Infinite Pirates: After completing her mission, Akame immediately ordered everyone to return to Infinite Pirates at full speed for dinner.
If one were to say where the best food is, even Akame, who has eaten her way through the Four Seas, would have to admit that only the food from her own home is the best.
After all, her father has gathered many famous chefs from around the world to Infinite Pirates, and most of the meals at home are meticulously prepared by those chefs.
Once the food is ready, it is secretly transported back home through the mirror world, perfectly ensuring the freshness of the food, and there's no need to keep those chefs tied up at home just to cook. This allows them to do what they want and continue to improve their culinary skills.
"Wow, it smells so good! I came back just in time!"
Li Yuan, Shakky, Yadina, Lazuli, Asuna, and others were just starting to eat when Akame returned home.
"Go wash your hands!"
Seeing so much delicious food, Akame immediately wanted to sit down and eat, but she was shot a glare by Shakky.
"Okay, Mom, I'll go right now!"
With Shakky giving her that look, Akame had no choice but to obediently wash her hands before coming back to eat.
"Akame, did you bring back those two Devil Fruits?"
Li Yuan asked while eating.
"I brought them back, Dad. I'll give them to you after dinner."
Akame replied while wolfing down her food.
"Child, there's no one competing with you for food, so eat slowly!"
Seeing oil dripping from the corners of Akame's mouth, Shakky picked up a napkin to wipe it clean for her.
"Mom, this food is too delicious; I can't slow down."
Even though her mother said so, Akame still had no intention of slowing down.
Looking at her food-loving daughter, Shakky felt helpless. Her daughter was great in every way, except for her love of food—she loved it a lot! "Just in time for your return, tomorrow you'll accompany Kumath to the homeland of the Mink Tribe!"
"I'll have Kumath subdue the Mink Tribe, and you won't need to lift a finger; just follow along."
Li Yuan said.
"Huh? I just finished one mission, and now there's another? Dad, can't someone else go?"
Upon hearing her father's words, Akame suddenly lost her appetite.
"No way, you're the one going. Besides, you won't have to do anything; you'll just be following him. Kumath will handle the rest."
Li Yuan still didn't know his daughter's nature; aside from her love for food, she was also quite lazy.
This kind of task could actually be assigned to other officers, but Li Yuan wanted Akame to gain some experience and interact more with the other officers of Infinite Pirates. After all, Akame would be developing within Infinite Pirates in the future, so it would be good for her to accumulate some fame and prestige.
As Kumath was a member of the Mink Tribe and had become an officer of Infinite Pirates, he was now strong enough, which is why Li Yuan arranged for him to subdue the Mink Tribe.
Regardless, the Mink Tribe was a special race, with everyone possessing powerful static electricity abilities, making them a race of warriors. Subduing them could provide Infinite Pirates with a large number of lower and mid-tier combatants.
"Alright then, I'll go tomorrow!"
Since her father said so, Akame could only continue to devour her food, even trying to eat enough to last her for the next few days when she wouldn't be able to enjoy home-cooked meals!
The next day, Akame and Kumath set off from Infinite Pirates on a 500-meter-long steel warship, followed by five 300-meter-long ships, heading towards the Mink Tribe's homeland, Zou! "Princess Akame, once we reach Zou, you just need to stand behind me and support me; there's no need for you to get involved in my matters with the Mink Tribe. I will successfully subdue them!"
Kumath said to Akame.
He was loyal to Li Yuan and naturally respected his daughter Akame, especially since he had once fought against her and lost, which made him respect her even more.
After all, strong individuals are worthy of awe, and this person was the daughter of his Captain! "Don't worry, Kumath. You do your best; I won't interfere."
Akame was happy to take it easy on this matter; if she didn't have to fight, she didn't want to do anything extra.
Zou, on the back of a giant elephant that had lived for a thousand years, was an enormous creature. Its limbs touched the sea, and the depth of the ocean couldn't even submerge half of its limbs. It could be said to be the largest creature in the pirate world! Kumath had once lived on Zou, but out of curiosity for the outside world, he secretly left Zou, only to be captured by a slave crew and became a slave, eventually being rescued by Li Yuan and following him.
Now, nearly twenty years had passed, and he was finally going back!
Under Kumath's guidance, three days later, they finally found Zou and the giant elephant drifting on the sea!
"Wow, what a huge elephant! Has this elephant really lived for over a thousand years?"
Akame looked at the giant elephant before her, her eyes lighting up. The rumors couldn't compare to seeing it in person.
Such a massive creature, she couldn't help but wonder how long it would last if roasted, and whether it would taste good! Lost in thought, Akame nearly drooled.
"All Mink Tribe members and Princess Akame, come with me up! The rest stay here!"
Kumath, unaware of Akame's terrifying thoughts, led twenty Mink Tribe subordinates directly up the giant elephant's leg.
These twenty Mink Tribe members had been found at sea; many of them were former slaves who had been rescued by Infinite Pirates and were now under Kumath's management.
"Moon Walk: Shadow Step!"
Akame was interrupted from her thoughts of eating the giant elephant by Kumath's words. Instead of climbing like the others, she used Moon Walk to fly up.
Once on the giant elephant, Kumath led everyone directly towards the town. As a member of the Mink Tribe, even after nearly twenty years, he hadn't forgotten the routes here.
"Did you come back to Zou from the sea?"
When Kumath and the others arrived at the small town, they were stopped by a group of Mink Tribe members from the gun squad.
"Indeed, I am Kumath, who left Zou twenty years ago and have now returned!"
"I found other tribesmen at sea and brought them back!"
Kumath excitedly said upon seeing his fellow tribesmen, feeling genuinely happy to see so many of his kin.
"Welcome home, Kumath! I'll report your situation to the king and everyone; I think they'll be very happy you're back!"
