章節 578: A Lesson in War

(A.N. to everyone complaining about the fight with Imu being anticlimactic, that was the point!

Alex isn't playing the game anymore. He's basically the hidden boss that is designed to be almost completely unbeatable, even after you've beaten the main boss and maxed out your levels and stats. It's the reason why he's been trying to take a step back from fighting the enemies himself, since he knows that he'd pretty much win every time unless a reincarnator is involved.

Dealing with Imu wasn't a clash between two boss level characters, it was a man dealing with the thing that threatened his children.)

Alex didn't even spare Imu, the supreme ruler of the World Government that existed solely in the shadows, a single glance as he was erased from existence. Instead, all of his focus was on his children, who were shuffling awkwardly under their father's stern gaze.

"That was incredibly reckless and foolhardy. This was not 'playing', this was a war against seasoned opponents who would have readily killed any of you if given the slightest chance. And each and every one of them was not only trained to do so, but they had all fought uncountable battles until now, and gained immeasurable experience through them. The ONLY reason you all did as well as you did, was because of how naturally powerful you all are."

With every word Alex said the children all deflated just ever so slightly, until they were all looking down shamefully.

"BUT-" Alex added towards the end, making them look up hopefully.

"You all did REALLY well against them considering your lack of experience. As your father, I am exceptionally proud of each and every one of you for standing up and fighting when you didn't have to, even if it was reckless."

Though there was more than Alex wanted to say to them, it could wait until their next training session since it mostly pertained to how they could have done better in their respective fights. He also decided it was time to properly start Haki training as well, as evidenced by Edith's fight against Kizaru.

Speaking of...

While the children were momentarily distracted by his praise, Alex turned his attention to the pile of defeated figures that were being magically restrained by Yue. A wave of his hand and they were all transported somewhere secure so he could extract their Devil Fruits and execute them in private.

When that was done, Alex turned back towards the kids before conjuring himself a chair and sitting in it.

"Now then, come here Edith." Alex said, making the children curious as his eldest daughter approached him.

"What is it daddy?" Edith asked him, a hopeful light in her that maybe they were going to be praised some more. And seeing that, Alex smiled down at her warmly and lovingly, before promptly picking her up and bending her over his knee.

"Eh?" Edith uttered, even as Alex flipped her angelic robes up and pulled her panties down to expose her backside.

"Now then, to go charging onto a battlefield without the permission of your mother's or I, I think three spankings a piece should be suitable." Alex said while still retaining his warm smile, even as his children all turned deathly pale. They were even more terrified now than they had been with Imu.

And for good reason too since their father rarely, if EVER, punished them. And as if to show just how justified their fear was, Alex's hand began glowing with demonic power as he brought it down onto Edith's butt.

*SMACK!*

"HYAAAAAA!"

The sound seemed to echo in every direction as Alex's palm made contact with the delicate flesh, followed promptly by Edith's cry as pain filled her backside.

This was because Alex was using a unique little spell he had come up with after dealing with so many perverts over the years, namely Tio with how tough her body was. Basically the spell multiplied the pain felt by the single spanking without requiring Alex to use more strength, which could literally lead to him flat out killing some of his wives if he wasn't careful.

Right now Alex had multiplied the force to the point that Edith had received the equivalent of a thousand spankings in one, which was why she reacted the way she did. And also why he would only give them three of them.

"One." Alex said slowly, before bringing his hand down a second time, prompting another pained cry from Edith, followed by a third.

One by one Alex spanked each and every one of his children, leaving them all with red butts and teary eyes afterwards, including even Videl and Bonney. Naturally, that last one called him all sorts of colorful names with each spanking.

The odd one out was Myuu, who ended up receiving double the spankings after she tried to make a pass as Alex bent her over his knee.

The entire time Alex was disciplining his children the mothers all watched from afar, each and every single one agreeing with how Alex was handling things. They only approached when he was about done.

"So, do you all understand why you were punished?" Anne asked once Alex had finished with the spankings.

"For fighting without permission..." Anna muttered without meeting her mother's eyes.

"Yes, but can any of you tell me WHY you needed permission?" Anne pressed, to which the children all adopted confused looks.

