"Actually, it's very simple. It's not nearly as complicated as you're imagining."
Kuro seemed moved by Yasopp's oath. He relaxed his body and deliberately put on a greedy yet helpless look.
"Kaya and that live-in son-in-law Usopp belong to one of the richest families within dozens of miles. My plan was simple: find an opportunity, create an accident, and have both of them die unexpectedly."
"Then I could naturally alter the will and take over all of their property. After that, I could live a peaceful life of luxury in this remote place."
At this point, Kuro deliberately paused.
He frowned slightly. His eyes shifted, and he secretly glanced at Yasopp from the corner of his eye. His tone became hesitant.
"However, during the execution of this perfect plan, a small problem appeared. Even I found it troublesome. It made me seriously hesitate about whether I should continue carrying out the plan."
When dealing with a blindly confident and somewhat arrogant fool like Yasopp, Kuro understood the art of communication very well.
Some things absolutely could not be explained too clearly.
If he hid part of it and left part unsaid, it would instead encourage the other side's self-important imagination and make him believe it completely.
"Hahahaha! I get it! I get it now!"
Just as Kuro expected.
After hearing this half-spoken explanation, Yasopp immediately burst into laughter.
He slapped his thigh proudly as if he had seen through everything.
"While working here as a butler, you accidentally discovered a huge secret. That live-in son-in-law named Usopp is actually my son?"
Yasopp lifted his chin. The smug look on his face was hard to describe.
"So after learning that relationship, you got scared and became cautious. That's why you never dared to kill them and take their wealth. Am I right?"
He was a senior officer of the world-famous Red Hair Pirates.
A great pirate with a bounty of four hundred million berries.
That amount was twenty times Kuro's bounty.
In a rural place like the East Blue, it was only natural that a mere twenty-million-berry pirate would become afraid after learning the reputation of someone as important as him.
"Yes. Your insight is truly remarkable."
Kuro lowered his head and forced himself to suppress the urge to throw up everything he had eaten yesterday.
Following Yasopp's logic, he answered in an extremely sincere tone.
"Your reputation is known everywhere. How could I dare offend you casually? So during these three years, I truly didn't do anything inappropriate. And after learning about that relationship, my thinking became very simple."
"Since this family has someone like you backing them, I simply gave up thoughts of murdering people for money and focused on honestly doing my work as a butler."
"Taking a generous salary and quietly living out my days is actually a pretty good choice."
Kuro adjusted his glasses and let out a long sigh.
Then he raised his head again and looked at Yasopp. The way he seemed to want to speak but held back was perfectly timed.
"However..."
"However what? Stop hesitating."
"However, since you've personally come here today...", Kuro lowered his voice, "And judging by how angry you were just now, combined with Young Master Usopp's usual behavior, he seems to hold a lot of resentment and prejudice toward you, his great father. Am I wrong?"
"Hahahaha! You fox, you're really smart."
Yasopp laughed loudly again.
Combining Kuro's deliberate obstruction at the gate earlier with what he had just said, he immediately completed the entire chain of logic in his mind.
That unfilial son must have constantly complained about him and slandered him in front of this butler.
That was why Kuro initially had prejudice against him and even fought him.
Now that they had exchanged blows, Kuro had personally experienced his strength and was completely convinced.
Everything fit perfectly.
"Then let me ask you something."
Yasopp stopped laughing and suddenly stepped forward.
Holding his chest high, he casually rested his custom firearm on his shoulder.
He struck what he believed was the most handsome and pirate-like pose in the world.
"Putting aside all those ignorant rumors. After fighting me directly and seeing my character with your own eyes."
Yasopp looked down at Kuro. His eyes were full of self-obsession and excitement.
"Tell me honestly. What kind of man do you think I, Yasopp, really am?"
Faced with this sudden and nauseating question...
"..."
Kuro silently rolled his eyes in his heart.
But his expressionless face, refined through countless experiences, revealed not the slightest flaw.
He slowly raised a hand and adjusted the gold-rimmed glasses on his nose with great seriousness.
Then he lifted his head. Behind the lenses, his eyes seemed to shine with almost fanatical admiration.
He stared at Yasopp and loudly praised him in a passionate voice.
"The foolish judgments of ordinary people may be filled with unreasonable prejudice. But during our life-and-death battle just now, the power transmitted through your attacks and that powerful belief that seemed determined to conquer the seas could never lie."
Kuro took a deep breath and seemed to use all his strength to shout his final praise.
"In my eyes! You are absolutely not some scumbag who abandoned his wife and child. You are a great hero who set his sights on the entire sea, carries all things in his heart, and gave up the small self in pursuit of ultimate freedom."
"Hahahahahahahaha!"
Hearing this shameless flattery that had reached the peak of its art, Yasopp's vanity received a level of satisfaction it had never experienced before.
He threw back his head and laughed so hard that tears nearly came out.
'This guy understands me!'
'One of the few people who truly understand me.'
'Sure enough, there are people in this world who understand him.'
The others simply didn't because they were too ignorant.
While laughing, he waved his hand in fake modesty.
"Oh, come on! That's too much! Even though everything you said is true, hearing such direct praise makes me a little embarrassed! After all, even an important person like me has a few insignificant flaws, hahaha!"
Yasopp neither knew nor cared what others would think after hearing such shameless words.
At this moment, he only felt as though every pore on his body had been pleased by the praise. He felt so good he was about to float into the sky.
"No, no! Sir, you're far too modest. Those words came completely from my heart! There wasn't any flattery in them," Kuro replied with a serious expression and a face full of sincerity.
Even though, deep down, he had already cursed eighteen generations of Yasopp's ancestors and felt that this narcissist was ten thousand times more disgusting than he had ever been as a pirate.
