I guarded Impel Down for a hundred years in the pirate world.

As Figo stepped out, he said sincerely, "I am very sorry to have invited you all to the Marine Headquarters in this way. I originally wanted to wait until all the Kings arrived before explaining to everyone, but I thought that would probably take more than a week, so I held this banquet first to apologize to the 20 of you. I hope you can understand and that my hospitality has satisfied you all."

"No, it is our good fortune to be able to eat meat roasted by the King of the World himself," Queen Anne of Alabasta said with a smile.

Figo responded with a smile: "What 'King of the World'? That's a pirate's title. You are all kings, so just call me Figo."

"Hmph, Gaston Figo, I thought you really thought you were the king of the world. How dare you bring us to Marine Headquarters in such a way! How rude!" Even the pampered guy was still furious and snorted coldly.

Figo simply smiled and ignored him, continuing, "I think everyone is curious about why I invited you all to Marine Headquarters, and also about those rumors that circulated at sea recently. I want to make it clear here that those... were not rumors, they were all true!"

The words fell silent instantly!

"I killed all the Celestial Dragons!"

"I also looted their treasure vault!"

"The previous Five Elders, Mendespen, has also died because of me! The conflict between me and the World Government is now one of life and death!"

"I am challenging, no, I should say the Marine Headquarters is challenging the rule of the Celestial Dragons in the World Government! The days of the Celestial Dragons' supreme and lawless rule are gone forever!"

The 20 kings held their breath, the meat in their mouths lost its flavor, and the arrogant expressions of some of them turned into horror, their hearts pounding faster.

Figo gave them a moment to catch their breath, then said, “But I think this will be a good thing for you all. The existence of the Heavenly Gold has, I think, already placed an unbearable burden on you and your people.”

With the Celestial Dragons losing their ruling position, everyone will no longer need to worry about the Celestial Tribute. You only need to pay the salaries of the marines stationed in various countries and provide a small amount of funds each year to maintain the Marine Headquarters.

It really is a small amount of money; I guarantee it's not even one-thousandth of a fortune. As for not collecting anything at all, that's simply not feasible; the navy's recruit training is also a significant expense.

He softened his tone: "Each of you can even appoint a few people to come to the Marine Headquarters to oversee the use of these funds. The Marine Headquarters does not intend to be above all countries like the World Government. What I hope to achieve with you is a relationship of mutual checks and balances."

For a long time, no one spoke.

Or perhaps they simply didn't know what to say.

Comparatively speaking, Alabasta is the strongest nation, and Queen Anne is more psychologically prepared.

She asked first, "I didn't expect the conflict to have escalated to this extent, but the outcome between you and the World Government is still unclear, isn't it? Isn't it a bit too early to talk about these things now?"

Figo laughed and said, "It is indeed too early, but I just wanted to give everyone a little mental preparation."

Then the king asked in a deep voice, "Let's assume you succeed. But you'll only collect less than one-thousandth of the Heavenly Gold? Your navy has to pay a large sum of bounties on pirates every year, right? If the funds are insufficient, how can we guarantee that your navy won't create new pretexts or even become pirates to plunder? This isn't without precedent!"

Because Figo has done so much and is still alive and well, they are beginning to believe that the World Government is powerless to deal with this King of the World, or at least not confident enough to do so.

The world situation will likely change, but if a new ruler like the Navy Headquarters, who prioritizes military might, were to take over, the kings would be very uneasy.

"I know everyone is worried about the Marine Headquarters getting out of control, and I can't guarantee I can take care of everything. There's always a shadow where there's light. But at least... we have to be stronger than the Celestial Dragons, right?"

These words left the kings speechless.

"Furthermore, there's no need to worry about funding in the early stages. There's one more thing I need to share with everyone," Figo said. "From now on, the slave trade will be considered illegal by the Navy. In a few days, the Navy will swiftly destroy all the strongholds of slave traders and slave auction houses. The funds seized will be enough to support the Navy Headquarters for at least a few years!"

The kings were once again deeply shaken.

"Slaves? Illegal?!"

"How can this be?!"

“Gaston Figo, do you know that many people sell themselves into slavery because they simply can’t survive? When you do this, have you considered how these people are supposed to live?”

“We’ve considered it, but we can’t take care of everything,” Figo said. “The loophole can’t be opened because the evil in human nature can’t withstand the test. As long as it’s allowed, slave traders will exploit the loophole, forcing some people to sell themselves into slavery because they can’t survive.”

