One Piece: Wild Hunt

Chapter 70: Equivalent Exchange

Since Wapol's Devil Fruit allowed him to fuse together anything he ate, even people, Drum Castle's armory was filled to the brim with cannons, rifles, swords, pistols, and an assortment of other weapons.

Recalling a certain 'rocket man' from his previous world, Thomas couldn't help adopting a smile as he sarcastically remarked, "Wow, who could have foreseen a cowardly dictator in an isolated country stockpiling weapons..."

Raising her brows, Chloe asked, "Is that a reference to someone in your previous world?"

Nodding his head, Thomas replied, "Something like that..." as he picked up a jewel-encrusted dagger encased in an ornate, predominately golden sheathe. It had a short curved blade resembling a jambiya and was much heavier than it looked.

Though he was a bit of a 'mall ninja' when he was younger, Thomas had outgrown his obsession with blades years ago. Musashi's words had also quashed any notion he had of being a master swordsman, so he turned to Chloe and asked, "Want a new dagger...?"

Narrowing her eyes, Chloe replied, "I've told you before, but the basis for Modern Magecraft and a Magus's mentality is Equivalent Exchange. It is the standard amongst Magi to make up for or repay every deed, item, or piece of information provided to them in order to avoid curses and karmic deficits. If you start presenting me with gifts, I will be 'obligated' to repay you, even more so since you're my Master..."

Shaking his head, Thomas asserted, "You and Illya are responsible for Wapol's defeat. Half of everything in this palace should belong to you or the Straw Hats."

Crossing her arms, Chloe explained, "While that may be true, we wouldn't have been here if you hadn't convinced Nami and Lucy to make a detour. In that same vein, Illya and I would still be holed up on Amazon Lily if you hadn't appeared out of thin air. The defeat of Wapol was a direct result of events you set in motion, so the only one who can decide how the reward is split is you. It would be different if you had hired us or offered a reward in advance, but that isn't the case."

Furrowing his brows, Thomas resisted the urge to ask if there was any point in following the rules of Magus society. The simple fact that Magic functioned in the world of One Piece suggested that it wasn't outside the scope of Thaumaturgical Principles. He had even received a Curse when tampering with Robin's Install Card, so this was one of those situations where it was 'much' better to be safe than sorry...

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After summoning Benienma and having her 'absorb' much of the items within the treasury and armory, Thomas and Chloe reunited with Illya and Ruby before making their way to the dungeon beneath the castle. There, they found far more than just a single prisoner, causing Illya to feel sick as the condition of several prisoners made it clear they had been tortured, either for information or Wapol's entertainment.

"This is horrible..." remarked Illya, her voice barely a whisper.

Nodding his head, Thomas's expression and tone were grim as he replied, "Agreed..." as they came to a stop in front of a prison cell containing a tall, paradoxically muscular yet emaciated man. He didn't look exactly like his anime counterpart, but Thomas recognized the man as Dalton, the former Captain of Wapol's Royal Guards.

Just to be sure, Thomas lightly knocked the thick steel bars as he called out, "You're Dalton, right...?"

Raising his gaunt, weary-looking, but still determined face, Dalton replied, "I am..." before asking, "And I take it you were the ones causing a ruckus aboveground?"

Nodding his head, Thomas revealed, "I won't go into too many details, but we came to this island to free it from Wapol's despotism. Now that he has been deposed, this country will need a new ruler to helm it on the path to recovery..."

Catching Thomas a little off guard, Dalton, seemingly failing to grasp what the former was trying to say, hung his head in shame, closing his eyes as he replied, "Do what you will. My neglect and forbearance make me just as sinful as Wapol, so I will not resist. Just promise me that you will lead the people of Drum to a brighter future..."

Smiling wryly, Thomas clarified, "You're misunderstanding. While I plan to assist the people of Drum, I have no intention of becoming King. That will be up to the people to decide. I just wanted to explain the situation to you since I 'know' you're a compassionate and honorable man who will do just about anything to protect your people."

Raising his head, Dalton met Thomas's gaze in silence, several tense moments passing before he asked, "So, I'm to become your puppet...?"

Exhaling through his nose, Thomas's expression became a little helpless as he replied, "I have no intention of telling you, or whoever else comes into power, how to rule. I will, however, be incorporating Drum Island in the 'business' I'm planning to operate. We'll discuss the specifics if and when you become King. For now, I'm going to release you and have you break the news of Wapol's defeat to the people."

Channeling Magical Energy into the muscles of his hands, arms, and back, Thomas pried open the bars of Dalton's cell with apparent ease. He hadn't noticed any keys hanging on hooks, so he elected to tear off the cell door with brute force. Not just because he could, but to discourage Dalton and the other prisoners from getting any 'courageous' ideas...

