"Hee-hee-hee-hee-hee-hee!!"
The port town salon, fully repaired by Hancock and her crew's efforts.
I had gathered my officers there to wait for our ally, but the moment that ally, Bege, showed his face, he broke into genuine laughter that he rarely ever displayed.
Hey, come on now.
"Kuro! I figured any kind of crazy shit could happen around you, but this... hee-hee-hee!!"
I've never seen you clutch your stomach laughing like this except when we're drinking together one-on-one.
"Where the hell did you make connections with the 'Dark King' himself!"
Well, if you know his face, I guess it's either shock or laughter, right?
"It was coincidence... though not quite the right word. He was already here while we were busy in Mogura."
"Hah... hah... damn it, I laughed like an idiot. You really do have the luck of the devil..."
Bege's subordinates had initially looked puzzled about why their boss was laughing, but when they heard "Dark King," they caught on immediately. Shock and tension flashed across their faces all at once.
"Lord Rayleigh, allow me to introduce you. This is my ally, Capone 'Gang' Bege. He's been running around gathering intelligence and supplies for this whole affair."
"Hoh. Since you call him an ally, I thought he might have been fighting alongside you on the battlefield against the pirate alliance."
"Well, it's all about using the right person for the right job. Nice to meet you, Silvers Rayleigh. The living legend."
With those words, Bege shook hands with Rayleigh, who looked younger than I remembered.
It really was the perfect assignment for him.
We had narrowed down the general sea area where the enemy was hiding, but we could only pinpoint their exact location thanks to Bege and his crew gathering even the smallest eyewitness reports from surrounding islands.
Without Bege's intelligence, the Navy and I would have had to deploy a massive number of patrol ships to search for their base, and in that case, the enemy would very likely have spotted us.
It wouldn't have been a complete surprise attack.
"Actually, he's reliable in combat too. He helped us out during the Germa battle."
"Same here, Kuro. We took some heat during the pirate alliance affair, but this sea area is still my territory now."
"So what about the drug trafficking I was worried about?"
"I'm keeping it heavily restricted per our agreement. I'll have other ways to make money starting next year. I'm planning to pull out of the damn drug business around here."
Good, good. That's what I wanted to hear.
I could compromise on other things, but drug-related activities that directly damage productivity once they spread were something I absolutely had to eliminate.
"Alright, everyone take your seats. Let's begin the meeting."
Daz in his usual suit, Perona, Robin, Hancock, and Amis.
Hack in his usual training outfit, and Mihawk in his usual coveralls. Did you really put those back on after your bath?
Bege with two of his subordinates in tow. And the Dark King in the same room.
This is completely New World level ridiculous, damn you, God!
Seriously, isn't the difficulty adjustment or RNG completely broken?
"First, regarding the pirate alliance problem, everyone truly did excellent work. Thanks to you, we can return to our original plan with only minor adjustments."
"That said, from here until winter is the real battle. At this rate, even with government aid, we can't avoid starvation deaths. While I was gathering information, some settlements had already started reducing their population. In member nations, no less."
Those bastards really did burn an unnecessarily wide area... Being able to protect Area A was truly huge.
Not just Daz and Mihawk, but Hancock, who had been commanding reconstruction efforts for a while, and Amis, who led the guard unit that had frequent contact with civilians, all grimaced.
When talk turned to population reduction, even Rayleigh's expression darkened.
"Yeah... The government will try to save member nations to some extent. But non-member nations won't be so lucky. Even if Kuzan, Admiral Aokiji, lends some assistance, that'll be against the pirates who will inevitably increase from here on out. As for supplies... that won't come so easily."
If we carelessly ask for supplies based on field-level decisions, it'll just get diverted to the black market.
Precisely because we've built friendly relations with Kuzan and the West Blue Marines, relying too heavily on Navy forces here would end up strangling us.
"The basic policy remains unchanged. Bege, I want you to procure food and fuel primarily through trade at sustainable levels."
"Yeah, leave it to me. ...That massive food storage facility is working out fine, right?"
"Perfect. After all, it's Germa-made..."
At my grin, Bege chuckled in his usual way while the Black Cat crew smiled wryly.
One of the items I'd demanded as spoils of war from our battle with Germa was the refrigeration and freezer units installed on their ships.
They were built to feed a large number of people, clone soldiers who consumed massive calories, so their capacity was absolutely enormous. I'd taken everything except what they needed for their journey home.
Honestly, I was happier about that than any treasure or fortune.
For non-member nations with poor technology, long-term preservation of animal proteins like fish and meat was a real challenge when it came to surviving winter, never mind the harvest crops.
Plus pumps, hoses, generators, motors, and weapons and ammunition on the side... Oh right, I was so excited about getting military-grade food storage that I forgot I was actually doing proper pirate things.