"Because, what if all of us were busy during the fighting and one of you needed help? Or what if a bad guy took advantage of one you to use against us? Or what if one of them had an ability that would allow them to hurt or even kill you?"

Alex nodded in agreement as he looked seriously at the children.

"That's right. It's one thing if you want to help, but randomly showing up like that is really bad since you have no idea what could happen. Did you all know I had accepted a quest from the Chatroom that prevented me from directly intervening in the battle until time ran out? That means even if someone were to hurt or even kill one of you, I wouldn't have been able to do a single thing about it." Alex explained to them, making several of the kids pale at the thought of their daddy not being able to help them. To them he could do ANYTHING.

"Haaa... Just understand that we need to know if you all want to help out. You may not be able to every time, but I will try to let some of you in the future when you can." Alex said after a moment, making the kids look up with interest.

It was something Alex knew he would have to make peace with. They were all still children, very much so, but they were children capable of erasing a small country if any of them felt like it.

"Now then!" He declared while standing once more. "Let's finish things up here!"

With a wave of his hand Alex transported all of the children and their mothers back to the deck of Zenith, before he began his work. Firstly he announced with a magically enhanced voice,

"This battle is over! The World Government is destroyed, so any remaining Marines are called to put down their arms and surrender!"

As he gave the order several Marines readily put down their weapons and surrendered, with only a few doing so grudgingly. Soon the only one left fighting was Garp, but Alex Left him alone for the moment since Garp was merely Garp.

With all of the fighting having stopped, almost, Alex began with his next plan as he shifted everyone with Spatial magic so that they were all away from the Red Line, even transporting Garp, Whitebeard and Linlin so that they could continue their fight without getting in the way.

Once that was done, he then used his divine authority over Earthquakes to send shockwaves through the Red Line on both sides from where he was.

Though believed to be indestructible, even though Alec cracked it earlier, those watching were dumbfounded as massive chunks of the Red Line began shearing off thanks to the earthquakes passing through it. That was just the beginning though as entire sections of the Red Line began to fracture and break off, creating massive gaps in the stone wall that had divided the world for so long.

Soon a chunk broke off that was large enough that the ships in the New World could even see the seas of Paradise on the other side, stunning them even as the gap widened further.

The same thing was happening all along the Red Line on either side for the entire width of the Grand Line, and even through both of the Calm Belts bordering it until reaching the four cardinal Blues. From the peak to the sea floor, the Red Line was falling.

Of course Alex made sure not to disturb Fishman Island that sat directly beneath the Red Line, and he left a section of it intact that dwarfed any island in the world.

Once he had finished destroying the Red Line enough to allow the seas to all meet each other, Alex began work on the 'little' section he had allowed to remain, an island the size of a small continent.

The first thing Alex did was cover the entire island in a magic circle as he channeled Creation magic into it, changing the very molecular structure of the mineral itself from plain rock.

The entire outer layer of the island was converted into fertile farmland, with a thick wall separating it from the sea. Another thick wall separated the farmland from the interior, where Alex began to meticulously construct a city that was unlike any other city in the entire world.

Firstly Alex adopted the same type of layout as Water 7, creating canals that ran along nearly every single road through the city. Aside from that he also divided the city into seven districts with wide main roads in between each district, each with their own canal that was both wide and deep enough to allow even all but the largest of ships passage while the largest canal yet connected them all to the sea.

While the city itself was divided into six districts like a pizza, one of which he created buildings and roads large enough to accommodate even giants, the seventh district was located directly in the center of the island. It was here that Alex created the largest and most luxurious buildings yet, such as a massive amphitheatre, a gladiator arena, a station where the portal to Asora would be made, and even a racetrack that all surrounded a grand and regal palace.

With the interior just about finished, Alex turned his attention to the exterior as he willed rock and stone to rise from the ocean on the outer edges of the island, creating a harbor large enough to house every single ship present.

"That should do it for now." Alex muttered to himself as he looked over his handy work. There was still PLENTY to do to make the island livable, but Alex believed that what he had done was enough for the moment since the rest needed would be a personal touch.

He then descended to the palace at the very heart of the new island, while also sending word to his wives that it was safe to approach now. They led the way with the rest of the people that had united under Alex's banner, sailing into the harbour and then into the canals that filled the city.

