The River of Life Project
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(A/N: If you want to see more chapters, go to my P@treon to see more chapters ahead. You can see more than 20 chapters ahead of everyone on my P@treon: -www.p@treon.com/VoyageToGlory
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Inside the Palace
"Finally done." Kael muttered with a satisfied smile, setting his pen down after completing yet another carefully crafted article.
Kael leaned back in his chair comfortably, surveying his work. With over 300,000 phones sold across the kingdom, the reach of his Ocean Headlines service was unprecedented, giving his ideas a platform that extended far beyond the palace walls.
It had been two months since Cobra was taken hostage, and subscriptions to his phone had already surpassed his wildest expectations. But this was only the beginning. Now, it was time to advance to the next phase of his grand plan.
Alabasta, his homeland, was the foundation. Kael had decided to transform the kingdom into a formidable power capable of standing against the World Government itself—a behemoth he knew he would eventually confront. The strength of Alabasta would be the cornerstone of his vision.
Scribbling on a blank sheet of paper, he jotted down key terms: Crocodile, Drought, Rebels, King Cobra.
The Crocodile issue was already in motion, though Kael knew it was only a matter of time before he could neutralize him permanently. However, the rebels' growing unrest, fueled by the kingdom's ongoing drought, required immediate attention. If the drought could be resolved, the rebels would lose their justification, and his father's release could follow naturally.
"Drought…" Kael murmured, circling the word on the paper.
Standing silently beside him was Pell. Although Pell didn't fully understand the scope of Kael's grand plans, he had learned not to question them. His loyalty was unwavering, especially after witnessing Kael's extraordinary power firsthand—power that had allowed him to effortlessly defeat Crocodile in a confrontation that left him speechless.
In the corner of the room, Chaka stood with arms crossed, his brows furrowed in concern. His voice was calm but tinged with anxiety as he said to Kael: "Your Majesty, your father has been held hostage for two months now, and the princess went missing around the same time. Shouldn't we focus on getting them back?"
Kael's thoughts snapped back to the present as he looked up at Chaka. His expression remained calm, as he said in a steady voice: "Do you think a frantic king is the kind of successor my father envisioned?"
Chaka hesitated, his unease obvious. Kael's composed demeanor was unsettling in the face of such dire circumstances, but there was no denying the truth in his words. Slowly, Chaka nodded, though the unease in his chest remained.
Kael turned back to his desk: "Call the Chief of Treasury. I am issuing a new Royal Decree." He said decisively: "Starting today, we will halt all allocations of funds from the Royal Treasury for the purchase of water supplies."
Chaka's face immediately darkened in shock: "Your Majesty!" He exclaimed: "If we stop providing water, the rebellion will grow even larger! This will only add fuel to the fire!"
Kael looked at Chaka and patiently explained: "The Royal Treasury is not infinite. Purchasing water resources is not a viable long-term solution. It might work temporarily, but in the long run, it will cripple the kingdom."
Chaka and Pell exchanged curious glances, and Chaka finally asked: "What do you mean by that, Your Majesty?"
Kael leaned back slightly, his expression became serious as he posed a question instead of answering directly: "It's very simple. What do you think will happen if we drain the Royal Treasury to buy water supplies?"
Caught off guard, Chaka and Pell hesitated, unsure of how to respond. They exchanged uncertain looks, their silence revealing their lack of an answer.
Kael's gaze sharpened as he began explaining: "A kingdom's power depends on two essential pillars: loyal citizens and abundant resources. Loyal citizens form the backbone of a kingdom—they provide manpower for the army, sustain the economy through labor and trade, and foster unity and stability. Resources, including wealth, enable us to fund the military, build infrastructure, and maintain prosperity. Together, these elements create the foundation for a powerful, enduring kingdom."
Kael turned his head, gazing at the scorching sun through the window, and paused for a moment before continuing: "If we deplete the treasury by spending recklessly on short-term solutions like buying water, not only will we exhaust our wealth and resources, but we will also lose something far more critical: the trust of our people. When the treasury runs dry and we can no longer provide for them, they will lose faith in the Royal Family. That loss of faith will inevitably lead to a disaster."
