Still in the first half of the Grand Line.
On the never-sleeping island of Enies Lobby, Spandine locked his office door from the inside, activated every anti-eavesdropping measure he had, and only then, trembling, picked up the Den Den Mushi that had been shrieking nonstop in his hand.
"H-Hello? Dragon-san?" Spandine greeted, his voice tinged with guilt.
On the other end, Dragon's voice was filled with fury.
"Spandine, did you sell us out? You didn't seriously think I burned those photos, did you?"
The moment he heard that, Spandine cursed him out internally. As expected, this bastard had no credibility whatsoever. Not like Admiral Benn, who actually kept his word. Didn't you say they were already burned?
But no matter how furious he felt inside, Spandine hurriedly explained, "No! Of course not! How could I betray you? We swore an oath together in front of Admiral Benn!"
"Then what the hell is going on this time?" Dragon snapped. "The intelligence you provided was completely wrong! Because of your bad intel, our Revolutionary Army forces in the East Blue were almost wiped out, and even our East Army commander was captured by your CP organization!"
"It wasn't my fault!" Spandine rushed to defend himself. "The problem was at headquarters! The original intel was accurate, but who could've guessed the CP Director would personally lead a team to the East Blue and even coordinate with the East Blue Marines? Once the Director issued the order, I had no reason or excuse to get involved at all! After that, I didn't know anything about how things developed!"
He truly had no idea what was going on. Why would the Director suddenly step in personally?
And right now, he was absolutely terrified, because…
"Besides, how could I possibly betray Captain Ginny?" Spandine added quickly, throwing out what he thought was his strongest argument. "She knows my identity. If she's been captured and can't hold up under interrogation at headquarters and ends up giving me up, wouldn't I be completely finished?"
That argument actually hit home. Hearing this, even Dragon, who had still been somewhat suspicious, felt it made sense.
Dragon didn't believe Ginny would betray them so easily, but Spandine wouldn't see it that way.
With Ginny captured, Spandine was probably already panicking like an ant on a hot pan.
After a brief silence, Dragon spoke again.
"If they use guided interrogation, Ginny might actually believe you were the one who betrayed her. In that case, it wouldn't be impossible for her to give you up…"
Spandine's heart skipped a beat.
He was right. Guided interrogation was a common method, and CP was extremely skilled at it. If they steered the interrogation by suggesting that someone had sold Ginny out, she might fall for it. She might genuinely believe Spandine was behind it all.
And if that happened, and she named him…
He would be completely done for.
"What are we supposed to do now, Dragon-san!?" Spandine asked in a panic.
"I'll give you two options," Dragon said in a low, steady voice. "First, pack up immediately. Take all the important intelligence you have and flee overnight. Come to the East Blue and rendezvous with me. I'll appoint you as the new commander of our Revolutionary Army's East Army. Your combat strength isn't impressive, but I fully acknowledge your abilities. You're useful. From now on, forget about CP altogether. Just follow me and do things properly."
Spandine's head practically exploded when he heard that.
Follow you? If I follow you, I won't even get four hot dishes in this lifetime. No matter how you look at it, I'm still a close friend of Admiral Benn. If things really go south, wouldn't it be far better to throw myself at the Admiral?
Even if the Admiral thinks my identity is tricky and hard to explain to the World Government, he could still arrange for me to be sent to the Big Mom Pirates, or to Totto Land. No matter how you slice it, that's better than following you.
Just look at Captain Ginny. Look at the miserable state she ended up in by following you.
That's right. Although Spandine was constrained by Dragon to a certain extent, he genuinely looked down on the Revolutionary Army. You've been developing for so many years, yet the moment our CP Director made a move, your entire East Army was wiped out. No matter how you look at it, that doesn't scream "bright future."
What's more, Spandine believed that the real reason Dragon could threaten him at all was because he hadn't made up his mind to leave CP and betray the World Government.
If he were willing to give up the power and status he currently enjoyed in CP, how could Dragon possibly hold anything over him? He could just defect straight to Admiral Benn and pledge his loyalty. At that point, what nonsense would Dragon still dare to spout?
