robes rang incessantly, but Wilder seemed not to hear it, stepping onto this land with the small figure beside him.
"Katcha." Only after reaching a street corner did Wilder answer.
"Is this your attitude, Mr. Morass? The war has already begun. Why haven't you appeared yet?" a voice suppressing anger came from the Den Den Mushi.
"We agreed to act after two days. This is only the first day. Isn't this perfectly normal?" Wilder said, his face expressionless, his tone faint.
The person on the other end was momentarily speechless. "I understand..." The temper in the voice softened somewhat. The other party said, "Well, have you arrived now? If you have, please make your move ahead of schedule."
"Of course," Wilder replied faintly, then hung up.
After hanging up, Wilder was thoughtful, a slight smile playing on his lips. Gazing at the distant fires, he knew the timing wasn't wrong, nor had the rhythm deviated from the Revolutionary Army's control. The reason they were urging him to act early… he figured, was to disrupt his pace and also to observe him. As for what to observe? Probably his strength, Wilder thought to himself.
Two figures, one large and one small, walked down the street. By now, no one dared to venture onto the streets. Every household's door was tightly shut. In the darkness, only fallen leaves, swept by the wind, flew into the distance. Desolation and bleakness were everywhere.
It took less than a day from receiving the call to arriving in the Shield Card Kingdom. By the time Wilder arrived, the war had already begun. However, it was only small-scale fighting. The large-scale advance would likely still be at the time the Revolutionary Army had specified. And that… was when he, Wilder, would make his move. As for their request over the Den Den Mushi for him to act early, Wilder could only pretend he'd forgotten.
Although the streets were empty, in some areas not yet touched by the war, some bold people were still open for business. He found a town center, took little Aisha for a big meal first, and then settled down in an inn. With little Aisha's obedient and understanding nod, Wilder left the inn. His figure flickered and vanished into the night.
Before that, he needed to carefully observe this country. This was partly due to caution, to avoid being secretly ensnared, and partly to gain an understanding of the overall situation before the battle began. That way, when he acted, he could strike at the source and end things quickly. Working so hard was certainly not out of any special sentiment for the Revolutionary Army; it was merely for a swift resolution. After all, this time it wasn't just the Shield Card Kingdom. There were nine more nations to deal with. So, the sooner this ended, the sooner he could move on to the next country and conclude the transactions.
By then…
As Wilder leaped and bounded under the night sky, his gaze flickered, much like his ambition, following his leaps, flickering.
Among the ten nations in the mission, the Shield Card Kingdom ranked among the top three in terms of both economy and national power. But, that was about it. How strong could a nation that had reached such a state truly be?
Wilder leaped across rooftops. With a Moon Walk, he could cover more than ten meters in a single step. His figure flickered, making him extremely difficult to spot under the cover of night.
Before long, Wilder stopped. His gaze shifted, falling on a distant street corner. A figure wearing a wide-brimmed hat leaned against a wall, a faint ember glowing between their fingers. It looked like they were smoking. However, the reason Wilder stopped wasn't because of this sudden scene, but because he recognized the person: the refined middle-aged man he had once met at the Pin Hai Restaurant, the one who had been kicked out for ruining the restaurant's extra income.
Wilder's gaze narrowed slightly. He thought to himself, 'Why would he be here?' If it were a coincidence, it would be far too coincidental. Wilder would rather believe this was a premeditated setup against him than a mere coincidence. While Wilder watched him from afar, the other person hadn't yet noticed Wilder. After staring at him for a long time, Wilder decided not to reveal himself for now. He leaped down from the rooftop, turned into a dark alley, and left in another direction.
The fighting gradually died down late at night. Both sides tacitly chose to rest and recuperate their forces.
Wilder stepped onto the palace walls. Using the cover of night, his figure, swift as lightning, evaded the sight of the patrolling soldiers. To observe a country, especially one on the verge of collapse, the simplest and most direct way was to observe its most important place—the Royal Palace.
He moved silently all the way. Occasionally, when encountering patrols he couldn't avoid, Wilder would transform into swamp and hide. Wilder's goal was to infiltrate this country's treasury without alerting anyone. The Royal Palace was the most heavily guarded and also the most important location.
This was also one of the important reasons why the Revolutionary Army could sustain its organization's activities: because they had money. And where did this money come from? Undeniably, most of it was obtained through their own enterprises and channels. But was that truly enough? Clearly not. Leaving other things aside, just the sum paid in this transaction with him, Wilder, was ridiculously large. Without sufficient financial backing, they clearly couldn't be so extravagant. So, the most important question was, after overthrowing a kingdom, how would the Revolutionary Army handle the money in the national treasury? Wilder didn't know, but they certainly wouldn't leave it untouched.
So, if this great fortune could fall into his own hands, it would always be… better than someone else taking it, right? Anyway, this war provided cover. Anyone could only guess at the truth of the matter, but no one could produce any real, visible facts.
The Royal Palace was heavily guarded, and the national treasury within it was even more tightly secured. But this level of security was for others living in the East Blue; Wilder was not among them.
Transforming into swamp, he burrowed underground, proceeding unimpeded all the way, and successfully infiltrated the national treasury.
In the vast space, bathed in dim yellow light, were piled glittering gold and silver treasures, countless Beli, antiques, collectibles, and so on. Even Wilder couldn't help but be shaken by the scene before him.
"So this is the foundation of a nation…" Wilder said. But then, the shock in his eyes intensified. Around the vast space were several tall, locked iron gates, tinged with rust, yet their heavy solidity could still be felt. Each iron gate was tightly bound by chains as thick as thighs.
Wilder slipped through one of them, and what he saw inside left him unable to remain calm. Neatly stacked boxes filled with gold, even more than in the outer vast space. Besides that, there were densely packed wooden crates sealed with strips of paper. Opening one, he found it full of swords and guns, but no ammunition.
