Commodore of the Marine and General of the Realm

After easily defeating a group of pirates blocking their path, the pirate ships that watched from afar dispersed and fled, but the warships had no intention of pursuing the small pirates and just sailed steadily.

"I heard that Gregory and the others even volunteered to ask you for two days of special training!" Commodore Adkin made a dramatic expression on his face as he grasped the sea breeze.

"They were a little worried that they wouldn't be able to keep up with the progress level of the boot camp, and that's why they overcame their fears and asked me for help."

"That's such a sad story, that insane training you do is something that would scare even Vice Admiral Borsalino to watch." Adkin offered a sorrowful expression, " sometimes it's hard to understand why you're working so hard, with your talent, you could grow into a monster like Vice Admiral Borsalino sooner or later."

"Who knows? Maybe I have a crazy monster that lives in my soul like that!"

"Haha, that joke isn't funny!"

...

It is a busy and bustling coastal port, full of large ships in and out, and workers are active figure, but the spacious lot is left out. Many kingdom guards in this security so that many merchant ships to enter and exit are often stopping to watch, muttering in their hearts what kind of big people let the kingdom's political figures gathered so many people.

"Hina's so disappointed, haven't Longinus-san and the others arrived yet?" A neat and cleanly dressed Hina still can't hide her enthusiasm and vivacity. She is undoubtedly the most beautiful sight on the harbor. If not for her powerful and doting father in the kingdom, there would have been people who couldn't resist the urge to join her.

"This is a long time to wait, didn't you just go to the G2 Branch of the Marine just three months ago to meet little Longinus?" Louis teased.

If another person were treated like this, Louis would have been furious.

But he was already grateful to Longinus, who had saved his boat two years ago, plus he had also been following the other's development over the past two years. He was even more optimistic about Longinus' character and personality. At least in the aspect of becoming friends, he wouldn't stand in the way.

After all, Hina didn't have many friends so far, thanks to his decisive intervention, and he was ashamed of himself every time he thought about it.

"Dad~," said Hina in a long dissatisfied voice, "You still have the nerve to say that it's been three months since you took me to the G2 branch, right!"

"Daddy's busy, isn't he? You know, it's been busy with the war for a few months..."

"Hina remember two years ago you said that pirate group defeated you because of your inability to fight at sea, Dad..."

"Ahem, that time can't be considered a defeat. At most, it was a slight stalemate, and at the time, if I were given just half a day more, I would have been able to turn things around." Louis' old face blushed with conviction.

"Those pirates definitely can't match dad's armament supplies, not to mention half a day, wait until they run out of shells, and the situation can naturally be turned around. The thing is, dad, it's doubtful you'll last until then," Hina muttered quietly.

"The war is changing rapidly, and there's no telling where the war is going," Louis argued vigorously.

"Well, naval warfare aside," Hina sighed in a small adult-like manner as if she was pissed off, "But the last time Longinus-san pacified the war in the Kingdom of Hughes, it didn't take a month longer in total. And dad, you've been fighting this war for more than three months, and in the end, you still have to rely on the Marine to mediate and reconcile, so the lack of time is purely dad's issue!"

"Ahem, this, this..." Louis had a big problem with his head, only to feel all his dignity torn apart by the cruel reality, and immediately changed the subject after catching a glimpse of the fleet light out of the corner of his eye, "Eh! Look, it's the Marine, it should be young Longinus and his warship!"

Hina decided to stop ripping at the scars of her dad's dignity and instead stand on her tiptoes to look out over the distance, "Hina see it, Hina see it, it's Longinus-san standing at the front of the deck!"

"Whew! I never thought I'd end up having to rely on young Longinus to save the day!" Louis's heart somehow sad, then quickly restore his authority as a general of a country, shouting: " All of you, cheer up, do not let the honorable guests from the marine watch this joke!"

Warships regularly approach, tall and majestic steel beasts overflowing with chilling light, so that many dockworkers watching from afar, dropped their goods in shock, for ordinary people who have never been out of the sea in their lives no less than like a spiritual baptism.

Even Louis couldn't help but feel that if he had this kind of warship two years ago, even if his army were not good at naval warfare, he would have been able to crush it with superior capabilities.

Longinus followed the Commodore in his coat of justice at the forefront in the leading ship with a gentle smile.

It seems that he had underestimated the status of Longinus in the Marine Corps. The other marines with higher ranks took the initiative in bringing a half step back to emphasize the dominant position of Longinus in this operation. There was not even any resentment on the face of each one of them, showing that Longinus had successfully controlled more than half of the Marine Corps in these two years.

"Commodore Adkin, please come with me. His Majesty has set up a feast in the palace."

"You must be General Louis, the guardian of the Kingdom of Hezka in the first place, thank you very much."

"Haha! In front of Commodore Adkin, it would be too much for me to call myself a protector wherever I am."

Longinus, who was following the two, was slightly speechless, a Commodore and a General, not knowing that General Louis was making the decisions.

But a commodore belonging to the marine headquarters carries a higher value than the general of a kingdom on the Grand Line. Even the kings of these countries do not treat the Commodore with any disrespect.

Although, as a member of the World Government, in terms of status, it was those kings who were higher, it must be remembered that stability in this sea depended on the Marine, and if you offended this Commodore, you might suffer from unusual punishment in the future.

Let's not forget that as soon as the word gets out that the marine oversight in this area is insufficient, the hyenas at sea will be eager to rush up and viciously tear off some meat pieces.

And this kind of thing, even if it is reported to the World Government, is not very useful, as the result of shifting the blame to each other will only lead to nothing.

Some countries didn't take the marines seriously at all, and soon after, those countries became a paradise for pirates. Because of those pirates, the domestic economy deteriorated. Soon they were expelled from the membership because they couldn't afford the gold, and eventually, the country was destroyed because of the increasingly rampant pirates.

And that's why Louis didn't stop Hina from joining the Marine Corps, no matter in which world, it's always correct that it's better to have backing towards others.

Published in Qidian, February 22, 2019