Arthur walked back inside the palace before kneeling before the throne raising the box over his head. "Your Majesty Alice Haven. I offer this to you before all of your loyal subjects for the sake of your continued rulership of this kingdom.
I will continue to pledge my life to you for as long as I live but..."
"Snatch." The moment that he used those words out loud, a smaller box appeared in his other hand before opening it.
What was shown in the big box was a fluffy-looking white fruit with red spiral markings on it while there was something else that was in the smaller box that shined catching the attention of everyone else in the room.
It was a ring that drew the attention of everyone since it was very special and unique to the point that it was so rare that it could not be obtained with berries on its own.
It was a very rare product that had not been released to the world yet but it was something that came from the many experiments that Alyssia had worked on in the past.
After working with various types of rocks and minerals, Alyssia was able to develop a way to craft all kinds of rare gems and diamonds.
The current gem attached to the ring in the hand of Arthur was none other than the legendary round rainbow gem that was extremely difficult to be able to find the method to create it and they were highly sought after. "Will you marry me?"
The palace became quiet as many were stunned by such a sudden proposal.
Even Alice had remained silent for some time as she took in the scene before her. 'He got the courage to propose. If he left it any longer then I might have had to make a move myself.'
She knew that one of their major issues had always been the difference between their ranks in terms of social status.
She was born of royal blood while he was born with the blood of a commoner so many would disagree.
Things had changed recently and he had not only become a hero of the kingdom but he had gained status too.
They had spent a lot of time together after reuniting but they never crossed any lines.
It seemed like Arthur was not going to take another step beyond that but had been proven from his current actions that he wanted to do everything properly so that they could marry in an upright way.
Alice began to tear up a little but suppressed them as she tried to compose herself. "I accept."
A mixed reaction came from within the palace following her agreement as some offered their congratulations and some small numbers among them began to beg her to reconsider.
What they did not expect was that the news of their engagement was announced a day later and news of their marriage would be delayed until the kingdom was back on its feet.
Normally during such occasions, it was when the royals and nobles bled the commoners dry with taxes to pay for such extravagant occasions but Alice did not do that.
Such a decision showed that she was the kind of ruler who would not cause such a problem during such a vital time when the kingdom and its citizens needed to recover and rebuild the most.
Such a decision showed what kind of ruler she would be in the future and that she would be the kind of ruler who would prioritize the needs of her kingdom over her desires and needs.
It was a little later that Alice was able to find the time to let Arthur place the engagement ring on her finger then she consumed the Devil Fruit that had been offered to her.
Not only was it something that Arthur had requested for her sake from Alyssia but Alyssia already had the idea to send something like that too.
The ruler of a kingdom needed to be strong enough to protect themselves and weather whatever storms came their way.
If they could not protect themselves well enough then a ruler could disappear one day and be replaced with another.
If someone like Alice were to suddenly be removed from her position then all of the current things going on in the Haven Kingdom could be at risk and so could the relations with the kingdom itself.
Not only did the important people from the White Storm need to be protected but so did their most important partners.
Alice was among those important connections that needed to be maintained while it was just as important for keeping Arthur connected to the White Storm despite him returning to his kingdom.
As the news of several events started to spread out, there were a couple of others that started to receive similar deliveries.
While all of that was taking place, there was someone who had started to pay more attention to every small action that was happening on Egghead Island.
Dr Vegapunk may not have moved out personally. Still, one among the bodies that shared his brain began to have more encounters with Alyssia and her crew whether intentional or unintentional.
In several other kingdoms, the White Storm had put that suggestion forward to allow for future cooperation using drones and other things.
The idea put forth was that each kingdom should raise its own disaster relief fund or that an insurance policy should be put forward.
Either they would gather the funds in advance to pay during times of crisis to recieve relief or they would make regular payments to the White Storm in the name of insurance.
Each time that a disaster hit them, the berries needed to pay for the relief would either be handled by one of those two methods.
It was also possible for them to pay upfront to make use of the drones or other services required during times of need but it was possible that some kingdoms would struggle to gather the required funds needed in a short time.
Such ideas created an even greater need for a legal or law division within the White Storm to allow for such things to be possible.
What was even more remarkable about it all was the potential of the project overall.
As the drones became better and better, they would be able to read through many different types of patterns in the weather and much more to allow for a clear understanding of the seas and various islands.