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

Chapter 401 Men’s Romance

call--!
A sea breeze swept by.

The dust and smoke in the harbor were stirred up, and Sabo's clothes were also lifted.

He looked at the spot where Fujitora had disappeared, a bitter smile playing on his lips:

"I thought it was just good luck that I met a guide after entering Britannias, and I even had the idea of ​​inviting him to join the revolutionary army."

"only……"

"Even a nobody like me can't escape that person's eyes, so how could he possibly hide here all his life?!"

"The only explanation is that he had already gambled his entire future on that person's ship."

"Ah……"

Sabo chuckled self-deprecatingly.

Was the revolutionary army small in strength?
Of course it's not small.

On the contrary, even on a global scale, the Revolutionary Army is a super-large force second only to the World Government, comparable to the Four Emperors.

This is the pinnacle that countless pirates could never reach, even if they devoted their entire lives to it.

But Gawain and his gang...

They are the undisputed pinnacle of this era, standing above the Four Emperors, and, ignoring the Ancient Weapons, are capable of rivaling the World Government.

Having spent so much time together, Sabo had already seen through Fujitora's personality.

They may seem gentle and easygoing, but once they make up their minds, they will not be swayed by anyone or anything.

She possesses a gentle heart, as well as unwavering beliefs.

Getting such a person to change their decision is undoubtedly an impossible task.

And more importantly.

Faced with Fujitora, who had already boarded Knight Gawain's ship, Sabo could find no reason to persuade him to join the Revolutionary Army.

After all, from any perspective, the revolutionary army was not the better option, even in terms of liberating slaves.

a long time.

A sigh came from Sabo in the air.

He took a step forward, but then withdrew it in the next instant.

Ivankov's bar had been completely destroyed by Barrett's abilities, and now only half of the signboard remained on a distant section of the wall.

Just like Sabo's confused heart at this moment.

……

……

……

Barrett awoke three days later.

His wounds, after being simply bandaged, have begun to heal.

Only the lingering Conqueror's Haki in the wound continued to stimulate the nerves, causing a sharp pain from time to time.

Barrett couldn't help but recall Gawain's stab, and felt a wave of powerlessness wash over him.
"gap……"

"It's too big."

"I never imagined that this era could actually give birth to an existence that surpasses even Roger, that monster."

"but……"

The sound hadn't even landed yet.

Barrett then turned to look at the door.

boom--!
The door was rudely pushed open by Ainer Festa, and upon seeing Barrett awake, he immediately breathed a sigh of relief:

"I told you you'd be lucky, you wouldn't die so easily!"

"Ha ha ha ha--!"

Amid Buena Festa's unrestrained laughter.

Barrett, unsure of what expression to make, instinctively asked:
Why did you come back back then?!

Buena Festa's laughter gradually subsided. He looked down at his hands, slowly clenched his fists, and said:

"I was originally planning to do as we agreed."

"Once one side falls, the other should not hesitate to leave and pursue their own dreams."

"But at that moment, I saw my reflection in the seawater—distorted, ugly, insignificant, and cowardly..."

“If I back down at a time like this, I will never be able to realize my ambitions in this lifetime, so I’m sorry I couldn’t keep our promise.”

Barrett fell silent for a moment.

After a long time.

He then spoke:

"If I were in that situation, I would not hesitate at all."

Buena Festa's gaze remained unwavering:
"It doesn't matter how those things turn out."

"Humph~"

Barrett's lips curled slightly, and the hard lines on his face seemed somewhat soft at this moment.

He didn't dwell on the topic, but asked:
What happened after I lost consciousness?

Buena Festa briefly explained what happened next.

Barrett reached up and rubbed his temples:

"You mean, not only were your Floating Fruits used to pay off debts, but my Perpetual Pointer was also used to pay off debts?"

"We'll even have to work for Knight Gawain until we pay off the debt for destroying the port?"

Buena Festa nodded somewhat guiltily.

"..."

Barrett's lips twitched, the momentary emotion he felt vanished instantly, but upon reflection, he understood that Buena Festa had no choice in that situation.

