One Piece : Winged Dragons of the Beast Pirates

What do you want to do?

Ian fell into deep thought.

He had been in this world for six years, and he had never really considered this question before.

Unable to come up with an answer right away, Ian asked Yamato, "Why the sudden question?"

"Because, Ian, it seems like you're only interested in training and not much else!"

Yamato pouted and sniffed, "You didn't even seem to like the beautiful fireworks just now!"

She looked at Ian with a curious expression.

Was it… pity?

Ian's mouth twitched. Was this girl feeling sorry for him?

"So, what about you? What do you want to do when you grow up?"

Ian asked.

"I want to become stronger than my father!" Yamato said seriously. "And then I'll be the new Governor-General of the Beasts Pirates! Dad says that if I do that, I'll be able to do everything I want to do!"

Ian wasn't particularly surprised.

He could tell that Kaido genuinely saw Yamato as his successor.

Of course, the timing of the succession was uncertain.

Kaido had never expected to entrust his dreams to anyone else.

"What about you, Ian?"

The girl leaned closer to Ian, standing on tiptoe, her nose almost touching his face. Ian could see the stars in her eyes.

Good grief, how could anyone have stars in their eyes? Are you a starry-eyed queen?

"What do you want to do, Ian?"

Ian pushed Yamato's face away with his hand, furrowing his brows.

What did he really want?

Power?

He was already the ruler of Wano Country and a high-ranking member of the Beasts Pirates. There probably weren't many people in this world with more power than him.

Wealth?

Wano Country was rich in Sea-Prism Stones, and if he leveraged that, the wealth he could accumulate would be astronomical.

Beauty?

Ian glanced down at Yamato—no, that wasn't it!

As the king of Wano, even collecting all the beauties of the country would be within his reach.

But none of these three things seemed to satisfy him.

So, it must be power.

The power he had always pursued; his obsession with it had never wavered.

Yet, despite possessing great power, he didn't like fighting and even wanted to avoid dangerous enemies.

What Ian was pursuing seemed to be more than just power.

A sudden flash of insight crossed Ian's mind, and he almost instinctively blurted out, "Security."

"Security?"

Yamato tilted her head.

Ian's eyes gradually lit up. "Yes, security."

Because he knew the world was incredibly dangerous, he felt a natural sense of unease.

Due to this unease, he sought security.

He knew that the Beasts Pirates were a purely villainous pirate crew, but he was still willing to stay because they were powerful enough to make him feel secure.

He knew his own weakness couldn't face this dangerous world, so he focused solely on becoming stronger, never allowing himself to relax.

He knew that strong enemies would bring danger, so he instinctively avoided facing them.

It was that simple.

What he wanted was just the feeling of security.

So, what is true security?

The strongest power?

The highest authority?

The most wealth?

It seems none of these alone, but perhaps all of them combined.

But with that, he understood.

He understood what he had been unconsciously pursuing all these years.

Ian's lips gradually curled into a smile. "What I want is a world where I can feel secure."

Stronger than anyone else! More powerful than anyone else! Wealthier than anyone else! A world without enemies—that's security.

Yamato blinked, not quite understanding.

But.

"A world, huh? That sounds amazing! Well! Since that's what you want to do, Ian, I'll definitely help you!"

Yamato smiled, revealing her small white teeth with two missing in the front. New white teeth were already emerging in the gaps.

"Isn't that only natural?"

Ian laughed heartily.

He knew he couldn't achieve this on his own.

Two days later.

The Flower Capital's Castle

Ian reviewed a stack of documents delivered by Fukurokuju and Shushō.

His forces, along with the Beasts Pirates, had already taken control of the entire Wano Country, with all towns now under their control.

After all, the country wasn't very large.

In front of him, Fukurokuju and Shushō respectfully reported, "In response to our occupation, the samurai in various regions have caused disturbances of varying scales."

"However, with the assistance of the Beasts Pirates, these disturbances were easily suppressed. Except for a few die-hard elements, officials from various towns have already pledged their allegiance to you."

"There's just one strange thing."

"Strange?"

Ian looked up.

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Fukurokuju and Shushō nodded, "In Nine Regions, due to the poverty of the Kozuki family, there was no organized military force. The armies of Udon, Ringo, and Kibi Region had already been completely wiped out by us earlier, so the takeover of these areas was very straightforward. What's odd is the Hakumai region. Although the daimyo, Shimotsuki Yasuie, was captured by you, the region's military should have remained intact."

"And yet, during the occupation of Hakumai, we faced no resistance at all. It was as if the samurai in that area had disappeared."

He continued earnestly, "I suspect they might be hiding, perhaps preparing to rescue Shimotsuki Yasuie."

That made sense.

Ian recalled something.