"Also, when I met with Fleet Admiral Sengoku via Den Den Mushi the other day, it was confirmed that they'll provide us with two transport ships worth of food and fuel as additional aid supplies for 'maintaining public order.' We'll use those to save as many non-member nations as possible."
I owe the Navy so many favors that they're piling up like mountains, so this was probably partly meant to pay some of that back. But seriously, I can never sleep with my feet pointing toward Sengoku.
We're pirates, so I thought there was a chance they'd just crush us with military force instead...
"However, we must also advance our own plans. Robin, the map please."
"Yes!"
Just like during our time with the Navy, I try to have Robin handle visible tasks when other organizations might be watching.
It's to show that Robin is close to me as the leader, meaning that carelessly making a move against her would make the Black Cat Pirates their enemy.
Also, she seems to have some trauma or fear about using her abilities casually, so this helps with mental conditioning.
"Originally, we planned to expand our territory centered on Mopchi here, to include Purina, Canagan, Mio, and Charrat."
Four islands scattered in the nearby waters around Mopchi, marked on the sea chart Robin had posted on the board.
Non-member nations or islands outside member nation jurisdiction that Bege had identified as having reasonable populations and adequate forests and flatlands.
Robin marked each island I named with circles.
"The goal was to establish our own economic zone with these five islands, using their productive capacity and new markets to create a second governing force capable of coexisting with the World Government. I discussed this with Daz and Bege..."
...Strange. I thought they'd be more surprised, but everyone's just smiling quietly.
Couldn't you act a little more shocked, even if it's just for show?
Even Rayleigh is laughing his ass off.
"However, we've been forced to change our plans. The pirate alliance's pillaging damage is part of it, but..."
Just as I was about to continue explaining, Mihawk was nodding knowingly.
"Mihawk, do you understand the reason?"
"Ah, I have some idea."
The swordsman, who Mopchi residents had affectionately started calling "Coveralls-san," sipped the tea a servant had brought him.
"In short, the current development pace won't make it in time, right? Given enough time, you could recover to market scale, but you need to complete at least the framework before the World Government makes their move, or negotiation, let alone trade, becomes impossible."
"Exactly. That's precisely right."
This bastard actually got it right.
Did assigning him various land development tasks give him knowledge in that area too?
"Everyone here knows well that this coveralls-wearing great swordsman is undoubtedly our top ace in land development."
Everyone burst out laughing while the man himself elegantly sipped his tea as if to say "naturally."
What, was that secretly a point of pride?
...Still, it was good to see Robin laugh without any malice.
Just like with Bege, her hostility toward Mihawk had considerably lessened during this whole affair.
"Thanks to putting his full strength to work, Mopchi has... well, we did something that would normally be crazy like mass food distribution right at the start of this crisis... but in terms of yield alone, we've created enough grain fields to last until spring. Including the autumn-planted crops we're about to harvest, we should manage somehow... but"
"There's no surplus to sell, right?"
"Right. ...Well, we plan to expand further next year, but there's also the labor problem. We can't grow too rapidly."
Originally, depending on grain yields, I'd planned to have Bege sell alcohol and other profitable products, but I was clearly being too optimistic.
Though we should be able to test tea leaves, tobacco, spices, and medicinal herbs next year, so I think the conversion rate will improve somewhat...
Even so, the acreage is limited.
From the locals' perspective, they probably want more buffer in food self-sufficiency.
"Then the pirate alliance incident happened. Non-member nations were already struggling, and this was the final blow. Rebuilding from this will require even more supplies and labor than Mopchi did."
"As for supplies, when Kuro first established his force, we had stockpiled food to sell to member nations on the verge of losing their status at slightly below member nation prices, as a demonstration of what happens when he builds power."
If only this had worked out properly.
The government would probably ignore it, but if we could get backing from financially struggling member nations, we might have gained some influence...
"Well, we used most of it during this crisis... but there's still some reserve left. It should help."
"Even throwing in that food and the supplies we're about to acquire, I estimate we can handle reconstruction and defense for... one island at most."
Daz wore the darkest expression.
Yeah, this incident made it clear that Daz gets surprisingly depressed when there are people he can't save.
I'll need to teach him some mental control techniques.
"We will proceed with development. For us, the achievement of rebuilding and growing a devastated non-member nation without government assistance will be a powerful weapon in future maneuvering."
This time I drew a line on the sea chart myself instead of having Robin do it.
"However, competing on the number of developed islands takes too long to gain influence. So..."
One end of the line was Mopchi. The non-member nation that we'd helped get back on its feet agriculturally, at least somewhat.
"From here on, we'll challenge the World Government through shipping routes."
A distant island, though not impossibly far away.
"The former Cannet Kingdom. Many people were taken from here during this incident, but thanks to the Navy's swift deployment, it didn't get burned down. The precious forests are intact."
Forests are important. Really important. The reconstruction work made me realize how crucial it is to produce lumber locally.
Especially in this ocean world of One Piece.