Compared to each other's lives, both the Float Fruit and the Perpetual Pointer are things that can be discarded.

hiss--!
Barrett took a deep breath and pressed on:

"What else did Knight Gawain say?!"

"actually……"

After a moment of contemplation, Buena Festa couldn't help but speak:

"It might not be a bad thing for us to temporarily join Knight Gawain's ranks, especially for you."

Seeing Barrett's puzzled expression, Buena Festa explained:

"Our previous thinking was actually flawed."

"What you want is to use the martial arts tournament, with the permanent pointer as bait, to lure all the powerful figures into making a move, and ultimately help yourself reach the top, right?!"

Barrett nodded.

Buena Festa continued:
"So winning the martial arts tournament is just one means to achieve our goal. If that doesn't work, we may have other options, one of which is to cooperate with Knight Gawain."

"That's why I ultimately chose to bypass you and hand over the Perpetual Pointer and the Float Fruit to Knight Gawain."

"Because in some ways, that monster has the same goal as you."

Barrett paused for a moment, his expression somewhat strange:
"He wants to be the best in the world?!"

"he……"

"It's a bit hard to accept, but he's already done it."

Buena Festa shook her head, denying Barrett's guess, and explained:

“I heard him say that the top is very lonely. What he wants is to use the martial arts tournament as a platform to cultivate an opponent who can rival him.”

Barrett reached up and touched the bandage on his chest:
"How arrogant!"

Barrett would have scoffed at anyone else saying such things, but it was Gawain who said them.

He overwhelmed Whitebeard during the Marineford War and annihilated his strongest large bullet with a single strike; such combat power needs no further explanation.

If this man says that the top is lonely, then it must be lonely.

Gathering his thoughts, Barrett looked up at Buena Festa:

"So that's why you gave these two items to Knight Gawain?!"

"Yes, but not entirely."

"There's another reason?!"

"He promised to make me the chief planner of the world's number one martial arts tournament."

Barrett's lips twitched:
"That's the main reason, isn't it?!"

"Forehead……"

Buena Festa chuckled twice, left a message telling him to take good care of his injury, and then fled as if his life depended on it. Barrett was speechless for a moment.

After a long time.

A rare smile appeared on his lips. He simply put his hands behind his head, closed his eyes, and pretended to sleep. Soon, a snoring sound filled the ward.

Long and even.

For the first time since leaving Roger's crew more than twenty years ago, Bullet slept soundly.

Leaning against the door, Buena Festa listened to Barrett's snoring, a relaxed expression creeping onto his face.

"Well~"

"This outcome isn't so bad, is it?!"

The sound fell to the ground.

Buena Festa walked away with his hands in his pockets, looking nonchalant.

Hey!
Hey!
Hey!
The crisp sound of footsteps, accompanied by a long, drawn-out shadow, gradually disappeared into the moonlight.

……

Barrett slept straight through to noon on the third day.

When he opened his eyes, Smoker, with a cigar in his mouth and bandages wrapped around his body, was standing in front of his bed.

"Smoker?!"

"Oh~"

Smoker grinned:

"You, a guy like you, actually remember my name?!"

"I will never forget any of the strong warriors I have fought."

Smoker grinned, the ferocity in his eyes vanished, and his tone softened, clearly pleased with the gesture.

"With your words, all our past grievances are wiped clean."

"but."

"The losses you cause at the port are none of my concern."

"Fortunately, there were no casualties, otherwise, neither the captain nor we would have tolerated you."

"correct."

"The captain is looking for you."

"I came here to wait for you because I was ordered to do so."

"Knight Gawain?"

Barrett nodded and got up to follow Smoker.

……

Camelot.

Municipal Building.

Gawain sat in his office, fiddling with the permanent pointer in his hand.

On the table in front of him was a strangely shaped Devil Fruit.

"The Golden Lion's power, after going around in circles, finally came into our hands. In a way, this can be considered a kind of fate."

Kuro raised his hand to push up his glasses, looked at the Devil Fruit on the table, and couldn't help but swallow.

