Capítulo 625: The Second Inheritance, Fujitora Issho
Logan, as the winner of this round of the game, was the first to receive a mysterious reward. However, he might not be particularly pleased with this reward.
The dog ears on top of his head twitched, showing just how irritated he was. Out of a petty mindset of "if I didn't get something good, I hope you don't either," he focused intently on the screen, hoping Erik would also receive an unexpected "surprise" like he did.
Erik, at this moment, was understandably a bit nervous. He had already experienced the mystical nature of this quiz game; everything he had encountered in the Eternal Space before arriving here was beyond anything he could have ever imagined.
Naturally, he had certain expectations for the rewards from this magical game. But after seeing Logan sprout dog ears, he couldn't help feeling a bit uneasy himself.
[Congratulations to player Erik for obtaining a mysterious reward—inheritance of the Navy Admiral Fujitora Issho (General).]
On the screen, Erik's name lit up in a golden glow, which then coalesced into the shape of a sword, swiftly flying towards him.
With Logan's example as a precedent, Erik wasn't overly panicked. He simply took a deep breath, bracing himself. The golden sword silhouette disappeared in an instant, and his eyes were immediately enveloped in endless golden light.
For a moment, Erik's consciousness blurred. When he regained his senses, he found himself in a fantastical world.
To Erik, born in the modern era, this world felt very archaic, as if it was set somewhere between the Middle Ages and the early stages of the Industrial Revolution. Cold weapons and firearms coexisted, supernatural abilities clashed with human physical strength, and justice and evil opposed one another. It was a seemingly beautiful world, yet filled with corruption and chaos.
Unlike Earth, which was dominated by continents, this world was primarily composed of vast oceans.
Countless islands were scattered across the boundless seas, and on those seas, the Navy representing justice and the pirates symbolizing chaos were locked in perpetual conflict, as irreconcilable as fire and water.
But with Erik's worldview, he knew that the line between justice and evil wasn't so clear-cut anywhere.
Among the so-called "evil" pirates, there were also good people who upheld justice and kindness. Conversely, among the supposedly righteous Navy, there was a corrupt world government lurking behind the scenes.
This world government, the most powerful official force in this world, claimed to govern the entire world. But from Erik's perspective, their actions had nothing in common with the government of any nation he knew.
Forget superpowers like the United States or the Soviet Union, or even the bipolar division of modern civilization—this so-called world government was less responsible than even the authoritarian regimes of history.
A legitimate government's most basic duty is to manage the lands and citizens under its rule. Corrupt or incompetent, it should at least provide a basic living environment, establish laws, maintain order, and allocate resources to keep a foundation for governance. From this perspective, even ancient feudal dynasties were more responsible and competent than this so-called world government.
"World government, my ass. It's more like the world's biggest crime syndicate..."
Erik had never had much respect for official organizations. Seeing the world government's behavior from a bird's-eye view only filled him with disdain; he couldn't stand it at all.
This organization, claiming to rule the entire world, didn't bother managing its citizens. Instead, it let affiliated nations govern themselves and just collected "protection fees" regularly. This was hardly a government—it was just a glorified mafia.
And the foundation for maintaining this massive mafia's rule was, of course, overwhelming force.
The so-called world government amassed and plundered the world's wealth to support its enforcers and watchdogs. It developed advanced technologies, but all of it was geared towards suppressing the world through force, with no intention of improving productivity. Even ancient slave owners knew to improve slave tools to extract more value, but the world government didn't lift a finger.
In Erik's opinion, if he were to rule this world, he could easily turn it into a paradise of advanced civilization!
Even with his limited political and governance knowledge, he would be far more enlightened than the locals here. That said, he had little interest in civilizing another world; he was much more intrigued by the supernatural powers in this place.
This world possessed strange fruits called Devil Fruits. Eating one granted the consumer extraordinary abilities, much like mutants, but with notable weaknesses—they were vulnerable to seawater and severely restrained by a rare mineral called Seastone.
Erik's consciousness was linked to a host who was a Devil Fruit user, a man who called himself Issho—a blind middle-aged man who seemed to be a vigilante or perhaps a righteous warrior.
Although blind, Issho saw the corruption and darkness of this world more clearly than most with sight. He had blinded himself voluntarily, and Erik figured he was likely another idealist, much like Charles.
Possessing tremendous power yet shackled by lofty ideals, Issho constrained himself with notions of justice and virtue, always holding back even when fighting for righteousness. It was stifling to watch.
If Erik could control Issho, he would have wreaked havoc already, starting with the so-called world government and tearing down that decaying mafia.
But he couldn't control Issho, only watch as the man voluntarily joined the Navy under the world government's banner, becoming one of their enforcers, fighting so-called "evil" pirates in the name of justice.
To Erik, weren't the most despicable pirates the world government itself?
Compared to the atrocities committed by the world government, the pirates roaming the seas were hardly worth mentioning.
Issho's decision was disappointing to Erik, though this blind man wasn't an entirely hopeless idealist. He did have his own beliefs, his principles, and a firm moral bottom line.
When Issho discovered the collusion between the world government and certain pirate factions—secretly funding powerful pirate groups to carry out their own dirty deeds—he was forced to choose between obeying the world government's orders or upholding his personal code of honor. He chose the latter without hesitation.
Issho allowed a group of pirates he should have captured to defeat a rival pirate faction allied with the world government. He even went as far as kneeling on behalf of the world government to apologize to the victims of these pirate attacks, deeply humiliating the government. Watching this, Erik finally felt a spark of interest.
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