Chapter 141: A Family's Vassals Through the Generations
Chapter 141: A Family's Vassals Through the Generations
As the night sky gradually lightened, and dawn was about to break, Agin returned with his band of raiders, their spoils of war in tow. Their battle and pillaging had lasted the entire night.
Lined up along the edge of the pit were numerous crates containing their plunder. There were fabrics, medicines, ironware, food ingredients, and water—all essential items. They had no fear of overloading their haul, as a grand feast was sure to follow this successful raid, and such an event would require a substantial amount of food.
Aside from these necessities, the rest of their loot consisted of berries and treasures.
On the other side of the large crates was a collection of treasure chests piled high with berries, along with a chest containing gold coins and gold bars.
Sitting on a large rock, Sag examined the less-than-full chest of gold coins and raised an eyebrow. "Is that all there is?"
Standing before him, Lily looked at the list in her hand and replied, "There are quite a few noble and wealthy merchants in the royal city, but most of them use Berries. Those who collect gold coins are a minority. Also..."
She paused before continuing, "In the fight against the remaining soldiers, we lost one hundred and twenty-six of our men and had over two hundred injured."
At this news, Agin and Bellamy, standing nearby, bowed their heads in shame.
Sag had single-handedly dealt with more than half of the soldiers. The remaining soldiers were no match for their group, even with only a few opponents to each of their own, and with the addition of their skilled comrades. It was still quite a significant casualty count.
"Well, the other side was an elite force, so it's not your fault." Sag nodded.
The soldiers of the Anu Kingdom were indeed of good quality. After all, they had been selected from the stone country, where there was nothing but rocks, and had undergone rigorous training in the quarries. They were not inferior to these pirates in any way.
Without the intervention of Agin, Bellamy, and the other stronger fighters, the five hundred pirates would not have been a match for these soldiers. Given these circumstances, the number of casualties was acceptable.
"Alright, let's have some breakfast and replenish our energy."
At the edge of the pit, the men had somehow procured a stove and a large pot, from which rose tendrils of steam. Marika ladled out a large bowl of meat soup with noodles and handed it to Sag.
The rest of the crew gathered obediently around the stove, ladling out stew and drinking it ravenously.
They had been fighting all night, so it was only natural that their energy levels were depleted. Moreover, they would need to continue their journey to White Port for further pillaging, so it was essential to restore their strength.
Sag held the bowl of meat soup with noodles and pondered for a moment before looking toward the other side.
In the center of the pit, standing before the abyss-like hole, was a group of men with bare upper bodies, wearing only stone-armor pants. Alongside them were women with stone strips wrapped around their chests and hips.
Both the men and women stood at a height of about two meters. While their hair colors varied, they shared the same features as Lass—pitch-black eyes without a hint of whites, and black-gold vertical lines extending from their feet to their shoulders and chests.
At that moment, they were looking around curiously, gazing at the sky, the distant buildings, the clothing of their captors, and the steaming pot on the stove nearby. Their throats bobbed as they swallowed, their eyes reflecting a mix of curiosity, desire, and timidity.
Sag shook his head and called out to the men by the stove, "Give them some, too!"
The eyes of the group lit up simultaneously as they rushed over. Unlike the other pirates, they lined up in an orderly fashion and took their servings one by one.
They were even curious about the bowls, examining them like monkeys after receiving their portions of soup. They then used their forks and spoons to eat cautiously, taking only one mouthful. But with that single taste, their eyes shone like black gems.
An older-looking man among them exclaimed excitedly to Sag, "Master! This is delicious!"
"Then have some more!" Sag replied through gritted teeth, shooting them a glare.
These people were of the same race as Lass—the Majin Tribe. They had all crawled out from the underground, and there were no children among them, only adults. The youngest was sixteen, and the oldest was forty—all considered young adults in the Grand Line.
These Majin had been reproducing underground for three hundred years, carrying the generations-old desire to reach the surface, and now they had finally made it.
Sag was initially pleased, even though these Majin had been almost completely isolated from the outside world.
There were many places that were cut off from the outside world—islands in the Four Blues that were unknown and not connected to the rest of the world, not to mention the Grand Line, where the unpredictable climate and varying magnetic fields made navigation extremely challenging.
The Golden Country that existed three hundred years ago was real, but it's a sham now!"
Sag had held high hopes, but these people were telling him that the gold was gone.
If he had known this would happen, he should have gone all out to kill Graney when he first arrived and prevented him from becoming a 'Yellow Diamond Man,' so that the pile of gold coins wouldn't have disappeared!
"Is that really all? Didn't you look harder? Maybe there's a royal family vault somewhere, like the tombs in Alabasta."
Sag's words made Agin break out in a cold sweat; he dared not meet Sag's eyes and kept his head down, silent.
"There isn't time anyway," Lily interjected. "The kingdom of Anu is quite large. After we killed the king and caused such a ruckus in the royal city, the citizens must have alerted the Navy by now. We can't linger for long."
Aside from the fact that the kingdom of Anu was indeed quite expansive, making a carpet search impossible, typical royal family tombs were usually located near the local royal city, sometimes even beneath the castle itself.
Since Sag had destroyed a third of the royal city, even if there was a tomb, it would have been reduced to rubble by now.
"That's true, but we still got something out of this," Hawkins agreed, glancing at Lass, who was mingling with the Majin Tribe. "These Majin are excellent subordinates, and they respect you, Sag."
The Majin Tribe, according to their own ancestral bloodline, possessed the blood of ancient giants.
