The capital of the Kingdom of Hauting had descended completely into chaos.
Various factions continuously assaulted the royal army's defenses, leaving the kingdom's soldiers with no time whatsoever to protect the civilians within the city.
No matter the world, it was always the common people who suffered most during war.
The Kingdom of Hauting was no exception.
As the entire city sank deeper into the mire of conflict, numerous groups that had slipped into the city amidst the turmoil began plundering the population.
Among them, the pirates were the most rampant.
They looted, murdered, and pillaged throughout the city.
Wherever they passed, corpses littered the streets.
"OH HO HO HO HO! What a wonderful day this is!"
On a street in the wealthy district of the capital, a pirate captain laughed wildly.
"Come on, boys! Kill everyone here and take all their treasure! OH HO HO HO HO!"
More than a hundred vicious-looking pirates rampaged through the district.
While robbing the wealthy residents of everything they owned, they mercilessly slaughtered them as well.
Desperate screams echoed endlessly through the streets.
"Captain! Another pirate crew is coming this way!"
"Ignore them."
The captain waved dismissively.
"Our goal today is to loot this place."
"As long as they don't interfere with us, we won't interfere with them."
"Move!"
"Kill everyone here and take their valuables!"
More and more pirate crews set their sights on the wealthy district.
As five or six pirate groups poured into the same streets, the residents living there found themselves completely surrounded.
Not a single one escaped.
They were slaughtered where they stood.
Other pirate crews arriving later discovered that the wealthy district had already been thoroughly looted.
They immediately shifted their attention toward ordinary residential areas elsewhere in the city.
Meanwhile—
The war raging within the capital had entered its final stages.
The kingdom's army could no longer withstand the relentless assaults of the rebel forces.
Wave after wave of rebels charged forward fearlessly.
The royal forces were steadily pushed back.
Eventually, they retreated all the way to the palace itself.
After leading his Marines into the city, Drake slowed his pace as he witnessed the complete collapse of the capital.
Numerous pirate crews known throughout the North Blue had infiltrated the city.
The situation was catastrophic.
Finally, he came to a stop.
"Brigadier General!"
A Marine scout rushed over.
"The royal army is about to collapse!"
Then he asked anxiously,
"Why haven't the North Blue Marines arrived yet?"
Drake remained silent.
He stared at the pirates fleeing through the streets after spotting the Marines.
After a long pause, he suddenly turned around and decisively issued an order.
"Pass down my command."
"Immediately arrest all pirate crews within the city."
Then his voice turned cold.
"No."
"As long as they're pirates, you don't need to wait for my orders."
"Execute them on sight."
"Brigadier General?!"
A Marine officer standing nearby looked up in shock.
"Sir, our mission is to support the kingdom's forces."
"The royal army is on the verge of collapse. If we—"
"Didn't you hear what I said?!"
Drake grabbed the officer by the collar.
His eyes had already turned red.
"If we don't start dealing with these pirate crews now, the civilians in this city are finished!"
"Move!"
"Get out there and kill every pirate you find!"
"Drake."
A stern voice suddenly rang out.
"Are you disobeying orders?"
A large Marine force quickly approached.
At the front stood Vice Admiral Mark of the North Blue Marine Base.
He strode directly up to Drake.
"Do you even know who these rebels are?"
"They're survivors from the White Town."
"Many of them became pirates."
"They've returned to seize Hauting and rebuild Flevance."
Mark's gaze turned cold.
"Our mission is to assist the kingdom's army and wipe out these remnants of Flevance once and for all."
"Don't forget."
"This order came directly from the Holy Land."
"Drake."
Before Drake could reply, Mark immediately turned toward the assembled Marines.
"All Marines!"
"Advance at full speed toward the palace!"
"Eliminate every remnant of Flevance!"
The moment Mark gave the order, the Marines dared not hesitate.
They followed him and charged toward the palace.
Drake didn't move.
The events of Flevance remained deeply etched into his memory.
After all, he had nearly lost his life during that catastrophe.
Compared to Law, however, Drake had been far luckier.
Because he had encountered Vice Admiral Tsuru.
Although Tsuru's warship had safely carried him away from Flevance, he had still witnessed countless scenes along the journey.
Unarmed civilians.
Men.
Women.
Children.
The elderly.
All of them gunned down mercilessly.
At the time, Drake hadn't understood why.
Only after joining the Marines and eventually becoming a Brigadier General did he learn the truth.
Amber Lead Syndrome was never contagious.
The entire tragedy had begun because the World Government concealed that fact.
Because of that lie, neighboring nations feared that the disease would spread into their own countries.
To protect themselves, they slaughtered the people of Flevance.
The truth sickened him.
But what sickened him even more was the fact that Marines had been present in Flevance.
Yet they had done nothing to stop the massacre.
The only person who had reached out a helping hand was Vice Admiral Tsuru.
Even then, she had merely rescued a handful of civilians in secret.
She had never stopped the war itself.
Drake had already lost much of his faith in the Marines.
Now, seeing Marines ignore the suffering of civilians while allowing pirates to rampage through the city unchecked—
Any remaining hope within him shattered.
For a brief moment, a thought surfaced in his mind.
Leave the Marines.
If he left, he would never again have to obey orders that violated everything he believed in.
Meanwhile—
Arashi had entered the city alongside Perona and Robin.
Looking at the civilian corpses scattered throughout the streets and the buildings engulfed in flames, even Perona, usually mischievous and playful, felt murderous rage welling up inside her.
"Arashi."
She clenched her small fists tightly.
"It's pirates."
Looking toward another street where pirates were robbing and slaughtering civilians, Perona's eyes filled with killing intent.
"Can I kill them now?"
Just as Perona finished speaking—
A voice suddenly rang out from another street.
A voice that instantly ignited overwhelming killing intent within Arashi.
"Captain!"
One of the pirates shouted.
"There are three more people over there!"
"Hahaha!"
Another pirate laughed loudly.
"Two of them are women!"
"Boys, kill the man and bring the women back to the captain!"
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