"These roads are even big enough for us!" One of the giants exclaimed, even as they were all forced to disembark since the canals weren't large enough for their ships.

"Your Highness! There are even dwellings and buildings under the water!" A Fishman declared to king Neptune after several of them had gone to explore the canals, which also revealed a number of underground passageways filled with water to connect them.

This made them all excited, as there had never been a place so close to the surface that they could safely stay. Until Alex arrived, all Fishman and mermaids risked enslavement if any of them got too careless close to the surface.

The awe and wonder was felt by everyone present as they explored more of the city on their way inwards, until they finally reached the inner circle. There they all had to dock their ships and disembark along with the giants, before making their way to the palace that towered over everything.

It was only once they entered it, and made their way to the throne room that they found Alex himself lounging upon a golden throne that was elevated above them all, aside from the giants. But even they felt small in Alex's presence.

"Welcome..." Alex began while sweeping his arms wide dramatically, "to Nautica!"

As he declared such, a large banner unfurled behind him that depicted his usual standard, a dragon and ape locked in combat.

"Nautica?" Asked the recently reinstated King of Dressrosa, Riku Doldo the third.

"Yes, Nautica." Alex answered while nodding his head, before conjuring a holographic map as he explained.

"Though I left roughly 90% of it intact, I destroyed enough of the Red Line to allow the waters of North Blue, South Blue, East Blue, West Blue, Paradise and the New World to mix, all of them centered right here. So I built Nautica to act as the new capital of the world, where all races of this world will be welcomed and can call home. Of course it still requires some work, but I already did all of the heavy lifting."

Awe filled the people before Alex as they realized what he was doing, and what the city around them truly symbolized.

While the World Government was founded by kingdoms from all over the world, and purported themselves as the unification of the entire world, there were still several people who were ostracized and cast out for being different races, or for not being directly affiliated with the World Government.

The mermaids/Fishmen were one of the prime examples of this, as they were routinely discriminated against, enslaved and even killed all over the world due to being different. Some races, such as the Buccaneers and Lunarians, were even outright slaughtered and exterminated at the whims of the World Government, and it was commonly believed that the only reason the giants weren't was because some of them could be useful. Not only that, but the Celestial Dragons also routinely held 'native hunting' events, where they would go in and slaughter the natives of an island that was not affiliated with them for sport, along with numerous slaves.

The Celestial Dragons had also long held a monopoly on certain rights and privileges, such as being able to travel wherever they wanted in the world with little to no regard for the dangers involved, and living atop the Red Line in the Holy City. By opening up the oceans, Alex had granted them all the freedom to open trade and travel with one another. Plus he intended to open up the new holy city, Nautica, to all who wished to live there.

Alex gave them a moment to discuss amongst themselves, before he continued, "additionally, Nautica will also be home to the gate that will connect this world to my own world, Asora. From there I will continue my role as emperor with this world becoming one of my own territories, as is my right through conquest. If there are any who would challenge my rule, then speak now or forever hold your peace."

Naturally no one spoke up, as every single one of those gathered here had either sworn themselves to Alex to begin with, or they were kings/queens that rose to power in the last few days after Alex's people incited rebellion against their tyrannical rulers. Even the much feared Revolutionary Army couldn't hold a candle to the amount of change Alex had wrought upon the world, and they had YET to make a single move despite everything Alex had done.

"We came all this way to meet with the sun god." Declared a booming voice as one of the few hulking figures within the palace stepped forward, a giant. "We have always followed the sun god's teachings, and will continue to do so even now. The land and people of Elbaf are yours, Lord Nika."

As he spoke the giant knelt before Alex, pledging his fealty while the few other giants present did the same. At the same time, another banner appeared overhead that bore the sigil of Elbaf.

"The sands of Alabasta are ever blowing, and now they blow in the winds created by the Dragon Emperor. We too shall bow before his majesty." King Nefertari Kobra declared as he too knelt, followed by Vivi and the others from Alabasta as a banner representing them appeared as well.

