43 Chapter – 43 The Arrival of the World-Noble

Standing atop the Bell Tower of the Capital of the Kingdom of Goa, Ryuma gazed at the harbor teeming with people from various social classes. Alongside him, Rio, Ace, Sabo, and Luffy also looked in the same direction as Ryuma. The city was adorned with various decorations, creating a festive atmosphere. Individuals from all walks of life, including commoners, lower nobles, higher nobles, and even the royals, eagerly awaited the arrival of the guest of honor. 

"Whoa, look at all those people gathered there!" exclaimed Luffy in amazement. He then asked, "Is there going to be a party? Will there be meat? I want meat! I'm hungry!"

"Here you go, Luffy, eat this," said Ryuma as he produced meat seemingly out of nowhere and handed it to Luffy.

"Wha... where did you get this meat from?" asked Luffy in surprise, saliva starting to flow from his mouth.

Ryuma smiled mysteriously. "It's magic," he said. "Now, go ahead and enjoy." 

"SUGOI!" Luffy's eyes shined in wonder as he took the meat from Ryuma's hand and started to chow down on it without a care in the world.

With that out of the way, Ryuma once again looked at the harbor with a thoughtful expression. While dangling his legs, Ace couldn't help but ask doubtfully, "What's all the fuss about? Why have so many people gathered there? Who is visiting this country that has got these people so excited?"

The one to answer Ace's question was Sabo. "I read it in a newspaper that I stole from Dadan. It seems a World Noble is visiting the Kingdom of Goa." Learning this piece of information made him a bit averse to the World Noble. "Had they not decided to come to this kingdom, the Grey Terminal wouldn't have been burned, and the people there wouldn't have to go through all that!"

Ace was confused, "World Noble? Who are they? Are they any different from typical nobles?"

Luffy also looked at Sabo and Ryuma, seeming a bit interested, albeit only a little since most of his focus was on the meat.

Ryuma explained, "Around eight hundred years ago, a group of twenty kings from different kingdoms came together and formed the current World Government, as we know it today. The World Nobles, also known as the Celestial Dragons, like to call themselves the descendants of those twenty kings," he added. "You can say that they are one of the highest forms of nobility in this world. Even the current kings of different kingdoms and nobles treat them with utmost respect."

"I see," muttered Ace thoughtfully, then turned to Sabo. "Sabo?"

Sabo's expression was grim. Not long ago, he had discovered that the visit of the World Noble was the cause of the burning of the Grey Terminal. The nobles of the Kingdom of Goa were reluctant to reveal the 'shameful' side of their kingdom to the World Nobles. Their aim was to present the Kingdom of Goa as the most beautiful kingdom in the world to please the World Nobles and earn their favor. Consequently, they opted to 'dispose' of the unnecessary 'trash' of their kingdom by burning 'it.'

This revelation made him feel sick to his stomach, and the image of the World Nobles was tarnished in Sabo's eyes. From the start, Sabo didn't harbor much fondness for nobles and royals. Based on his personal experiences, he had concluded that most, if not all, of them were a bunch of scum. In his view, the world would be better off without them. To Sabo, the Celestial Dragons wouldn't be any different if it took the genocide of innocent people to earn their respect and favor.

Ryuma glanced at Sabo for a moment with a contemplative expression, then shifted his attention back to the harbor. The true repulsiveness of the Celestial Dragons was something Sabo might discover soon. Therefore, there was no need for Ryuma to say anything. In fact, even for Ryuma, it would be his first time seeing a World Noble. He had only encountered a World Noble in the anime before, so he didn't know much about them either. For a brief moment, he even entertained the thought, 'I wonder what would happen if one of them got kidnapped... At least an admiral would come, and maybe even the God Knights, who knows... Buster Call might occur too, yeah, it can't be ruled out.' He quickly shook his head, thinking, 'Well, whatever, it's probably not worth the effort, at least not yet. Maybe after I become extremely strong and have a well-developed crew with me, then maybe...'

Soon, a grandiose ship emerged on the horizon, and the excitement among everyone at the harbor was palpable as they spotted it.