Chaka's eyes widened in shock as Kael's words sank in. The gravity of the situation became clearer. He now realized that the plan of King Cobra, while well-intentioned, was not a solution. It was a stopgap that could lead to an even greater catastrophe.
"But how can we solve this problem, Your Majesty?" Pell asked anxiously, his voice was carrying a hint of desperation.
Kael's expression softened into a calm smile: "The solution lies in the Sandora River. By centering on the river, we can construct a north-south pipeline to deliver water to all the major cities along its route. This infrastructure will operate continuously, ensuring a stable and sustainable water supply for the entire kingdom. I call this project The River of Life."
Chaka and Pell stared at Kael in stunned silence. The sheer scale of such a project was overwhelming to even imagine.
Kael took this inspiration from a renowned water diversion project from his past life. For two months, he has been studying the kingdom's geography and terrain, meticulously planning every detail. Now, this plan was ready for execution.
Chaka and Pell remained speechless. What Kael described was nothing short of monumental.
"Your Majesty, the sheer amount of money, resources, and manpower required for this project would be phenomenal. Even if we used the entire Treasury, we still might not be able to complete it!" Chaka said in a deep voice.
"I'm fully aware." Kael replied with a calm nod.
Chaka's brows furrowed: "Your Majesty, your plan is feasible, but it carries enormous risks. You know the kingdom's situation better than anyone. The amount of money and resources needed alone would completely drain the Treasury. If this project fails, we wouldn't have any funds left to purchase water supplies from other countries. By then, Alabasta would surely fall."
Although Chaka didn't say it outright, his tone made it clear—he didn't believe Kael's ambitious plan could succeed. In his mind, the idea sounded more like an impossible dream.
Alabasta's history spanned centuries with eleven kings preceding Cobra. Surely, one of those kings must have considered such a project before. Given the desert climate of Alabasta, it was only natural. But none of them had ever attempted it—because the cost was simply too high.
Now, with the Treasury nearly empty and the kingdom facing rebellion, every step taken needed to be carefully calculated. A single misstep could push Alabasta closer to ruin.
Kael slowly rose to his feet, his expression calm and unshaken by Chaka's doubts. He met Chaka's gaze and said firmly: "I've already calculated how much this project will cost the kingdom, and I've assessed the resources and manpower required to complete it."
Chaka didn't interrupt, waiting for Kael to continue.
Kael looked at him and continued: "The resources needed to complete the River of Life will cost approximately 4 to 5 billion Beli. We will require over 50,000 workers to see the project through. In total, to complete the River of Life as quickly as possible, the estimated cost will range between 8 and 10 billion Beli."
"10… 10 billion?!" Chaka exclaimed, utterly stunned. His jaw dropped at the astronomical figure.
For a moment, Chaka couldn't process what he had heard. In the past two years, the Royal Family had survived by selling treasures from the palace, barely scraping by. Even if they sold everything remaining in the Treasury, they wouldn't be able to gather anything close to 10 billion Beli.
"This funding will be issued in five installments, with the first 2 billion Beli ready now. Pell will escort you to the treasury to collect it. Additionally, all of the kingdom's armed forces, including the Bird-Claw Unit and the Karoo Duck Squadron, are at your disposal." Kael said calmly.
Though Kael had amassed over five billion Beli in the past two months from his ventures, he was cautious not to spend it all at once. He understood that unforeseen circumstances could arise, and it was wise to keep reserves for emergencies.
"Do we really have such a huge amount of cash in the treasury?!" Chaka exclaimed, his voice filled with shock and disbelief.
"Yes, we do. In fact, this is just a portion of what we've earned from selling the phones His Majesty developed over the past two months." Pell replied in a reassuring and confident voice: "You don't have to worry about the money. A mere 10 billion Beli is well within His Majesty's capability."
"P… Phones… 5… B… Billions!" Chaka stammered, struggling to articulate the astronomical figure. He almost couldn't believe what he was hearing.
Although Chaka had heard about the new communication device that had taken Alabasta by storm, he had no idea of the scale of its success. He knew Kael was the one who had developed and marketed the device, but the revelation that Kael had generated a staggering 5 billion Beli in just over two months left him speechless.