"Wait! How dare you heathens declare yourself before I?! The Kuja of Amazon Lili will always follow my beloved, as will our daughters, and their daughters, and all daughters until the end of time!" Hancock declared as she looked up at Alex with an enamored expression, even as the sigil of the Kuja also appeared.

After her, every single monarch present declared themselves to Alex, joining the ever growing Asoran empire. The only kingdoms who hadn't pledged themselves to Alex by the end of things were those who weren't present, a number that included the Mink tribe and Skypeans. However Alex planned to make contact with them soon enough.

By the time the swearing and oaths were over and done with, for now, Alex was far more mentally exhausted than he had been watching his children fight their own battle earlier. There was just one last thing he needed to take care of before retiring for some.....stress relief.

With barely any fluctuation of space, Garp reappeared along with Whitebeard and Linlin, all still locked in battle.

"Still wanting more, you filthy pirate?!" Garp declared as he amassed a terrible amount of Haki around his hand for ANOTHER of his earlier attacks.

"Enough." Alex said 'quietly', and immediately the pressure increased to the point that all three of them fell to their knees.

"What the-?!" Garp exclaimed as he looked around in shock, before his gaze settled on Alex with his golden throne.

"That's a little gaudy, don't you think?" He asked bluntly, as if his current situation hadn't fazed him in the slightest.

"Would you rather I forge one made of the swords of my enemies?" Alex asked sarcastically, though Garp seemed to take it seriously.

"Oh! That sounds badass! Much more intimidating than THAT."

Alex rolled his eyes at the old man before turning his attention towards Whitebeard, and announcing, "to start my reign in this world, I shall now appoint Edward Newgate, also known as Whitebeard, as the Fleet Admiral of my new navy."

The hall erupted into mutterings at that, since a lot of people didn't know that Alex actually intended to hand militant authority to a long-time pirate. Garp in particular looked as if his eyes were about to bug out of his head.

"I suppose I shall accept." Whitebeard stated grudgingly, though Alex knew he would take his new duties seriously.

"Wait a second! Are you actually going to legitimize a PIRATE?!?" Garp demanded in disbelief. "What about Sengoku?!"

"Sengoku, along with Akainu, Kizaru, and Aokiji, will be executed shortly for the crimes against humanity committed by their hands, on their command, and on their watch. The same fate awaits 'Gods Knights' and the remaining three Elders."

Garp gaped in disbelief at how the entire world had seemingly turned upside down within a matter of minutes. Pirates were running the navy, and Marines were going to be executed as criminals?

"What about me then?" He asked hotly, fuming enough that everyone could practically see steam coming off his head.

"You actively declined promotions throughout your entire career specifically to avoid serving the Celestial Dragons. To defy them so brazenly merits recognition instead of condemnation." Alex declared, triggering another flurry of muttering and discussion. Just about everyone present didn't know that, and learning it made them all look at Garp with newfound respect and admiration. The man wasn't called the hero of the Marines for nothing.

"BUT..." Alex added, seeing that Garp still appeared discontent.

"If you believe that you should be punished as well, then I shall see to it."

The hall fell so quiet that everyone could have heard a pin drop as they awaited Alex's verdict.

"I hereby sentence you, Monkey D. Garp, to serve in my navy under Whitebeard as one of his Admirals, until such time that I release you from your service. How does that sound?"

Garp's jaw literally hit the floor at what his 'punishment' would be, while Whitebeard just had a massive smirk under his famous facial hair.

"Guraguragura! The hero of the Marines as one of my men? I'll take it!" Whitebeard declared, loving the irony in the situation.

"Great! Alex said, not giving Garp the chance to speak. "Now that that's settled, I think we're all done here!"

With a wave of Alex's hand a bang echoed in the hall that sounded like a gavel, even as he rose from his gaudy and uncomfortable throne. Even he thought it was bad, but Alex figured he wouldn't use it often, and he needed to do SOMETHING with all of the gold sitting around in his vaults. No matter how much of his wealth he gives away, Alex's fortune only ever seemed to increase without end...

It also didn't help that, with the newfound divinity he acquired from consuming the soul of Pluto, Alex was also able to sense all of the valuables buried beneath his feet at all times.

It was tough suffering from success...

