Chapter 160: A Free Luxury Experience Voucher
In the eyes of the World Government, member nations were not irreplaceable.
To revoke a member nation's status, the World Government would still find an excuse, such as failing to pay the Heavenly Tribute on time.
But to completely destroy a member nation only required a single thought.
The one capable of making such a decision was usually Imu, and this kind of destruction was not merely genocide; it was the literal erasure of the entire island from the face of the world.
In situations like this, from the World Government's perspective, they were even acting out of "mercy."
Having the ability to still hand over the Heavenly Tribute next year. This restriction meant that the country's economy could not be utterly annihilated, indicating they wanted to keep the war contained within a certain scope.
Or rather, this was inherently a test conducted by the Five Elders.
Harald's martial prowess had already allowed the Five Elders to taste the sweetness of such power. Utilizing a combatant of that caliber made many matters significantly easier.
In the eyes of the Five Elders, Nereus's combat power was on the exact same level as Harald's, but their personalities were vastly different.
Someone like Harald, who willingly came to their doorstep begging for favors, was much easier to exploit.
Nereus had also come to negotiate terms, but he had actively fought his way up to do so. Under normal circumstances, it would be good enough if Nereus just remained peaceful.
The Five Elders' leniency towards the war this time was partially because Harding's words had broken too many rules.
On the other hand, they wanted to test if Nereus would cooperate with them—doing certain things the World Government needed within a controllable scope—when their interests aligned.
For Harald, drawing empty promises was enough. But for Nereus, they had to coax him with actual, tangible benefits.
"That was my plan all along. Actually, even if you guys really wanted to mediate, I probably wouldn't have listened to your advice anyway."
"You..."
Nereus's utterly disrespectful response made Nusjuro want to interrogate him, but then he suddenly remembered a previous incident.
Originally, they had wanted Nereus to pay the Heavenly Tribute. But as they talked and talked, accounting for interest, the World Government actually ended up owing Fish-man Island a significant sum of money.
Thinking of this, Nusjuro was momentarily at a loss for words, swallowing the rest of his sentence.
Saturn, however, paid no mind to Nereus's attitude, casually outlining the general procedure as if making small talk.
"The Marines will step forward to mediate. This is a necessary procedure; the World Government cannot stand idly by. But that is merely for show; you can just go ahead and do as you please."
"You'd better have ample contingency plans. I can't guarantee that everything will go exactly according to your plan."
If Harding was the target set up for the underworld and pirates, then the Doel Kingdom was the opponent Nereus had prepared for the Ryugu Kingdom.
Not to showcase his personal strength, but to display the national power of the Ryugu Kingdom.
A strong nation is never built on boasting; it is built through battle.
For example, the escort services proposed by the Ryugu Kingdom—if they couldn't prove their strength, how could they convince others they had the capability to provide it?
Nereus did sense the World Government's intention to test whether he could exert force on their behalf. But it didn't matter much. With Fish-man Island still in its developmental phase, letting the other party harbor some misunderstandings was actually beneficial.
Fish-man Island showing a slight willingness to cooperate would lower the World Government's guard. Yet, it wasn't to the extent of being ordered around like Harald doing uncredited dirty work. This current state could be considered perfectly balanced.
When navigating the outside world, your persona is entirely up to you to construct. In the logical framework of the World Government, as long as a top-tier combatant remained in a controllable state, they wouldn't do anything overly stimulating to provoke them.
This was especially true for someone like Nereus. From the World Government's perspective, the fact that he had his own offspring and had become the King of Fish-man Island was actually a good thing.
It proved, at the very least, that he had things he cared about.
They had no thoughts of doing anything to Fish-man Island while Nereus was away.
If a powerhouse like him truly became a lone wolf with nothing to lose, that would be the most terrifying scenario. A man capable of infiltrating almost anywhere, with virtually no rival in a one-on-one fight, suddenly going berserk... they wouldn't be able to handle it.
Moreover, because of his Vampire Fruit ability... they couldn't even try to wait for him to die of old age.
"Saturn, do you really think... this guy is controllable?"
This was a man who had used a Poneglyph as a meteor hammer and smashed his way in swinging it. Combined with his past conduct, he looked like a dangerous radical no matter how you sliced it.
Due to the Five Elders' unique telepathic communication ability, sometimes their inner thoughts were transmitted to each other simultaneously.
"He merely used the Poneglyph as a hammer, he didn't decipher it. Controllable or uncontrollable... isn't the Doel Kingdom the perfect testing ground?
Science requires experiments as a basis. Without conducting this experiment, we will never know if he is truly controllable or not."
By the time Nereus walked out of the Five Elders' office, Kings had already begun to leave in succession. Chaplin had left even earlier.
According to Dold's retelling, the other party seemed intent on returning to rally his troops and prepare for an attack. He practically cemented the label the World Government was preparing to pin on him all by himself.