Land that can produce wood for fuel and building materials, charcoal, and the timber needed for ships is truly vital.
"Now that we've signed a ceasefire with the Navy and can move freely due to the emergency, we'll rebuild this island and establish a permanent route between here and Mopchi."
In the center of that route was a somewhat large uninhabited island.
I circled it with a large ring and drew more lines from there.
Those lines led to nations that had been under Mogura's influence, and to many poor countries among the member nations.
"With relatively few other member nations nearby, there's less chance of Navy attacks after the ceasefire ends. And this uninhabited island is somewhat close to other member nations. Using it as a base point, we can trade with member nations, especially struggling ones, even if it becomes a back channel. No, we'll create that situation."
Even if it's just tacit approval, creating actual examples of legitimate trade routes for proper goods will become negotiating material later.
"Unlike Mopchi, which we chose as a test case for its modest size, that place has incomparably more land available for development. Here's a rough map. See the considerable flatlands and rivers?"
Mihawk looked at the map I'd attached to the sea chart with magnets and chuckled appreciatively.
Alright, alright, good to see him getting interested.
"My Lord, rebuilding is fine, but what about labor? If residents were taken away, mostly only elderly people who can't work should remain."
"Good question. I have something in mind for that. In this incident, rescued member nation citizens are being protected, but the treatment of non-member nation citizens is somewhat complicated."
They'll probably end up dumped somewhere eventually, but feeding them until then is a delicate issue for the World Government, if not the Navy.
"So I'm negotiating with the Fleet Admiral to let me handle their situation. Since they were troubled by it too, the response hasn't been bad."
"So, temporary immigration?"
"It feels wrong to take advantage of an emergency, but right now we need to combine our strength."
"I see... But what's the backup plan if negotiations fail?"
...Seriously, Hancock has grown tremendously since I gave her major responsibilities.
"It's not exactly a backup plan, but... actually, people I once worked with temporarily, former Marines like Amis whom we rescued, have been gathering in Mogura after hearing I'm there. Currently about forty of them."
"Isn't there a possibility of spies?"
"I can't say there isn't. But I've confirmed their identities. At least they're not intelligence operatives trained by CP or similar organizations. If they only leak field information, they might actually serve as advertisements."
"Hmm... but forty people?"
"I think that's sufficient as minimum initial labor. Think about it, Hancock."
I glanced at the coveralls-wearing guy sipping tea beside me.
"We have a man whose development ability is ridiculously outstanding, plus he's invaluable as defensive force."
"...That's true."
"Leave it to me. In preparation, I've had them prepare extra seedlings after the harvest."
Oh, okay.
"I've been thinking this for a while, Mihawk, but are you really fine with this?"
"I'm simply executing what I feel is necessary."
"I, I see... No, you're actually being very helpful..."
He's so reliable it makes me laugh strangely. No, seriously, he's incredibly reliable.
Look, the Pirate King's right-hand man who was just playing with you is laughing his ass off again.
"Bege, what I want to ask of you is..."
"That uninhabited island, right? If I set up our hideout, warehouse, and port there as a future trade hub, we can move immediately when your island becomes profitable."
"Exactly. Of course, take your time. Honestly, trade combined with supply procurement is more important right now. I can't just ask you allies to work for free. At worst, just secure it so weird pirates don't take it."
Bege understands his own strengths too.
Bege's amazing ability is grasping underworld contacts and creating new trade routes.
That's why I absolutely need Bege and his subordinates' power for commercial matters, and he should be confident we won't carelessly betray him.
"Heh heh heh, the expenses are big but I'm making good money from this somehow. Leave it to me."
"Good. ...That covers our immediate action plan."
Working alongside the Navy really made me appreciate the value of reputation.
From our perspective, these are actions to increase productivity, but...
"Now, honestly I've shared all the information the officers need to know... but today we've invited a guest who knows the Grand Line better than anyone else in the world."
Tension ran across the faces of those who understood. Or they grinned knowingly.
Robin tilted her head curiously while Perona was drinking cocoa again.
"Since we have this opportunity, would you mind if we asked you several questions about the Grand Line here?"
"Hoh. You have something you want to ask this old retiree?"
...Why are you slightly intimidating?
"Yes. This is a good chance, so I'd like to share with everyone the Grand Line plans I previously discussed with my officers... well, specifically with Daz and Perona..."
Those two are definitely still half-skeptical. Especially about the South Bird part.
In fact, Daz is starting to chuckle quietly, and Perona is laughing out loud with her "Horo horo horo," damn her.
"I'd like to tell everyone how I intend to move, and if possible, have you supplement whether my knowledge about the Grand Line is correct."
"...Where your voyage leads, eh?"
Rayleigh drained the sake in his hand and set down the empty glass.
"Very well. What do you want to know... no, what do you want to confirm?"
"Thank you. Then..."
"Do you know about an island called Jaya?"
"...Huh?"
Eh, what's with that reaction?
***
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