As the ship drew closer to the harbor, its impressive details became more apparent. This enormous vessel boasted a majestic design, featuring four masts and a front sail adorned with the insignia of the World Government. The front three masts each had a crow's nest, and the top displayed a Government Flag. The upper part of the ship displayed a striking cobalt blue with white edges, while the bottom was crafted from wood with steel plating under the keel. Numerous cannon ports adorned the sides of the ship, hinting at its formidable capabilities. The ship's figurehead took the form of a golden lion head adorned with a golden crown, mounted on a white structure, with what seemed to be golden whiskers extending from underneath the figurehead.

Ace muttered in amazement, "That ship... it's really big!"

Luffy nodded in agreement, "It's bigger than even Shanks' pirate ship!"

It was the largest ship they had ever seen, though their exposure to various ships was limited. The sentiment was shared by Sabo, Rio, and even Ryuma who thought to himself, 'Whitebeard's Moby Dick should be bigger than this, not to mention the likes of Gran Tesoro and Thriller Bark, but still... the ships of the World Nobles are probably as large as the biggest Marine warships, if not even bigger than that!'

Four children and a parrot continued to observe from a distance as the ship docked in the harbor. Soon, individuals from the ship disembarked in the Kingdom of Goa. Leading the way were five men clad in black suits and black sunglasses, followed by several men donned in knights' armor.

Rio frowned and questioned, "So many people... which one among them is the World Noble?"

Ryuma answered with a somber expression, "The one at the center."

Under the protection of the knights and the suited men, a large, corpulent man with a somewhat dark complexion and brown hair styled upwards in a curl above his head emerged at the center. He sported an extra thick stubble around his neck, enhancing the repulsiveness of his appearance.

He was clad in an outfit resembling a spacesuit—a thick white suit with an obese frame adorned with medal-like knobs on the front, a cape at the back, and a cubical transparent helmet on his head.

Upon seeing the man pointed out by Ryuma, Luffy, Ace, Sabo, and Rio were taken aback, their eyes widening in shock. "What... what does he think he is doing?"

The reason for their astonishment became apparent as they observed the space-suit-wearing man sitting on the back of a large individual crawling on the ground on all fours. This person had a metallic collar around his neck tied to a chain that the World Noble was holding. Additionally, three to four women walked behind him in provocative clothing, each with collars around their necks attached to chains, serving as leashes held by the man.

Luffy gritted his teeth and questioned, "Why are they all chained? And why is he sitting on that man's back?"

Ace voiced a similar inquiry, "And that man, he is clearly stronger than that space-suit guy, but still, he is submissive. Why?"

In contrast to Ace and Luffy, Sabo understood the reason, and his expression turned horrified. "Those people, they are slaves, aren't they?"

Ryuma nodded with a heavy tone. The large man was a warrior slave, while the women were sex slaves. He added, "Yes. That collar thing you see around their necks restricts them. If that chain were to break or separate from the collar in any way, a timer would start, and the collar would soon explode, severely injuring them and potentially even taking their lives!" 

"You... you've got to be kidding!" muttered Sabo with a horrified expression.

Ryuma shook his head with a sigh, "I am not."

Slavery, a deeply troubling practice, had also existed in Ryuma's former world. Native Africans, Asians, criminals, and the inhabitants of conquered territories were often subjected to slavery back in the Middle Ages.

Even in the modern era, after slavery was globally abolished by the United Nations, reprehensible practices like forced labor, human trafficking, and debt bondage continued to persist in some parts of the world, conducted in secret despite being illegal and universally condemned.

As someone who came from a modern, civilized background, Ryuma had heard of these practices, but he had never personally witnessed them in his previous life. This was his first time observing such a scene, and considering the fact that he had been taught about principles like human rights and equality, slavery was something he couldn't accept easily.

Even if he had seen such things happen in anime, it was one thing to watch it on a flat screen in the form of animation and another to witness it with his own eyes. It took everything within him to restrain himself. He sighed and reminded himself, 'Take a deep breath. There's no use frowning over it. The version of me who can't even use Advanced Armament won't have any chance of freeing them. I would only create more trouble for them if I were to do anything!'

Not only restraining himself, Ryuma also forcefully stopped Ace, Sabo, and Luffy from doing anything foolish, "The three of you... don't you dare get yourselves involved! If I am not strong enough to be able to do anything, then the three of you don't even have the right to think about it. You're too weak, way too weak, and would only get yourselves killed if you even tried to approach that person!"

