A kingdom dividing lawless zones within its own territory, and even making those zones larger than its actual homeland, sounds bizarre.
But on these seas, this is seen by royalty as a model of "efficiency."
The reason is simple. The amount of Heavenly Tribute is calculated based on a per capita tax. The larger the population, the greater the amount that must be paid.
If part of the territory is designated as a lawless zone, the population there is no longer counted, and the Heavenly Tribute required is greatly reduced.
But this also means that the people living in those lands are stripped of their nationality as part of an affiliated nation, no longer protected by the World Government or the Marines.
Killing them or selling them as slaves becomes something "reasonable."
People from affiliated nations are not necessarily treated as human beings, and as for those from non-affiliated nations, nobody cares about them at all. This is the cruel reality of the seas.
Moreover, such divisions do not mean the land is left for others to plunder freely. In essence, it is still ruled by that kingdom.
"The Deul Kingdom enforces a strict racial hierarchy—royalty and nobles, commoners and slaves. And the ordinary citizens living there are merely slaves with a bit more freedom, who can be downgraded at any time.
Our targets are those high and mighty slave owners, those villains who casually strip others of their freedom and enslave their lives.
Killing them is justice!
This is only the beginning, not the end. What we oppose is not discrimination against Fishman Island alone, but all discrimination. It's slavery itself!
This war will mark the first revolutionary step for Fishman Island!"
An army must know what it is fighting for. This was something Nereus told them even before reorganizing the Neptune Army.
In the past, they fought to defend Fishman Island, to protect their homeland. But now, they were to eradicate the roots of certain evils.
Compared to those covert operations that couldn't be openly spoken of—so secret that witnesses had to be silenced—this mission of Fishman Island was far more capable of inspiring morale.
Whether righteous or evil, acting in accordance with one's true intentions is far better than those who shout justice while carrying out the darkest deeds.
Before a ship from Fishman Island set sail toward North Blue, a Marine warship had already departed from Marine Headquarters, heading toward the Deul Kingdom in advance.
The Marine branch in North Blue also assembled several warships, preparing to rendezvous with headquarters' reinforcements before jointly heading to the Deul Kingdom.
However, these forces could only be considered as padding the numbers.
Even among Marine branches, there is a vast difference between those in the Four Seas and those in the Grand Line.
The G-numbered bases of the Grand Line are on the same level as Marine Headquarter, while the Four Seas branches are ranked three levels lower in comparison, making the gap in strength obvious.
The journey from Fishman Island to North Blue is quite long; it's not something that can be reached in an instant. As for how Nereus could grasp the situation of the Deul Kingdom so quickly despite such distance...
If the Deul Kingdom were a proper nation without such frequent involvement in the slave trade, it would have taken Nereus quite some time to gather information.
But precisely because of its deep ties to the slave trade, the Underworld has extensive knowledge about this country, making it not that complicated for Nereus to obtain such intelligence.
When Chap returned to the Deul Kingdom, what he saw were warships patrolling outside.
For several days afterward, he neither saw any sign of the Ryugu Kingdom nor heard any news about it.
The surrounding Marine patrols seemed to give him a sense of reassurance, allowing him to put the events of the Levely behind him.
At first, he had ordered the national army to mobilize and remain on high alert against potential attacks, but now he had gradually relaxed.
Yet at such a time, the ships of the Ryugu Kingdom had already arrived in the nearby waters.
"Report to Admiral Zephyr! Nereus has been sighted!"
"I know."
Zephyr let out a sigh. Not because of anything else, but because Nereus was already standing on his deck.
From the moment the patrolling soldiers spotted the enemy ship to the report being delivered, hardly any time had passed. If this had been an attack, his ship might have already been sunk.
Since he had already learned about the situation here from Kong, Zephyr's warship didn't carry many troops, just over a hundred Marines responsible for the ship's daily operations.
And these were the troops Zephyr trusted the most, essentially his personal guard.
After gesturing for them to leave, Zephyr looked at Nereus with a conflicted expression.
"Didn't you already reach an agreement with the World Government? Then just go ahead and do it. These Marines are only here to 'mediate.' Do you really need to care about this?"
"Of course I do. The Ryugu Kingdom loves peace, why would we do something like this…
How about this, let's play a game. You come with me to the Deul Kingdom and take a look.
If, when you leave the Deul Kingdom, you still feel that this country deserves to exist, I can consider giving up on this war. How about it?
That way, you'll truly be mediating the conflict."
Nereus's words did not put Zephyr at ease. Instead, they gave him an extremely strange feeling.
Based on the intelligence he received from Kong, Zephyr was certain that this conflict had the backing of the World Government.
In a sense, the outcome the World Government desired was Nereus's victory, yet at such a moment, Nereus was saying something like this to him…
Either Zephyr's understanding was wrong, or… Nereus knew something he didn't. Just like God Valley, Nereus seemed certain that once Zephyr learned the truth, his mindset would change.
This feeling made Zephyr deeply uncomfortable. Ever since that meeting, he had felt as if he was being led around by Nereus.
But Zephyr did not refuse the proposal, not because of mediation, but because he wanted to see what kind of place this country, an affiliated nation of the World Government, truly was.
Even without being a Devil Fruit user, crossing a stretch of sea was nothing complicated for Zephyr. And when not pressed for time, he could do so quietly.
Nereus did not take Zephyr through the regular port. Instead, they made a slight detour and landed on the Deul Kingdom from a cliff on one side.
What came into view was not neat streets, but a numb, lifeless crowd.
These people were not the usual slaves with collars around their necks, yet they wore uniform clothing resembling prison outfits and walked within drainage ditches clearly lower than the road surface, not even daring to lift their heads to look at those walking above.
As for those walking along the central road, many had slaves crawling beside them. Everything here resembled a miniature version of Mariejois.
Compared to the magnificent facade above, this shadowed world was the true face of the Deul Kingdom.
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