One-Punch Man in the One Piece World

Chapter 129 The Expanding Kingdom 2

After the Kingdom of Norton was officially on track, Norton also began to expand the kingdom.

As the meeting commenced, the cadres gathered together.

Norton walked to the huge sea chart on the wall, and with his finger, he drew an arc eastward from Demon King Island, across the deep blue sea marked with signs of sea monsters, and landed on a series of small island markers.

Then, continuing south, passing the intersection of two trade routes, it turned west and finally stopped at an archipelago three hundred nautical miles from Demon King Island.

"All the islands in this sea," Norton withdrew his hand, "regardless of whether they are inhabited by pirates or kings, fly our flag on them."

Kro looked down at the arc drawn by his fingertip on the nautical chart, silently calculating in his mind.

"At least forty islands. They are spread across seven shipping routes, with the furthest one being a five-day voyage away."

"So we need to split up." Norton's gaze swept over the faces in the room.

"Seven routes, divided into seven groups." Norton stepped back from the chart. "Each group will have three to five ships. Subdue those that can be subdued, and shoot down those that cannot."

"The flag must be planted. I want every ship in this sea to know when it sees the Silver Skull and Cross flag—this is the sea of ​​Norton."

Zoro was the first to set off, choosing the eastern route.

Five ships, one hundred and fifty people, all belonging to the First Division.

When we set off, it was still dark, and a thin layer of grayish-white mist floated on the sea, like an undyed coarse cloth, stretching from the bow of the ship all the way to the unseen distance.

Zoro stood at the bow of the ship, and the pirates behind him remained silent, checking their weapons and adjusting the sails.

The first target was a small island called "Greystone Island".

The island has only one small town, a few hundred fishing families, and one self-proclaimed "island owner."

A pirate captain with a bounty of 180 million seized this island three years ago, extorting protection money, robbing fishing boats, and occasionally engaging in human trafficking.

When Sauron's ship docked, the fishermen who were mending their nets on the pier looked up, saw the silver skull flag, and dropped their shuttles to the ground with a thud.

They stood up and retreated, back to the end of the pier, behind the piles of fishing nets and barrels, to the low wall made of broken coral.

"Norton's ship is here!!"

When the news reached the island owner's ears, he was drinking red wine imported from the South China Sea in his "mansion" built of coral stone.

After listening to his subordinate's stammering report, the wine glass in his hand stopped in mid-air, the deep red liquid leaving a thin, downward trail on the glass.

How many people?

"Five, five ships —"

"Where's the flag?"

"Silver Skull————"

The wine glass slipped from his hand and smashed on the stone floor, splashing wine onto his gleaming leather boots, leaving a dark red, damp stain.

Zoro waited at the dock for less than fifteen minutes when the island lord ran out of the town, followed by a dozen or so equally pale-faced subordinates.

They ran to Zoro, their legs buckled, and they knelt on the pier, their knees hitting the wooden planks with a dull thud.

It made a sound like bones breaking.

"I surrender! This island is yours! Just spare my life."

Zoro looked down at him, silent for a few seconds. "Where's the flag?"

"W-what?"

Where should we fly our flag?

The island owner froze for a moment, then whirled around and roared at his still-dazed subordinates, "What are you all standing there for! Hang the flag! The highest spot! Hang it up for me!"

The silver skull and crossbones flag rose from the tallest mast on Graystone Island, sunlight piercing through the morning mist and falling upon it. The silver pattern of the scepter and the chess pieces shimmered faintly in the golden light.

The fishermen in the town peeked out from behind the low wall and looked at the flag.

Zoro only stayed on Graystone Island for half a day.

Ten men were left to guard the port, while three ships continued eastward and two turned south towards the larger island.

As he was leaving, the island owner stood on the dock with a complex expression on his face.

There was the relief of surviving a disaster, the humiliation of living under someone else's roof, and a secret sense of relief that even he couldn't quite explain.

Following the Demon King is better than being a local tyrant on this wretched island, right?

The first flag is just the beginning.

The second flag was planted three days later.

It was an island called "Copper Reef," named after the exposed copper veins on the shore that gleamed a dark reddish luster in the sunlight.

There are no pirates on the island, only a small kingdom that makes a living by mining and smelting, with a population of no more than two thousand.

