After the Battle
Cap. 7 – After the Battle
Thomas was amidst the bodies of the Tronk pirates, his eyes closed as he replayed the entire battle in his mind. Although it hadn't been difficult or, rather, tiring, fighting against a crowd was still quite draining, so Thomas was a bit tired.
Fortunately, his Hanma lineage, combined with his diet of island beast meat and intensive training over the past four years, provided him with a solid foundation and excellent endurance. Even if there were twice as many men, as long as there were no more fighters like Tronk and the other idiot whose name he had already forgotten, he knew he could continue the slaughter.
While still reviewing the battle in his mind, considering where he should act and how to avoid unnecessary movements, Thomas heard footsteps approaching from behind. He turned around and saw a middle-aged man wearing what should have been a handsome military uniform, now slightly dirty with dust and blood. He was accompanied by some armed soldiers, visibly frightened.
Thomas didn't care much; after all, at the moment, he was literally bathed in blood, emitting a strong bloodlust after a wave of widespread killing. Normal soldiers would have either shot or averted their gaze, but these remained steadfast, even though their bodies trembled violently.
Finally, the middle-aged man passed by the bodies and stood in front of Thomas, speaking, "Young man, on behalf of the entire Neo kingdom, allow me, General Solomón, to thank you for saving our lives and our people." He then bowed to Thomas, with all the soldiers accompanying him following suit, showing their gratitude. "THANK YOU FOR SAVING OUR PEOPLE!" Their cry was loud and joyous; they were genuinely thankful for being saved. Thomas remained silent; he wouldn't lie—this was a good feeling, being appreciated was a good thing, but he couldn't say that he truly did what he did to save these people.
Thomas wasn't someone who went around exterminating pirates like a justice hero; he killed simply because they deserved it. If he encountered a group like the future Straw Hat Pirates, he would let them go, but pirates like the Tronk or the future Kid Pirates would undoubtedly be eliminated by him.
Looking at these people, Thomas shook his head slightly. "No need to thank me; I was searching for the Tronk pirates for a few years after they destroyed my island, so this was just personal revenge."
"Still, you saved not only us but also the people of the Neo kingdom, young man, so please accept our thanks." Hearing the general speak, Thomas just sighed and said, "Alright then. If that's all, I need to check their loot."
Listening to the young man, the general just nodded and turned to his soldiers. "Start cleaning everything up; the pirates' bodies must be taken to a location and then burned. Weapons and valuable items must be recovered; don't steal anything."
"YES!"
Thomas wandered towards the pirates' large ship while the soldiers behind him started loading the bodies. He also saw that the heads of the captain and vice-captain had been cut off and placed in an urn, but he didn't care much.
Looking closely, he saw how large the Tronk pirates' ship was. Three large masts and it seemed to have around 3 or 4 floors. It appeared to be well-built, but he didn't have much knowledge about ship construction, so he couldn't offer an opinion.
Thomas walked slowly, looking into each room. Whenever he found jewels or money, he put them in his bag, while other valuable items like some swords were set aside. In the end, he managed to gather about 10 million berries and some high-quality weapons.
When he came out, he saw that people had already left their homes and begun assisting the injured soldiers and carrying the bodies. Upon seeing Thomas leaving the ship, many were startled; some women fainted, while some men started preparing to fight.
"Stop, he is the savior of our kingdom." Suddenly, a slightly older girl than Thomas spoke loudly as she advanced with firm steps. She had a beautiful posture and a heroic figure, short hair, dark skin, and beautiful golden eyes. She wore a uniform similar to the general's but a bit cleaner.
Reaching Thomas, she stared at him for a moment before bowing slightly. "On behalf of the Neo kingdom, I, Alalia D'Brites, thank you for saving my people and invite you on behalf of the king to stay in our castle."
Thomas glanced at himself and saw that he urgently needed a bath, so he simply agreed with the request. "Sure, please show the way." Hearing Thomas, the girl nodded and led him through the city streets.
The Neo kingdom could hardly be called a kingdom. It was a small place, with not a very large population, consisting of only one city and some villages. Its status as a kingdom was basically thanks to some gold and silver mines within its borders. However, they lacked the necessary military support to act—the navy base, albeit nearby, was about a 5-hour journey away, and because they didn't belong to the World Government, they couldn't rely on its protection and had to pay an extra fee to the responsible colonel.
Arriving at the royal residence, Thomas saw that it was a beautiful castle made of white marble but didn't seem very large. Arriving in front of the castle, the girl turned and stared at Thomas before speaking, "A maid will take you to take a bath first, and then the king would like to thank you personally."
Waving slightly, Thomas was guided by a young maid who seemed a bit frightened by the young man completely stained with blood. She led him to one of the finest rooms before leaving him alone to wash up.
"I thought there would be someone to wash my back, oh well," Thomas muttered as he bathed. In a separate room, a group of people gathered in front of a Den Den Mushi.
"Kacha, has the Neo kingdom been destroyed?" Hearing the voice from the Den Den Mushi, everyone fell silent until one of the figures spoke. "No, sir."
There was a brief pause before a roar was heard. "WHAT THE HELL ARE THESE IDIOTIC PIRATES DOING? CAN'T THEY DO SOMETHING AS SIMPLE AS DESTROYING A TINY KINGDOM?"
Hearing the roar, everyone remained silent, waiting for the person on the other end to calm down a bit.
"What happened?" the voice asked, now a bit calmer.
"Sir, all the Tronk Pirates have been killed."
"Ohh? All of them? Did the kingdom have any advantage or something? Did they use chemical weapons or something we can use as excuses?" asked the person on the other end, but what they heard made them feel like they were in a dream.
"Repeat what you just said," she spoke with an extremely calm voice. "I said... all the Tronk pirates... were killed by just one person," one of the men in the room replied.
"That's a direct order, evacuate the island." The person on the other end of the line spoke after a few seconds of silence and then continued, "If someone strong enough to exterminate a group of 1000 men alone, including two Devil Fruit users, has appeared, it's better to set aside the kingdom's fall for a while. For now, just escape and try to be discreet, Kacha."
Seeing that the person on the other end ended the call, the people in the room looked at each other and then left one by one, preparing to leave the island.
************
In another location, inside a finely decorated room with valuable objects, a slightly overweight man smoking a cigar remained silent. His name was Klaus Altores, a very wealthy man who conducted business by selling weapons to those who could afford them. A few months ago, his business was interrupted due to the actions of a pirate acting on behalf of someone named Joker, who ultimately stole his contacts and connections. It was fortunate that he managed to survive.
Determined that it was time to leave this life behind, he began devising a plan to take a small kingdom for himself and become a king. Unfortunately, no kingdom met his liking until some time ago when he set his eyes on the Neo kingdom.
A small kingdom, but with some potential. Unable to act directly, he decided to hire a group of pirates to invade the place. Unfortunately, it seems it was just a waste of time.
"I need to investigate this properly and find out who is responsible for messing everything up," Klaus said as he began to make more calls. The one responsible for thwarting his plan was lamenting the absence of a beautiful naked young woman accompanying him during the bath—puberty.