"Still so high and mighty, aren't you, 'Demon Dragon'," Doflamingo said, his voice laced with a sinister chill.
"Hahahaha! Alright, I won't kick you while you're down." Bege burst out laughing. In his current state, Bege truly didn't consider Doflamingo much of a threat. He produced a seaworthy ship and allowed Doflamingo and his men to leave.
"Oars, we're not heading back just yet. Let's have a good drink today!" Bege boomed with laughter.
"Excellent, Bege! Let's drink until we drop!" Little Oars Jr. roared in agreement.
"Men! Bring out the booze!"
Meanwhile, Doflamingo's small vessel sped away from the Giant. Onboard, Doflamingo silently crushed the list in his hand, his face a dark mask of suppressed fury. The paper crumpled under his grip.
"Doffy, are we really going to cooperate with the 'Demon Dragon'?" Diamante asked in a low voice.
Doflamingo's voice was grim. "Of course. Though I despise him, loathe him even. But he's right. Cooperating with him is a good opportunity for us. If we seize it, our Family can grow much faster."
"Just one of the 'Demon Dragon's' subordinates, Oars, defeated all of us. And he still has Moria, Modi, Riki, and that 'Little Thunder God' Enel, who's been making even more waves recently. Most importantly, the 'Demon Dragon' himself is the strongest opponent... We're too far behind the Fire Tank Pirates. The 'Demon Dragon' doesn't even see us as equals." The more Doflamingo thought about it, the more despairing he became. Bege and his crew were like a colossal mountain pressing down on his heart, suffocating him. For an ambitious man like him, a natural-born conqueror, this was absolutely unacceptable.
"Young Master, we will always believe in you. You are the true king," Lao G said with conviction.
Doflamingo took a deep breath, a savage grin spreading across his face. "Right now, we're no match for the 'Demon Dragon'. So, we must become stronger, stronger by any means necessary. As long as we can gain more power, what's a little cooperation with him? I swear I will repay this humiliation in the future!"
"When we get back, expand the Family's business. Forget about those restrictions. Plunder whatever it takes, at any cost!" Doflamingo's eyes turned sharp and ruthless. This incident had dealt an unprecedented blow to him, but it also solidified his resolve to walk the path of darkness.
"But the Marines won't let us do as we please," Lao G pointed out.
"I will personally go to Mary Geoise and negotiate with the Celestial Dragons. I'll have them provide us with protection."
And so, because of this event, this king of the underworld ascended his throne even earlier than destined.
Time trickled by. Bege, biding his time and building his strength on Sky Island, grew increasingly formidable. Two years had already passed of the three-year period he had set for himself.
For these two years, the Fear Pirates had relentlessly tried every conceivable method to land on Sky Island, from sending advance parties to deploying their main forces. They never gave up on the idea of reaching the sky.
However, the Fear Pirates' fleets, at most, only ever reached the White-White Sea. The Sky Beasts patrolling those waters decimated the vast majority of their ships. Moreover, Sky Island's reaction speed was incredibly fast. The moment they entered the White-White Sea, troops would descend to intercept and annihilate them.
They never even made it to the White Sea proper.
Over these two years, Bege's business dealings with Doflamingo had flourished. Doflamingo, with his far-reaching connections, managed to procure a vast amount of rare resources for Bege – resources whose circulation was strictly prohibited by the World Government and the Marines.
Beyond that, Bege's arms business, facilitated through Doflamingo's channels, sold weapons all over the world, raking in enormous profits.
Caesar, captured two years prior, had made some progress with artificial Devil Fruits. Although there were no finished products yet, he estimated that samples might be ready in another year or two, with cultivation possible within two to three years.
The strength and numbers of Bege's executives and followers at all levels had grown astonishingly.
It could be said that they had achieved fruitful results in all aspects.
In terms of overall strength, the Fire Tank Pirates could now rival the hegemon-class pirate crews of the New World.
On Sky Island, specifically on Wild Beast Island, the training grounds, Bege was intently reading a newspaper.
The headline featured a portrait of Fisher Tiger. The article reported that Fisher Tiger had scaled the Red Line to the Holy Land Mary Geoise with his bare hands, liberated thousands of slaves, and formed the Sun Pirates.
"This Fisher Tiger is quite something, climbing the Red Line bare-handed and sneaking into the Holy Land," Enel remarked with a click of his tongue, impressed.
"But he's probably in for a miserable end," Sam said, shaking his head, not optimistic about Fisher Tiger's prospects. "Those vermin Celestial Dragons hate having their authority challenged more than anything. I reckon he'll be captured by a Marine Admiral."
"Godfather, I have a good feeling about him. Why don't we recruit him into our ranks?" Enel suggested with a grin.
"I'll contact Fisher Tiger personally." Bege was intrigued. Fisher Tiger represented more than just the Sun Pirates; he held considerable prestige on Fish-Man Island. If Bege could bring the Sun Pirates under his banner, Fish-Man Island would inevitably become his territory in the future.
"Godfather, take me with you!" Enel said with a playful laugh.
Just then, Bege's Den Den Mushi rang.
It was Doflamingo. Bege answered.
"Doflamingo, what is it?" Bege asked lightly.
"Fuffuffuffu... 'Demon Dragon,' I have some bad news for you," Doflamingo chuckled strangely.
Bege frowned. "Spit it out. Don't be an ass about it."
"Fuffuffuffu... Looks like you haven't heard. Just an hour ago, the Fear Pirates attacked Lemon Island. The Black Knight Pirates were wiped out. Their captain, Treade, has been captured," Doflamingo sneered. "Treade was one of your people, wasn't he? Hidden quite deeply, too."
Bege's expression instantly darkened.
"Was this your doing?" Bege's low voice was heavy with terrifying killing intent.
"Looks like he really was one of yours. 'Demon Dragon,' it wasn't me. We're excellent partners right now; I wouldn't want to lose such a valuable source of income. Lemon Island was also secretly selling your weapons. Though it was well-concealed, anyone persistent enough could find traces. I guessed Lemon Island had to be connected to you. And if I could figure it out, others could too," Doflamingo said with a laugh.
Bege abruptly hung up the Den Den Mushi, his face grim.
"Godfather, Treade has provided us with a lot of funds over the years. We can't let him die," Sam said gravely.
"Godfather, we've been laying low for so long. It's time to show the world the true strength of the Fire Tank Pirates!" Enel also spoke up.
"Have the intelligence department investigate the situation on Lemon Island immediately. Recall all executives. We're holding a meeting," Bege ordered, his face expressionless.