The Void Century has been a source of great mystery in the world of One Piece. As the name indicates, the Void Century is a period of 100 years spanning from 900 to 800 years ago in the world of One Piece. During this timeframe, the world of One Piece was incredibly turbulent, and massive water was fought between two superpowers.
Not much is known about the Void Century but during it, the Ancient Kingdom was known to be at its peak, and, to combat them, 20 monarchs banded together and then fought against them. It is believed that the 20 monarchs ended up winning against the Ancient Kingdom and that is how the World Government was eventually created. Fans know very little about this Ancient Kingdom as the vast majority of the information about them is still obscured. However, the final saga of One Piece has seen a lot of new and interesting things get revealed about the Ancient Kingdom, such as the identity of one of the 20 monarchs, especially in the recent chapter.
The 20 Monarchs
One Piece recently saw King Cobra meet up with the Five Elders during the Reverie. This sequence is a part of Sabo's flashback, who recently arrived on the Momoiro Island. There, he met with Dragon and Ivankov and told them the truth about what happened at the Reverie. One of the most important parts of the Reverie was the meeting that took place between King Cobra and the Five Elders. When the two met, Cobra mentioned to the Five Elders that the World Government was formed nearly 800 years ago
and it was created by 20 monarchs banding together. These monarchs likely fought in the Great War and thereafter, established themselves as the rulers of the entire world.
They are what came to be known as the Celestial Dragons, as are their descendants. The Celestial Dragons then created the Empty Throne and marked their weapons around it as an oath to never vie for more power. This symbolized their equality and the fact that the world had no true ruler but the 20 monarchs together. When the 20 monarchs moved to the Holy Land of Marijoa, there was a power vacuum created in their respective countries. To that end, new royal families were elected by these 20 monarchs and installed as the rulers of the countries. What's even more interesting is the fact that these 20 kings then went on to erase their own records from history so as to ensure a smooth transition to power for the new rulers.
Nefertari Family's Queen
The Celestial Dragons moved to the Holy Land of Marijoa soon and started living their lives out as the Gods of the world. Their descendants are observant in the world of One Piece today and have already played a significant role in the story. However, unlike the other Celestial Dragons, there was one family that belong to the 20 monarchs that was different from the rest, and this family was the Nefertari dynasty. Fans are very well familiar with the Nefertari Dynasty as they have already met people from it during the Arabasta Saga. Vivi, who is an incredibly important character in the story, as well as her father, King Cobra, who fans are very well aware of at this point, belong to this dynasty as well.
Their leader at the time of the formation of the World Government was none other than Nefertari Lily. It was revealed in One Piece 1084 that Lily fought alongside the other 19 monarchs and played a part in the formation of the World Government. However, unlike the others, she did not become a Celestial Dragon because she chose to go back to the surface and rule her country by herself. It appears that Queen Lily had a sense of belonging and duty when it came to her people in Arabasta and, as a result, she wanted to go back and not lead a life as a Celestial Dragon. For this very reason, a weapon is also missing around the Empty Throne. This means that there are only 19 weapons marked around this magnificent chair that sits at the center of the world.
The Death Of Queen Lily
Queen Lily's actions were possibly seen as betrayal by the other 20 monarchs and this is reflected in the thinking of the Five Elders today, who consider the Nefertari Family to be traitors to the Celestial Dragons. On her way back to Arabasta, where she wanted to spend the rest of her life ruling her people, tragedy befell her. For some reason, as Cobra explained, Lily's records after that point were erased from the ancient texts. This isn't because someone went on to erase them but simply because Lily ended up dying or vanishing somehow. Something happened to her on her way back from Marijoa to Arabasta, however, what exactly it was isn't known to the fans. In her stead, her brother ended up taking the throne and, with that, the responsibilities that come with it, and Vivi, who is the current Princess of the land of Arabasta, comes through his line.
The Five Elders mentioned that they did not know what happened to Lily simply because it was so long ago in the past that they don't have any information about it. However, shortly after they mentioned this, Imu, the sovereign of the world who actually sets adopt the empty throne despite the wow that all the founding 20 took, appeared.
Emu shocked both Cobra and the Five Elders for different reasons. To the Five Elders, their mere presence in front of Cobra was shocking as Imu should not be showing themselves in front of anyone. For Cobra, it was doubly shocking as this person went ahead and climbed upon the Empty Throne and sat on it, shattering his belief that the world had no true ruler and, at the same time, they mentioned the name of Queen Lily, meaning that they know of Lily's fate and had something to do with the tragedy that befell her on her way back from Marijoa to the land of Arabasta.
Oda has gone on to reveal great details about the Void Century. While the events of the war are still under wraps and covered at the moment, what Oda has revealed here to the fans is something extraordinary as a family from this cryptic century has now emerged. At the same time, another person who existed during this time has now been revealed to the fans.
Fans do not know yet just what exactly Imu will reveal about Queen Lily. It is highly likely that more information about the Void Century will be revealed to the fans in the upcoming chapters of One Piece. What's more, it is also likely that Oda will unmask Imu for the very first time as they have always been drawn in a silhouette so far. One Piece is in its Final Saga and the time is now for every major revelation to be drawn. Oda himself is incredibly excited for this great endeavor and the fans are as well.