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"Trade?" Hancock said, relieved. She brushed her wet hair from her face. "Alright. I agree."
"Hm? You're not going to think about it?" Jin was surprised.
Not long ago, she had been calling him a disrespectful man, saying she would never do business with him. And now, just like that, she'd agreed.
Did women really change their minds that quickly?
"I lost," Hancock said. "And you saved me. Out of gratitude, I don't need to consider such a small request. Besides, a formal trade relationship with a member nation would certainly be beneficial for us."
The most immediate benefit was that they wouldn't be ripped off by the black-market traders when they sold their spoils.
The truth was, when pirates plundered, they were the ones who ended up getting fleeced. The real profits went to the black-market merchants. Whether buying or selling, they got screwed both ways. Hancock had been burned before. She knew the value of a fair deal.
"You don't need to go back and discuss it?" Jin asked.
"I am the empress," Hancock said proudly. "My decision is the Will of Amazon Lily. Whatever I do, whether it's kicking a kitten or slaughtering the innocent, my people will forgive me."
Well, alright then.
She was certainly willful.
But Jin liked it. A one-woman show. It was efficient.
"Alright," he said. "It's a deal. I have some supplies on my ship. A little gift, to get us started."
Having sealed the deal, Jin habitually extended his hand for a handshake.
Hancock froze, her cheeks flushing. "Isn't this... a little fast? We've only just met, and you're already offering a betrothal gift?"
"Huh??" Jin realized his mistake. "This is a handshake. It's a gesture, to show that we've reached an agreement. A contract."
"Oh!" Hancock said, embarrassed but also relieved. After a moment's hesitation, she placed her small hand in his.
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"Ugh... my head hurts."
"What happened?"
"I think... it was the Empress's Conqueror's Haki..."
Ran, Rindo, and the other officers and crew members were slowly regaining consciousness, their heads pounding and bodies heavy with exhaustion.
"Wait... the Empress!"
They looked around and saw Hancock, now changed into a new white, patterned qipao, sitting on her coiled serpent, Salome.
To maintain her imperial dignity, her bruised cheek was hidden by a lock of hair, and she was resting her chin on her hand to cover her injured lip.
And besides, the young and strong in the world of pirates had incredible healing abilities. A few bruises were nothing.
Ran and the others quickly bowed. They scanned the sea.
"Where's that king?"
"Did he leave?"
"Or did he sink?"
"Did the Empress win?"
The questions hung in the air.
"It is resolved," Hancock announced, her voice leaving no room for argument. "I have already contacted Sandersonia and Marigold. We are returning to Amazon Lily."
This was not the plan. After so long hunting for "prey" with so little to show for it, her sisters had split off to hunt on their own.
"Eh?!"
"It's resolved?"
"My lady, are we not going to Hannabal?"
"But... our haul..."
Hancock's brow furrowed. She rose to her feet, her cold, arrogant gaze sweeping over them. "Are you questioning my decision?"
The icy glare was enough to silence them. The women dropped their heads, not daring to speak.
Hancock turned and walked back toward her cabin, her hips swaying with a mesmerizing grace. Just as she disappeared through the doorway, her voice drifted back.
"The cargo hold... is full."
The women all breathed a sigh of relief, wiping the sweat from their brows. Then, a look of confusion crossed their faces.
"Full?"
"Really?"
After she was gone, they rushed to the cargo hold and opened it.
It was packed to the brim with supplies: rice, flour, spices... all things that were scarce on Kuja Island.
There were even several chests of fine fabrics.
"It's a miracle!"
"Where did all this come from?"
"There's so much! It would be hard to gather this much even in Sabaody."
Rindo was in awe. Normally, they would have to sell their spoils to the black-market traders in Sabaody and then buy supplies. They were ripped off at every turn. It would have taken four full hunting expeditions to acquire this many supplies.
But they had no choice. The member nations either discriminated against them or were unwilling to risk the World Government's wrath by trading with them.
"The Empress is amazing!"
"Long live the Empress!"
The women cheered, overjoyed.
Only a few of the officers exchanged a worried glance.
"Do you think... the Empress killed that king and stole his cargo?"
"That would be a huge problem."
"I heard the World Government and the Marines are in an uproar over the assassination of King Bekori in the South Blue."
"If they find out the Empress did something similar..."
But they didn't dare ask. They instructed their subordinates to keep this a secret, to bury it deep.
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Two days later, Hancock rendezvoused with her two sisters.
Ran, by chance, saw the latest newspaper.
[KING JIN ARRIVES AT PORT RAVEN, ANNOUNCES TAKEOVER OF MELCYSE ISLAND!]
Ran snatched the paper and unfolded it.
There was a picture. It was the man who had fought the Empress two days ago, standing in front of a dilapidated port, a smile on his face. The archway at the entrance to the town read 'RAVENPORT'.
"Eh? He's still alive?" Rindo said, leaning over to look.
"Wait... Melcyse Island... isn't that the little island that used to pay us tribute for our protection?"
"They were too poor to pay the Heavenly Tribute, so the World Government delisted them, and they became a playground for pirates."
"Even with the Empress's protection, they never recovered," Rindo said with a sigh. "The nobles and the wealthy all fled to other member nations to save their own skins. All that was left were the poor, who were either killed by pirates or sold into slavery."
Hancock was just one of the Seven Warlords. She couldn't be everywhere at once. In fact, the island hadn't paid its protection fee in two years. If Jin hadn't mentioned it, she would have completely forgotten about it.
"It's a vicious cycle," Cosmos said. "They just kept falling further and further into decline."
But now, things were different.
With Jin's announcement, Melcyse Island was now a part of the Winter Blossom Kingdom, and once again a member of the World Government.
But it also meant that he was now responsible for the island's Heavenly Tribute.
[KING JIN'S AMBITIONS ARE CLEAR, A STRONG DESIRE FOR TERRITORIAL EXPANSION!]
The next page was an analysis of the event by the World Economic Journal.
Jin had informed the Five Elders and CP0 of his takeover of Melcyse Island in advance.
His reason?
"To farm more 'Dream' for the noble Celestial Dragons. I need more plantations."
When Saint Jalmack had heard this, he had been overjoyed. The "Dream" he had received was already making the rounds among the Celestial Dragons in the Holy Land.
"Next year, there will be even more!"
Everyone who had tried it had been ecstatic. It filled the emptiness in their souls.
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