"It truly is a miraculous island!"
Sivedia gazed at the island floating above the sea and couldn't help but praise it sincerely.
Reddy did not interfere with his business.
For a noble like him, obtaining a ship for trade was not difficult.
Moreover, after Reddy took over Loguetown, the most direct impact on East Blue was making its reputation as the weakest sea truly deserved.
After all, the troublemaking pirates had all been hung on the square in Loguetown.
With a clone bodyguard whose strength was comparable to a Marine Rear Admiral, the merchant ship could easily handle ordinary small pirate crews.
"This is a divine miracle!"
Grizzly Bear Bill corrected him seriously.
Reddy had taken Ark and the others away, but Bill remained in Loguetown, keeping a low profile.
Every change that occurred in Loguetown fell into his eyes, further strengthening his belief in the promise Reddy had once made to him.
In his view, the current Loguetown was an indisputable divine miracle.
Sivedia didn't want to dwell on this topic and was more interested in the team of guards Reddy had mentioned he could receive upon arriving in Loguetown.
A few hours later, the merchant ship slowly docked at the port.
As soon as Sivedia and Grizzly Bear Bill stepped onto the dock, several people approached them with eager smiles.
"Honorable sir, what goods have you brought on your ship?"
One of the men noticed the noble crest embroidered on Sivedia's sleeve and immediately became even more deferential.
The others also spotted the crest and quickly fell silent, waiting nervously for Sivedia's response.
"Just a shipment of grain."
Sivedia was already accustomed to such situations and waved his hand dismissively. "I heard Loguetown has a severe grain shortage, so I thought I'd give it a try."
"Honorable sir, you've come to the right place."
The man who had spoken earlier grew even more enthusiastic and invited Sivedia to the rest area on the dock.
After ordering drinks from the attendant, he lowered his voice mysteriously. "Honorable sir, would you like to join our alliance?"
"Hmm?"
Sivedia was stunned.
He had indeed heard of such alliances.
They were formed by several major merchants collaborating to control one or more specific goods, withholding them until prices rose to their desired level before selling at a high profit.
But back then, he had been just a minor noble running solo, and no one had paid him any attention.
Sivedia was momentarily lost in thought and murmured, "Is grain really that scarce now?"
If even a small-time noble like him was being courted, it was clear how many people were eyeing Loguetown's grain market.
The man smiled. "Without us, the commoners on this island would probably starve. We're actually doing a good deed."
After a pause, he added in a hushed tone, "Besides grain, if you have connections to source construction materials... that's also a highly profitable business."
"Are you joking!"
Sivedia's face flushed with anger as he slammed the table and stood up furiously.
People nearby turned to look curiously.
The men quickly bowed and signaled that everything was fine before desperately gesturing for Sivedia to calm down.
"I am a noble."
Sivedia arrogantly tossed out these words and left with Grizzly Bear Bill.
Watching them walk away, one of the men sneered, "Who in this business doesn't have a noble backing them?"
The others chuckled without responding.
Just then, another merchant ship docked, and the group immediately stood up to greet it.
...
"Lord Reddy, would you like me to help you drive a hard bargain?"
Sivedia eagerly offered to crush the alliance trying to monopolize the market in Loguetown and leave them bankrupt.
"No need."
Reddy was well aware that some were colluding to monopolize markets for bulk goods like grain. Otherwise, he wouldn't have recruited Sivedia as his frontman.
It wasn't worth wasting energy on such a guaranteed small victory when he could focus on other matters.
"These are the guards I prepared for you."
Reddy snapped his fingers, and soon Bartolomeo led a group of people inside.
The underground prison of the Punk Hazard research facility now housed many ideal genetic donors.
Among them were even LV13 genetic donors.
Reddy had specially produced five clones for Sivedia.
These temporary clones had genetic ratings of LV13, but they were not enhanced or equipped with functional modules. Their appearances were only slightly adjusted from the original templates, and their initial combat strength was around LV9.
This level was only comparable to a Marine Captain, but their potential was immense. Given time, these clones could also reach Yonko or Admiral-level strength.
But that was a matter for the future.
For now, they were more than enough to handle the East Blue's shipping routes.
"Thank you, my lord."
Sivedia was overjoyed and showered Reddy with endless flattery.
"Find a way to get these items delivered as soon as possible."
Reddy cut off Sivedia's praise and handed him a list.
Sivedia skimmed through it and was stunned.
Aside from bulk commodities like grain and construction materials, the list included precision instruments and other hard-to-acquire items.
He did a quick estimate.
The total value of the items on the list exceeded 30 billion Berries.
Sivedia was momentarily speechless.
"Can't do it?"
Reddy's voice snapped Sivedia back to reality, and he hurriedly nodded. "I can do it, I can do it. Please leave it to me."
As he spoke, his heart burned with excitement.
For goods worth over 30 billion Berries, he could earn at least a tenth in profit.
With the right approach, that profit might even reach a fifth or more.
Precision instruments and equipment made up the bulk of the list.
At the thought, Sivedia's eyes turned red.
Even at a tenth of the profit, that was still 3 billion Berries.
If he could secure a fifth, that would be a staggering 6 billion Berries.
Oh boy, he was about to strike it rich!
Seeing Sivedia's grin, Reddy's lips curled slightly.
He didn't mind letting Sivedia keep a portion of the profits.
If he were to procure these items himself on the black market, the total cost would easily double.
Had he tried to exchange prisoners for these goods, he knew the World Government would have gouged him mercilessly.
Overall, entrusting Sivedia as his frontman to procure the supplies was a cost-effective move.
After letting Sivedia fantasize for a while, Reddy interrupted, "Have you prepared what I asked for?"
"Ah, yes, it's already at the port."
Sivedia snapped back to attention and nodded quickly. "I brought only the finest grain seeds."
Agriculture was the foundation of a nation.
Relying solely on imported grain was not a sustainable solution, as the World Government could cut off supply channels at any time.
The nobles backing the major merchants would never defy the World Government's will.
The reason they hadn't yet banned exports of various goods to Loguetown was simply because they hoped to reclaim some of the ransom money from Reddy by selling bulk commodities.
Through this transfer, wealth would flow back into the nobles' hands.
For other goods, Reddy had no better solution yet, but he took grain very seriously.
He had already planned to find uninhabited islands suitable for farming and establish large-scale farms there.
After all, once the entertainment city was completed, the hordes of laborers would need somewhere to go.
Reclaiming land for farming was the perfect solution.
Once the grain problem was solved, he would no longer have to fear the World Government exploiting the opportunity to sabotage him.
With this frontman in place, Reddy felt significantly more at ease and refocused his energy on the tea party set to take place in just one week.
...
"How much longer must we wait!"
A fat man paced restlessly around the room.
He had gambled his entire fortune on purchasing large quantities of grain, waiting for the right moment to make a killing.
But the alliance had yet to act.
This left him extremely anxious.
Others were in the room as well. A lean man's eyes gleamed cunningly as he smirked. "Don't be impatient. Gathering grain takes time, and our dear Dr. Reddy also needs time to collect the ransom."
"But I think... it won't be long now."
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