Aiden stood at the edge of the cliff. He lightly brushed away the dust that wasn't actually on his hands, while the hem of his black coat snapped in the wind.
He didn't look at the ashes for even a second. Instead, his gaze moved past the ruined battlefield and toward the palace in the distance.
To him, killing two CP0 agents was no different from crushing two annoying bugs.
However, if he didn't kill them, the World Government would find out that someone with Admiral-level strength was hiding here.
From what Aiden knew, the World Government had already sent several groups of CP agents to the Blacksteel Empire before him. All of them had disappeared without a trace, failing to leave behind any useful result.
This meant that besides the two unlucky men who had just turned into ash, no one knew how strong the person protecting this country really was.
As long as they died here, any information about Issho would be completely cut off.
In the World Government's files, the Blacksteel Empire would remain a difficult target. They would never record that someone as strong as Issho was here.
This way, Issho would become a "ghost."
A man with no public record, no bounty, and no name in the World Government's files.
"Next, I just need to deal with the king named Friedrich."
Aiden looked at the palace in the distance. His eyes were calm, without any extra emotion. To him, the king was just a mission target, an obstacle that had to be removed, and the reason the country had fallen into this state.
Along the way, Aiden felt he had seen the situation clearly.
The Blacksteel Empire had an industrial base and steam technology that far surpassed the surrounding countries. Even without relying on war, they could remain wealthy just by trading and exporting machinery.
But now, the Blacksteel Empire was trapped in war, unable to pull itself free.
The key to everything was the king.
Once Friedrich died, a new ruler—even one chosen from the noble council who was more moderate—would surely stop the expansion to save themselves. They would only need to promise not to touch forbidden Ancient Technology.
If that happened, the World Government would achieve its goal and stop watching this member nation so closely.
The war would stop, the country would change, and the people would still be rich.
And Issho, who was tormented by having to protect a tyrant, would be completely freed from his moral dilemma.
At that time, he would realize that the "necessary evil" he fought to protect had vanished, and the country had become better because of it.
Then, Aiden—the man who cut the chains—would reach out his hand at the right moment.
He would give Issho a reason to swing his blade for real justice, rather than out of blind loyalty to a king.
A man like Issho was too valuable to be wasted on a dying king.
He would be far more useful at Aiden's side.
The sea was vast. Fighting alone wasn't scary, but it was tiring.
If he could have a deputy with Admiral-level strength standing beside him...
Just thinking about that image was pleasant.
To get an Admiral-level deputy, killing two of the Celestial Dragons' dogs was a great deal.
Aiden chuckled and pushed the thoughts of his future plans aside for now.
Since the biggest obstacle was gone, it was time to meet the source of all this: the king of the Blacksteel Empire.
Crackle!
A flash of blue lightning vanished.
It was noon, and the sun was high in the sky.
The palace of the Blacksteel Empire was a massive structure built entirely of black steel and giant stones. Right now, it was filled with a tense, heavy silence.
Because of the massive battle outside the city earlier, the entire palace had entered full alert.
The giant gear-driven gates were tightly shut, making a dull metallic thud.
On the city walls, an armed soldier stood every three steps. If even a bird flew past—
It would be targeted by countless guns.
Patrols led huge hunting dogs through the corridors. The sound of heavy footsteps and the snarling of the dogs mixed together.
"Tsk, tsk, tsk..."
Aiden leaned against the cold wall and looked up at the heavy defenses. He couldn't help but shake his head.
"Quite a setup. Is this still the world of pirates?"
Hum.
His Observation Haki spread out instantly. Combined with the electromagnetic sense of the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, it acted like an invisible net, covering the entire palace in a second.
Every troop deployment, every hidden scout, and even the sound of a nervous guard captain's blood pumping faster became clear in Aiden's mind.
One thousand two hundred elite guards. Thirty-six machine gun positions. Seven steel gates reinforced with Sea Prism Stone.
For a normal army or an average Devil Fruit user, this was indeed a solid defense.
But for the current Aiden, he didn't even need to draw his sword to destroy it all.
If he wanted to, lightning from the sky could wipe everything out in an instant.
Breaking through and killing everyone would be easy.
However—
"There's no need."
Aiden sighed and looked at the soldiers without much interest.
Aiden considered himself a kind man; he didn't like seeing blood flow everywhere.
