How can I become the Pirate King if you don’t work hard?.

Chapter 300 World's Number One
New world.

Whitebeard Pirates' outpost.

All the captains gathered on the Moby Dick.

Ace stood shirtless in the center of the crowd, appearing calm and confident.

An invisible aura of dominance emanated from him.

call--!
The sea breeze howled, causing the pirate flag to flutter.

Under the flag.

Whitebeard slowly spoke:
"Now that Ace's strength has been recognized by you, the position of captain of the Second Division, which has been vacant for a long time, will be given to Ace."

"Who's in favor? Who's against?!"

The deep voice landed, but no one stepped forward.

During this time, Ace has proven himself with victory after victory.

His combat strength may not be as good as Marco, Diamond Jozu, Vista, and others for the time being, but compared to the other captains under Whitebeard, he is no weaker than them.

Moreover, Ace had already shown his kingly qualities in the previous battles.

This is the first member of the Whitebeard Pirates, besides Whitebeard himself, to have the potential to become a king, so its significance is self-evident.

"Isn't that obvious?!"

"This guy is a complete monster!"

"Back before he even joined the crew, he was able to fight Jinbe for days and nights without a clear winner."

"His strength will only grow stronger now!"

……

Amidst the cheers of the crowd.

Ace turned his head and looked at Blackbeard beside him, a hint of apology in his eyes:
"Sorry, Teach, this position was originally meant for you..."

"No!"

Blackbeard gave a good-natured smile, seemingly unconcerned about it.

"I don't have that kind of ambition."

"Hahahahahahaha...!"

"Humph."

Ace breathed a sigh of relief, and the anxiety he had felt gradually subsided. Soon, he was surrounded by a crowd of congratulatory people.

Whitebeard raised his wine bowl, laughed, and shouted:
"cheers!"

"cheers!"

Everyone responded one after another.

Marco, Oars Jr., Sachi, and the others turned their attention to Ace, and soon got him completely drunk.

"Hahahaha~"

"Even though Ace is the captain, his alcohol tolerance is still so low, that won't do!"

"I need to practice!"

Amidst the laughter of the crowd, Ace slept soundly, a slight smile playing on his lips.

It was also at this time.

A messenger bird flew across the sky, dropped a stack of newspapers, and then, without even daring to collect the money, took flight.

"This is……"

Diamond Joz picked up a newspaper from the deck, and the information on the front page stunned him:

"Hey, hey, is it true?!"

"What's wrong?!"

Half-drunk, foil fencer Bista leaned over, his gaze falling on the newspaper, and the smell of alcohol on his face instantly dissipated.

"The title of World's Greatest Swordsman has changed hands, with Knight Gawain stepping over Hawkeye to take the throne?!"

He snatched the newspaper from Joz's hand, looked at the excessively young figure in the photo, and for a moment didn't know what to say.

Countless people practice swordsmanship on this vast sea.

Fencing legend Bista is confident that he is one of the best, but he is also aware that there is still an insurmountable gap between him and Hawkeye.

But this did not hinder his determination to reach the summit and witness the pinnacle of swordsmanship.

But before he could even face Hawkeye, the title of number one had already changed hands, and the one who took the top spot was a newcomer who had only been in the industry for a few years.

"I really want to fight him!"

"Look just how sharp this knife is that cut down Hawkeye!"

"and many more!"

Bista gasped for breath:
"If I remember correctly, the man who defeated the Golden Lion a few months ago was also Knight Gawain!"

"So, in just a few months, he has successively defeated the legend of the previous era and the number one swordsman of this era?!"

"This guy……"

He looked up at the white-bearded man, and seeing that the latter's gaze had fallen upon him, he continued:
"Perhaps there's a chance he could become king!"

"I have this intuition!"

Vista's voice fell, but the expressions on everyone's faces remained unchanged, showing only their confidence in Whitebeard.

"Dad will never lose to anyone!"

"That's right!"

"As long as Daddy lives, no one can get past us!"

……

Everyone chimed in with their own comments, and the matter was quickly moved on from the topic.

Blackbeard sat to one side, the bottle of liquor in his hand suspended in mid-air, gripped tightly...

boom!
The bottle exploded, splashing liquor all over Blackbeard.