In the Grand Line, ancient giants were also known as 'Majin,' but they were distinct from the modern Majin Tribe, as they were genuine ancient giants, while the Majin Tribe only shared their bloodline.
This bloodline endowed them with tremendous strength and stamina, and Sag could see that their bodies were exceptionally resilient, allowing them to adapt to any environment.
With such physiques, they were ideal candidates for mastering the Six Styles, perhaps even capable of mastering all six.
Indeed, they would make excellent subordinates.
The only downside was their small number.
Earlier, Lily had counted a total of three hundred and five individuals, and according to these Majin, this gathering comprised their entire tribe.
Due to the receding tide, not only would the upward tunnels collapse, but the lower mines would also cave in. During such times, in addition to weeping and despair, the Majin would congregate and wait for the tide to subside.
Centuries ago, the Majin Tribe had been quite numerous, but as the underground gold mines diminished, so too did their means of trading gold for food and supplies with Graney's ancestors. As a result, the Majin population gradually declined.
Now, if these three hundred or so individuals didn't find a way out, their entire tribe might disappear in just a few years.
Sag suspected that the yellow diamond scum was probably eager to squeeze every last bit of use out of them before letting them perish, ensuring that the truth about this nation would forever remain buried.
"They were always mine!" Sag shot back at Hawkins, rolling his eyes. "I conquered the Golden Country, and as subjects of that country, it's only right that they become my property, my private property, after I rescue them! Don't talk to me about gains; what have I gained here?"
At this, all the Majin present knelt on one knee. The elderly Majin who had spoken earlier said solemnly, "Our ancestors said that whoever leads us to the light shall be our master. We, the Majin, shall be your loyal servants from this day forward."
"My lord, from this day forth, you and your bloodline shall be the masters of our Majin Tribe for generations to come!"
"Listen to that, listen to that!"
Sag pointed at them. "They're acknowledging it themselves!"
Out at sea, oaths were not to be taken lightly, especially collective vows like this. What was said was set in stone.
This was different from the life of a pirate, where crew members could leave the ship at any time. Even the more orthodox pirates would typically seek the captain's permission, and in many cases, the captain might not even notice a missing crew member.
In fact, it was possible for a captain to be unaware of the exact number of people on their ship, especially for larger crews.
For instance, out of the thousand or so people on the Death Omen, Sag might not even notice if a few went missing.
The officers were the backbone of a pirate crew, but even the most loyal officers could only guarantee their own personal loyalty for a lifetime; they couldn't ensure that their descendants would serve as well.
Sag was not a king, nor did he have any royal blood. In a world where bloodline was of utmost importance, he had nothing without it; no one would acknowledge him. Even if a king were to be overthrown in a rebellion, the first thing the successful rebels would do is implore the imprisoned king to reflect on his actions.
Now, with the Majin Tribe's pledge of generational loyalty, Sag had inadvertently gained a crown.
Hawkins' eyes widened in surprise. "Vassals?"
"Oh! It's like the ancient legend of our tribe, the Kozuki Family of Wano Country! We, the Beast Tribe, are said to be vassals of the Kozuki Family, but I don't acknowledge that because I was born and raised in the North Blue." A humanoid black cat with gleaming eyes spoke up.
This creature was indeed a black cat, standing on its hind legs and capable of human speech.
His name was Faust, and he had been a member of Hawkins' pirate crew. Like the man with three braids in his hair, he was one of Hawkins' subordinates.
However, he was not a Devil Fruit user; he was simply a cat.
When Sag first saw him, he had wondered if he was a Zoan user, only to realize that he was a member of the Beast Tribe from Zou.
Having been separated from his homeland at a young age, Faust had no emotional attachment to the Kozuki Family.
He was well-liked on the ship, especially by Reinitya, who often played with him using a cat toy.
"That's quite a pleasant-sounding title," Sag smiled. "As a landlord, it's only right to have people under my command."
These people would be vassals for generations to come.
That was far superior to the transient loyalty of pirates.
As long as these Majin continued to procreate, there would always be people serving Sag and his descendants, starting from this day forward.
With this thought, the frustration of not obtaining the gold faded considerably.
With three hundred people, there would still be room on the Death Omen, which had a maximum capacity of one thousand five hundred.
"Once you've eaten your fill, we'll set off for White Port. We'll get you some new clothes there. Wearing stone armor isn't befitting; people might think I, Sag, mistreat my subordinates."
Sag gulped down the stew, slammed the bowl down, and spread his arms wide. "Alright, my men, let's get moving!"
With Agin's team handling the looting, Sag was confident. Now that they were gathering the spoils of war, it meant that they had already robbed most of the wealthy, and there was little benefit to staying longer, especially since it would give the Navy time to prepare. It was best to strike hard and fast.
Sag had originally wanted to wait for a Devil Fruit to appear, but after some time, he realized that Graney didn't seem to have any relatives. It appeared that he was the only one, so there would be no generational transfer of the Devil Fruit ability.
Graney himself had been reduced to rubble, so there was no chance of him surviving, and the Devil ability within him had likely fled already.
It was a shame about the Fusion-Fusion Fruit; it had been a useful ability, especially with its castle-merging power upon awakening. If Graney had survived, Sag would have captured him and given the fruit to Teach to produce another one.
"Next time we come across an ability user, we'll make sure not to kill them."
Sag shook his head and strode out of the pit, waiting for everyone to finish their meal and collect the spoils. Then, they would set off for White Port.
In the center of the vast royal city, amidst the ruins of buildings that had been blown apart, there now lay a gaping hole.
As dawn broke, all that remained was a scene of devastation.
(End of Chapter)
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