Ryuma's warning successfully deterred the three, but their moods had soured. Even Rio didn't feel like continuing to watch the festivities. However, since Ryuma did not move from the bell tower, the others stayed as well and observed everything unfold. 

"This is the reality of the world we live in, and this is just the start," said Ryuma as he once again focused on the supposed World Noble.

As the World Noble, Saint Jalmack, descended on the island, the people at the harbor were instructed by the king to kneel on the ground. Regardless of their status—whether they were commoners, lower-class nobles, high-class nobles, or members of the royal family, including the queen and the princess—everyone kneeled on the ground and bowed down to Saint Jalmack with zealous and fanatical expressions.

Those who resisted kneeling were compelled to do so by the kingdom's military under the orders of the king, who was willing to do anything to earn the favor of Saint Jalmack.

Observing everything unfold, Ryuma couldn't help but feel that the royals and nobles of this kingdom were excessively sycophantic. 

In particular, the king seemed prepared to go to any length to impress Saint Jalmack. Ryuma even wondered if the king would go as far as performing demeaning acts such as willingly blowing off that old fatty's hairy celestial dick without having any qualms about it, heck he might even be willing to include his wife, the Queen; in the mix all for the sake of earning Saint Jalmack's favor.

Considering the queen's expression, it seemed she might want to join in the 'fun' as well. It was evident that she was willing to do anything for the sake of the Celestial Dragon and might even aspire to become one of Saint Jalmack's many 'wives.' 

Thinking so, Ryuma couldn't help but ponder, 'I wonder if the king is willingly going to be NTRed tonight?'

"Cough, forget it, let's not think about these derogatory things," muttered Ryuma as he shook his head, banishing those unsavory thoughts. He continued to watch the rest of the welcome ceremony along with Ace, Sabo, Luffy, and Rio for a while, then left the capital.

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Shore of Mt. Colubo, Dawn Island

"Well then, you guys... take care, I am leaving," said Ryuma while waving to the people who came to see him off.

There were Luffy, Ace, Sabo, a grumpy Dadan along with other bandits of her family who looked somewhat fearful of Ryuma because of their terrible past experiences. Additionally, there was Makino and the tsundere Woop Slap, and finally, the meek Giant Tiger of Mt. Colubo.

Makino lovingly ruffled Ryuma's messy white hair and said, "Make sure to write letters this time, okay?"

Ryuma nodded, "I'll try."

Sabo questioned, "Ryuma, will you be coming back this time?"

Ryuma pondered for a while, then nodded, "Well, I won't officially set sail to become a pirate until I am seventeen, so I guess I will... Let's see, if I am in the surrounding area, I will be sure to drop by once in a while to check up on you guys once in a while, sounds good?"

Sabo nodded, "Yeah, and I'll keep a watch over 'them' and also try to make progress in regards to what I told you Ryuma."

Ryuma smiled, "Yeah, I will look forward to it, but be careful."

Luffy grinned and said, "Next time we meet, I will beat your ass!"

Ryuma bonked Luffy with an Armament Haki-enhanced fist and said, "In your dreams!"

"Ouch, why does it hurt?" exclaimed Luffy with teary eyes as he held his hand.

"Heh, if you can't even figure out this little thing, then you are a hundred years too early to be able to do anything to me," snorted Ryuma. 

"That form of Haki, I will also master it and fight you using it the next time we meet," said Ace as he folded his hand over his chest. Having gained a hang of using Observation Haki, he sensed that Ryuma had enveloped his hand with Haki and realized that Haki could potentially bypass Devil Fruit's effects.

Sabo shared the same thought, thinking, 'Probably that's why Gramps is able to inflict pain on Luffy with his 'fist of love,' despite Luffy's body being made up of rubber.'

"It won't be easy and will take a lot of time, but good luck. Oh, and you two can use my old training ground. The pieces of equipment that I used to use for training are still there; they will be of help to you," nodded Ryuma.

"Got it!" nodded both Ace and Sabo.

"Alright then, since there's nothing else left, I will be leaving. Take care, you guys," said Ryuma. After that, he waved at them, leaped onto his sailboat with Rio's help, unfurled the sail, and sailed away from the Dawn Islands.

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