The Royal Palace Highlands.
With the Red Hair Pirates joining the banquet, there was no awkward silence; instead, it was filled with laughter and merriment.
The Red Hair Pirates.
Strictly speaking, they were the first and only pirate crew Kong Tai had encountered since setting sail that could be considered an adventuring party.
Although the Red Hair Pirates had territory in the New World and subordinate pirate crews, they never stayed in one place for long and had no fixed base.
They went wherever they pleased, be it the Four Seas, Paradise, or the New World.
If one were to talk about a pirate crew that truly upheld the ideal of sailing for freedom and was the freest in the world, it was undoubtedly them.
Thus, the two groups got along exceptionally well, though it was generally the Red Hair Pirates doing the talking and Kong Tai's crew listening.
After all, the Red Hair Pirates, while the youngest among the Four Emperors, had been sailing for over 20 years.
Not to mention Shanks, who had traveled extensively with Roger since childhood, but in these 20 years, given Shanks's personality, he had practically visited every sea in the world.
Consequently, they had many interesting tales to tell, making Hua and the others yearn for adventure.
During the banquet, it was just a banquet.
Kong Tai didn't ask questions beyond the feast, and Shanks didn't either.
Sabo and Koala, seeing the relaxed atmosphere of the banquet, gradually became at ease and blended in.
After all, neither of them was prone to heavy worries, especially Sabo, who, while not as distinct in personality as Ace and Luffy, was actually quite a cheerful person.
The banquet lasted for a long time.
It continued from noon until the sun began to set.
During this period, the Marines left, silently departing. Their mission was complete. From the moment they landed, they hadn't moved an inch, resolutely carrying out the World Government's orders.
"Watching the show."
For reasons unknown, they did not seek out King Riku or the others, nor did they disturb anyone. They vanished into the sea as quietly as they had arrived.
After the Marines left, King Riku and Kyros, seeing that Dressrosa remained in disarray, returned to assess the situation.
The sight of Dressrosa half-destroyed pained them deeply, but they also understood that this was likely the best possible outcome. They held no grudges and remained immensely grateful to Kong Tai and his crew.
Kong Tai informed King Riku that the war was over and they could return to Dressrosa. He also mentioned that the underground palace beneath the Royal Palace Highlands held a vast amount of gold, silver, and berries.
After all, this was Doflamingo's stronghold, and the wealth he had amassed over the years, while unquantifiable, was surely more than enough to restore Dressrosa.
Upon learning that Kong Tai would not take a single coin of Doflamingo's inheritance, but would leave it all for Dressrosa and their reconstruction efforts, King Riku and Kyros immediately knelt before him.
Strictly speaking, Kong Tai and his crew had saved Dressrosa, saved them, and subsequently defeated Doflamingo, as well as Kaido and Charlotte Linlin who had attacked Dressrosa.
Doflamingo's inheritance should rightfully have belonged to Kong Tai and his crew.
It was their spoils of war.
Yet, Kong Tai was now using his spoils of war to help them rebuild their homeland, leaving them unsure of how to express their gratitude, resorting only to kneeling to show their appreciation.
"Alright, let's leave it at that!"
With a thought, Kong Tai helped up the two men, who were weeping with emotion, and then smiled at them.
"Although this wealth is immense, to us, it's just scrap metal. Our crew is small, and even if we wanted to spend it, we couldn't. It's better to leave it for you, for rebuilding your home."
"Heh heh, don't you agree?"
Kong Tai raised his gourd, took a long drink, and then laughed heartily at the two of them, his face full of warmth and sincerity.
For others, this was a fortune beyond measure, but he didn't care.
Seeing King Riku and Kyros about to kneel again, Kong Tai suddenly spoke, "Alright, will you stay and continue the banquet with us, or will you go and deliver this good news to the people of Dressrosa?"
King Riku and Kyros, prompted by Kong Tai's words, recovered from their intense emotions.
Neither of them was a sentimental person.
Wiping away the tears of excitement, they bowed respectfully to Kong Tai, silently storing their gratitude in their hearts.
Then, without hesitation, they turned and headed down from the Royal Palace Highlands towards Green Bit.
Shanks watched all of this silently.
During this time, he had learned that before Kong Tai's group decided to defeat Doflamingo, they had rescued King Riku and Kyros and had them evacuate the citizens of Dressrosa.
Therefore, his gaze towards Kong Tai was now filled with admiration.
The reason they were called strong was that they never treated lives carelessly.
Shanks himself was such a person, and he deeply resonated with Kong Tai's actions.
Only those who steadfastly pursued their inner ideals could be called strong.
In Shanks's view, among the Four Emperors, although Charlotte Linlin and Kaido were incredibly powerful, they were not individuals he admired as true warriors. Only Whitebeard earned his respect.
Before coming to Dressrosa, he had wondered what kind of person Kong Tai was.
Although he had learned through various channels that Kong Tai was a person who truly adhered to his inner convictions and possessed his own sense of right and wrong, who knew if this information was true before meeting him in person?
Now, having met him, he realized that this information was indeed accurate, which greatly increased his admiration for Kong Tai.
At such a young age, possessing such power, and remaining neither arrogant nor impatient.
"Truly remarkable!"
Shanks looked at Kong Tai's slightly immature profile bathed in the firelight, a smile playing on his lips, then shook his head and raised his wine bottle, taking a long drink.
This world was full of all sorts of people.
He was a pirate, and had been since childhood.
From the time he could remember, he had sailed the seas with the Roger Pirates.
He, of course, knew what kind of people most pirates in this world were.
If not a hundred percent, then certainly over ninety percent were wicked, lawless, and arrogant individuals.
Did these people deserve to die?
Yes, they did.
Even if they harbored ideals and ambitions, those who disregarded life and found pleasure in bullying the weak were not worthy of being called warriors of the sea.
In his opinion, all these people deserved to die.
Therefore, when he killed such pirates, he felt no burden and showed no mercy.
Hence, he would not have the slightest dissatisfaction with Kong Tai's excessive ruthlessness towards pirates.
He had killed even more since he set sail.