Chapter 188: Karl’s Secret Departure

After breakfast, Karl made his way to the conference room and waited quietly for Krell to arrive.

“You called for me, Sir Karl?” Krell strode in from the doorway and stopped right in front of Karl.

“Ah, Krell, you’re here,” Karl said, motioning him over with his right hand.

Krell looked a bit lost—after all, Karl’s demeanor had changed dramatically just since yesterday.

What Krell didn’t know was that Karl was still pumped about kicking open the North Blue Kindergarten yesterday.

“All these years as my head steward—has it ever been too much for you?”

Krell’s face turned anxious, thinking someone must have complained about him to Karl.

Who dared talk badly about him behind his back?

“Not at all.”

“Since joining your ranks, Sir Karl, I can honestly say I’ve become something of a hero to the Fishmen.” Krell looked proud but kept his humility in check.

He knew every accomplishment he had was thanks to Karl’s support.

Without Karl, he would’ve still been a nameless foot soldier, never bringing such sweeping change to the Fishmen as a whole.

They’d escaped being hunted and sold as chattel, and now, for many Fishmen, life in the sunlight was finally a reality—a real fish’s life.

He might’ve been a bridge for all this, but Karl’s accomplishment was irreplaceable.

“Everything going well with the Fishmen lately?” Karl asked, still gentle in his tone.

Now that the subject was open, he wanted an update on how things had changed for the Fishmen on the island over the years.

From the very start, the Fishmen had been the backbone of his biggest achievements. Without their relentless work he could never have gathered enough wealth to build up all 56 islands in the Sweets Sea so quickly.

His own two hundred billion in funds barely stretched across those islands, not to mention all the money he poured into intelligence, relationship networks and research, plus day-to-day costs.

If not for the Fishmen, his financial chain would’ve snapped years ago.

Thankfully, now every one of the other fifty-five islands had its own bustling economy, each acting like a treasure trove, bringing in huge revenue and finally putting things on the right track.

But with that came a new problem—a lot of Fishmen found themselves with nothing to do.

Karl had come from Blue Star; he knew all too well that if too many people lazed around, it never ended well for society.

So he had to find new paths for the idle hands.

“Sir Karl, currently there are 2.45 million Fishmen living in the Sweets Sea,” Krell reported.

He pulled a little notebook from his pocket and started reading off numbers.

“Of those, 800,000 have been organized into eight Fishmen Corps of 100,000 each, stationed in all eight sectors of the Sweets Sea.”

“Another 1.5 million elderly, women and children have joined the factories on the other islands.”

“And I’ve sent about 150,000 Fishmen elsewhere.” With that he slid the notebook over for Karl to see.

“They’re responsible for keeping tabs on the Four Seas, searching for Thunder Island and other reconnaissance missions.”

With that, Krell rested his hands on his hips and waited quietly for Karl’s reaction.

Karl picked up the notebook and studied it closely. He was surprised to find Krell managed everything so meticulously.

It made sense—Fishmen were ten times stronger than any ordinary human. Having them work in factories was a perfect fit. Instead of letting the rest lounge around the Sweets Sea, Krell had sent them out across the islands, neatly sidestepping the trouble too many idle folks might cause.

After all, there were now millions of regular humans on those fifty-five other islands, and Karl didn’t want tensions growing between them and the Fishmen that could spark chaos.

He’d seen that happen with Arlong in the original Cocoyasi Village—this way, at least, the risk stayed at a minimum.

“You’ve done great,” Karl nodded, closing the notebook and handing it back to Krell.

“Next, help me arrange a ship—nothing too big.”

“Sir Karl, are you headed somewhere?”

“Should I send someone to accompany you?” Krell asked, a note of worry in his voice.

After all, word that Karl was alive hadn’t yet gotten out.

If the Five Elders or the Navy caught wind, Karl’s life wouldn’t be safe.

Even though Krell hadn’t seen the battle at God Valley himself, it was clear the hundreds of light beams from the sky weren’t the Navy’s doing.

After that bombardment, even fighters like the Golden Lion and Newgate, who weren’t as powerful, managed to escape the battlefield unharmed.

But the two strongest—Rocks and Karl—nobody knew if they were alive or dead. It was obvious that attack was meant for them.

Krell’s face said he was anxious about it, but Karl just waved it off like it was nothing.

“Watch closely,” Karl said.

He fiddled with his face for a moment—and in a flash, his features changed entirely.

His Disguise Technique had reached a level where he could change his look at will.

Lucky for him, the Navy and World Government didn’t bother with fingerprint checks or high-tech facial scans. As for height, Bone-Shrinking Art fixed that problem too.

“Wh—what…?” Krell was speechless. It was his first time seeing Karl’s Disguise Technique in action.

“Then I can relax,” Krell said, bowing a little. “Sir, are you really going alone or…”

Karl saw Krell’s hesitation and replied directly, “What are you thinking? Of course I’m going alone. Now go get things ready.”

He was going incognito this time—if he brought along anyone else, wouldn’t that just make exposure all the more likely? He wasn’t about to make such a rookie mistake.

“Right away, Sir Karl.” Krell bowed again and left.

Just as Krell stepped out, footsteps echoed from the hallway.

“Ma-ma-ma-ma!”

“Karl, heading out again, are you?”

Karl turned and saw Linlin waddling out, belly round with pregnancy.

He jumped up from the couch and hurried to her side, steadying her as she sat back down.

“You’re pregnant—try not to walk around so much.”

Karl looked anxious but Linlin just waved his concern away.

“That’s nothing! When I was pregnant before, didn’t I still join the battle at God Valley?”

She wasn’t wrong—Linlin’s Iron Balloon talent really was something else.

Even expecting a child, her presence hadn’t lost an ounce of its force.

This was Karl and Linlin’s fifth child together, and she carried three more lives in her belly.

“So you still haven’t told me—what are you planning this voyage for?” Linlin asked, turning to look at Karl.

Wasn’t there nothing left for them to handle personally?

With powerhouses in every direction, did he really have to go out himself?

Not counting Ledfield, even Davis, Notty, and Fields had all reached vice admiral level.

Across the New World now, aside from the Golden Lion and Newgate, there weren’t any factions left who could even hope to challenge their family.

They really were like another Rocks crew in miniature—just younger. Once their kids grew up, they might be even stronger than Rocks at his peak.