Therefore, I choose to completely ban it, arrest and eliminate anyone who does it. In this way, the benefits outweigh the drawbacks!

I know that some of you kings also keep many slaves in your households. Let bygones be bygones, and please refrain from the slave trade in the future. Without buying and selling, there will be no harm.

"This……"

"How can this be..."

“Gaston Figo, even the World Government will not interfere with our freedom or our rule over our country!” one of the kings roared.

Figo simply smiled: "There are some other matters we can discuss together after the kings of other countries arrive. But this is the only thing I personally want to accomplish, and there is no room for discussion."

Have you ever seen a cute little boy with so many scars that it's unbearable to look at? Have you ever seen a once lively girl become listless and unable to communicate? Have you ever seen a once strong man become emaciated, lose his dignity, and turn into a grotesque figure after just a few months?

The existence of the slave trade was the root of conflict between races and the core of evil!

The kings fell silent, with only two or three still hesitant to speak, but as Figo's aura spread outwards, they all held their breath.

"In this matter, I can give up being Gaston Figo and instead accept the title given to me by the pirates—King of the World!"

Figo bowed his head slightly, as if apologizing.

"I'm sorry, Your Majesties, but on this one matter, you can only agree, not oppose! In fact, you must give your full support!"

Chapter Ninety-Seven: Queen Anne

Inside the banquet hall, temporarily converted from the naval officers' mess at the Naval Headquarters.

Even after Figo turned and went back to the kitchen, there was still a deathly silence among the 20 kings.

Some were angry, some were uneasy, and some didn't care at all—Figo was absolutely right. No matter what, they were still better than the Celestial Dragons, weren't they? None of the 20 kings present were attending the World Government Summit for the first time. In their respective countries, they were rulers and kings, but in the eyes of the Celestial Dragons, they were nothing.

They even occasionally suffer humiliating attacks.

"Before I set off for the Holy Land, I carefully investigated the significance of Gaston Figo's military power," Queen Anne of Alabasta said, rising to her feet. "For the past 15 years, the New World has been ruled by six kings, each with the power to overthrow a nation."

Despite their combined efforts, the four of them are now imprisoned in Impel Down. Clearly, he possesses the power to destroy the world! If he wanted to overthrow our country, it would likely be done in an instant, effortlessly!

Moreover, with the entire Marine Headquarters now following him, if he wanted, he could truly become the 'King of the World,' wielding even greater power than the Five Elders!

We are all kings of our own countries. Don’t be so naive as to underestimate him just because he didn’t do that, lest you bring disaster upon your own country. Besides, what he proposed is not a bad thing.

I know people are worried that he will make more and more decisions in the future, such as abolishing the slave trade, but don't forget his real age because of his appearance.

He's already 70 years old. How many more years can he live? Thirty or forty years is probably the limit.

With such power, if he only wanted to enjoy power, what couldn't he get? Why bother with trivial matters? I think he probably doesn't have any selfish motives; he's just a little anxious to lay a more solid foundation for the Marine Headquarters before his power diminishes and he grows old, and to make this world a better place!

At least I admire him very much!

I will support all his decisions!

After speaking, leaving the king and his men in silent contemplation, she turned and headed towards the kitchen.

The aroma and smoky scent filled the air as the chefs worked busily. Behind the enormous grill, Figo smiled at the Queen and said, "I'm not that great. The root of everything I do is interest. If I don't like something, I want to destroy it. I didn't expect so many people to support me now, which puts a lot of pressure on me."

“That only proves that what you don’t like, everyone else doesn’t like either.” Queen Anne walked up to him and said, “Actually, I heard about you a long, long time ago, probably when I was twenty-eight or twenty-nine years old and hadn’t yet become queen, when you became a naval hero and captured one of the Twin Stars of the Sea, the Man of Hell.”

She blinked and joked, "Back then, I was worried about my father urging me to choose a husband to carry on the family line. When I saw your picture in the newspaper, I even told my father that I wanted to choose you."

Figo asked in surprise, "Really? What did your father say?"

"Hehe, my father scolded me, saying that if I didn't want to get married, I should just say so. There's only one naval hero in the whole world, and he's so handsome. Countless girls like him. Do you think you can attract him?" Queen Anne laughed.

“Oh dear, I missed it.” Figo joked along, “I’ve also heard you say that Princess Anne of Alabasta is the most beautiful woman in Alabasta. It’s such a pity. If I had known, I wouldn’t be single now.”