The crowd dispersed in panic, and when they turned around, they saw Blackbeard's apologetic face.

"I'm sorry, everyone."

Seeing that Blackbeard still had that憨厚 smile, everyone could only shake their heads helplessly.

After all, Blackbeard was an old man on the ship and a well-known good guy, so no one was willing to argue with him about this issue.

just.

What no one noticed was...

Blood seeped from Blackbeard's palms, and his eyes were bloodshot.

When will my time finally come?!
After playing dumb and innocent for over twenty years, I've almost forgotten why I boarded the ship in the first place!

hiss--!
Blackbeard took a deep breath to calm himself down, and when he turned around, he saw Whitebeard's all-seeing gaze.

He snapped out of his daze, immediately reverting to his usual憨厚 (honest and simple) demeanor, completely sheathing his claws and ambitions, and laughed:
"Dad~"

"Ah."

Whitebeard nodded and turned his gaze back to Ace.

He knew perfectly well that Blackbeard had been plotting something all along, concealing his ambitions.

But to Whitebeard, no matter what ambitions Blackbeard may have, he was no different from the others on the ship.

He is his son.

The only ironclad rule on this ship is that you can't attack your own comrades, and Blackbeard didn't violate that rule, which is enough.

just.

Upon hearing Gawain's name again, Whitebeard couldn't help but pay closer attention.

The last time he heard this name was a few months ago when the Golden Lions were eliminated.

At that time, he only thought he was a decent young man, and he gave the Golden Lion a peaceful end.

However, just a few months later, Gawain had already claimed the title of the world's number one swordsman. His speed of rise was unmatched even in the era of Rocks.

Whitebeard suddenly became interested.

He took the newspaper from Vista, glanced at it briefly, and spotted a familiar figure in the photograph.

"This face... is it Rayleigh?!"

Rayleigh looked much older in the photo, and his attire was different from twenty years ago. He was just one of the background figures in the crowd.

But Whitebeard recognized the man who had stood shoulder to shoulder with Roger back then at a glance:
"So you've been hiding in the Sabaody Archipelago all along?!"

"so……"

Whitebeard turned his gaze to Gawain in the photograph.

Holding a knife in one hand, with an indifferent gaze and relaxed posture, he exuded a kind of oppressive aura that made people inexplicably uneasy.

"Is this the person you've been waiting for?"

A slight smile played on Whitebeard's lips. He had already decided that Gawain was the person Rayleigh was waiting for, and he couldn't help but look forward to seeing just how far Gawain would go.

Like a shooting star, it shines brightly and falls just as quickly, just like Moria and Crocodile in the past.

Or will he truly become the supreme ruler who can control the world in an era?

"A new era? How exciting!"

"but……"

Whitebeard turned to look at Ace, his eyes filled with unspoken expectation:

"The future is on my side."

"Gurala la la la la la—!"

……

……

……

at the same time.

The World Government, within the CP organization.

Spandam looked at the newspaper he had just acquired and couldn't help but show a constipated expression.

"Even Hawkeye..."

His face turned deathly pale, and he even regretted his impulsive decision to gamble everything.

They've ended up in this predicament where they're caught in a dilemma.

He did not experience the legendary era, and he did not feel the threat to the Golden Lion as strongly as his father Spandam.

But Hawkeye is different. Before becoming a Shichibukai, his title was Marine Hunter. However, his targets weren't just the Marines, but all forces under the World Government.

The previous leader of the CP organization was killed by Hawkeye, so much so that even now, the CP organization is somewhat afraid of Hawkeye.

And now you're telling me that the monster Hawkeye was defeated by Knight Gawain, and my mission is to snatch someone from Knight Gawain's hands?
Isn't this just asking for trouble?!

"This is terrible! How am I supposed to explain myself if I can't catch Ghost Man A-Jin?!"

"They captured the demon Akin, but Knight Gawain discovered it. A hundred lives wouldn't be enough to pay for their deaths..."

"I'm going to die~ I'm going to die~ I'm going to die~"

Spandam paced back and forth in his office like a cat on a hot tin roof.

Seeing this, Lu Qi spoke up at the opportune moment:

"There is another way to solve this problem."

Spandam's eyes lit up:
"any solution?!"

