Chapter 152: The Fall of a Tyrant and the Spoils of War
CRACKLE... SHATTER!
As the final, frozen moment passed, the sixteen holy threads, now utterly brittle, shattered into a rain of glittering ice crystals. With their destruction, the oppressive Birdcage enclosing the island dissolved into nothingness, the near-invisible strings vanishing as if they had never been. Silence, profound and heavy, fell over the Royal Plateau. The battle was over.
[Ding!]
[Congratulations to the host for successfully defeating Donquixote Doflamingo, "Young Master of the Donquixote Family," "Joker," "Warlord of the Sea," and user of the String-String Fruit!]
[Reward: 3600 Enhancement Points!]
[Current Points: 10876!]
He had defeated a powerful enemy and reaped a massive reward, yet Ian felt no surge of excitement or joy. Instead, he watched the falling ice dust, a complex and unnamable emotion settling in his chest. Arriving in the New World, it seemed the very sky above was perpetually shrouded in frost and gloom.
Across the Kingdom of Dressrosa, the citizens watching the projected broadcast erupted into a unified roar of celebration that shook the island to its core.
"The threads are gone! The cage is down! Doflamingo is defeated! Did you see that? Vice Admiral Ian's final move!"
"It's over! Our country is free from the Warlord's control! The Donquixote Family is finished!"
"He did it! The Sea King did it! He really beat him!"
"No more toys! No more working in the dark!"
"Vice Admiral Jock Ian! To think the Navy has such a reliable young hero!"
"Where is King Riku? We need our true king!"
The joy of survival burst forth in a wave of pure, unadulterated elation. For an island of passion and love, the celebration was as fierce as the struggle that had preceded it.
Hours later, King Riku, surrounded by his grateful people, re-ascended the throne of Dressrosa. In a national address, he somberly recounted the years of suffering and sincerely thanked Ian and his crew for saving the kingdom from the pirates. He announced that a statue of the hero would be erected at the highest point of the Royal Plateau, ensuring Ian's deeds would be remembered for generations.
He had wanted Ian to say a few words, to inspire the people as they rebuilt their lives. Ian flatly refused. Lecturing people on how to start over? Don't be ridiculous. Those who had their happiness stolen and then regained it understood its precious value better than anyone. They were the ones in this world who knew best how to live earnestly. Ian was a practical man.
After defeating a powerful enemy, the most desirable thing was something mundane. He took his subordinates to Doflamingo's former residence to carry out the always meaningful task of... cleaning house!
"Search carefully! Don't miss a single chest or cabinet!" Ian commanded, his voice echoing through the lavish halls. "This ill-gotten wealth from the underworld can't be handed over to the World Government. It would taint the very concept of justice." He tried to keep his expression stern, but the corners of his mouth were harder to control than a spooked seagull. "I suppose we'll just have to find an opportunity to... spend it slowly. I'm tired. Look at this living room, it's practically full. Who knows how long this will take... Hahahaha!"
The Donquixote Family had been exceptionally hardworking in their money-making endeavors. The cash, jewels, and treasures already piled high were worth tens of billions of Berries, and this was likely just a fraction. As an emperor of the underworld, Doflamingo had been a veritable money-printing press. It made Ian think of another underworld emperor he had a connection with. Maybe next time I run into him, I should try to relieve him of some spending money?
The successive operations on Punk Hazard and Dressrosa had shown Ian something he hadn't fully grasped before. For an ordinary kingdom, were the Emperors the true terror? Or was it the World Government with its heavy Heavenly Tribute? Perhaps not. The Emperors didn't typically focus on small kingdoms. Life was hard, but paying the Heavenly Tribute could buy a measure of peace. The ones who truly wished for chaos and suffering, who profited from the desperation of ordinary people, were often the denizens of the underworld. The worse off the common man was, the more opportunities they had to make money.
"That's a mountain of treasure," Doll murmured, her brow furrowed as she tallied a stack of ledgers. "Is the artificial Devil Fruit business really this profitable? And is it... proper for us to keep this money instead of turning it over to the World Government?" As the newest member of the team, she was still adjusting to Ian's unique operational style. The value of the assets she was handling alone was close to ten billion Berries. The sheer scale made her, ever the rule-follower, deeply uneasy.
"Hey, Commodore Doll," Nami chimed in, her Navy cap tilted at a jaunty angle as she perfectly parroted Ian's "words of wisdom." "Hasn't the Lieutenant General already thought about what to report to HQ? We 'confiscate' a portion to give to King Riku for rebuilding Dressrosa. The rest, we just pretend never existed. If we handed it all to the World Government, they certainly wouldn't be so charitable as to use it to help ordinary citizens. The Lieutenant General also says that being a saint with no moral flaws will eventually lead to retribution."
"Commodore Doll, the artificial Devil Fruit business is incredibly profitable," Speed added, hauling a heavy chest. "I've seen huge shipments being sent to Wano Country before. Kaido bought them all from Joker, including the fruit I ate."
Skylark patted Speed's equine flank sympathetically. "It's a shame you ate yours so early, Sister Speed. The artificial fruits Caesar made are so imperfect. Is it true that you can only maintain this half-transformed state and can't control it freely?"
Speed shook her mane, a cheerful smile on her face. "Hehe, actually, Lieutenant General Ian already talked to me about it. He says he's about fifty percent sure he can help me train and control the lineage factor in my body."
"Lineage factor?" Skylark asked, her head tilted in confusion. "What's that?"
Peacock held up a classified document she had found, pointing to a specific section. "Lineage factor is a substance discovered by Vegapunk and another researcher. It's also called the 'blueprint of life' and exists within all living things." She looked from the document to Speed. "So, for an artificial Devil Fruit to be fully mastered, the foreign lineage factor has to be perfectly integrated with the user's own genes. Is that what you mean?"
It was easy to say. But the fact that such a complex concept could be discovered and manipulated through scientific research was staggering in itself.
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