The two looked at each other and burst into laughter.

This is not nonsense. Figo remembers that there was a story about a great pirate who heard that the Alabasta princess was the most beautiful woman in Alabasta and wanted to capture her to dance and serve him wine. That should be Queen Anne now.

Moreover, Queen Anne was Vivi's great-grandmother, and she probably looked a lot like Vivi when she was young; she was indeed a great beauty.

Speaking of which, would having Queen Anne dance for me now count as completing a character event?

Figo glanced at Queen Anne's aged and thin figure and quickly dismissed the idea.

After exchanging a couple of jokes, the two chatted happily. Queen Anne talked about her past "idol worship" and the embarrassing story of cutting out Figo's photos and sticking them on the wall. It didn't seem like a joke, which surprised Figo.

After a long while, she finally got down to business.

"I guess you have some questions for me, don't you?"

Figo nodded: "As one of the 20 kings who 'saved' the world, did that ancestor of Alabasta leave behind any words? Why didn't he become a Celestial Dragon back then? Also, does Queen Anne know anything else about the World Government's information regarding the Celestial Dragons?"

“I can tell you have a lot of doubts about the idea of ​​‘saving the world’.”

Queen Anne forced a smile onto her aged face and said slowly, "The Celestial Dragons of today have indeed betrayed the glory of their ancestors, but their claim to saving the world is undoubtedly true."

She recalled: "Our ancestors must have been keeping a secret, leaving behind only fragments of information. As far as I know, there was a huge kingdom more than 700 years ago. It was a sinful kingdom, and our ancestors and 19 other companions destroyed that sinful kingdom together."

As for their withdrawal... perhaps it was due to a disagreement between our ancestor and the other 19, or perhaps our ancestor foresaw the state of the Celestial Dragons today?

A vast kingdom? A land of sin?

Figo had indeed heard of this enormous kingdom, and there were many conflicting opinions about it.

Some say this was originally a kingdom ruled by the D clan, others say it was ruled by the Heavenly King, and still others say they live on the moon and are invaders from another planet, not people from the pirate world.

Figo had no idea which to believe, so he simply asked, "If that's all there is to it, why do the Celestial Dragons hide the Void Century? If they have a secret to hide, they should just hide that one secret. Why erase their 'achievements' as well, and not even mention the name of that sinful nation? Are they afraid they'll rise from the ashes?"

Queen Anne was clearly unable to answer, and sighed softly, saying, "That's right. I'm just worried that you might have an innate aversion to our ancestors because of the actions of the Heavenly Dragons today. As you said, no one really knows the truth."

Figo paused, then pondered for a moment.

Indeed, due to his dislike for the Celestial Dragons and the information he gleaned from the highlights, he inherently harbored some doubts about the stance of those 20 kings. He always felt that they were schemers and rebels, but there are countless examples of great elders whose descendants are doomed. What is the truth?

What if the D clan is the one who rebelled?

The world of One Piece champions freedom.

In other words, it's lawless.

But it's fine for now.

He knew Queen Anne's purpose.

"This doesn't conflict with what I want to do next. I won't allow the Navy to spread information that tarnishes the reputation of those 20 kings before I know the truth. There's no need for such methods to undermine the World Government's rule," Figo said.

Queen Anne smiled and said, "Then I am relieved, Your Majesty the World."

Figo smiled and shook his head, his mind racing.

He might be able to confirm most of this when he meets Im. Is Im... one of the 20 kings who saved the world by using the Op-Op Fruit to achieve immortality?

Chapter Ninety-Eight: Finally Meeting Im

A few days later, the kings of more than 150 member states were invited to the Naval Headquarters one after another, and the Naval Headquarters became lively.

Figo hosted banquets for these kings one after another, using similar rhetoric at each event. Eventually, most of the kings expressed their support for banning the slave trade. Queen Anne was particularly helpful to him, and a few others were gradually 'persuaded' by the navy. The outcome was now decided.

With only one night left until the scheduled opening time of the World Conference, the Naval Headquarters is making intensive preparations.

Meanwhile, at Marineford, near the coast, Mia, Kong, and a few others were seeing Figo off with worried expressions.

"Relax, there is nothing in this world that can kill me, I have no doubt about that."

Mia smiled and said, "You, who can improve your strength just by doing basic training with the Marines, are simply inhuman. How could you possibly die? I have no doubt about it either."