The king was a thin, old man with gray hair, wearing a crown that must have been two sizes larger than his head. He sat in the palace, which was built of rough stone, with a newspaper from three days ago spread out in front of him.

The photograph on the front page of the newspaper was worn and frayed—Norton stood at the bow of the White Pearl, his silver hair flying in the morning light, with the burning wreckage of the warship and the broken icebergs behind him.

The king's fingers ran along the edge of the newspaper, smoothing out the crease and letting it curl up again.

Where are they?

The minister standing beside him looked ashen. "They've entered the harbor. Three ships, over a hundred men. The leader—is a green-haired swordsman."

"Roronoa Zoro"

When the king pronounced the name, his voice was as calm as if he were pronouncing the name of a stranger.

"What does he want?"

The minister paused for a moment. "The flag—he said he wanted to plant their flag on the island."

The king looked up at the palm trees swaying in the sea breeze outside the window, and at his citizens walking back and forth in the streets, their faces as usual.

For ordinary people on this island, changing the flag is simply changing who they have to pay protection money to.

But for those in power...

"Anything else?"

"He said nothing else is needed, just to fly their flag."

The king remained silent for a long time, so long that his ministers thought he had fallen asleep. After a long while, he stood up, took off the crown, which was two sizes larger than his head, and placed it on the table.

The crown base pressed down on the edge of the photograph in the newspaper, obscuring half of Norton's face.

"Then hang up."

Meanwhile, Jinbe, with five ships and three hundred fish-man warriors, arrived at a small island called "Coral Reef".

Although it's called an island, it's actually a lagoon surrounded by a reef. The water is so shallow that large ships can't get in; only sampans can navigate it.

The island is home to several hundred fishermen and a dozen or so fishmen who escaped from Fishman Island.

Unable to survive in human society, they came to this deserted atoll, built a few huts out of coral and palm leaves, and made a living by fishing and collecting pearls.

Jinbe's boat was moored outside the lagoon. He didn't take anyone aboard; he just rowed in alone in a small sampan.

As evening fell, the dozen or so fish-men on the atoll all boarded the ship, sat on the deck, leaned against the gunwale, and watched the atoll where they had lived for several years grow smaller and smaller until it became a blurry, thin line gilded with gold and red by the setting sun.

Jinbe's fleet continued south, following the route that passed Fishman Island, advancing from island to island.

The reputation of "Sea Knight" spread quickly across those islands, and silver skull flags were planted one after another.

On the masts of the fishing village, on the lighthouse in the harbor, on the dome of the palace... the sea breeze blows from different directions, directing them at different angles, but the pattern on them is the same: a silver skull, a cross of scepters and chess pieces.

Crocodile took the richest route along the western front, and his first target was an island called "Gold Harbor".

The island is small, but its harbor is extremely deep, capable of accommodating large ships, and is the intersection of several shipping routes in the vicinity.

There is no king on the island, only a council of seven merchants who control the port's docks, warehouses, and markets, taking a cut from every ship that docks.

They are smart people. Smart people know when to back down.

Crocodile's ship was still on the horizon when the watchtower at Golden Harbor had already sounded the alarm.

The bell tolled short and sharp, like the cry of a startled seabird, echoing over the harbor.

Workers loading and unloading cargo on the docks dropped their crates, merchants making transactions put down their peso coins, and sailors drinking put down their glasses.

The council of seven merchants sat in the white stone chamber at the highest point of the harbor, with a nautical chart laid out before them, marking the expansion routes of the Norton Kingdom.

"Where are we?"

"They've already crossed the Coral Sea. At their speed, they should arrive this afternoon."

"How much territory have they occupied? Or rather, how many islands has Norton's flag been planted on?"

No one answered the question, because they all knew the answer: ever since they set sail from Demon King Island, every island along that route had been marked with that flag.

"Negotiation," the oldest businessman stood up, straightened his collar, and said, "Talk to them."

As Crocodile's golden boots trod the stone pavement of the Golden Harbor docks, the seven merchants were already standing there, lined up in a row, impeccably dressed, with the kind of perfectly timed smiles that had been honed over decades in the business world.

"Mr. Crocodile, I've heard so much about you." The eldest merchant stepped forward and extended his hand.