So Spandine didn't even consider the first option. He asked directly, "Then what's the second option?"
"The second option?" Dragon replied without hesitation. "Do I even need to say it? Aren't you influential in Mary Geoise? Find a way to get Ginny out. If you do that, everything will be settled."
Dragon wasn't stupid. He knew perfectly well that someone like Spandine would never choose to follow him. And frankly, the Revolutionary Army didn't truly need someone like Spandine anyway. Someone without firm beliefs or a clear stance could easily turn into a liability.
That "liability" didn't mean Spandine would sell out the Revolutionary Army to the World Government. It meant he would absolutely sell everything they had straight to that bastard Ortoren.
That was why, from the very beginning, Dragon's so-called first option was nothing more than pressure tactics, meant to force Spandine to find a way to rescue Ginny.
"When have I ever been that influential?" Spandine complained bitterly. "This operation is being handled directly by our CP Director. When things reach this level, it means the Director has received an absolute order from the Five Elders. The kind where failure means death. In that situation, no matter how capable I am, there's no way I can even get close to Captain Ginny. Forget me. Even Admiral Benn probably couldn't pull that off right now. The Director won't give anyone an opening."
"Not even Ortoren?" Dragon asked, his tone turning heavy.
Originally, Dragon's plan had been simple. If Spandine couldn't deliver, he would swallow his pride and go ask Ortoren to see if he could help.
In the original course of events, when Ginny was captured, Dragon had no connections, no leverage, and no options. But now, he had Ortoren. A trusted comrade. A brother in arms. Of course he would try to use that relationship.
"Uh…" Spandine hesitated when he sensed where Dragon was going, then said, "I was just using him as an example. Admirals are the ones who are truly well-connected. How could I possibly gauge an Admiral's capabilities? Who knows… maybe it's possible."
Dragon fell silent on the other end of the Den Den Mushi.
Back then, Ortoren had been willing to burn down the Holy Land itself just to rescue someone from Mary Geoise. He had even used that incident to climb the ranks and become an Admiral.
If he asked him to find another solution now, maybe it really wasn't impossible.
Without saying another word, Dragon hung up the Den Den Mushi and prepared to contact Ortoren.
After all, in Dragon's impression, Ortoren truly had connections everywhere. Maybe he really did have a way.
Staring at the Den Den Mushi that had been cut off without so much as a goodbye, Spandine muttered angrily, "No manners at all. No wonder you can't even get hot food."
As he grumbled, Spandine began shutting down all the anti-eavesdropping devices and other equipment he had set up earlier.
The moment he finished turning them off, the Den Den Mushi in his hand rang again.
He looked down.
Damn it. The Director!?
Spandine jolted in fright. Had Ginny already talked?
He didn't dare delay for even a second. He immediately answered, carefully saying, "Director? You were looking for me?"
"Spandine," the Director's voice came through. "If I remember correctly, you have fairly good relations with quite a few Marine officers, don't you?"
Hearing this, Spandine finally relaxed a little. It didn't sound like an interrogation.
He quickly replied, "Yes, Director. But that's all for CP's work. You know how it is. Our relationship with the Marines has never been great, but we have to cooperate in many situations. Someone has to act as the middleman, so…"
"I understand. I understand completely," the Director said calmly. "I know you're loyal to CP. There's no need to worry. This time, I have a task for you."
He didn't take offense. What Spandine said was true. CP really did need someone like him to act as an intermediary with the Marines.
Spandine immediately responded, "Yes, Director. Please give your orders."
"In the New World, Admiral Benn has made the higher-ups somewhat uneasy," the Director said solemnly. "The Five intend to use certain methods to divide and win over key members of the Marines under his command. Since you have good relations with the Marines, you'll be responsible for this matter. Remember, the higher-ups are currently dissatisfied with the Marines. Ever since the Holy Land was burned, this is CP's best chance to turn things around. If you handle this well, we might once again be able to keep the Marines in check. Such a great contribution could even put you in my seat one day. Do you understand?"
Spandine???
Me?
Do you have any idea that I'm Admiral Benn's closest friend, his sworn brother?
You want me to do this?
Ah… right.
You really don't know.