"War is never a good thing, Nereus. Are you really going to start a war?"
"Dold, that's incorrect. It's not me who wants to fight, it's him who wants to fight. He said it himself: he'll be waiting in the North Blue."
"Nereus, people like Chaplin don't understand you, but do you think I don't? The Doel Kingdom has launched quite a few wars in the past, but they were all wars of plunder against non-member nations.
In the North Blue, they are considered a strong nation, but they absolutely lack the capability to dispatch troops into the Grand Line.
They don't have the capability to come to the Grand Line, but you... you truly have the ability to strike all the way to the North Blue."
As Nereus's old friend, and ruling a nation situated in the New World, King Riku Dold III was one of the few Kings with a clear understanding of Nereus's strength.
Invincible.
This was the ingrained impression Nereus had left on Dold.
"I dislike war. But some battles... must be fought. For Fish-man Island to establish a firm foothold on this sea, the baptism of war is inevitable.
But I won't just crush them with an entire army either. It's just a single kingdom; it's not that troublesome.
I will only make a move after thoroughly investigating the specific situation of that kingdom."
There were many nations on the sea, and Nereus didn't know much about most of them; he could only name a handful.
Although he had heard about the situation regarding the Doel Kingdom, he hadn't investigated it in detail yet.
While the sea ban was still in effect and Chaplin was publishing accusations in the newspapers, Nereus had already dispatched personnel to the North Blue.
It was just that due to the distance, the detailed intelligence reports hadn't been sent back yet.
"Alright, there are some things that are inconvenient to discuss right now. You'll understand later. Once I've finished dealing with these recent matters, I will visit you in Dressrosa."
The visit Nereus mentioned was a proper visit, not coercion or bribery. After this, the group gradually left Mary Geoise.
If he prioritized efficiency, he could have just grabbed Nanamo and jumped directly off the Red Line. Even with Brook, he could just use a Bubble Coral to blow a protective membrane for him and dive straight into the water.
But in this place that placed heavy emphasis on face and pageantry, he still needed to wait a bit.
Shortly after Nereus's departure, Dold suddenly noticed that Scarlett seemed to be holding a scroll in her hand.
"Scarlett, what is that?"
Dold was certain the World Government didn't hand out souvenirs or anything of the sort.
And as for the Social Plaza...
Princes and princesses of many nations would use that place to look for marriage prospects. Born into royalty, their marriages and love lives were no longer free, burdened with massive political considerations.
And the Levely was one of their few opportunities to interact with other royals.
It wasn't that Dold was determined to dictate Scarlett's marriage, but rather he was worried that if he wasn't paying attention, someone might just abduct her.
After all, that golden, glittering scroll looked expensive and carried the distinct vibe of a marriage contract.
"It's the Fish-man Island insurance service Nanamo was promoting. She said for the sake of friendship, she's giving me a Supreme VIP Experience Voucher for free.
Not only does it cover escort services, but even if a problem arises on our home island, they can provide assistance. However, the experience voucher can only be used once."
Hearing Scarlett say this, Dold's furrowed brows relaxed, and he let out a sigh of relief internally.
"To be able to make that girl Nanamo say 'free'... It seems your relationship is progressing quite well. But what exactly is an experience voucher?"
Nereus had only briefly touched upon certain things during the conference without going into detail. After all, time at the Levely was limited.
With over a hundred countries piling up four years' worth of global affairs, there simply wasn't enough time to cover everything.
Therefore, Nereus only presented the proposal. Only when interested parties contacted him privately would they learn the detailed procedures.
"Royal Father, see for yourself."
Scarlett handed the scroll to Dold. The terms written on it were extremely clear, and it even included a Transponder Snail number.
"Nanamo said that given the distance between Dressrosa and Fish-man Island, as long as the message gets through, they can arrive within a day at the latest."
"Keep this safe. Maybe it really will come in handy."
Fish-man Island's martial power...
As a King, Dold had also compared the combat power of both sides. It roughly translated to a single grand executive under Nereus being capable of fighting the entirety of Dressrosa.
Even though his friendship with Nereus was solid, having this kind of written agreement was still reassuring.
Because they had departed earlier, while Dold and the others were still waiting for the bubble elevator, Nereus and his group had already arrived at the Red Port.
Over the past few days, Nanamo hadn't seen anyone from the Kingdom of Music, Elegia. It seemed they hadn't attended the Levely.
And they didn't immediately return to Fish-man Island either. Because Kings from all over the world were gathered in Mary Geoise, the Sabaody Archipelago was also swarming with a massive number of merchants looking to make a fortune off the gathered crowds.
They had even organized a Bubble Concert on the Sabaody Archipelago. Upon seeing the lineup of performers, Nanamo declared she wanted to stay and watch the concert before heading back.
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