"We definitely have to do it, but you can choose not to do it well. After all, the higher-ups know that with our capabilities, it's highly unlikely we'll succeed."

"If he still needs you, then the people behind him won't make things difficult for him."

"it's useless."

Spandam shook his head:

"They only care about the results, not the process. To that person, the CP organization is nothing more than a tool to be used. Once the mission fails, those who know about it will be eliminated."

"After all, this matter cannot be brought to light, and there is no safer way out than death."

"In the end, it's still a dead end."

Spandam slumped down, his face deathly pale and his body trembling uncontrollably, clearly terrified.

Lucci was not surprised at all, and said confidently:

“Under normal circumstances, if the Celestial Dragons of Mary Geoise want something, they would never contact you secretly like this. With just one order, the entire World Government would be mobilized.”

"The fact that they found you under those circumstances means that someone doesn't want him to succeed, and that person must be someone of equal or even higher status."

"I think so."

"Since this matter cannot be brought into the light, let's make it come into the light."

"You mean... I understand!"

Spandam immediately jumped up excitedly, his eyes filled with indescribable amazement as he looked at Lucci.

In his eyes, originally.

Lucci is a near-perfect tool, but he's still a little short in that respect, though today's observation shows otherwise.

This man is outstanding not only in strength, but also in intelligence!
"Starting today, you are the leader of CP9!"

"I said!"

Spandam was so excited to have escaped death that he jumped up on the spot, completely unaware of Lucci's deadly gaze.

These words were not Lucci's own ideas, but rather the rhetoric prepared for him by Crowe, which now served its purpose, diverting the CP organization's attention elsewhere.

After all, it's best to nip a threat in the bud.

Seeing that Spandam had fallen for the trap, Lucci couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief, and at the same time, he couldn't help but admire the precision of Kro's calculations.

They almost perfectly predicted all of Spandam's reactions.

just.

For Lucci now, the more important thing is to find out who has their eyes on Kin's abilities and what their motives are...

He could sense that he was very close to the truth.

Lucci murmured to himself, his gaze falling on the newspaper Spandam had placed on the table.

He looked at the words "World's Number One Swordsman" prominently displayed on the newspaper, and the young face below those words.

A hint of pride crept onto his face.

"If the captain takes another step, then I need to hurry up on my end too."

"The CP9 team leader is not enough. He should at least be a core decision-maker in CP0, or even the captain of CP0!"

……

……

……

Golden City.

Tezoro sat on the sofa.

His deputy and secretary, Bakara, was standing beside him, dictating a recent report.

just.

With each word Bakara spoke, Tezzo's brow furrowed deeper, until...

boom!
Tezoro put down his wine glass and rubbed his temples.

"So, according to the intelligence we've gathered, the martial arts tournament's partners are two emperors of the underworld? The Queen of Pleasure Street and the King of Loan Sharks, Du-field?!"

Bakara nodded:

"Yes."

"With our strength, we can handle these two, but it would cost us a lot to make them back down."

"Not only would it be a losing proposition, but it might also provoke Knight Gawain to take action."

"That's what I'm worried about."

"Tch—!"

Taizoro curled his lip.

And Gao Wen, he felt a sudden surge of irritation for no reason.

"Is there any other way to handle this?!"

Bakara shook her head and couldn't help but offer some advice:
"Lord Tezoro, the best course of action now is still to approach them with sincerity and seek cooperation, rather than resorting to our previous approach of swallowing them whole, bone and all."

"And have you seen the recent news?"

"what news?"

"That Hawkeye has been defeated, defeated by Knight Gawain!"

Taizoro shuddered, slowly sat up, his face grim.

"That Hawkeye..."

"what."

Bakara nodded, her expression extremely solemn:
"If we say that the previous Golden Lion was old and frail and his strength was not as good as before, and that there was a Marine Admiral present, then..."

"The fact that he defeated Hawkeye means that the man has the power to rival the Four Emperors. The only difference between him and the Sea Emperors is their sphere of influence."

"Expand our sphere of influence, build a fleet, and increase our power..."

"These all point to one thing..."

"money!"

"Investing in one of the Four Emperors, especially one known as the most benevolent man in the East Blue, seems like a sure-fire way to make money!"

(End of this chapter)