One Piece: Fate's Unyielding Marine

Sea Circle Calendar 1534.

Ohara, the holy place of knowledge.

Although the Tree of Knowledge was reduced to ashes by artillery fire twenty years ago, many ancient books still remain here.

Nico Robin came from the classroom with books under her arm.

As she passed by the playground, she overheard a discussion among several young students.

"Adams Dylan has been cultivating and forming the 'Peace Roundtable' in East Blue since he was a teenager. Through collected information, we can roughly infer his actions after the age of 16, but..."

"There are very few records of his experiences before the age of 16. Even for the original Marine 297 branch in East Blue, there's basically no other information except his meritorious service records."

"But that doesn't stop him from being a great man who brought new changes to the world."

"Yes, the pirates were eliminated, the Celestial Dragons were overthrown, and a peaceful and just social system was established based on East Blue Girona and South Blue Greenbit."

Just when the young students were discussing vigorously, a voice without much emotion suddenly sounded in the crowd:

"But he was a war maniac and a dictator."

Everyone was stunned.

Many of them were in their teens or twenties.

They had all experienced the rule of the Celestial Dragons.

"Hughes! Didn't you go to the principal's open class?"

"In that chaotic era, someone had to stand up and lead everyone against the secular powers and pirates who were not bound by the law. At that time, if we couldn't work together and vote, hold meetings, study, and discuss everything, we'd still be paying 'heavenly gold' to the Celestial Dragons!"

The young man named Hughes raised his head and looked at the students around him.

"What about what he did in Wanokuni?"

"That's a rumor! Do you have any evidence? And I believe that even if it's true, there are certain reasons for it. Have you forgotten that before Mr. Tom of the Raging Sea executed Hody Jones, he had no intention of explaining anything to the world?"

"It was only Hody Jones's dying words that angered him, and he told the world the truth."

"Hughes! Your thoughts are very dangerous. You know, if Mr. Dylan stayed in this world, he would undoubtedly become the king of the world, but he didn't do that. He gave the world room to grow freely."

"That's right! Hughes! It's only been ten years since the 'Battle for Equality', and you've actually begun to question the hero who led the world out of the gloom!?"

Faced with a flood of criticism and razor-sharp eyes, Hughes fell silent again.

"But the principal also said that history can be doubted."

"Is that history?? We all lived in that era, and it was the darkness that we experienced personally!"

A student stood up angrily and looked at Hughes: "Hughes! I remember you once said that you are from the West Blue waters. What was West Blue like before the 'Peace War'?"

Hughes stood up silently, turned around, and exited the discussion circle.

"I don't deny his achievements, but I think the world should give him a reasonable evaluation."

"You bastard!"

"It's simply unreasonable!!"

Fighting is prohibited in Ohara, and many students' faces turned red.

If they weren't afraid of being expelled, they would definitely beat Hughes!

Bamond, who was standing in the distance, watched the disputes among the students with a smile.

"Won't you correct them?"

"No need," Bamond did not look back. As he grew older, his figure gradually became a little stooped.

"Why?"

Nico Robin was a little confused. Ten years after Adams Dylan left, the world has restored order. Although the various ethnic groups have not yet fully integrated, they have a lot of normal trade and interaction with each other. In Nico Robin's view, the man who has been gone for ten years is undoubtedly the creator of all this. The leaders of most races and regions in this world come from his command. Why would Uncle Bamond allow young students to question him?

Bamond looked into the distance, his eyes filled with memories.

"He once told us that he originally only regarded this place as a stop on his journey, but he saw too much misfortune and sorrow here. He himself also experienced many hardships that we could not imagine. He wanted to change the world, but he doesn't have much nostalgia for this world."

"So he doesn't actually care what the world thinks of him?"

"Yes," a smile appeared on Bamond's lips: "He doesn't care how the people view him, nor does he care how history evaluates him, because he said that if one day, the people of this world completely overthrow his achievements, that means the world is in a state of decay."

"Then shouldn't we guide the next generation to interpret him correctly?"

Nico Robin was a little shocked. She was just a historian and was not good at predicting human nature and society. But when she heard what Bamond said so seriously, she still felt a trace of fear in her heart. Shouldn't this tendency be nipped in the bud?

"This is also what he ordered. He said—"

"If sharp criticism disappears entirely, mild criticism will become harsher. If mild criticism is not allowed, silence will be considered ulterior motives. If silence is no longer allowed, insufficient praise will be a crime. If only one voice is allowed to exist, then the only voice that exists is a lie."

"Do you know?" Bamond looked at the successor next to him, Ohara's most outstanding historian, with interest. But… Bamond was still a little disappointed. Nico Robin, even though ten years have passed, she is still obsessed with interpreting history. Ohara… Holy land of knowledge! It exists to pass on knowledge, not to chew words and sit and talk.

"Almost three years ago, when I first met him in East Blue, he asked me, 'Are the people smart or stupid?' What do you think?"

Nico Robin shook the book in her hand.

"Smart!"

Bamond shook his head: "Think again."

Nico Robin frowned, wondering if Uncle Bamond had a sense of intellectual superiority. Did he think people were stupid?

"Stupid?"

Bamond shook his head again: "Think again."

Nico Robin's brows furrowed even more tightly. She pondered for a moment and then said firmly, "Smart!"

Bamond sighed. Although scholars do not need much political wisdom, being a leader in a field is different.

"The answer he gave me back then was—the people are neither smart nor stupid. The difference lies in who is judging them. If it is a high-pressure ruler, they will think that the people are stupid and just animals who only eat, drink, and have fun. But people who try to use the power of the people to do things will claim that the people are smart because they need to use the power of the people to achieve a certain goal."

"And the answer he gave me was that most intelligent life cannot be defined in terms of good, evil, smart, and stupid."

"The human heart is upward, and everyone has the potential to do good, be loved, and be worshipped. However, human nature is downward, because human desires are gaps that can never be filled. When desires cannot be realized, if they cannot use strong rationality or strict laws to suppress them, then humans will start to try to do things that violate laws or morality."

"What is our purpose in rebuilding the Holy Land of Knowledge?"

Bamond turned to face Nico Robin, his eyes burning.

"Study history..."

"Wrong!"

Perhaps because of his excitement, a mist rose around Bamond.

"The most important purpose of rebuilding the Holy Land of Knowledge is to pass on that precious knowledge to the whole world, so that everyone can read, be literate, and understand right from wrong. Improve their cognitive level and make them capable and qualified to distinguish right from wrong!"

"We must build a shield called education and morality for the people before the bottom line of the law. This—"

"That's Ohara's mission!"

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