"Captain Rocks, your blueprint for a 'paradise' sounds grand."
Charlotte Linlin couldn't help but speak up.
"But a paradise built only on conquest and plunder stands on shifting sand.
The criminals of Hachinosu Island gather for profit, and they'll scatter for it too. The moment you can't offer more, your so-called paradise will turn into a new Shura field in the blink of an eye."
Shiki and the others glanced at her in mild surprise; they hadn't expected such insight, as if they were only now seeing what sort of person Charlotte Linlin truly was.
Rocks frowned and looked at her.
"Linlin, what do you mean? Power naturally brings dominion!"
"Power can destroy the old Order, but it doesn't necessarily build a new one," Charlotte Linlin replied calmly.
She turned to Harald: "King Harald, the path of equality you seek is noble. But as Rocks says, the World Government won't surrender it easily.
Without enough strength to protect it, a beautiful ideal is a warrior marching to war without armor—only to be butchered."
Her words were merely her own clear-eyed reminder to two men of unshakable will; whether they heeded her, Charlotte Linlin cared not at all.
Her remarks were like cold water thrown into boiling oil, turning the already tense atmosphere even more delicate.
The wild grin on Rocks's face faded, replaced by the instinctive displeasure of a man questioned.
Harald's gaze deepened as he studied Charlotte Linlin, plainly startled that among Rocks's crew someone could speak with such realism and foresight.
"Linlin," Rocks's voice dropped, carrying a warning note,
"Power is the greatest Order! When I stand at the summit, I'll write the rules! Hachinosu Island proves it—those criminals obey my fist!"
"Obedience isn't loyalty, Captain," Charlotte Linlin met his stare without flinching, still calm.
"Fear can maintain Order for a time, but it can't breed a true 'paradise.' If you want a New World that surpasses the World Government, perhaps… you need a stronger bond."
She let the word hang, refusing to specify whether that bond was family, shared ideals, or a more practical community of interest—leaving Rocks to ponder it himself.
"A stronger bond?" Rocks snorted, plainly scornful.
"On these seas, sheer power and plenty of profit are the strongest bonds there are!
Harald, look—even my officers have more 'vision' than Charlotte Linlin here!"
Rocks tried to wrench the topic back and press the giant king once more.
Harald slowly shook his head, huge fingers stroking the arm-rest of his throne.
"This… Lady Charlotte Linlin is not without reason. Rocks, your road is strewn with ruin and uncertainty; I cannot stake Elbaf's future on your 'fist.'
The path I choose may seem naïve to you, but it is grounded in Elbaf's history and present. We seek steady survival and growth, not a reckless wager."
"Steady? Hiding atop this great tree, waiting for the World Government to toss you scraps of autonomy whenever it feels generous?" Rocks's patience thinned, his tone turning razor-sharp.
"At least we avoid needless sacrifice!" Harald's voice rose to a kingly boom.
"Rather than dragging countless lives into war to sate one man's ambition!"
"Personal ambition? I'm smashing the damned rule of the Celestial Dragons!"
"And after your smashing? Deeper chaos!"
"Better than this lifeless status quo!"
"That's merely your wishful thinking!"
Talk flared into a fierce quarrel, neither side yielding.
Rocks's wild tyranny and Harald's stubborn defense clashed like fire and water.
Charlotte Linlin, watching, knew the debate had long since left behind recruitment and become a pure collision of ideals and temperaments—destined to go nowhere.
The hall's atmosphere grew so heavy that other giants and pirate officers held their breath, afraid to interject.
Shiki grinned as if enjoying the spectacle; Newgate frowned and gulped wine, bored by the pointless shouting.
Seeing this, Charlotte Linlin realized that staying longer would only waste time.
Rocks could not sway Harald, and Harald's ideals were unshakable.
Both were Trailblazers; unlike her, they lacked the lessons of a past life's national history to see the flaws in their dreams.
Unless they truly met the limits of their paths, they would never notice the shortcomings of their ideals.
Recalling her purpose here, she decided it was time to leave.
So Charlotte Linlin rose slowly. The movement was not abrupt, yet amid the fierce stand-off it drew every eye.
Ignoring their stares, she said,
"It seems your visions of the 'future' are as far apart as Elbaf and the Red Line.
Debate for three days and nights more would still bring no accord."
She lifted an untouched giant sweet beside her and took an elegant bite.
"Captain Rocks, King Harald,"
her gaze swept over them both,
"thank you for Elbaf's hospitality; these delicious sweets are unforgettable. I'm weary; I'll take my leave and not disturb your… further discussion."
Rocks glanced at her, his eyes complicated, as if to speak, but only grunted and turned back to Harald.
Harald inclined his head slightly in farewell.
Charlotte Linlin departed without another word, walking steadily under the stares of the crowd toward the grand exit of the banquet hall.
Behind her she left the quarrel, the clash of ambition and idealism, and the mingled aromas of roast meat and wine.
Outside, the cold night air of Elbaf braced her; through the canopy of the great tree the star-filled sky seemed close enough to touch.
When ideals diverge, paths part; Rocks's ship was only a temporary haven.
Her hand on the hilt of her nodachi, Charlotte Linlin's thoughts surged.
Mei's quest was to find three comrades, Raiden's to build a nation, and Huangquan's, as ever, was simply: keep walking.
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