One Piece: Failure’s Road to the Pirate King

Sage is not a good person, and he never has been.

It is well known that good people find it hard to survive in this vast sea; even if they gain temporary fame, they are often dragged down by it in the end.

From the Navy to the Pirates, it has never been defined by good or bad.

Moreover, Sage is a man who dreams of becoming a great landlord; he is inherently incapable of being that kind of overly kind person.

"Don't confuse the issue here. While I'm still in a good mood, tell me where the king is, or else..."

Sage pulled out his flintlock pistol, revealing a sinister smile: "Although I'm not interested in the poor, that doesn't mean you can deceive me at will, understand?"

Marika completely ignored the dark muzzle pointed at her, glanced at the people around her who were already showing signs of indignation, and smiled, "Although we don't have gold or silver treasures, when it comes to treasures, we do have some."

She turned and walked back, and the crowd automatically parted as Marika moved, revealing what was left on the shallow beach that had not yet been submerged by the sea.

It was a pile of objects made of stones and shells, with a stone water tank that rocked violently as the storm poured down.

Around the stone tank, there was a huge bone of unknown origin, serving as a shelter from the rain. Beneath the bone, there was a fire pit, with natural shells set up like a pot.

"Although the Shallow Sand Kingdom is marked on the nautical charts, it is a barren place; we have nothing but sand. The people here even rely on sand for their shelter."

"But there isn't enough space, and there are no safe places to live, so we build our homes in the areas exposed at low tide, but once the tide comes in, we have to scramble for safety."

She stepped into the bone structure, took out two flint stones, and struck them into the fire pit, igniting it.

The fire pit seemed to contain some garbage, which Sage often saw on the shallow beach, discarded by nearby merchant ships; it appeared to have been collected.

Marika picked up the shell pot, extended it outside the bone structure, filled it with rainwater, and then placed it back on the fire pit, waiting for the water to boil while pulling out a shell knife and looking at the crowd.

"Lady Marika!"

A commoner rushed over with a net, saying, "This is today's catch!"

Several other fishermen also dragged their nets over, filled with fish, shrimp, and shellfish, making Sage's eyes twitch.

He had also worked in the fishing industry; while fishing and catching fish were closely related, there was still a difference.

Fishing is about catching big fish, while catching fish means taking whatever you can get.

After failing on his path to becoming the king of fishing, Sage had considered becoming the king of catching fish. Although he failed, he did gain some experience.

The tides naturally bring these seafood, but if you can scoop up a full net during high tide, it has nothing to do with skill; it's purely luck.

In terms of skill, Sage had reached perfection!

In terms of luck, he had also reached perfection—just in the direction of bad luck.

Throwing out a net, not to mention fish, he couldn't even catch edible shellfish! He knew very well the value of this full haul.

"But even in such a place, we have our unique way of survival."

Marika took out a small knife made of shell, lifted a net, and almost in a flash, the shell knife became a blur, stripping the shrimp, crabs, and shellfish from it.

As she stripped them, her body twirled like a flower, extending her hand outside the bone structure, using the rainwater from the storm to quickly wash the meat clean, tossing it into the shell pot. Some shells were thrown into the fire pit, while others were burned.

"Sea creatures have their own salinity, so there's no need to add salt; shellfish are very fresh and don't require any seasoning, making a pot of fresh soup. The yellow from the shrimp and crabs can be used in moderation to enhance the flavor, and the tenderness of the fish itself can also add to the taste. Crushing the fish bones can even add nutrition."

She picked up a fish, scraped off its scales with the shell knife, then placed it on a stone, using another stone to smash it to bits. Her hands danced in the mushy fish, squeezing out one meatball after another, forming a parabolic arc, accurately dropping them into the shell pot.

As the fish balls fell into the already boiling water, it bubbled up even more.

She took a shell equal in size to the shell pot and covered it, smiling at the crowd: "Please wait a moment."

In about ten minutes, puffs of white smoke emerged from the gaps in the shell, releasing an enticing aroma. The people around began to swallow hard, some even drooling.

Even Lily, who had just finished eating, was now sniffing the air, staring intently at the shell pot.

Until Marika lifted the shell lid, revealing that the water in the large pot had turned completely milky white. Marika took a small shell bowl, scooped a bowl from the pot, and handed it to Sage.

"This is our 'treasure,' the Jewel Crown Soup; please have a taste."

The soup in the shell bowl was white, like milk, contrasting with the colorful shell bowl, and the fish balls inside looked like adorned jewels, while the shells and crab shells formed the structure of a crown. Overall, it truly resembled a beautiful 'crown.'

Sage instinctively took it, and after sipping a mouthful, he raised his eyebrows and exclaimed, "Hmm! Delicious!!"

It was indeed very tasty, so fresh that his eyebrows almost fell off.

"Delicious!"

Lily, who took the second bowl, only needed one sip to have her eyes light up. She didn't care about chopsticks, directly drinking the soup from the shell, even crunching the shells.

"So warm!" Lily looked at Marika with completely changed eyes, seriously saying, "You're amazing!"

"Thank you for the compliment." Marika smiled and bowed slightly, then said to the others, "Everyone, please line up; there is enough soup in the pot for everyone."

As soon as she finished speaking, the eager people quickly took out their shell bowls and formed a line, scooping out bowl after bowl. Just one sip brought forth expressions of happiness and satisfaction.

Even though the bone structure was not large enough to shelter so many people, and some were still exposed to the rain, at that moment, drinking the soup brought forth expressions that made one instinctively feel warm.

With a gentle smile, Marika said, "On rainy days, drinking a bowl of warm soup can soothe our cold bodies. Captain, please let your crew have a bowl as well."

Sage squinted slightly, looking at Marika for a moment, then waved his hand to Akin.

Akin immediately understood, leading a dozen pirates to join the line.

The aroma was tempting them.

However, since the captain hadn't spoken yet, and the chief was still watching, they didn't dare to move.

"Impressive."

Sage said lightly, "How could someone like you be in such a rundown place?"

This culinary skill could be described as turning decay into wonder; clearly, there were no seasonings, relying solely on the things from the sea, combined with the rainwater brought by the storm, yet it created such a delicious soup.

Sage had once wanted to become the king of chefs. But this time, it wasn't bad luck; it was simply that he wasn't good at cooking. He could make simple dishes, but creating gourmet food under such rudimentary conditions was beyond him.

There were so many foods in the sea, but they couldn't just be randomly mixed. If one aspect was too dominant, the entire flavor would change; at that point, it wouldn't just be unappetizing, it might even spoil.

A person like this, combined with the admiration and affection of these commoners, truly made her a queen.

Marika glanced at the people in line and slowly spoke, "We are the abandoned ones, with nowhere to go, trapped here, waiting for fate to arrive."

"Lady Marika!"

Suddenly, a commoner drinking soup shouted, his shell falling from his hand as he stared blankly at the northern beach, where a group of figures was approaching.

"They're coming!"

Marika tightened her grip on the shell knife, her expression growing serious, "Fate."