Hoping he wouldn't have to use the throne again anytime soon, Alex left the throne room while contacting Serafall, Sephie and Hajime about properly establishing the gate, and settling Nautica. He was already expecting a number of Dagon to be interested in moving to this world, along with several others who could smell the potential and possibilities of this world.

It would also help those who wanted to move here from this world to settle into Nautica as well, while Alex already had a few other plans to put into place. Such as commissioning Iceberg from Water 7 to build more sea trains, enough to connect major islands in each sea to Nautica.

But before that, there was some unfinished business Alex had to attend to. And though he initially intended to handle it in private, Alex changed his mind as he headed to the arena that he had constructed while contacting the mothers.

Almost immediately after he arrived in the middle of the arena, they too arrived with the children in tow.

"What was so important Alex?" Anne asked curiously.

"Just a small lesson." Alex said in a grim voice, before turning his attention towards all of the present children. "Now I want you all to watch carefully until the end."

Several of the kids cocked their heads curiously at their dad's uncharacteristically serious demeanor, right up until he summoned a certain group of people.

"What do you want?" Elder Warcury snarled as he appeared, along with the other two remaining Elders, 'gods knights', Sengoku and the three Admirals.

"Alex..." Gabriel uttered in a grave voice, while a few others like Levy and Mizore paled at what he was about to do.

"I summoned you all here in order to sentence and execute you." Alex declared, to which his captives remained stoically impassive. Then again, Alex and the others wouldn't be able to hear if they did say anything since he erected a bubble of silence around them. He had no intention of listening to their self-righteous bullshit.

Instead, their eyes seemed to be saying 'get on with it already'.

"Don't look away, even for the slightest second." Alex ordered without looking back at his children, summoning his death scythe as he did so.

He could feel them tense as he casually swung the scythe, before there was a beat as nothing seemingly happened. It was only a single second though, before the heads of everyone gathered before them became separated from their bodies with a spray of blood that dyed the sand at their feet red.

Unseen by them, the souls of those Alex executed were promptly sucked into his scythe while he also used Regeneration magic to recreate the Devil Fruits any of them had eaten.

Once that was done Alex waved his hand and the bodies, along with their blood, dissolved into dust to quickly do away with them. And only after storing the fruits away did he turn back to look at his children, several of which now looked as if they were about to be sick.

Yes they had fought until now, but almost always against monsters and never to the death against another person. And even if Alec and Ryuuto had killed their own respective opponents, it had been nowhere near as personal and graphic as what Alex just did.

"This is what war means." Alex said while looking down at them with a grim expression, his scythe still in his hand.

"This is nothing like fighting mindless monsters, or other people in a tournament. War simply means the complete destruction or subjugation of the other side through any means necessary. I wanted to wait until you all were older before teaching you this, and introducing you to a real battlefield. But what happened today changed my mind.

"This is not a punishment for what you did, you all already received that. This is a lesson about what war means, and what would be required for those who fight in one. If any of you still wish to help me fight occasionally, then just ask me to do so. BUT, doing so means you follow my instructions to the letter like a soldier."

As Alex trailed off he looked over his children to gauge their reactions to his little speech.

Some, like Edith, Alec, Regal and Ryuuto, had expressions of determination on their faces as if they wanted to prove themselves to their father. On the other hand a couple of them, Mai and Anna, appeared the most affected by the execution they had seen take place. As for the rest of the kids, they appeared confused in what they wanted. That was fine though. Since they all still had plenty of time before deciding on what they wanted.

With their heads full of everything that had happened today, Alex returned them all to Asora and then into the space-time orb to relax and unwind, something ALL of them needed after the day's events.

...

"Haaaaaaaaaa...." Alex sighed in contention as he felt like he was in complete bliss.

On one side he had a naked Hestia snuggled up to him, on the other was an equally naked Hephaestus, with both goddesses keeping Alex plenty warm and comfortable with their shared divinities over fire.

Meanwhile another goddess was busy massaging his shoulders, her fingers infused with divine strength that worked out the knots he didn't even know were there, while Hati and Sköll each worked on one of his feet/legs. Naturally they were all naked as well.