Wilder suppressed the turmoil in his heart and returned to the vast space. Then, he slipped through the other gates one by one. The scenes inside, without exception, all demonstrated the foundation of a nation! Besides arms, gold, and other incredibly precious items, there was also a large collection of classic books. This wealth was in no way inferior to the value of the gold.
"Why did this country end up like this?" This was what Wilder couldn't understand. Judging from the state of the treasury, the situation was different from his prior understanding. Logically, this should have been a prosperous nation. How could a prosperous nation provoke a popular rebellion?
"This is also why the Revolutionary Army agreed to cooperate with me, isn't it?" Wilder suddenly smiled. He figured this country had been targeted long ago. As for who had targeted it initially, Wilder didn't know. Perhaps it was the Revolutionary Army, or perhaps other factions. He just didn't know what means had been used to create so much internal conflict in this country, ultimately allowing the Revolutionary Army to slip in. Wilder guessed that the foundations of the other nine nations were likely not weak either. If they could be taken, the wealth within was imaginable.
The Revolutionary Army badly wanted this money but didn't want to attract too much attention. Therefore, they had to remain entirely covert, only able to incite the nation's poor to rebel. But this way, successfully taking these nations was full of uncertainties. So… if an insignificant person or faction intervened to "help," then this problem would be easily solved. As for whether this money would, by some mischance, end up in the pocket of the intervener? The Revolutionary Army must have considered such a problem. However, generally, this situation was unlikely to occur. Not to mention the heavily guarded Royal Palace; a forced entry would inevitably be discovered, leading to a siege. From the moment the Revolutionary Army decided to make a move on this country, it had already been under their surveillance, especially a critical place like the national treasury. If anyone made a move on this money, they would inevitably not escape their notice.
However, none of this was within Wilder's scope of concern. The problem now before him was… how to take this nation's treasury. Wilder only thought about this, not at all about whether he would be discovered.
The infinite capacity of his swamp? Wilder could do it, but that way, he definitely couldn't maintain his human form, because the amount was too large. So, his body would have to become swamp. But doing so meant the risk of exposing his identity, which Wilder didn't want.
Steal it secretly and break off further cooperation with the Revolutionary Army? But that would affect his subsequent plans. Cooperation with the Revolutionary Army wasn't just about the wealth from transactions; most importantly, it was an opportunity to sweep through the East Blue overnight in this tide of change. So, this idea could also be ruled out.
Wilder frowned in thought, but ultimately, after much consideration, he couldn't come up with a suitable solution.
Just then, Wilder's ears twitched. The sound of soldiers walking came from outside. Wilder instantly reacted. He glanced at the treasure piled up like a small mountain, frowned, and his body transformed into swamp, retreating.
The national treasury was inspected periodically, usually once a year or once every six months. Unfortunately, Wilder had run right into it. However, even without this situation, Wilder hadn't planned to stay longer. This was ultimately not a place for thinking; with any slight disturbance, it was impossible to calm down and think of a solution.
The war would likely erupt fully tomorrow or the day after. At that time, the entire country would be affected. After observing outside for a while, Wilder didn't plan to continue wandering. His figure flickered and headed towards the inn where he was staying. It was called an inn, but it was actually a small, separate courtyard house, and the price was naturally not cheap.
When he returned, little Aisha was sitting blankly on the edge of the corridor in the courtyard, her slightly chubby little hands propping up her chin, staring intently at the gate. Seeing Wilder return, she seemed very happy and scampered over to help Wilder open the gate. The gate opened, and before Wilder could react, her small arms spread wide, and her whole little person pounced on him.
"I want stupid lamb leg… Er, no!! I missed you, mister!"
"..." Wilder was expressionless until little Aisha awkwardly lowered her head, pretending to stare at her toes.
Ignoring the head-lowered little Aisha, Wilder strode into the courtyard. The sound of stealthy footsteps came from behind. Wilder didn't need to look to know it was Aisha following closely, and in that "covering one's ears while stealing a bell" kind of furtive way, thinking that if her footsteps were quieter, her embarrassment wouldn't be noticed.
He went into the bungalow, took a quick shower, and came out wearing only a pair of large shorts, a bucket-sized bottle of alcohol in his hand. Bare-chested, his tall frame was ruggedly muscular, exuding a refined, steel-like quality. He walked straight to the corridor, sat down, one leg bent flat on the corridor, the other hanging down naturally. With a pop, he flicked the cork off with a single finger. Tilting his head back, he took a large swig. Wilder's eyes gazed at the scattered stars in the sky, but his mind was preoccupied with how to solve that problem. This was the first time Wilder had drunk in such a crude manner. He felt it had a certain unique flavor.
Thinking about the earlier problem, Wilder suddenly realized he hadn't explored developments related to the specific properties of his swamp for a long time. At this thought, Wilder suddenly became intrigued.
Glug, glug, glug, glug, glug… He downed the entire bottle in one go, then tossed the bottle aside. It shattered into countless pieces against a corner of the wall with a crash.
The alcohol was a bit strong. Wilder's steps were somewhat unsteady. He picked up the wide-eyed, baffled little Aisha with one hand, walked into the room, and then… with a whoosh, he tossed her onto the bed, and then slammed the door shut with a bang.
"Go to sleep," he slurred, his voice tinged with drunkenness. Wilder then swayed out, leaped, and jumped onto the rooftop.
His Observation Haki swept out, monitoring all around. A vast amount of swamp surged from his body, covering the entire rooftop in the blink of an eye. After covering the rooftop, the swamp continued to flow down along the eaves. But just then, Wilder's brow suddenly twitched, a trace of astonishment flashing across his face.
"This is…" Wilder opened his eyes.