Most of Alabasta's residents had embarked on their journey to the coastal cities to prepare for evacuation.
The people of Alabasta were truly simple folk. Although they didn't quite understand why their ancestor had arranged things this way, they acted without hesitation and began their preparations quickly.
Using ordinary transportation, it would take about a day to get from the inland center of Alabasta to the coast.
But at this moment, Alabasta had already initiated emergency evacuation measures.
The transport animals, normally used for daily travel, had been mobilized to ferry residents from the inland areas to the coast in large numbers.
And thanks to Ryan Rowan's arrangements, this massive evacuation was proceeding in an orderly fashion.
In less than half a day, the inland residents had been evacuated to the coastal areas.
Meanwhile, the merman warriors who had been waiting in the coastal towns began distributing bubble coral to the civilians.
This was the small item Ryan Rowan had shown Crocodile earlier.
The merman warriors then used the broadcast to explain how to use the bubble coral and how to truly enter Alabasta's "shelters."
...
Even though he had personally witnessed the entire process of establishing the "shelters," Alabasta's current king, Cobra, was still struggling to recover from the shock of hearing the plan for the first time.
Some time had passed since that day.
That afternoon, after they had finished lunch, Rowan suddenly said to Cobra, "I plan to build some shelters here in Alabasta."
Cobra nodded.
The Four Seas Alliance was currently very powerful, and Alabasta was no longer as peaceful and stable as it once was; it had become somewhat mixed with all sorts of people.
Even with the support of the Four Seas Alliance, Alabasta's coastal defense force had increased, but this could not compensate for its vast and almost exaggerated coastline.
Cobra did not want his people to be caught in a war, but as king, he also understood a fundamental truth:
If you want to seek "development," there will inevitably be friction and conflict with the outside world.
Because there were always some countries or "people" in this world whose "development" was based on "relative" terms.
To such people, the rapidly developing Four Seas Alliance was a significant threat, and thus, conflicts arose.
When this conflict accumulated to a certain point, war would eventually erupt.
Therefore, "shelters" were actually very important.
However, Cobra had misjudged two things:
First, these so-called shelters were different from what Cobra had imagined—or indeed, what anyone else in the world had conceived of.
Using the bubble coral unique to the merman race, and with the help of the merman warriors, a "space" was constructed beneath the surface of the sea around Alabasta using a large number of bubbles.
Inside this space, there would be plenty of air and infrastructure, enough to sustain daily life for people in a short period.
Yes, these so-called "shelters" were actually artificial "mini-merman islands."
But unlike the merman island beneath Sabaody Archipelago, these shelters lacked the "sunlight" produced by the special natural environment, nor could they naturally generate "air."
Such an ecological environment was only possible in the ten-thousand-meter-deep sea beneath Sabaody Archipelago.
Because the "shelters" were truly just "shelters," humans could not live there permanently.
But that was enough, wasn't it?
Any experienced sailor knew that the seabed was the calmest place during fierce storms and high waves.
If a fierce war were to break out, these underwater shelters would definitely be the best place to ensure the safety of Alabasta's residents!
Second, Cobra had only speculated that other "countries" might retaliate against Alabasta, but he never expected that the first to act against Alabasta would be one of the Four Emperors, feared throughout this sea!
Was Cobra scared?
No, he was just worried.
As king, it was normal to worry about his country.
...
At this moment, Cobra, leading Vivi, had evacuated to the merman village.
The merman warriors who had been waiting there handed the bubble coral to Cobra and taught him how to use the device.
"Please follow us, Your Majesty."
The merman warriors stepped forward and invited Cobra to accompany them to the underwater shelter.
But what they didn't expect was that this king, who usually appeared very approachable, was acting completely out of character at this moment.
He was staring intently in the direction of Alabasta's interior with a serious expression.
After a pause, Cobra said sternly, "I cannot leave."
The merman warriors thought this was the resolve of a king, which was certainly worthy of respect, but ultimately a bit willful.
"Your Majesty, we understand how you feel, but the underwater shelters also need you to comfort the people..."
"No, you misunderstand my meaning."
Cobra looked up and grinned, "More accurately, I never intended to leave from the beginning—our ancestor knew this too."
"Hmm?"
It was only then that the merman warriors noticed that Cobra was not wearing his usual robe, but a set of Alabasta standard light armor designed for easy movement and combat.
Cobra took his longsword from a nearby guard, gently stroked its blade, and slowly said:
"There should be people preparing for battle all over Alabasta now."
"Alabasta's territory is too vast. If we engage in a full-scale war with the Four Emperors, every region must have sufficient combat power."
"This is why I chose the merman village as my evacuation point..."
Cobra laughed helplessly.
"I'm an old man, yet I always say impulsive things. I apologize."
"But today, let me be willful for once."
"If my country is being invaded, am I supposed to go into hiding too?"
"Ultimately, I am also a 'king' who gets angry!"
Slash!
Cobra directly plunged his longsword into the ground and then sat down cross-legged.
"I will stay here until I witness the end of this war!"
Upon hearing this, the merman warriors said nothing more.
According to Cobra's words, Ryan Rowan seemed to already know Cobra's intentions, so there was nothing to worry about.
He would see his decision through!
And beside Cobra.
The little princess with sky-blue hair also sat down.
She pouted and said indignantly, "I am the Princess of Alabasta, and I will stay too!"
...
It wasn't just Vivi and Cobra.
Within the Four Seas Alliance, wasn't there more than just Ryan Rowan of the "Golden Dawn" as a fighting force? Was he the only one who wasn't afraid of the Four Emperors?
And so, throughout Alabasta.
Everyone was on high alert!
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