Chapter 131: A King’s Blueprint: Foundations of Wano’s Dominion

“From here on out, the five great clans will take the lead, but I’ll be the one at the top.”

Karl paused, then continued.

“I’ll provide you with enough food and wealth, but you’ll have to work for it.”

“I don’t like freeloaders.”

Karl had simply brought over a set of policies straight from Blue Star.

“We’ll establish hospitals, schools, transportation and more…”

If Karl really wanted to bring Wano under his rule, he’d have to leave his mark on it from the ground up.

Healthcare, education, the economy and manufacturing—all of it would be under his control. He wanted to become the true master of Wano.

With these measures in place, give it a generation or two and Wano would be his for real.

“Each of your families will be responsible for a territory. And I’m leaving Krell here as well.”

Still, no one could say for sure what schemes these people might be cooking up in their hearts.

So to play it safe, he needed some safeguards.

Karl’s gaze shifted to Krell.

Right now, only Krell could set all this up without a hitch—plus, he could keep an eye on everyone.

“Understood, Lord Karl.”

Krell readily agreed.

He understood the heavy responsibility he was about to take on. Wano was a whole different beast compared to Cake Island.

Cake Island was just an uninhabited island, open for development however he pleased.

But in Wano, he’d have to juggle the interests of all the families.

If it came down to it, he could even turn them against each other and break them apart from the inside.

As long as they never formed a united front, they’d never make his rule over Wano difficult.

Karl quickly finished delegating tasks and everyone began preparing for the big feast that night.

No one expected things to go so smoothly.

Then again, with Karl’s power, he was in a whole different league from Kaido.

Most of them weren’t happy about it, but one look at the ruined mountain far off—proof of his strength—and they all backed down.

He knew full well the clans didn’t have absolute loyalty in their hearts.

They’d think of rebelling at any moment, but as long as they didn’t act right away—

He was sure that, given time, Wano would become his without them even realizing.

“Hey, big guy.”

“How about a little sparring?”

Kozuki Oden sounded a little disgruntled as he glanced at Notty standing beside him.

He hadn’t inherited the Kozuki family title yet, but that didn’t mean he wasn’t upset.

It was like something that should’ve been yours getting taken by someone else at the last second.

Notty had been in charge of defending Cake Island, but they swapped every three months.

Now, Fields had taken his place, so Notty was out at sea for this trip too.

“Heh heh!”

“You sure about that?”

Notty bent down to look at the much shorter Oden, chuckling softly.

He really didn’t think this young man was on his level.

And with good reason—Notty stood a towering four-point-two meters tall, while Oden was only two meters.

There was literally more than half a person’s difference between them.

“Hey, big guy. Strength isn’t all about height, you know.”

Oden bristled with defiance, irritated that someone would judge him just for being shorter.

He’d still grow taller in time.

Besides, two meters was already remarkable in Wano—he was far from short here.

“Alright, I’ll stretch my muscles a bit.”

Notty saw the crowd growing as people set up for the feast. With nothing to do, he decided he might as well entertain himself with the little guy.

He gestured toward a deep pit nearby.

“Let’s go!”

Oden strode off in big steps toward the spot.

He wanted to teach this guy a lesson—show them Wano’s people weren’t so easily pushed around.

Notty scratched his head with a silly grin and followed right after.

“Alright, here I come!”

Oden was the first to step into the pit.

He could still feel the faint traces of lightning in the air, and that just steeled his resolve.

He knew he wasn’t a match for that person now.

But he believed that one day, he’d beat that person and win back Wano.

“Bring it on!”

Notty took up the stance for Eight-Level Fist.

“Oden Two-Sword Style—Samurai Soul!”

Oden clenched his teeth, both hands gripping Enma and Ame no Habakiri as he unleashed his Flowing Sakura Haki.

Crossing his swords, he blasted forward at Notty.

“Straight Punch—Heartbreaker Elbow!”

Notty felt Oden’s pressure and broke into a wide grin.

He hadn’t expected this young man to be so formidable.

He blocked the slash with his right hand, clad in Armament Haki, then shot his elbow through the blades and landed it on Oden’s chest.

“Wham!”

“Sshhh!”

Oden was still young; his attacks weren’t enough to threaten a powerhouse like Notty.

He was sent flying back dozens of meters, crashing into a protruding rock.

Oden sat up and rubbed his left chest.

“I’m not done yet!”

Of course, Notty wasn’t the type to stop after just one hit.

He charged with blinding speed, throwing his powerful fist straight at Oden.

“Clang! Clang! Clang!”

Oden leaped up and retaliated, and the two began trading blows at lightning speed.

“Hey, hey, hey!”

“Isn’t that kid from the Kozuki family?”

“Yeah, that’s Kozuki Oden. I heard he threw his own mother out of bed right after he was born.”

“He’s freakishly strong. Definitely born a monster.”

Before long, a crowd packed the edge of the pit, everyone tossing out their comments as they watched.

“Who’d have thought even one of his men could beat someone like Oden?”

“Looks like we’ll need a new plan…”

Kozuki Sukiyaki wasn’t an ordinary man either.

Notty wasn’t the only powerhouse—Karl had a whole dozen of them.

And according to Kaze Tsuki Yaya’s intel, Karl only brought a small fraction of his strength this time.

The Shimotsuki Clan’s leader nodded grimly beside him.

They all knew it’d be anything but easy to take Wano back.

“Lord Karl, we’ve found it.”

As the others crowded in to watch, a Fishman hurried over to Karl.

After a thorough search, the Fishmen had located a Seastone mining site.

“I don’t need to tell you how valuable Seastone is. I won’t tolerate anyone else touching that place.”

Karl’s eyes darkened, the atmosphere turning heavy.

With Wano’s Seastone, he could rake in a fortune.

He could even use this as leverage with the World Government, as a bargaining chip after God Valley.

“Understood, Lord Karl.”

The Fishman took the order and left immediately, racing off to report to Rabi Well, the Seastone mining site.

Meanwhile, the Fishmen at Rabi Well surrounded the area, letting people in but not out.

“Looks like I’ll have to take care of this myself.”

Karl stroked his chin, his eyes as dark as polished stone.