One Piece: Marine's Justice

"Damn it, Cross! Tell me now, what exactly is wrong with Amber Lead!?"

Zephyr's face darkened instantly, his voice sharp with urgency. "Amber Lead products have buyers all over the world! If there really is something wrong with it, then you know what that means, it would be a catastrophe of global proportions!"

This wasn't just some exaggeration. Amber Lead products truly had worldwide demand. Even within the Marines, there were many who loved Amber Lead items, some even paid a premium for high-grade goods.

Especially popular were cosmetics and sweeteners made from Amber Lead, one applied directly to the face, the other consumed straight into the body. If there was really a problem...

Then this wasn't just a problem. It was a crisis.

"Zephyr-sensei," Cross said solemnly, "as long as no one comes into contact with the refined Amber Lead ore, the products made from it usually don't cause serious issues."

"But," he continued gravely, "for those who apply Amber Lead cosmetics or ingest food made with it, there's still a very high risk of something going wrong."

"So you're saying... the mined ore itself is the problem?" Zephyr frowned deeply.

Cross sat up on the bed and shook his head with a sigh. "Zephyr-sensei, have you ever wondered why the people of the Flevance Kingdom have such unusually pale skin? It's not vitiligo."

"Be specific," Zephyr snapped, brow furrowed.

"To be specific..." Cross's expression turned grim, his voice low. "Amber Lead ore is toxic. Once mined, it begins releasing poisonous elements, which then accumulate in the bodies of those who come into contact with it."

"The white patches on the people of Flevance? That's due to a condition called Amber Lead Syndrome."

"It's a chronic case of heavy metal poisoning caused by prolonged exposure to refined Amber Lead ore. The toxins slowly build up, whitening the skin and eventually becoming hereditary, passed on to the next generation."

"These inherited toxins shorten lifespans, causing greater suffering with each generation. Eventually, children will be born already afflicted, doomed to suffer from a young age and die in agony, their skin and hair turning ghostly white before the end."

"No... that can't be true!"

Zephyr's eyes went wide, his voice rising in disbelief. "I remember clearly, the World Government conducted a geological survey in Flevance! There shouldn't be anything wrong with Amber Lead!"

"The World Government?"

Cross let out a cold, mocking laugh. "Even Flevance's royal family sold out their own people for money. Why would the World Government care more than they did?"

"But... the Amber Lead industry has existed for over a century! There haven't been any disasters before!" Zephyr still resisted the truth, or perhaps, refused to believe it.

How could a royal family be so foolish, so heartless, as to sacrifice their entire nation for profit?

"Yes, the industry started about a hundred years ago," Cross said, locking eyes with Zephyr. "At first, people died in their seventies. Then fifties. Then thirties... Three to five generations is all it takes to reach the point where children die before they even reach adulthood."

"One hundred years... is long enough for those generations to be born. Tell me, Sensei, how much longer do you think Flevance can last?"

Zephyr's pupils dilated, his entire body jolting as though struck by lightning.

He didn't doubt Cross's words. This was something that could easily be verified.

Just a simple test on the ore would confirm whether it was toxic or not.

A cold dread gripped Zephyr from head to toe. His limbs went numb, his knees threatened to buckle.

"No... no... this can't be happening..." he muttered, pale as a corpse.

Suddenly, he lunged forward and grabbed Cross by the shoulders, face twisted in anguish. "Tell me there's a cure for Amber Lead Syndrome! There has to be a cure!"

"Calm down, Sensei," Cross said quietly, sighing. "Flevance is rich, and they have excellent doctors. If there were a cure, don't you think they would've found it by now?"

Zephyr's grip loosened. He staggered back a few steps and leaned against a wooden pillar, utterly shaken.

Cross looked at him with a pained expression. He knew Zephyr's heart.

A former Admiral known for his principle of "no killing," who spared even the worst pirates, how could he bear to witness the extinction of an entire country?

Especially when it was all due to something so preventable as Amber Lead Syndrome.

And what made it worse, the royal family of Flevance. Greedy beyond measure, they chose to profit while their people died off one by one.

If only they had exposed the truth earlier, Flevance might have had a chance.

The ones who condemned Flevance to hell weren't outsiders, not even the World Government, it was the nation's own rulers.

Because from the World Government's perspective: If the royals don't care about their people, why should we?

"No," Zephyr suddenly growled, a glint of determination flashing in his eyes. "We need to expose the truth about the Amber Lead ore now! If we can stop the mining and gather the world's top doctors, we might still save some of them!"

"Sensei, it's not that simple," Cross said, shaking his head. "The profits from Amber Lead are astronomical. The Flevance royals won't give that up. They've probably already decided to abandon their country if it comes to it."

"Worse still, once news of a mass outbreak hits, the neighboring nations will panic. They'll assume Amber Lead Syndrome is contagious, not heavy metal poisoning. Unless the World Government publicly declares Amber Lead to be toxic, Flevance will be seen as a plague zone."

"But the World Government covered it up before. Why would they admit it now?"

Zephyr understood.

The island where Flevance is located is one of the largest in the North Blue. It's home to more than just the Flevance Kingdom, there are other nations as well.

If they start to believe that Amber Lead Syndrome is an infectious disease, they'll unite to quarantine the entire region.

They'll seal their borders, deny entry to Flevance's citizens, even those seeking treatment.

And when that happens, the people of Flevance won't go quietly.

Flevance isn't lacking in weapons or ammunition, thanks to the Amber Lead trade. War would be inevitable.

But a nation ravaged by disease is no match for the combined strength of multiple neighboring countries.

Its destruction would be certain, and irreversible.

-------

Want to read ahead of schedule? Head over to my Patreon ——— patreon(.)com/JuanPiece [remove the parenthesis ( )]

There are 100+ advance chapters available for you to read!