"Scarlett! Our Riku clan..."
King Riku looked solemnly at Scarlett. Just as she expected, he went on about his own theory, the same ideology that every King Riku of the past had held.
The Riku family had always ruled Dressrosa with kindness and peace.
For hundreds of years, even though Dressrosa lay in the New World, not a single riot had broken out.
It was only because Roger started the Great Pirate Era that Dressrosa was shaken a little.
But thanks to Dressrosa's own military strength, its status as a World Government member nation, and the Marine G-5 branch right next door, those pirates never caused trouble here. Most just resupplied and then slipped away quietly.
Only a few hotheaded rookies who had just entered the New World tried raiding here, but they were quickly wiped out.
So in King Riku's eyes, as long as their family upheld the traditions passed down for centuries, Dressrosa could continue to prosper.
King Riku had only two daughters.
The next ruler of Dressrosa would have to be chosen from them.
Viola looked lively on the outside but was actually reserved in character. Scarlett looked gentle on the outside but was actually outgoing.
Between the two, King Riku clearly leaned toward Scarlett.
He even thought that if Scarlett ended up together with Kyros, that would be quite a good thing.
He had known Kyros for ten years, and five years ago Kyros won 1,000 matches in the arena, becoming captain of the Riku Royal Army. In other words, he knew him inside and out.
In terms of strength, Kyros was strong enough to protect Dressrosa, and he had already spent five full years alongside Scarlett.
The most crucial point was this: because he came from the arena, Kyros could only ever assist Scarlett. There was no need to worry about him having ambitions of his own, otherwise the people of Dressrosa would never accept him, nor would they let him live. This gave King Riku great peace of mind.
These were all King Riku's beautiful hopes. But unfortunately, because Scarlett met with Rosse today, they all turned into bubbles.
King Riku had a premonition. If he didn't stop Scarlett, his daughter might really do something irreversible.
And if she did, Dressrosa could fall into utter ruin.
After speaking about the Riku clan and his ideals, King Riku dismissed the attendants nearby, leaned close to Scarlett's ear, and said gravely, "Scarlett, Dressrosa lies in the New World. If you get too close with Saint Rosse, it will only harm Dressrosa. If Whitebeard comes to take revenge on us, what will we do?"
In the New World, there were some people who must never be provoked.
Even as a World Government member nation, provoking those legendary pirates only meant certain death.
Now Whitebeard had already torn off all pretenses with the World Government and the Celestial Dragons, and the one who started it all was Rosse.
If one day Whitebeard came, they would have no way out but death.
This was why King Riku was willing to welcome Rosse but didn't want to get too close to him.
Being on good terms with the Celestial Dragons didn't necessarily bring benefits; it could also bring their enemies down upon you.
But while King Riku earnestly tried to persuade her, Scarlett only looked casual. She gazed at him and asked a question:
"Father, what if it's not Whitebeard who comes, but Dragon? Then what will you do?"
That one line choked King Riku into silence.
Dragon's whereabouts were unpredictable, but he often caused trouble for member nations. This was something spread across the whole sea.
If Dragon really came, the only option would be to rely on the World Government and the Marines.
If they had deeper ties with Rosse, it would indeed make Dragon hesitate.
At the very least, Jaygar District was right there, and Dragon had never gone there.
Not that Dragon was afraid. After the Holy Land incident, there was nowhere he didn't dare to go.
But whenever he approached Jaygar District, Vanessa would appear. After a few times, Dragon simply gave up entirely.
King Riku didn't know this.
He only knew that when the Fishman Kingdom had been targeted by Dragon, it hadn't suffered much loss. A Marine admiral immediately gave chase, and rumor had it Dragon was driven into a particularly bad situation.
"Father, times are changing. Dressrosa can't rely on itself. It can only temporarily rely on others. That is already the best choice."
Scarlett gave King Riku a deep look, then said nothing more. Instead, she lightly lifted the hem of her skirt, took small, elegant, ladylike steps, and with her maids in attendance, walked toward the direction of the royal banquet.
Because of her fascination with Rosse, Scarlett had in the past two years often taken the initiative to learn about news of the sea.
The more she learned, the more naturally she formed her own views on the balance of the seas.
Dressrosa was in the New World, without any top-tier powerhouse to guard it. That determined its position of surviving in the cracks.
What was a top-tier powerhouse?
Scarlett hadn't had a concept of this before, but when she saw Sakazuki unleash heaven's wrath and destroy Ohara in the broadcast, she gained a vague understanding.
Dressrosa wasn't much bigger than Ohara.
If Sakazuki could destroy Ohara singlehandedly, then Dragon or Whitebeard, being of the same level, could easily destroy Dressrosa.
At that moment, Scarlett deeply realized, the Riku clan's stable rule over Dressrosa had never been because of kindness or the love of its people.
This wasn't the Four Seas. This was the cruel New World, where external threats were far more terrifying than internal troubles.
There didn't even need to be a top-tier powerhouse. Just a few big pirates showing up a few times could destroy Dressrosa.
Scarlett had thought about this problem.
The reason Dressrosa had been able to survive for hundreds of years was simply because of its status as a World Government member nation, with the protection of the Government and the Marines.
This was the Donquixote family's ancestral land. As the homeland of one of the 19 Celestial Dragon families, once the Marines or Government got word of any trouble, a top-tier powerhouse would immediately appear around Dressrosa.
This wasn't because Dressrosa was important to the Government. It was only because this was the Celestial Dragons' homeland. If pirates caused unrest here, it would damage the Government's prestige, nothing more.
Of course, there was another important reason.
Dressrosa was a tiny place, with no special resources, and no widespread grudges. It wasn't worth the effort for top-tier powerhouses to come and destroy.
Those top-tier powerhouses didn't fear the World Government; they were lunatics who dared do anything.
But living in such passivity was still far too stifling.
She wanted to protect Dressrosa in her own proactive way.
On this matter, Scarlett had her own little schemes.
Especially after the Holy Land incident, those little schemes had reached their peak.
She had heard that there weren't many Donquixotes left.
If the Donquixote family could rise from Dressrosa to become Celestial Dragons, then the Riku family she represented could do the same.
Only, the method she wanted to use might not be quite the same as others'.
Though Viola was a bit introverted, she was also quite suitable to be Queen of Dressrosa.
As for herself, she longed for life beyond Dressrosa. If she could spend some time on the Red Line, treating it as her second home, that would be the best outcome of all.
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