Mostly, it was just beneath him to pick a fight with ordinary soldiers who couldn't even use Haki.
For someone at his level, killing people who could not fight back wasn't a show of strength. It was just a boring waste of time.
There was no point in causing meaningless slaughter among these ordinary soldiers.
Aiden's body flickered and turned into an invisible current of electricity. He slid along the metal patterns on the ground as a thin current.
Buzz—
A heavily armored guard was staring straight ahead when he suddenly felt a tingle on the back of his neck.
"Huh?"
He instinctively reached out to scratch the gap in his thick helmet and muttered, "How are there mosquitoes in this place?"
Aiden passed through the closed steel gates. He flowed through the complex ventilation pipes and moved past the heavily guarded inner corridors.
For a Logia user, as long as there was a gap, physical defenses meant nothing.
Deep inside the palace, in the king's study.
The silence here felt far removed from the noise outside.
Aiden's figure reformed in front of the heavy oak doors of the study. He straightened his collar and didn't force the door open. He held the handle, sent a small spark of electricity into it, and the spring inside the lock—
Opened automatically with a click.
Creak—
The door was slowly pushed open.
Aiden stepped inside and looked around the room. His eyebrows rose slightly.
It was completely different from what he had expected.
Usually, a king's private study in such a massive empire would be extremely luxurious or covered in gold.
But this room was so plain it almost looked poor.
There were no priceless paintings on the walls or gold ornaments. There were only military maps, engineering blueprints, and reports filled with figures covering the walls.
The floor was made of old redwood. Because people had walked on it for so many years, the paint had worn off in many spots, showing the pale wood underneath.
The air didn't smell like expensive incense. It only smelled of old, moldy paper and the bitter scent of boiled herbs.
At the end of the room, behind a large desk piled with documents, a figure was busy writing.
That was Friedrich.
The king of the Blacksteel Empire.
The quill in his hand moved quickly across the paper, making a scratching sound. He seemed not to hear the door opening or notice the intruder. Or perhaps, he simply didn't care.
Aiden didn't rush to attack.
He put his hands in his coat pockets and leaned against the doorframe, watching this so-called tyrant with interest.
On a corner of the desk, there was a silver tray.
It was the king's lunch.
There was no fine food or wine.
There was only a bowl of plain-looking pumpkin soup, two pieces of burnt whole-wheat bread, and a plate of vegetable salad without any dressing.
There was no meat at all. Looking at the thick layer of film on the pumpkin soup, it was clear the meal had been there for a long time and was already cold.
But the king was clearly too busy to take even a single sip.
Aiden narrowed his eyes and looked at the king's slightly oversized royal clothes.
When he had sensed him from far away, Aiden thought the king's weak presence was due to too much drinking and pleasure.
But seeing him up close, that didn't seem to be the case.
The man's face was very thin. There were deep wrinkles between his eyebrows, giving him a stern look. The joints of his hand holding the pen were slightly deformed from long-term overwork, and his fingertips were covered in ink that wouldn't wash off.
This wasn't the weakness of someone who indulged in pleasure.
With Aiden's medical skills, he could tell at a glance that this was caused by pushing his body too hard for too long.
This man was like a candle burning at both ends. He was pushing the remaining energy in his body to the limit in a way that was almost self-destructive.
"Tsk—"
Aiden gave a soft sound of interest.
He didn't speak to interrupt. The only sounds in the study were the quill scratching on paper and the faint roar of steam engines from outside the window.
About fifteen minutes passed.
Friedrich finally stopped his pen.
He let out a long, heavy breath.
He carefully picked up a stamp on the desk and pressed a bright red mark at the bottom of the document. Then, he carefully folded the paper and placed it in the pile of documents on his left.
After that, he put down his pen and reached out unsteadily to pick up the cup of cold tea next to him.
Gulp, gulp.
He didn't care about the bitterness or the coldness of the tea. He swallowed it in large gulps, like a traveler who had walked through a desert for a long time. He was just trying to wet his cracked lips so his failing body could keep going a little longer.
After finishing the tea, he put the cup down and slowly looked up.
His sharp eyes looked past the piles of documents and landed exactly on Aiden, who was leaning against the door.
There was no fear in those eyes. There was no surprise, and not even the slightest reaction.
There was only a calmness, as if he had expected Aiden all along.
