One Piece: King Of The World

Somewhere in the New World, a massive ship sailed across the sea.

Atop this ship flew the flag of the infamous Golden Lion Shiki, one of the great pirates of the New World.

At this moment, Shiki himself was aboard, deep in discussion with Shiryu.

Shiryu held a piece of information in his hand, stroking his chin as he frowned and asked, "Boss Shiki, what exactly is a Laugh Tale Log Pose?"

Shiki's cheek twitched slightly. This kid sure knows how to ask the right questions... If I knew that, would I still be out here looking for it? Are you just messing with me?

"I don't know," Shiki answered decisively, not even bothering to pretend otherwise.

Sitting nearby, Lafitte took a sip of black tea with an air of elegance before speaking. "The Roger Pirates were the only crew to ever reach Laugh Tale. Wouldn't they have a Laugh Tale Log Pose?"

"That's a fair point," Shiryu mused. "But didn't Douglas Bullet leave the crew halfway through? He never made it to Laugh Tale. If such a thing existed, why wouldn't he have just used it to go there and become the Pirate King himself?"

Hearing this, Shiki finally spoke up to explain.

"Douglas Bullet... he's different from us. You can call him a pirate, but in truth, he's not really one—not in the way we are," Shiki said softly.

"What do you mean?" Lafitte asked curiously.

"Bullet was born a soldier. If he hadn't met Roger, he never would have become a pirate. On the contrary, he would have just become an unstoppable war machine," Shiki explained. "That's why he never cared about becoming Pirate King or reaching Laugh Tale. It's not surprising that he left the crew."

"Then what does he want?" Lafitte pressed.

"To be the strongest in the world. He only believes in personal strength. My guess is that he just wants to defeat every powerful opponent out there until no one can stand against him," Shiki said with a smirk.

Shiryu frowned again. "That makes it even stranger. Whether he cares about Laugh Tale or not, if he left the crew halfway, how could he have gotten this Log Pose?"

Shiki was just as puzzled. That was a good question, Douglas Bullet had never been to Laugh Tale, so where could he have obtained a Log Pose leading there?

Lafitte remained silent for a moment before speaking. "Even though Bullet left the Roger Pirates, he never really had a falling out with them, did he?"

"No, not really," Shiki replied after thinking for a moment. "I don't know why he left, but there wasn't any bad blood. In fact, I remember hearing rumors that they stayed in touch from time to time."

As an old veteran of the Rocks era, Shiki had a deep understanding of the past.

Lafitte nodded. "Then that explains it. It's entirely possible that Bullet obtained the Log Pose from one of his former crewmates."

Shiki thought it over and nodded. "That is a possibility."

"Boss Shiki, should we attend this Pirate Expo?" Shiryu asked in a serious tone. "If we can get our hands on the Log Pose, we won't have to worry about anything else."

Shiki was tempted. He had always believed that Roger must have left something valuable on Laugh Tale. Did people really think he went all the way there just to dump a pile of meaningless treasure?

In Shiki's mind, the most likely thing Roger left behind was information about the Ancient Weapons. Back in the day, Shiki had been interested in these weapons and had even proposed joining forces with Roger to rule the world.

But Roger would rather die than agree. That disagreement had led to the legendary Battle of Edd War, where Shiki's ambitions were shattered. Thanks to bad luck and that bastard Claudius, Shiki had been captured, bringing his legendary pirate career to a temporary halt.

So, in Shiki's eyes, Roger's greatest secret, the one thing worth leaving behind on Laugh Tale was an Ancient Weapon.

And if Shiki could obtain the Log Pose to Laugh Tale, reach the island, and claim an Ancient Weapon for himself... then what more would he need?

At that point, alliances wouldn't matter. The only reason he had teamed up with Kaido and Big Mom was to keep the Marines at bay. He had no personal attachment to those two—certainly not out of some old friendship.

No, his goal was purely strategic. He knew that if the Marines decided to take out the Yonko one by one, he would likely be their first target. Signs of this had already appeared, which was why he had called for a "class meeting" with Kaido and Charlotte Linlin.

The results had proven effective. The Marines, who had been preparing to strike aggressively, had backed off somewhat after seeing the three Yonko join forces. They were undoubtedly still planning something, but for now, they were stuck figuring out how to deal with all three of them at once.

Even so, Shiki knew that time was on the Marines' side. As the years passed, both sides would continue to grow stronger, but the Marines had more resources, more manpower. The longer they waited, the wider the gap would become.

At this rate, their so-called alliance was nothing more than temporary relief.

But if he could find Laugh Tale and become the Pirate King... if he could obtain an Ancient Weapon... then he wouldn't have to worry about anything anymore.

He wouldn't need an alliance. As the Pirate King, why would he need to stand on equal footing with Kaido and Big Mom? If they behaved, fine. But if they dared to have any ideas of their own, once he finished dealing with the Marines, he would deal with them next.

He would make Kaido and Big Mom cough up everything they had taken from him over the years.

At that time, Golden Lion Shiki would stand atop the world, crushing the Marines, dominating the Yonko. The world would bow at his feet!

As for Claudius? Shiki would make sure his death was especially miserable.

However, despite his excitement, Shiki remained cautious. He wasn't entirely convinced that this so-called permanent Log Pose actually existed. He also had no idea whether this whole thing was some kind of trap.

He didn't suspect the World Government or the Marines—on the surface, at least, this whole thing seemed to be orchestrated by Douglas Bullet.

Shiki didn't believe for a second that Bullet would ever team up with the Marines or the World Government.

Still... better safe than sorry.

Just then, a subordinate burst into the room, holding a document. "Boss Shiki! Big news! There might be a Road Poneglyph at the Expo! And—there's even a chance that the last surviving scholar capable of deciphering the ancient script will appear!"

Shiki's expression changed instantly. He reached out, and the document flew into his hand as if drawn by an unseen force.

Reading through the information carefully, Shiki murmured with uncertainty, "Eighteen years ago, the last surviving Ohara scholar, Nico Olvia... She was in Impel Down? Damn, if I had known back then..."

If Shiki had known about this earlier, he wouldn't have wasted time on Marineford or other battles, he would have gone straight to Impel Down to retrieve her himself.

And now, a Log Pose to Laugh Tale, a legendary Road Poneglyph said to hold its coordinates, and an Ohara scholar who could decipher the ancient texts, all three were rumored to be at this Pirate Expo.

Shiki's heart pounded wildly. Whether it was the path to Laugh Tale or the key to an Ancient Weapon, these three things were of paramount importance!

"Can this really all be fake news?" Shiki hesitated for a moment. But then, his gaze turned sharp.

Even if there was a chance this was a trap, the potential rewards were too great to ignore.

A ruthless glint flashed in his eyes.

"This Expo... we're going."

(To be continued.)

***

This book is completed on P/treon. Support me on P/treon to read ALL advanced chapters:

https://p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves

(Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)