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Chapter 430: No Difference
Chapter 430: No Difference
The Deso Kingdom is a country in the North Sea, located near the Calm Belt and situated among a group of islands. The main island, at the center, radiates outwards to the surrounding islands.
This country is known as the most tranquil and elegant nation. Within the royal city, everyone, from the nobility to the commoners, strives for elegance in their daily lives. Even those responsible for the lowest tasks in the palace make an effort to dress appropriately after paying their taxes.
As for those who can't afford to pay taxes...
What does the elegance of the royal city on the main island have to do with the slums of the surrounding islands? Those who can't pay taxes are not considered citizens of the Deso Kingdom; they are not recognized.
Only after paying off their overdue taxes can they be considered citizens of the Deso Kingdom again.
However, those who have lost their homes and been driven to the outskirts of the islands struggle to survive. How can they possibly pay taxes? Gradually, the smaller islands have become genuine slums.
The population of the Deso Kingdom is not large, but there are an estimated thirty thousand people scattered across the surrounding islands.
The current Duke is currently troubled by these lowly commoners.
"The Dragonians are about to descend to inspect my kingdom. Will these commoners refuse to leave? If the Dragonians discover that we are not as elegant as we claim, it will be a huge embarrassment!"
The Duke's subjects below him remained silent.
Indeed, there seemed to be no solution.
Even if they wanted to burn down the islands, there were too many to set ablaze. They had driven the people away, but that was not the same as killing them all.
They couldn't drive them away, and they couldn't kill them. Everyone was at a loss.
"If only there were Sea Kings that could specifically attack those islands..."
"Leave it to me!"
Suddenly, a chilling voice spoke from outside the palace.
A Navy soldier with a small mustache, resembling both a mouse and a cat, entered. He bowed to the Duke and then smiled, "I have an idea."
"Navy? Who allowed you to enter?"
A minister beside the Duke spoke with displeasure, "Our country's affairs are none of your concern."
"My apologies, I was too hasty. I want to help alleviate the situation in our stationed area. I also wish to be as elegant as the Duke and do not want those people to tarnish my base."
The Navy soldier bowed deeply and, without straightening up, raised his head and said, "One hundred million belli. Just one hundred million belli, and we, the Navy, will remove those people and ensure the Duke's reputation remains untarnished."
"Remove them? Where to? No, that's not important. Can you really get rid of them?" The Duke's eyes lit up. "How?"
"By searching and identifying them as members of an evil faction."
"No, it cannot have any negative impact on my country," the Duke waved his hand. "If that's all, then don't bother."
This was the 'Tranquil and Elegant Nation,' and he couldn't afford to damage its reputation.
In this country, even an evil faction was considered too unrefined!
"Hmm, is it still not elegant enough? In that case, it will require more effort. Well, I will borrow the name of the World Government to summon them, but I will also be taking a significant risk."
The Navy soldier smiled and held up five fingers, "Five hundred million belli. Leave it to me."
"That's too expensive," the Duke shook his head. "One hundred million belli. If you can handle this matter, do it. If not, forget it."
Five hundred million belli for a bunch of commoners?
He would rather be robbed by pirates!
"Agreed."
The Navy soldier straightened up, "One hundred million belli. Leave it to me."
This left the Duke stunned for a moment. Such a quick agreement?
He had intended to negotiate further, perhaps offering two or three hundred million to relocate all the commoners and preserve the beauty of the islands.
But the Navy soldier had agreed to one hundred million belli?
The Navy soldier maintained his smile, but inside, he was overjoyed.
A profit of one hundred million belli!
This task was an order from above, and it didn't require any payment. He could even earn more from his superiors, and whatever he took from the Duke was pure profit.
One hundred million belli was a substantial sum! After all, those driven away were no longer considered citizens of an allied nation, no different from having no rights.
In the Four Seas and the first half of the Grand Line, such incidents occurred in various Allied Nations. Anyone unable to pay Sky Gold and thus driven out would be sought by the Navy or government officials.
The number of people affected ranged from a few thousand to twenty or thirty thousand, all of them relocated.
These people also profited from the local kings or dukes, though not all were as face-conscious and generous as the Deso Kingdom, which paid out one hundred million Belly. Still, earning tens of millions of Belly was relatively easy.
As for the method of relocation, some used the pretext of identifying evil factions, taking these people onto ships, while others simply boarded and plundered, later claiming it was a Pirate attack. The important thing was to rid the country of these burdens, by any means necessary.
Some Navy members were reluctant to participate, but they would soon be replaced by new Navy personnel tasked with the operation.
There were indeed just Navy members, and not a few of them, but those who followed orders outnumbered them. Navy members and government officials seeking to profit from this situation were also among them.
They didn't know why these people were needed, but the order was to load them onto ships and then transfer them.
Apart from the World Government, the Revolution Army was also involved in this.
The Kock Kingdom, located in a segment of the New World, had just been attacked by Pirates. The reason it was said to be 'just now' was because a woman with short purple hair, wearing only a red long-sleeved bolero that revealed her fiery figure, had arrived, waving a flag and shouting. This inspired those terrified by the Pirate attack to suddenly unleash their power and repel the Pirates.
"Idiots of the Kock Kingdom, look at yourselves! You don't even have a single piece of decent clothing, and you endure such harsh oppression. Why not find a new place to live?"
Bello Betty shouted, biting a lady's cigarette.
Her speech was as straightforward as her personality. She would call others trash and scum, but these insults were meant to inspire their fighting spirit.
After all, even with the recent encouragement from the Motivation Fruit's ability, most of these people performed poorly, with only a few leaders showing promise.
A nearby person who had just calmed down weakly raised their hand. "Um, you don't have a complete set of clothes either."
Betty: "..."
"In any case, the Revolution Army is recruiting brave individuals to fight against this world dominated by the Dragonians! But we don't intend to abandon the others. If you don't believe in the Revolution Army, then follow me, and I'll take you to a new place to live!"
Compared to the World Government, the Revolution Army's chosen destinations were even worse. This country barely managed to pay taxes, and its people often went hungry, sometimes suffering attacks from bold Pirates.
Even as an Allied Nation, there were times when this situation couldn't be avoided.
Under these circumstances, the lives of the people became even more difficult.
However, even in such conditions, there weren't many willing to follow them.
At least here, as an Allied Nation, they were generally free from Pirate harassment, and those not from Allied Nations had no human rights.
By staying here, regardless of what happened behind the scenes, they were considered to have human rights.
Once they set sail, it would be a different story.
This made it difficult for the Revolution Army to successfully relocate people to Orlara and improve their lives as planned.
The Revolution Army didn't have many civilians under its rule; those who joined were typically destined for the battlefield.
In the past, they had saved people or recruited those who leaned towards the Revolution Army after leading the revolution.
This was the first time they had attempted to relocate everyone, and it was a challenging task.
Although it was difficult, the base number was high!
There were countless such countries and islands on the vast sea, including those from Non-Aligned Nations who had no choice but to trust the Revolution Army, whether they had been saved by them in the past or were desperate enough to believe. They boarded the ships one after another.
The World Government's ships and the Revolution Army's vessels eventually set sail for the New World, converging at Orlara's port.
Regardless of their original intentions, at this moment, there was no difference.
(End of Chapter)
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