Chapter 52: There Will Only Be One King In This World

In the Royal Palace of Grendel, Darius, the Hand of Noxus, smashed open the palace door with his axe!

Behind him, Draven twirled his spinning axe, ready to strike down any enemy at a moment's notice.

Swain limped into the palace hall, step by step, and then extended his devilish hand. 

He grabbed the fat King of Grendel, who was slumped on his throne, and pulled him right in front of him.

"What are you going to do?" the King stammered. "I am the king of Colombia..."

The King of Grendel struggled in Swain's grasp, trying to threaten him and the others.

In the world of pirates, kings and nobles stand above others. Even the most feared pirates rarely attack kings directly. 

After all, preserving the sacred authority of royalty is a shared responsibility of all feudal monarchies.

But with a swift motion, Swain snapped the neck of the King of Grendel.

"You are not fit to sit on that throne!" Swain declared coldly. "You are not worthy of being a king at all!"

"There will only be one true king in this world," he continued, "and the entire world will be his kingdom."

Swain tossed the lifeless body aside and placed it beneath the throne. Using his demonic power, he created a bloody throne in its place.

At that moment, the Noxian Empire was quietly born in the world of One Piece. Swain became the first consul and the visible ruler of this new empire.

Other pirates might have hesitated, concerned about the reaction of other kingdoms after killing the King of Grendel. 

But Swain and his comrades never cared, because they were Noxus.

From the beginning, Noxus had stood against nearly all other kingdoms. Their conquest and expansion would never stop.

The primary reason was simple: the Kingdom of Colombia wasn't a member of the World Government. 

Overthrowing a World Government member state wouldn't be so easy.

Swain and his allies weren't Celestial Dragons, nor did they have the patience to carefully manipulate the people into rebellion like Crocodile. 

The destruction of non-member countries and the deaths of their kings were things the World Government quietly welcomed.

By emphasizing the dangers faced by non-World Government countries, the World Government tightened its control over its member states, keeping them in line.

This fear allowed the World Government to continue collecting heavenly tribute from its member countries, weakening their power.

And what about the reaction of Colombia's civilian nobles after the King's death?

Well, there were no nobles left in Colombia anymore. Nearly all of them followed King Grendel into the grave.

Their wealth, aside from a portion used to fund Noxus, was handed over to Duke.

And the civilians?

Swain and his allies were already seen as heroes by the people. The commoners had long grown tired of the corrupt King of Colombia.

Even though Colombia was remote and far from pirate attacks, the people didn't live any better than those in World Government member nations.

Human greed is endless. Even without heavenly tribute, there were still outrageous taxes—earthly tribute, king's gold, and more.

In a world ruled by brute strength, ordinary civilians often suffer the most, powerless against rulers who wield great force.

Most pirate world rulers abuse their power, acting however they please.

But now, the Noxian Empire was here. 

And in truth, it wasn't so different from the other kingdoms—everything still came down to power.

In this world, true equality doesn't exist, especially in a pirate world where individual power varies so greatly.

But in Noxus, there are two ironclad rules that apply to all citizens equally!

First, every citizen must follow the laws of the Noxian Empire. Breaking the law will result in severe punishment!

Second, no matter your status, background, race, or gender, those with strength and ability rise to the top, while the weak fall to the bottom. Power and achievements determine everything—military merit will earn you knighthood!

These strict laws brought peace and dignity to all citizens of Noxus. 

Noxus, where skill is king, offers everyone a relatively fair and just starting point.

Most importantly, the Noxian Empire did something unprecedented in the pirate world—it introduced the Military Lord system!

As long as you join Noxus and achieve merit for the empire, you will earn the rewards you deserve.

This is real fairness and justice.

Justice is just an idea; true equality comes from rewards that treat everyone fairly.

The rise of the Noxian Empire was inevitable.

At this moment, Duke looked at the sudden increase in wealth displayed on his system panel, and he burst out laughing.

What is true happiness?

For Duke, it was sitting back while wealth rained down from the sky—that was real happiness.

The King of Colombia and countless nobles had brought Duke a fortune totaling 22.1 billion.

Although the Kingdom of Colombia was poor and backward, it still had vast land and millions of people.

The kings and nobles had drawn enough blood from the common folk.

In the first half of the Grand Line, there are superpowers like Alabasta, with nearly 100 million people and a standing army of 600,000.

But most countries in the One Piece world are smaller in land and population.

Duke carefully washed his hands, and after sacrificing the dead King of Grendel and the nobles, he pressed the lottery button with confidence.

"System, give me three S-level draws!"

The wealth from Grendel had increased Duke's fortune by 22.1 billion, and with the wealth pouring in from his other heroes and industries, his current wealth exceeded 23 billion.

[One billion wealth consumed—congratulations to the Host for winning an S-level prize and equipment redemption!]

[One billion wealth consumed—congratulations to the Host for winning an A-level prize and equipping the Thorns Vest!]

[One billion wealth consumed—congratulations to the Host for winning an S-level prize and equipping the Banshee's Veil!]

"All equipment? Not a single hero?" Duke muttered. "And another A-level item?"

"What kind of luck is this?"

"This King of Colombia was completely useless!" Duke frowned as he looked at the three prizes he had drawn.

That's when a thought hit him.

There seemed to be a limit to the number of heroes in the alliance. Many heroes likely required SS-level or higher draws to unlock.

But Duke could already afford an SS-level draw, couldn't he?

And as his heroes continued to grow, wouldn't he gain even more wealth?

No problem—if he didn't get what he wanted on the first try, he could just keep drawing!

When you have money, you can afford to be reckless!

With that thought, Duke calmly washed his hands again and pressed the lottery button.

"System, give me an SS-level draw!"

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