Gojo was then guided by Vivi toward the throne room, where King Cobra was waiting to meet him. Chaka and Pell followed a step behind Gojo, silent and alert. Along the way, they encountered Igaram coming from the opposite direction. When he saw Princess Vivi and Gojo together, he paused briefly and gave them a nod, clearly understanding the purpose of their visit before continuing on his way.
Soon, Gojo was led into the throne room itself. King Cobra sat upon his throne, but the moment Gojo entered, the king rose and stepped down from it, his robes shifting softly as he moved. Gojo didn't bother with any form of courtesy—no bow, no "Your Majesty," nothing of the sort. He simply turned his head slightly toward Vivi and asked, "He's your father?"
Vivi nodded. "Yes. He is my father—the King of Alabasta, King Cobra."
Gojo nodded in response, acknowledging the answer and nothing more.
Cobra, for his part, showed no sign of offense at Gojo's behaviour. He neither frowned nor stiffened. In truth, he disliked rigid formalities himself, and more importantly, he had already heard enough about Gojo to understand what kind of person stood before him. From Vivi's accounts of their encounters, Cobra had quickly grasped Gojo's nature.
Gojo was neither warm nor cold toward others. He did not approach people willingly, nor did he revere or respect them without reason. Strength was the only language he truly acknowledged, and weakness earned only his disdain—a result of the overwhelming power he possessed. This is simply who he is, Cobra thought calmly.
And since Cobra himself was not a particularly strong man, he had never expected grand gestures or deference from Gojo in the first place.
King Cobra, his voice steady but heavy with sincerity. "I would like to thank you—not only for saving my daughter from Baroque Works, but also for bringing her safely back to the kingdom and for dealing with someone like Crocodile." His fingers tightened briefly at his side before he went on. "If you hadn't revealed the truth, I would have remained ignorant of the fact that Crocodile was the one manipulating everything from behind the curtain. Such foolishness on my part… to believe that Crocodile was some kind of guardian of Alabasta, when in reality, he was nothing more than a leech, slowly sucking the blood out of this kingdom."
Gojo nodded after hearing King Cobra's words. In truth, he didn't care much about the gratitude or the self-reproach woven into the speech. He was here for one reason only—to take the money—and, out of courtesy to Vivi. Nothing more.
Cobra sensed that lack of interest almost immediately. The man before him wasn't moved by titles, thanks, or emotion. So, without dragging things out, Cobra shifted to the point Gojo was clearly waiting for. "Vivi has told me about your deal with her—about sparing Igaram's life, and about the price for escorting my daughter safely back to the capital."
Gojo gave another simple nod.
Cobra then turned his gaze toward Pell. Pell met the king's eyes, understood the unspoken instruction at once, and gave a short bow before leaving the throne room. Gojo watched him go, his expression unchanged, already aware that Pell had been sent to bring the money.
While they waited, Gojo spoke again, this time not as a mercenary, but as someone who had seen too much weakness dressed up as kindness. "King Cobra," he said evenly, "you are the King of Alabasta. I don't think I have the right to interfere in the politics of your kingdom." He paused for a fraction of a second, then continued anyway. "But if you keep showing weakness, your kingdom will become pathetically weak as well—an empty shell that only looks strong from the outside."
His eyes remained calm, almost indifferent, as his words cut straight through the air. "It would be better if you trained yourself, or at least trained a few of your most loyal people to become truly strong. You have connections with the World Government. You can bribe your way through the Marines or certain individuals, or even find a retired Marine and offer them money to train your soldiers in the famous Six Arts of the Marines, or something similar."
Gojo finished without raising his voice. "As long as you, the king, hold military strength in your own hands, the kingdom will remain under your control. Don't let your benevolence be seen as nothing more than a sign of weakness."
"And I'll give you a living example of this," Gojo continued, his voice calm but carrying weight. "I won't tell you the name of the kingdom, but there is one in the second half of the Grand Line. There, the warriors are on a completely different level because they can use Haki. You are the king of Alabasta—you must know about Haki. At the very least, there should be mentions of it in your history or the archives of your royal family."
He paused briefly, letting the words settle. "They are powerful. I won't go so far as to say they could easily defeat someone like Crocodile, but some of the top warriors from that kingdom had—or still have—the ability to fight Crocodile for a short time. They even had the capability to injure him." Gojo said this just because they can use Haki, and there is a possibility that they could injure someone like Crocodile. However, Gojo doubted that.
Gojo's gaze remained steady as he went on. "So you need to understand what I'm saying. Think about it carefully. That kingdom once had a benevolent king, a powerful army, and everything that looked perfect on the surface. But that king was too benevolent—so benevolent that, in this cruel world, it crossed into foolishness." His eyes flicked briefly toward Vivi before returning to Cobra. "That same foolish benevolence… I see traces of it in both you and your daughter."
While Gojo's remarks felt harsh and humiliating to Vivi and Cobra, they couldn't deny the underlying accuracy of his points once they thought it through.
(A/N: Discord Link updated.)
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