Only by fighting the Golden Lion and witnessing its terrifying power—capable of making islands float and be used as weapons against opponents, or manipulating the sea and playing with it at will—can one truly understand just how powerful this fruit is.

However, this power is not the true use of the Float-Float Fruit.

The entire fleet can be floated up, transforming into an aerospace fleet, gaining air superiority and moving freely.

You can advance to attack and retreat to defend.

In an era when navigation mostly relies on wind power, the strategic advantage brought by the drifting fruit is nothing short of a game-changer.

This is a capability born for air combat!
"Who should it be given to?!"

Gao Wen narrowed his eyes slightly, unsure of what to do for a moment.

They are now the main force within the Knights of the Round Table.

Kuro, Arkin, Fujitora, and Law have all developed their own abilities; Zoro and Sanji, on the other hand, are not very interested in Devil Fruits.

Cavendish's fighting style isn't a good match for the Float-Float Fruit, while Nami's compatibility with it is quite good. However, according to Gawain's understanding, the Float-Float Fruit isn't exactly Nami's preferred ability.

As for the other high-ranking officers who were not Knights of the Round Table, apart from Kalifa, they did not show any interest in Devil Fruits.

After thinking for a long time.

Gawain put the Floating Fruit back into the safe and said:

"The strategic value of the Float-Float Fruit dictates that this ability can only be entrusted to trusted comrades. Let's pass the message down and let them choose for themselves."

"Ah."

Kro nodded:
"That's all we can do for now."

"Speak of it."

"We received news from Tezoro that he has completed what he had to do and is on his way."

"These are the things he sent."

Kro bent down and placed an exquisite treasure chest on Gawain's desk. When he opened it, a pungent smell of preservative wafted out.

Gawain lowered his eyes to look inside the treasure chest, but was slightly taken aback when he saw the contents.

The reason was that inside the treasure chest was a glass container containing a white, bubbly human head.

The head in the glass container was completely swollen and deformed, making it impossible to see the specific facial features. However, the ornaments on the hair still indicated that its owner must have been a person of high status in life.

"This is……"

Kro frowned slightly.

Gawain, however, had already spoken up and revealed the identity of the head's owner:

"If I'm not mistaken, this is probably the head of a Celestial Dragon, the very same Celestial Dragon who took and enslaved Tesoro's beloved."

Kro understood immediately and deduced the sequence of events:
"Is this the price for funding the Neo Navy? In a way, it's also a pledge of allegiance from Tezoro."

"That's it."

Gao Wen smiled slightly:
"That guy is quite strong. We'll reserve a place for him among the Knights of the Round Table later."

"Once he takes office, the vacant position of Chancellor of the Exchequer in Britannias will also be filled by a suitable candidate."

"No one is better at handling financial matters than him, and no one is more suitable than him."

Kro nodded.

There is not much to say about this.

The name of the Golden City is known to almost everyone in the New World.

Taizoro, who single-handedly created the Golden City, was a powerful figure in the region, second only to the Sea Emperor, with countless followers.

What is little known is that...

It took Tazoro just over a decade to go from having nothing to controlling 30 percent of the world's circulating currency.

Such abilities cannot be described as merely outstanding; this guy is a monster in some way.

After some discussion, the two finalized all matters concerning Britannias.

It was at this very moment.

There was a knock on the office door.

boom!
boom!
boom!
"Come in."

Gawain responded, and then Smoker led Barrett slowly into the office.

“Are you here?!”

Looking at Barrett's expressionless face, Gawain's lips curled into a smile.

The latter, however, maintained his defiant expression and coldly said:

"Since it was Festa who made the deal with you, then I'll accept it."

"Let's just agree on this first: the day I surpass you, all our debts will be wiped clean!"

"it is good."

Gao Wen nodded, his expression unchanged, his eyes looking down with absolute confidence, yet also with an indescribable anticipation:

"I am waiting for that day to come."

“I’m different from some short-lived guy; I’m younger and healthier than him.”

Barrett paused for a moment, then grinned:

"How dare you say that!"

(End of this chapter)