On the surface, however, he still maintained that respectful appearance without revealing the slightest flaw.
'What a joke.'
Without this level of patience and acting skill, what qualifications would Kuro of a Hundred Plans have to participate in this grand play personally directed by that god?
"Enough! Enough! Let's stop wasting time."
Yasopp put away his smile.
Since he had already confirmed that this former pirate had been completely conquered by his personal charm, certain matters could now be discussed openly.
He chuckled, leaned closer to Kuro, and lowered his voice.
"Since you've fully realized that I'm a great man who ignores small matters for the sake of a greater cause, then there shouldn't be any problem with me asking you to use your position as a butler to secretly help me with a small task, right?"
"What are you saying, sir? Being able to serve you is my honor! Please give the order," Kuro bowed deeply, his attitude humble to the extreme.
"Good."
Yasopp nodded in satisfaction.
A chilling coldness flashed through his eyes as he slowly spoke his idea through clenched teeth.
"I want you to use every method you have. Help me... get rid of that woman Kaya."
'Get rid of Kaya?'
Those four casual words traveled clearly through Observation Haki and entered the room on the second floor of the manor.
Standing by the window, Usopp's body suddenly froze.
BOOM!
An extremely powerful Conqueror's Haki burst out from his body without warning.
Violent dark-red lightning raged throughout the room. The surrounding air seemed to be drained in an instant, letting out strained cries.
In the past, Conqueror's Haki had been called the symbol of a king, one in a million.
But now, that mysterious power had long been completely analyzed by Rosse.
It was no longer proof of kingship.
As long as someone was chosen by the World Government and received its training, this power could be obtained easily.
However, the violent Conqueror's Haki that could knock out hundreds or even thousands had only just risen inside the room when an invisible force silently cut it off.
The pressure vanished completely in an instant, without damaging even the most fragile piece of porcelain in the room.
"Usopp."
A cold and distant female voice sounded inside the room.
"I can understand your anger right now."
At some point, Shirahoshi had quietly appeared beside Sanji.
She wore a pure white suit.
Although she was slightly shorter than Sanji, her presence was far greater.
Just standing there, she was like an insurmountable iceberg, giving off suffocating pressure.
"But are you really going to destroy the revenge plan you've carefully prepared for so long with your own recklessness?"
Hearing that cold question, it was as if a bucket of ice water had been poured over Usopp's head. He immediately woke up from his fury.
"I'm sorry... Princess Shirahoshi."
Usopp took a deep breath.
His chest rose and fell as he forcibly suppressed all the anger and killing intent surging inside him.
Then he turned around.
Facing Shirahoshi, he respectfully dropped to one knee and lowered his head deeply to apologize for losing control.
"I was too reckless and failed to live up to your teachings."
For that brief moment, he really had lost control.
After hearing that heartless old beast Yasopp, who had abandoned him and his mother for more than ten years, had returned only to immediately talk about killing the pregnant Kaya, how was he supposed to endure that? How could he stay rational?
The instant he heard those words, he truly wanted to raise his spirit-particle sniper rifle and blow that beast's head apart, splattering his disgusting brains all over the mountain forest.
But under Shirahoshi's pressure, he forced himself to calm down.
He couldn't kill that beast so easily.
Simply shooting that man would be letting him off too lightly. It would only be a brief pain.
What he wanted was to destroy all of that man's pride and tear apart the pirate principles he worshipped.
He wanted that beast to regret everything for the rest of his life.
He wanted every day ahead of him to be filled with despair and suffering worse than death.
"Anger is a very good weapon, but only if you can control it perfectly."
Shirahoshi lowered her head and looked at the kneeling Usopp.
She extended the hand covered by a pure white silk glove and gently patted his shoulder.
"If the moment comes when you feel your strength isn't enough, you may recite Father's holy name at any time. Or you may recite mine."
A smile appeared on Shirahoshi's lips.
"Our holy names have already spread across these seas. Everyone knows exactly what happens when someone sincerely speaks the name of a god in this world."
The only reason she had come here today was to ensure that today's script proceeded without any problems.
Besides, Usopp had personally been brought into the World Government by her years ago.
She absolutely did not want an actor she had chosen to fail at a critical moment.
That would only result in Father, seated above the clouds, having to watch a boring and disappointing play.
"Please don't worry, Princess Shirahoshi! I'll do all of this perfectly!"
Usopp raised his head. Calmness had returned to his eyes.
He bowed deeply toward Shirahoshi.
"I absolutely won't disappoint you! And I definitely won't disappoint Lord Rosse!"
After saying that, he stood up and gently watched his wife Kaya walk step by step into the spatial gate under Sanji's escort.
Only after Kaya's figure completely disappeared did Shirahoshi nod in satisfaction.
Then she slightly raised her fair hand.
Splash!
A stream of glowing sea-blue water appeared and intertwined in midair.
In the blink of an eye, the water was shaped as though by magic into a lifelike fake Kaya.
The water clone quietly returned to the rocking chair, closed its eyes, and looked as if it were sleeping.
The coming performance certainly could not proceed without this victim playing the lead role.
"All right. The stage is ready. Now let's see how well you perform as the leading man."
After saying this with a smile, Shirahoshi gracefully turned around and stepped into the light gate without hesitation.
She had no interest in remaining at the scene.
She would return to the Science Department in the Holy Land.
There, together with Makino, she would watch the live broadcast from the East Blue.
They would watch as Shanks and the Red Hair Pirates were dragged step by step into an abyss without escape by the very principles they held sacred.
And she would be able to carefully enjoy their despair and struggle alongside Makino, Shanks's confidante.
That was quite an entertaining pastime.
Most importantly, Father was currently in the Science Department as well.
Being able to watch the show together with Father was what made her happiest.
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