Previously, a group of samurai had attacked the hidden port, seemingly sending someone out to sea.

After that, the samurai had vanished.

Were they the samurai under Yasuie?

Ian thought for a moment and said, "Then announce it to the entire country: tomorrow, we will publicly execute Shimotsuki Yasuie."

Fukurokuju and Shushō's faces lit up with excitement as they bowed deeply, "As expected of His Majesty Ian! With this announcement, those people will no longer be able to hide."

"As for those people, it doesn't matter much,"

Ian wasn't particularly concerned about the samurai under Shimotsuki Yasuie. The real threats to Wano Country had already been eliminated.

He raised the stack of documents in his hand, "What interests me more is why the samurai of various towns have only occupied a little more than half of the local land?"

Fukurokuju and Shushō looked puzzled, "It has always been this way."

"Just what?"

"What does Your Majesty mean? Do you think it's still insufficient?"

"In Wano Country, the system is based on feudal lords."

"The Shogun nominally rules the entire country as the Great Lord, while the local daimyos pledge their loyalty to the Shogun and are considered the Lesser Lords."

"Under the daimyos, there are also the Family Elders, who are appointed in various territories within their domains, and they are considered even smaller lords compared to the daimyos."

"These Family Elders often lead different samurai families, which can be regarded as their small fiefs."

"Whether it's power or land, Wano Country is structured in layers of feudal control."

"Despite the fact that only samurai can wield power, the samurai occupy more than half of the country's land, which Ian feels is already a restraint on their part."

"It's important to note that Wano has been stable for nearly a thousand years, and during this time, the ruling class has scarcely changed!"

"Over a millennium of land annexation, and yet the nobility hasn't seized all the land of Wano. Ian can only say that the samurai have been merciful."

"Even so, the samurai, making up only a small fraction of the population, hold most of the land, and the majority of Wano's citizens are their tenants."

"'From now on, there will be no need for samurai.'"

"Ian said, 'Let's issue a decree called, hmm, the 'Abolition of Swords Decree'. It will ban samurai from carrying weapons, revoke all their privileges, abolish the samurai title, and reclaim all lands held by samurai outside of the Flower Capital for state ownership. For lands within the Flower Capital, the government will offer to buy from those willing to sell; for those unwilling, we'll impose land taxes.'"

"Land is the most precious wealth? That notion is outdated."

"In the future, people of Wano will probably say, 'The country of samurai, our nation has been called that for a long time. Twenty years ago, with the expansion of the Beasts Pirates—'"

"Perhaps there will even be a silver-haired wooden sword samurai."

"…"

"Fukurokuju's face turned pale."

"Although the samurai suffered a great loss in the previous battle, the remaining samurai are still a formidable force."

"Moreover, they form the foundation of the government's rule."

"Without the grassroots samurai, how will government orders be implemented?"

"Policies aren't something that can just be declared from the top; they need people on the ground to carry them out. How can it work without them?"

"'Additionally, let the local administrative affairs be directly managed by the central government. The civil officials will handle it themselves. As for the displaced samurai, they have two options: either join the military or become local administrative officials, with salaries provided by the government.'"

"Your Majesty, you're too bold."

"You just revoked these people's privileges and now you want to employ them?"

"Fukurokuju swallowed hard."

"But he also knew there was no other choice. Where else could they find grassroots officials? Could they rely on farmers who've spent their entire lives tilling the land?"

"Moreover, these samurai who have lost their swords won't be able to stir up much trouble against His Majesty Ian and the Beasts Pirates, right?"

"It's the bureaucrats who will suffer. His Majesty Ian only needs to speak, and the rationality and feasibility of the policies are ignored. He is incredibly capricious, but they are the ones who have to implement it. Who knows how much hair they'll have left after this."

"'Understood.'"

Fukurokuju nodded respectfully.

He knew that from this point on, Wano Country would lose its fangs entirely.

The once proud nation of samurai would cease to exist.

"Lastly,"

Ian pondered for a moment, "don't you think there are too many farmers leasing land?"

"Huh?"

Fukurokuju looked up in surprise.

"Terminate some of the farmers' lease agreements," Ian said. "Let them leave the land."

"But Your Majesty,"

Fukurokuju couldn't help but advise, "If the farmers lose their land, many might die."

Wano Country was a deeply agricultural society, where land was the root of all wealth.

"Aren't factories being built every month in the country? And the Udon Region mines," Ian said, "Those places will welcome them."

Fukurokuju bowed his head, "Yes."

More ruthless than Kaido himself.

Who in Wano Country didn't know?

The workers in the factories and mines controlled by the Beasts Pirates were no different from slaves.

Perhaps this is what Lord Kaido's teachings have produced?

**********

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