"Rear Admiral Reaper of Marine Headquarters..."
Friedrich's voice was dry and raspy. "I have seen your photo in the newspaper. Although I don't read those often, your face is hard to forget."
He paused and gave a faint smile. "I didn't expect the one coming this time would be you."
"You seem to have guessed why I'm here?"
Aiden raised an eyebrow and walked into the study.
"It wasn't that hard to guess, was it?"
Friedrich leaned back in his chair, relaxing his stiff body. His tone carried the calm of someone who had seen through the world. "The World Government has already sent several groups of agents to kill me. Those rats in the shadows... if Mr. Issho hadn't saved me many times, I probably wouldn't have lived long enough to speak with you."
Speaking of this, he looked at Aiden with a complicated expression. "I just didn't expect it would be you. From the moment Mr. Issho walked out of here, I knew the ending. He is a good man with a heart of gold. But he cannot change the course of this country alone, and he cannot stop a monster like you."
Aiden chuckled. He didn't respond to that. Instead, he walked to the desk.
He pulled over a hard wooden chair and sat down, staring at the king across the desk.
His gaze flicked to the untouched tray. Aiden reached out a finger and lightly poked the bowl of cold pumpkin soup with the thick layer of film. He curled his lip in disgust. "This is a king's lunch? Not even a piece of meat. Are you putting on a show for me?"
"I haven't liked meat since I was a child. I think it is too cruel."
Friedrich said plainly. He didn't care about Aiden's lack of manners.
"Ha?"
Aiden felt like he had heard a huge joke and laughed out loud. "You start wars and carry the name of a tyrant, but you think eating meat is cruel? That's not even funny."
Aiden leaned forward slightly and asked mockingly, "Since you're so merciful, why didn't you ban meat across the entire country? Wouldn't that show your kindness even more?"
"There is no need to force my own moral standards on others."
Friedrich shook his head calmly, as if it were obvious. "That is my choice, not something my citizens must follow. As for putting on a show, that is even more unnecessary."
He looked at the cold soup. His gaze was calm. "For a dying man, what he eats isn't important. As long as it fills the stomach, it is enough."
"A dying man..."
Aiden thought about those words. Although he had come to take the man's life, seeing the king so ready to die made his killing intent fade slightly.
"I'm not in a huge rush to kill you."
Aiden shrugged and leaned back in the chair. He looked relaxed, as if Friedrich could not threaten him at all. "Since you are so self-aware, I have a question I'm curious about."
Aiden pointed out the window. "When Issho and I were fighting, you must have realized he was no match for me. As for the thousands of people in this palace, they can't stop me either."
"But you had plenty of time to take a ship and head to sea. The world is huge. Even for me, finding you in the vast ocean would take some effort."
Aiden's voice lowered, becoming more serious. "Why didn't you run? Don't tell me it's because you couldn't leave this bowl of cold soup, or that you're hoping for something else to save your life."
Friedrich froze for a moment at the question.
Then, he began to laugh.
He laughed calmly, with pride in his voice.
"Run?"
Friedrich shook his head. He leaned on the table and slowly stood up. Although his body was thin, his back was perfectly straight. At this moment, he still carried the presence of a king.
He walked to the large window and looked at the country outside—a place filled with black smoke, steel, and the smell of oil, yet still running.
"Aiden, have you ever seen an opera?"
Friedrich didn't turn around as he asked in a quiet voice.
"I'm not interested. That stuff is too boring," Aiden shrugged.
"That is a shame. If you have the chance, you should try listening to one, especially the classic tragedies."
"When people's pain and struggle are shown on stage through strict structure and beautiful singing, that powerful feeling lets people see hope even in ruin."
Friedrich turned around and stood with his back to the light. The noon sun outlined him in gold as he prepared for death.
"This country is like a grand opera to me. I am the writer, the director, and the actor who must stay under the spotlight until the very end."
He looked at Aiden, his gaze becoming firm. "Since the curtain has risen and everything is ready, I must finish the performance. Even if the ending is ruin, it must be complete."
Friedrich spread his hands with quiet calm. "If I left at this time, it would be a failed work. I cannot allow my life to end with such a failure."
He looked directly into Aiden's eyes and said clearly:
"When the curtain falls, the protagonist must be on the stage."
To Be Continued
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