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After freeing the prisoners, imprisoning Wapol's loyalists, and sealing the latter's powers using seastone manacles, Thomas agreed to give Dalton a few days to take stock of the situation before reconvening to discuss their 'cooperation.' In the meantime, Thomas and Co used the 'Drum Ropeway,' the tram-way system connecting Drum Plateau and the Kingdom's largest villages, to descend to Bighorn, the town closest to the river where Merry was anchored.

As Nami, Vivi, and Usopp had all headed into Bighorn to see if they could purchase supplies, Thomas's group met up with them at the only tavern in the village, a cozy little place called Whoolie's Reprieve. There, Nami was trying her best to convince the proprietor to part ways with a few barrels of water and other goods, but the man was reluctant since the conditions in Bighorn weren't exactly ideal. Drum Island was a Winter Island, where temperatures could get at low as -89C, so the island's natives were fairly conservative. Even more so under Wapol.

Interrupting the negotiations by simply entering the tavern, Thomas's gaze immediately focused on Vivi, a smile adorning his face as he said, "We just wrapped up phase one on our end. How are things going over here...?"

Though she was tempted to respond to Thomas's words, Nami crossed her arms and waited for Vivi to reply, "Not good, I'm afraid. Drum Island just came out of a long Winter, so they don't have much food or water to spare. A single barrel costs as much as 30,000 Berries."

Defending the exorbitant price, the tavern's owner, a man with a hairstyle that resembled an ice cream swirl, explained, "It takes time and effort to convert snow into potable water. The King confiscated most of the town's generators, so we need to collect wood, start a fire, melt the snow into a large pot, and then purify it..."

Without going into detail, Thomas replied, "Well, you shouldn't have to worry about that much longer," before pulling out a stack of Berries and setting it on the counter, adding, "Cook us up something. My companions and I need to talk in private."

With Caenis, Atalanta, Illya, Chloe, and Ruby already taking over two of the tables, Thomas made his way over with Vivi and Nami, taking a seat before asking, "Where's Usopp?"

Shrugging helplessly, Nami replied, "He returned to the ship after hearing a blizzard was forecasted to arrive before nightfall. I told him it wouldn't be a problem, but he wants to ensure it doesn't get caught in an ice flow or frozen in the river."

Though he got along decently with Usopp, Thomas promptly dismissed the man from his mind, revealing, "According to Beni, Wapol had around 37.5 billion Berries worth of treasure and other goods in his castle. Most of that comes from the three tons of gold bullion he had stockpiled."

Hearing the word 'billion' leave Thomas's lips, Nami's eyes sparkled with illusory golden bars while Vivi remarked, "That's impressive for a country of this size. If I remember correctly, Drum only has a population of around 165,000 people. Alabasta has more than ten million, six hundred thousand of which comprise our armed forces. Even then, we only had 70 billion in our treasury and approximately 215 billion in circulation..."

Despite being one of the twenty original families that formed the World Government, the Nefertari Family had always prioritized its people over accumulating additional wealth and power. As unbelievable as 215 billion sounded to the average person, even the poorest of the nineteen families that went on to declare themselves 'Celestial Dragons' had accumulated wealth and assets measuring in the trillions of Berries. After all, they had been in power for more than 700 years, permitting them to stockpile much of the world's wealth for themselves.

Nodding his head, Thomas added, "I left the next administration around two billion to keep them afloat. For now, I plan to have Beni use her Inn Creation Skill to construct one enormous ryokan nearby or several smaller ryokans in each major village. I'm worried that the latter will make it seem like I'm seizing control, so I think one large ryokan per island is the better option. What do you girls think?"

Since most of her thoughts involved ways that 'she' could use the money, Nami remained uncharacteristically silent, allowing Vivi to answer, "I think operating a single large establishment is best. If you want to spread your influence, you can purchase land, sponsor local businesses, build schools, and invest in civilian infrastructure. Those are the best ways to build trust and 'give back' to the people."

Grabbing Vivi's hand, Thomas's expression and tone softened as he said, "And this is exactly why I came to you for advice..."

Blushing fiercely, Vivi lowered her head but turned her eyes up as she replied, "Knowing what you're trying to accomplish, offering you counsel is the least I can do..."

Having realized that Thomas might become one of, if not 'the' future rulers of the world, Vivi resolved herself to support him even more than she initially planned. She would prefer it if he became her consort and helped her rule over Alabasta, but for the sake of the world and everyone suffering under the World Government's banner, she was willing to settle with being his 'first' wife...

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After finishing their meal at the Whoolie's Reprieve, Thomas's group made their way over to the source of the nearby river, a few hundred meters from the Going Merry. Thomas figured that if he was going to build an Enma-tei, it might as well be at the 'entrance' to the island. Doing so would allow it to serve as the heart of a future port metropolis while also making it the first place most Pirates, Marines, and Merchants stopped after entering the country. Thus, after giving Beni permission to utilize 10,000,000,000 Berries for construction and staffing, Thomas stared in awe as a colossal, predominately red building emerged from the mouth of a monstrous red demon, its size and scope surpassing Drum Castle twice over...

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(A/N: Go big or go home...!)

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