Crocodile didn't shake hands; he just looked at the man.

"Where should we hang the flag?" he asked, his voice hoarse like the desert wind.

The merchant's smile froze for a moment.

It seems that the other side has no intention of negotiating at all.

Northeast Line.

There are no countries along this route, only pirates.

A dozen or so groups of people, large and small, were scattered across an archipelago stretching for hundreds of miles.

Ace didn't go looking for them one by one.

"Spread the word," he told Deus. "Within three days, all the captains of the pirate crews must come to see me on that middle island."

Diuss paused for a moment, then asked, "What if they don't come?"

"They will come." Ace clenched his fist, the fireball dissipated in his palm, leaving only a wisp of white smoke drifting out from between his fingers and rising into the twilight.

The next morning, the first ship docked. Standing at the bow was a tall, thin man with gray hair and an old scar running from his brow bone to the corner of his mouth. He was wearing a faded old coat.

"I am Morse, captain of the 'Grey Fox' Pirates." He stood on the gangplank, his voice slightly tense. "I heard Lord Firefist wants to see us?"

Ace leaned against a wooden post on the dock and glanced at him. "Who else is here?"

"The news is still coming in." Morse swallowed hard. "I was nearby, so I got here first."

Ace nodded and said nothing more. He leaned against the wooden stake, looking at the gray sea in the distance, his fingers tapping lightly on his knees, as if he were counting something.

The next day, three more ships arrived.

On the third day, seven ships.

By the evening of the third day, the pier on the middle island was packed with boats.

There were more than a dozen boats of various sizes, some new and some old, with all sorts of people standing on their bows on the dock, looking at each other.

No one spoke.

There was a tense atmosphere in the air, as if something was about to explode at any moment.

"From today onwards, this sea area is under the jurisdiction of the Kingdom of Norton. Those who wish to stay will be assigned to the 0th Division." Ace, unwilling to leave, straightened up from the wooden stake and walked to the center of the dock.

"You can go."

The captains looked at each other; some frowned, some whispered among themselves, and some took a half-step back.

Morse was the first to step forward.

"I'll stay! I've spent twenty years in the New World and haven't accomplished anything! I'm too old! I don't want to drift anymore. Following the Demon King, at least I can at least get a decent meal!"

He walked behind Ace and stood still.

More and more people are making choices, but some are leaving.

A burly man with a fierce face spat out a curse and turned to leave.

"I'm not going to be someone else's dog!" He jumped onto his boat, hoisted the sail, and sailed out of the harbor without looking back.

Ace watched the ship sail away. The ship had sailed less than three nautical miles from the port when a ball of fire suddenly exploded on the sea. Flames surged up from the bottom of the ship and engulfed the canvas. The big man's screams lasted only a few seconds before being swallowed up by the roar of the flames.

On the dock, the captains who were still hesitating looked pale.

Ace withdrew his hand. "Anyone else trying to leave?"

The Norton Pirates' division commanders launched their own attacks and quickly took over territories in the surrounding waters.

This is something that other great pirates are doing. The New World is a world of pirates, where the strong are respected. Over the years, the banners of those great figures have changed again and again, and in the end, the entire New World was divided up by the Four Emperors.

The appearance of the Demon King disrupted this balance. Although the Norton Kingdom was still developing, the flag of the Norton Pirates began to spread in all directions. The World Government did not react at all, and the Navy did not take action for a long time.

Norton thus carved out his own territory in the New World divided by the Four Emperors. The four Emperors remained inactive, waiting for something.

The officers were no match for the Four Emperors and their top officials, and retreated back to Demon King Island. The Four Emperors did not pursue them further, and Norton also had no plans to expand any further for the time being; this vast territory was enough for the current kingdom to sustain itself for a long time.

A delicate balance was reached among the various factions, and Norton even received a message from another pirate emperor, Big Big.

MOM's marriage proposal.

"That crazy woman, she's planning to marry her daughter to me?"

Norton looked at Sanosuke, who was still wrapped in bandages, with some surprise.

While expanding his territory, Sasuke encountered Katakuri, Big Mom's strongest son, who was said to be able to foresee the future. Katakuri was seriously injured, and it was Sasuke who brought back the news.