After a moment, Chaka regained his composure. Falling to one knee, he declared with conviction: "I will follow your orders, Your Majesty!"
While King Cobra had been a great ruler, Chaka now started to see Kael as Alabasta's true savior. With the incredible potential of the phone industry alone, Kael had proven his ability to generate wealth at an unprecedented scale. For the first time, Chaka believed that even an ambitious project like the River of Life could be funded. The only challenge remaining was time.
In Chaka's eyes, Kael was no longer just a king—he was Alabasta's new hope.
Kael understood that Alabasta's core issue wasn't truly a lack of water resources but a matter of insufficient wealth to harness them. Since the root of the problem was financial, he was confident it could be resolved. His solution was monumental: constructing water pipelines that would stretch from the central Sandora River to connect all major cities.
This approach had several advantages over traditional canals. Pipelines would be cheaper to build, faster to construct, easier to repair, and capable of delivering water directly to every city in the nation. Despite Alabasta's vast size, Kael was confident that the costs of building the pipelines were manageable with the wealth he had generated.
Alabasta was geographically divided into two halves—east and west—by the massive Sandora River, which flowed southward to the sea.
The sheer size of this river was staggering. It was the largest freshwater river in the world, with a width exceeding fifty kilometers. To put this into perspective, the widest points of Earth's Yangtze or Yellow Rivers barely reached eight or nine kilometers, and most stretches were only about five kilometers wide. The Sandora River was nearly ten times as wide as the Yangtze at its widest point!
And yet, despite this colossal river, Alabasta still suffered from water shortages. The irony of this situation was almost absurd. Kael knew that such a contradiction couldn't continue. With the River of Life project, he aimed to turn this untapped natural wonder into a lifeline for the entire kingdom.
The scarcity of water in Alabasta arose not from a lack of natural resources but from its immense land area and poor infrastructure. Traveling from the central Sandora River to the western city of Yuba required even someone with Luffy's superhuman stamina ten days and nights on foot.
Yuba, also known as the Green City, had thrived due to an ancient artificial canal that connected it to the Sandora River. However, more than year ago, this canal was deliberately destroyed, plunging the city into an extreme drought. Its decline was rapid, and it soon became the birthplace of the rebel army.
"Money is no longer an issue. As for manpower…" Kael paused, a faint smile tugging at his lips before he continued: "This matter I will leave to you, Chaka."
Chaka straightened and patted his chest in a gesture of confidence: "I will not let you down, Your Majesty!"
Kael nodded in acknowledgment before turning to Pell: "Pell, send a letter to the rebellion leader in my name. It's time to bring Father back. As the former king of Alabasta, he should not have to endure such humiliation at the hands of his own people." Kael's expression grew serious, his calm demeanor replaced by a steely resolve.
"Excuse my rudeness, Your Majesty, but how do you plan to deal with the rebels after solving the drought?" Pell asked cautiously.
Kael's tone turned cold as he replied: "You don't need to worry about that. I have already decided to punish only their leaders for treason. While I won't accuse the ordinary rebels of treason, they will still face other punishments."
Pell and Chaka exchanged shocked glances, the weight of Kael's declaration was settling heavily in the room. Treason was the gravest crime in Alabasta, punishable by beheading or lifelong imprisonment. Kael's decision to pursue such harsh measures was not one taken lightly.
"But Your Majesty…" Pell began, his voice tinged with concern, only to be interrupted by Kael raising his hand.
"You don't need to speak further. My decision is final." Kael said firmly, silencing any further objections.
In Kael's eyes, rebellion without proper investigation or justification was the ultimate disrespect to the Royal Family's dedication and sacrifices for the kingdom.
The rebels had completely disregarded Cobra's tireless efforts to mitigate the drought, including using the Royal Treasury to buy water supplies for the people. Such actions were unforgivable.
"How can I go easy on them when they ignored my father's hard work and chose to plunge the kingdom into chaos?" Kael thought to himself.
For Kael, the punishment of the rebellion's leaders was not merely about retribution—it was about restoring the dignity of the Royal Family and ensuring that such a betrayal would never happen again. Only by holding those responsible accountable could Alabasta move forward and reclaim its stability.