Anande from the gun squad was also very pleased to hear Kumath's words. She was a very warm-hearted person and was very tolerant towards her kin.
With the guidance of the gun squad, Kumath and the others quickly integrated into the Mink Tribe, as they were all kin.
The Mink Tribe was already small in number, and there was a strong trust among kin, especially after hearing that Kumath had rescued twenty fellow tribesmen who had become slaves at sea and brought them back. Kumath gained the recognition of most of the Mink Tribe!
Upon hearing about Kumath, the current king of the Mink Tribe, Abedo, also rushed over.
"Your Majesty, this is Kumath," Anande introduced Kumath to Abedo.
"Your Majesty, I am Kumath, and I have officially returned to Zou today!"
Kumath respectfully said upon meeting Abedo.
He was a member of the Mink Tribe, and Abedo was the king of the Mink Tribe. Although he was confident in his strength compared to Abedo, as the king of the Mink Tribe, he deserved his respect! "What is your purpose in returning?"
Upon seeing Kumath, Abedo sensed a strong threat from him, a primal instinctive threat that others couldn't perceive because the other Mink Tribe members were not strong enough.
Having been king for thirty years and being over fifty years old, he naturally wouldn't be as naive as other Mink Tribe members to believe that someone with such strength as Kumath returned to Zou without a purpose.
As soon as Abedo spoke, the surroundings fell silent. As the king of the Mink Tribe, his prestige was naturally very high. If he said Kumath had a purpose in returning, then he definitely had one!
"Your Majesty, Kumath probably doesn't have any ulterior motives; after all, he saved twenty of our tribesmen!"
"Kumath, quickly explain to the king!"
Seeing this, Anande hurriedly urged.
"Your Majesty, since you ask, I'll speak plainly. I have returned this time to challenge you and become the king of the Mink Tribe!"
Kumath laid his cards on the table. If he wanted to become the king of the Mink Tribe, he naturally had to challenge the current king, which was Abedo before him!! "What? Kumath, what are you saying? How can you provoke the king like this!"
Upon hearing Kumath's words, the surrounding Mink Tribe members, even Anande, had a very poor impression of him. The king was someone all Mink Tribe members respected, and Kumath's words were undoubtedly a provocation to the king's authority!
"Hahahaha, Kumath, you want to challenge me? Then, if you become the king of the Mink Tribe, what do you want to do? Or what is your true purpose?"
Abedo didn't get angry at Kumath's words; instead, he laughed heartily and asked.
Having been king for over thirty years, he naturally wanted to find a successor, but there was no one in the entire Mink Tribe that he was satisfied with.
Now that he saw Kumath, he naturally included him in the candidate list.
He had also gone to sea for adventures before, so he understood the importance of strength and how dangerous the sea could be.
Kumath had lived under the sea for over twenty years and still posed a threat to him, so his strength was self-evident.
If Kumath could save twenty of his fellow tribesmen who had become slaves, then he was certainly qualified in terms of character.
What remained was Kumath's true purpose.
"I am currently an officer of Infinite Pirates. If I become the king of the Mink Tribe, I will lead a portion of those willing to go to sea to join Infinite Pirates. I will even take out an island from beneath the sea and build it into another homeland for our Mink Tribe!"
"On this sea, strength is the most important thing. Our Mink Tribe lacks sufficient strength, which makes us targets for slave crews. They often capture our tribesmen and sell them as slaves!"
"So our Mink Tribe must possess strong strength to make our entire tribe powerful."
"And Infinite Pirates, as the strongest pirate crew on the sea today, has enough power to protect our Mink Tribe and has many training systems that can make every one of our tribesmen strong. Infinite Pirates also possesses powerful medical skills that can ensure that our newborns survive, rather than the current situation where two-thirds of our newborns die due to various issues!!"
"My purpose in returning is to lead our entire Mink Tribe to become stronger, strong enough to stand firm on the sea, strong enough for our Mink Tribe to reproduce and thrive more!"
Kumath said loudly and with a clear conscience.
This was his most genuine thought. Although Captain had asked him to subdue the Mink Tribe, he hadn't required him to relocate the entire Mink Tribe to the Limitless Sea Area. He merely wanted him to recruit a group of Mink Tribe members to join Infinite Pirates based on his own thoughts.
Kumath understood Captain very well. Captain was not like those ruthless pirates who exploit their subordinates at will; one could see that from the various benefits and rules of Infinite Pirates.
So what he said was sincere; he genuinely wanted the Mink Tribe to rely on Infinite Pirates and become stronger, to have their own territory on the sea like the Giant Tribe, rather than always living on the back of the giant elephant, hiding here.
The reason the Mink Tribe was small in number was not only due to frequent captures but also due to various diseases leading to low infant survival rates. These issues could be resolved by joining Infinite Pirates, thanks to the powerful medical skills of Captain's wife, Lazuli!
Hearing Kumath's words, both King Abedo and the surrounding Mink Tribe members who thought Kumath was provoking the king fell silent.
Indeed, just as Kumath said, the issues he raised concerning the Mink Tribe were their most pressing concerns. If Kumath could truly achieve this, it would be a historic success for the entire Mink Tribe!
"Kumath, what you said is contingent upon you defeating me and becoming the true king!"
Abedo said seriously. He had already recognized Kumath's ideals, but there was still a chasm named strength between ideals and reality.
"Bring it on! I will definitely win!"
Kumath said confidently.
Then, Kumath and Abedo went to an open area to prepare for their duel!
"The king is actually going to duel with Kumath, who just returned, for the throne. This is too…"
The duel between Kumath and Abedo quickly spread among the Mink Tribe, and soon most of the Mink Tribe members came to watch the duel between the two.
(End of Chapter)