Sparse thatch covered the rooftops, and the houses built from piled timber were visibly dilapidated. Clearly, they had not been repaired in a very long time. The holes that could be seen at a glance, along with doors made from nothing more than a ragged piece of cloth, made one wonder whether houses like these could truly keep out the cold.
Amigasa Village.
An utterly ruined little village.
After Roldy entered the village, his brows never once relaxed.
Wano Country was a place rich in Sea-Prism Stone. By all logic, it should not have been this poor. Yet the scene before him could rival the slums of the poorest kingdoms in the Four Blues.
Of course, Roldy had seen sights even more tragic than this. Though pity rose in his heart, he also knew very well that places like this would always exist. Even he, Roldy, could not save them all.
"Big Brother, those civilians…"
Shien came to Roldy's side and spoke in a low voice.
There were people in the village, but very few—at most a dozen or so. They were all very old, with heads full of white hair and hunched bodies. They hid inside their houses, peering at Roldy's group through the holes in the walls.
In truth, Shien did not need to say anything. Roldy had noticed them long ago.
He had noticed the fear in the civilians' eyes, as well as the greed hidden deep within them.
It was strange. Why would they feel greed?
No matter how one looked at it, Roldy's group did not seem like people these civilians could afford to provoke. Aside from Roldy himself and his two highest-ranking officers, he had also brought dozens of small fry with him on this trip. Even though he had assigned those small fry to watch the ship, Roldy's height alone—over eight meters—should have been enough to make him someone they could never offend.
And just then, the appearance of an old woman resolved the doubt in Roldy's heart.
"Are you… from the outside world?"
The old woman leaned on a worn-out cane and spoke in a trembling voice.
Roldy nodded.
Out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly noticed that behind a large tree in this ruined village, there was a tiny head peeking out.
"Elder, what happened to you all? Why are you living in such hardship?"
Roldy crouched down and asked patiently.
Perhaps the old woman was simply too old, or perhaps Roldy's towering height brought too much pressure. She trembled for a long time without managing to say a complete sentence.
At that moment, the little head hiding behind the large tree stepped out.
"Hello, sir. Please allow me to answer your question!"
She looked to be no more than six or seven years old, with a tiny topknot and a fairly adorable face. She was a thin, frail little girl, so skinny it seemed a gust of wind could blow her away. Her hair lacked the slightest shine, likely due to long-term malnutrition.
"All right."
Roldy took a boxed meal from his coat and placed it on the ground beside him.
Given Roldy's size, this one boxed meal would be enough to feed an ordinary person for a month. When he opened it, the fragrance of rice and food drifted out, causing the little girl to swallow hard.
The other people in the village also came out of their houses. From the longing in their eyes, it was not hard to tell that they had not eaten their fill in a very long time.
"Fill your stomach first. Looking at you, I'm honestly afraid you'll faint before long."
"Thank you… thank you so much!"
The temptation of food made the villagers forget the pressure Roldy brought. They rushed forward one after another. Without caring what the food was, they grabbed it with their hands and desperately stuffed it into their mouths.
"Kishishishishi! How exaggerated. It's just one boxed meal."
Moria scratched his head.
He was a powerful man from the West Blue. Although he was not exactly rolling in wealth, he had never lacked money. And now that he served under Roldy, he cared about money even less. Going hungry? He had never experienced such a thing.
"Hmph! Go hungry for two days after we get back and you'll understand!"
Shien seemed to have been reminded of some unpleasant memories. He took out his own boxed meal and handed it to the little girl.
Because the girl's body was far too weak, she could not compete with the villagers who had gone mad from hunger. Shien's large, webbed hand seemed like a beam of light. Tears filled the girl's eyes as she stared blankly at the lunchbox. Then she did her best to bend at the waist in thanks before hugging it close and beginning to eat heartily.
"Slow down, slow down! It's all yours. No one's going to fight you for it!"
Shien placed his large hand on the little girl's head and tried to speak in the gentlest tone he could.
After thinking for a moment, he stood up and walked over to Moria. Ignoring Moria's reaction entirely, he forcibly snatched the boxed meal from his arms.
"There's more if that's not enough!"
The girl raised her head and looked at Shien, who was trying his best to show a kind smile.
For some reason, that fierce shark Fish-Man face looked so gentle in her eyes.
"Thank you, but I don't eat much. Just a little is enough!"
Looking at the little girl as she buried her head and wolfed down plain white rice, Shien felt as though something inside his heart had been touched.
After the girl had eaten her fill, she bowed again in thanks.
"Thank you for the meal! My name is Tama. I'll definitely repay you someday!"
"What a polite child. So, little one, how did you all come to live such difficult lives?"
Faced with Roldy's question, Tama did not hesitate.
She clenched her teeth, as though painful memories had been stirred up.
"It… it was all Kaido and Orochi's doing!"
The weapons factories.
They were the greatest source of all suffering in Wano.
Roldy listened patiently.
To be honest, among the several Emperors on the seas, the civilians under Kaido lived the most miserable lives.
There was naturally no need to mention Whitebeard. As for Golden Lion Shiki, although he was brutal and arrogant, he would not pay attention to civilians as insignificant as ants. As for Big Mom, she merely demanded some of their lifespan. In a sense, she could actually be considered the most merciful among all the Emperors.
Only Kaido was different.
"Is that so? Such massive weapons factories… Kaido's ambitions are far from small."
Building such enormous weapons factories, crazily accumulating wealth, and recruiting manpower—what exactly did Kaido want to do?
He wanted a massive war that would engulf the entire world.
He wanted to plunge the entire world into chaos.
In that sense, it was barely similar to what Roldy wanted. Both of them wished to start a war and break the rules of this world. Kaido was simply far more brutal.
"Then, thank you for telling me."
Roldy stood up.
There was no reason to continue lingering in this ruined village. Next would be the Flower Capital, and after that, Onigashima.
"Little one, until we meet again."
Shien crouched down and patted Tama on the head.
After thinking for a moment, he took out a small piece of paper from his coat.
He tore off a piece and handed it to Tama.
No one knew what he intended to do with it.
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