Carl got out of bed and got dressed. Together with Lily, he stepped out of the room.
After a simple breakfast, Carl brought Lily with him to the former meeting hall of the Five Elders. There, he arranged the withdrawal of the Navy forces stationed beneath the Red Line.
Among the former Five Elders, only Saturn and Mars remained. Both were already aware that Borsalino had been appointed the Warrior God of Finance. Though Mars was inwardly reluctant, after thinking about what happened to Nusjuro, he ultimately chose silence. He could only watch as the Admiral he once treated as a tool became his colleague.
Once Carl finished making arrangements for the Navy, Saturn suddenly dropped a bombshell.
"Carl-sama," he said, "I am preparing to resign from the position of Warrior God of Science and Defense."
Mars immediately lost his composure, seizing Saturn by the collar and shouting,
"Have you gone mad?!"
Saturn responded calmly, face unreadable.
"Mars, this is my personal decision. There's no need for you to get so worked up."
How could Mars not be worked up? The current political situation was already fragile. If Saturn voluntarily stepped down, Mars would be the last remaining original member of the Five Elders. His own position as the Warrior God of Environment would surely be short-lived after that.
He had no intention of relinquishing power so easily.
Carl cast a cold glance at Mars and said indifferently,
"Remove your hand."
Mars trembled, quickly releasing Saturn. He immediately dropped to his knees and exclaimed,
"My deepest apologies! I was out of line!"
Carl rested his chin on his hand and looked down on the kneeling Mars.
"Were you just ignoring my presence? As one of the Five Elders, you don't even understand the most basic form of etiquette. How you spent the past few centuries?"
The image of Nusjuro's tragic death from the day before flashed through Mars' mind. His face turned ghostly pale as he slammed his forehead to the ground with a loud thud.
"Please forgive me!!"
Borsalino, watching this play out, clicked his tongue in disbelief.
The once lofty Five Elder who used to order the Navy around without restraint was now groveling. The scene was jarring, to say the least.
But despite Mars' pathetic display, Carl had no intention of letting him off the hook.
In truth, Carl never meant for Mars to walk away from this unharmed. He already held a poor impression of the former Five Elders—except for Saturn. In the original timeline, these men had proven themselves incompetent time and again. Luffy ran circles around them, and even when they managed to surround him, he still escaped.
Rotting, outdated leadership like this had no business existing any longer.
As Mars trembled in terror, Carl's voice rang out again, calm and chilling.
"You already know what happens to those who defy their king. Nusjuro gave you a preview yesterday. This time, do it yourself."
Mars began to shake violently. In desperation, he turned to Lily, who sat beside Carl, and cried out,
"Imu-sama, I beg you! I'm your most loyal servant!"
Lily didn't even spare him a glance. She continued to sit beside Carl, silent and unmoved.
Carl narrowed his eyes and said,
"So, you can't bring yourself to do it? Then allow me to help you. But if I have to do it, the process will be... less than pleasant."
Mars was plunged into despair. But rather than sit and wait to die, he immediately activated his hybrid form. Flames roared around his body as he shouted,
"No!! Carl-sama, you can't do this!!"
"And you think you get to tell me what I can or can't do?"
Carl snapped his fingers casually.
Mars' eyes widened in horror. The flames engulfing him vanished instantly, and the demonic power sustaining him was stripped away.
A dense black mist enveloped Mars, dissolving his flesh bit by bit.
His agonized screams echoed throughout the vast council chamber. Saturn watched in silence as Mars was reduced to a puddle of black blood on the floor. He muttered under his breath,
"Fool."
Those who fail to read the situation rarely meet a good end.
Power is important, yes—but it pales in comparison to one's own life.
Now that Borsalino had been appointed to replace Nusjuro, the message was clear: Carl, the new king, was beginning a full purge of the World Government's upper ranks. He was clearing seats to place his own people.
Although Saturn was still technically one of Carl's people, he was nowhere near as trusted as Borsalino and the remaining Admirals.
Even if he had stayed in his position, Carl likely wouldn't have harmed him—but that would've been a tone-deaf move.
After considering it carefully, Saturn decided it would be wiser to do Carl a favor and step down on his own. He was confident Carl wouldn't mistreat him in return.
At the very least, Carl would allow him and his family to live comfortably in Mary Geoise.
Sure enough, after handling Mars, Carl looked at Saturn with a rare expression of approval.
"Saturn, you've worked hard these many years. Go home and rest."
It sounded like Carl was simply dismissing Saturn—there was no reward, no recognition for his voluntary resignation.
But Saturn wasn't the slightest bit dissatisfied. He understood well: some gifts a king may choose to give, but they should never be asked for.
He slowly rose to his feet, bowed slightly, and said respectfully,
"Then I'll take my leave."
Carl smiled and nodded.
Saturn turned toward the door—but before he had taken more than a few steps, Carl called out behind him.
"Wait, Saturn. That body of yours looks quite old... Come here. I'll bestow something upon you."
Saturn's body stiffened. He turned back around and bowed again without asking what Carl meant.
"Thank you for your grace, Carl-sama."
Then, he slowly walked up to Carl.
Carl examined Saturn, whose hair was graying and face covered in wrinkles, and said,
"They call it the Immortality Surgery, but really, all it does is stop death."
Saturn nodded slightly.
"That's right. By the time Imu-sama granted me the right to undergo the Immortality Surgery, I was already old. The surgery didn't restore my youth."
Carl chuckled and glanced at Lily.
"Good thing you went through it early, huh, Lady Lily? Otherwise, your king might've had second thoughts... hmm."
Lily's mouth twitched slightly, and she replied stiffly,
"I no longer consider it such a good thing."
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+140 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg