"Mmh…"

Kiernan, after sleeping for eight hours, arrived at the yard and stretched his arms above his head.

"Master!"

Lumian, Cleo, Jock, Shiro, and the other students greeted him with smiles on their faces.

"…How are you doing?"

Aoi hugged him from behind and asked softly.

"Good… How's the training going?"

Kiernan sat on the table, took out a radio, and changed its channels leisurely until he found the news channel.

"I believe I have mastered the Iron Style stance."

Shiro said with a confident expression.

"…You did, huh?"

Kiernan crossed his arms and motioned for him to show.

Shiro took the stance. It looked perfect. Other students also admired the stance, as he was doing it better than them.

Lumian felt slightly self-conscious, as Shiro was already better in the stance than he was despite not being in the dojo for long.

Shiro had done nothing except train the stance, as he wanted to master the basics of Iron Style before going into more advanced stuff.

"It looks like you can start learning the basic techniques now. Your foundation is already strong, so I will give you a few techniques to start with shortly."

Kiernan said.

"Yes, master."

Shiro bowed.

"And… Lumian, Cleo, and Jock… You are still only white-ranked, but I believe the three of you can do the test for yellow rank."

He said.

"R-Really?"

Cleo said in pleasant surprise.

Lumian and Jock nodded, as they were very much ready to leave the white rank behind.

It also meant that Kiernan was already approving their improvement, which made them happy, as being stuck in white rank meant that they weren't improving.

They could tell that they were much better in Iron Style than a day ago, but Iron Style was such a deep style that it still felt like they hadn't learned much.

In that moment, Kiernan heard the static sound coming from the radio, and the voice of a news reporter began playing out.

'There should be some news regarding the prison break. I do want to know the aftermath.'

Kiernan thought and started listening.

With crossed arms, Aoi looked at him and thought about asking him about the prison break but decided against it.

"…We have breaking news!"

"…After last night's shocking battle over in the Downed Prison and the death of the Pirate Emperors, the navy didn't waste any time!"

"…They did a raid on Pirate Kingdom, and a massive battle ensued between the navy and the remaining pirates."

"…There are reports of close to twenty thousand pirate casualties, and about five hundred pirates were captured."

In the stone yard, when the students heard the radio, they all stopped their training and gathered around the table.

"…Navy also found about ten thousand slaves—most of them are victims of kidnappings that have been happening all around the World Seas for decades now."

"…They have been now saved, and the navy is busy at work clearing out the rest of the pirate territories."

"…From now on, the Age of the Pirates has ended!"

The news reporter sounded happy.

With bright smiles, Cleo, Lumian, and Jock celebrated with each other, as it was the best news they'd heard in a very long time.

It was a historic day, as the pirates have been terrorizing these waters for centuries, and just like this, they were all gone!

'A butterfly effect. I had thought about going back to Pirate Kingdom one day to get rid of them, but I guess I didn't have to do that myself after all.

'They were still eliminated because of me.'

Kiernan thought with a smile.

It was really good news for everyone in the world, but the elimination of pirates also left a massive void in the sea.

The navy was now obviously the most dominant force on the ocean.

…

Pankratios Cave, somewhere in the world.

"…"

Julian listened to the same broadcast on the radio, and even though he was happy, there was sourness in his mouth.

"…The navy, and its newly elected Fleet Admiral Ethan Blackforest, have succeeded in something that many believed to be impossible!"

"…Could it be that Ethan Blackforest, in his first act as Fleet Admiral, already passed the former Fleet Admiral Xerxus Stroud in both leadership and achievement?"

Julian almost smashed the radio to bits, and rage kept building up inside his heart.

He hated that Ethan was being hailed as a hero because he really didn't do anything. It was Martial Order, and yet they didn't get any recognition.

"I sense great anger from you."

Pankratios said from over the stone table.

He was enjoying his dinner that included a scrumptious roast duck, some buttered potatoes, and a glass of fine wine.

"Are you not angry that Ethan is taking the credit for your work?"

Julian asked.

"No, why would I be?"

Pankratios asked nonchalantly.

"…I should've never been behind those bars. It should've been Ethan. He is nothing but a killer of innocents."

Julian said.

"…And what do you plan on doing about that?"

Pankratios asked.

"I will get revenge for my family."

Julian said.

"You will fail like you did before, and this time around, you will either die or get sent back to the Downed Prison, which will be an even stronger version of its predecessor.

"And that time around, I will forbid Kiernan from helping you, as I won't have him ruin his life for you."

Pankratios said, and enjoyed the roast duck.

"Next time, I won't fail."

Julian said.

"Catch."

In that moment, Pankratios threw a potato at Julian, who missed the catch, and it hit him square in the forehead.

"If you cannot even catch a simple potato, how can you kill the Fleet Admiral of the Navy?"

Pankratios asked with a smile.

"…I even lost to a potato."

Julian lowered his head.

"Follow me."

Pankratios rose to his feet and started walking towards the door that led out of the cave.

It was first time Julian had given permission to leave this cave, and it was something that even Kiernan hadn't been allowed to do.

"Go where?"

Julian asked.

"You're a fool, but you have potential. It's not like we have anything else to do, so I will be teaching you the art of Martial Arts."

Pankratios said.

"…You will teach me?"

Julian asked in surprise.

"I will teach you how to kill the Fleet Admiral of the Navy."

Pankratios said with a smile.

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