And so were all of the goddesses present, numbering a few hundred easily, all splayed out before Alex in a scene of erotic tranquility while one of them still worked herself up and down his dual cocks. None other than the Great Goddess Gaia herself.

As for how such a scene came to pass, well it all began right after Alex dealt with Ra and Aries.

Hades had explained to them why she and the rest of the gods/goddesses had descended to the mortal realm, namely to investigate what was happening after Alex stripped Demeter of her divine power, and then why the statues of all the gods/goddesses shattered shortly after when he returned the divine power to all who had descended.

After hearing her story, Loki readily led a group of goddesses back to the divine realm with Alex's Skeleton Key, a group consisting of herself, Hades, Hestia, and a few key others. Once there, she revealed Alex's existence and the influence he was having on their world.

Naturally a number of gods and goddesses raged at how he was an abomination to the natural order, mostly because she was from 'outside' their realm, and that he needed to be destroyed as soon as possible. That was when Loki revealed her secret weapon, Hestia.

The moment it was revealed that Hestia was pregnant, half of the divine realm quickly tempered their desire to destroy Alex, and soon after began to support him. Naturally, that half was the goddesses.

The reason was quite simple, as each and every goddess had desired at least once to be able to bear children, and they had just learned that this newly arrived Dragon Emperor was capable of giving them just that. With the goddesses representing Alex's side taking divine oaths that he meant them no ill will, it wasn't too hard for Loki to sway them to her side.

The result was half of the divine realm wanting to destroy Alex, while the other half wanted him to breed them. The result, which Loki admitted was slightly disappointing to her desire for mischief and chaos, was a truce since the alternative was civil war, which would tear both the mortal and divine world to pieces. And that was WITHOUT Alex getting involved.

And so now Alex had several hundred goddesses that were eager to please him for the privilege to be impregnated by him, something he readily agreed to if they would agree to some terms.

The first was that Alex would NOT permit them to take his children from him, while the goddesses themselves would have to remain faithful to him for the foreseeable future, namely until he impregnated them, and until their children were grown. Finally was that they would have to wait until he was ready to impregnate them, due to the fact that he had a large number of children that had already been born recently, or were on the way.

All three of these conditions were easily acceptable to the goddesses if they could get a child out of it, the first two due to Alex's own prowess, and the final one due to the fact that they had each lived for millennia, if not hundreds of millennia already. A few more years, if not decades, of waiting was nothing to them.

Alex was even attracting goddesses that would normally NEVER sleep with him, such as Danmachi Athena and even Hera.

The former had sworn off men primarily due to the fact that she could not conceive a child, as she did not see the point of engaging in carnal pleasure for the sake of pleasure itself. It was too much of a pointless distraction from her books and studies to be logical.

The latter meanwhile had JUMPED at the chance to be free of her union with Zeus.

The only reason Hera had married Zeus was because her divinity demanded it after he had ravished her against her will. And then because of it, she was also forced to remain faithful to him for the past several hundred millennia, even as Zeus himself regularly had his way with any number of goddesses and mortals, all while barely giving her any attention.

But Hera's divinity forced her to remain the ever faithful and devoted wife, so that was what she was. Now however she had a chance to be freed, and she readily leapt at it.

It had been easy enough for Alex to find a way to void Hera's divine obligation to Zeus, namely by shattering and then consuming the god's soul. As a widow, Hera was free to marry whoever she so chose afterwards.

But before accepting her, Alex made the goddess make a divine oath to NEVER hurt ANY of his wives, lovers, or children due to his philandering, as she was most famous for in the ancient Greek myths.

Surprisingly, Hera readily agreed to this so long as Alex didn't just push her to the side and ignore her when he was done with her, which he too readily promised. He may not always be available for everyone, but Alex actively made an effort to tend to every single one of his wives, lovers and children when he was able.

So here Hera was now, massaging his shoulders while he snuggled with Hestia and Hephaestus, and Gaia consumed his cocks with her lower holes. Even if he tried, Alex seriously doubted he could be any more content than he was now.

But even as his body and mind relaxed, Alex was still thinking in the back of his mind.

Thanks to the quest, he received the ability to travel to any of the girls that were connected to the Chatroom, even without his ability to transfer worlds being ready. Now the question remained, who to go see first?