Chapter 281: Destruction And Creation
“Roar~ You’re really merciless, huh~”
Seeing Willy empty the magazine in one go without blinking, Taolong’s impression of him improved somewhat.
He had originally thought he was just an ordinary merchant skilled at flattery and bootlicking, but unexpectedly, the other party actually had some courage.
That skilled action and calm demeanor… the other party was undoubtedly not a novice doing this for the first time.
“No choice.”
After retreating to a safe distance and carefully observing to confirm the other party truly had no breath left, Willy explained:
“This child is the son of Mediya’s old butler, part of Mediya’s direct lineage. I couldn’t guarantee if he was a backup left by that old fox, so I had to be cautious.”
“Heh~”
“You merchants doing business always have so many tricks up your sleeves, leaving backups here and there…”
“Rest assured, none of the guys on that list you handed over will be left out. I guarantee it.”
“After all, Miss La said this is called… uh, cleaning the house thoroughly before inviting guests.”
Ignoring the cries for help and pleas for mercy coming from the luxurious villa ahead, Taolong turned around with his hands behind his back, gazing toward the sea ahead.
The deep blue ocean remained as calm and endless as ever. The manor was not far from the shore, so standing here, one could clearly smell the scents carried by the sea breeze.
『World Government, Navy, Seven Warlords, Grand Line, and Four Seas… truly something to look forward to.』
……
Several days later, Grand Line, Marinford Island.
At the invitation of Shichibukai Hana-zō, World Government CP organization officer Spandine, Navy Logistics Department staff officer Smith, Beasts Pirates’ Beasts Heavy Industry Weapon Department minister Willy, and Development Department minister Taolong re-signed an agreement in a familiar private room at the Golden Glazed Pavilion.
Compared to the previous smuggling-like transaction with Caspar, this signed agreement was officially notarized by three parties and went through official channels as a legitimate deal.
The agreement stipulated that the Navy, as a World Government affiliate, and other organizations would cooperate with Shichibukai Hana-zō on arms trade…
Yes, with the World Government’s endorsement, Hana-zō as a Shichibukai could completely legally trade with the Navy and World Government.
In fact, to bind the Seven Warlords more tightly to itself, the World Government even hinted to its subordinate departments to cooperate with them in various aspects as much as possible.
As for whether Hana-zō’s weapon sources came from a pirate crew defined by the World Government as a criminal organization… that was not content for the agreement to discuss.
Even if everyone present knew this full well, they all tacitly chose to avoid talking about it.
After all, Hana-zō, the main party to the agreement, had been sitting on the sofa from the start, chugging one bottle after another of the high-end spirits provided by the club, looking completely uninvolved.
And sitting across the table, signing the agreement in his place, were two people boldly displaying the Beasts Pirates’ emblem on their clothes.
……
“Well then, pleasant cooperation, you two.”
After exchanging contracts, Willy smiled and extended his hand first, and Spandine across from him immediately shook it.
“Haha~ Pleasant cooperation, Mister Willy.”
“Speaking of which, this is our first meeting, isn’t it? But Your Excellency gives me a sense of instant familiarity~”
Skillfully using pleasantries to close the distance, Spandine habitually began probing this new partner’s personality and character.
“No, no, I’m just a humble little merchant. How dare I compare myself to Mister Spandine.”
As a seasoned veteran, Willy naturally picked up the probe and switched into his sales mode.
“Mister Spandine is young yet holds a high position in the World Government, surely due to exceptional talent. If you don’t mind, I’ve prepared a modest drink and a small banquet. Would Your Excellency grace us later?”
“Hahaha! Of course, of course.”
“Senior Willy has operated in the New World for years and is widely renowned. This subordinate was just hoping to take this opportunity to learn from you…”
……
Watching them go from strangers to brothers-in-arms in just a few words, Taolong and this newly promoted Smith staff officer were completely baffled by their maneuvers.
Taolong went without saying; as a standard Beasts Pirate, the most direct and effective human relations he understood was the fist.
As for Smith staff officer, compared to Singh who clawed his way up, he had been parachuted into the logistics chief staff officer role via family connections and was still a bit clumsy with such human relations.
But fortunately, his family ties were strong enough that even without understanding anything, he could directly displace the deputy staff officer Singh who should have attended and claim this share.
“Speaking of which, I heard Singh say the guy we logistics used to work with was called Caspar. Why didn’t he show up?”
Seeing Spandine and Willy chatting enthusiastically, Smith couldn’t hold back and started making small talk with Taolong.
Taolong, whose gaze was fixed on Hana-zō while simulating a battle outcome in his mind, casually brushed it off:
“That guy choked to death on ice cream.”
“Oh… huh?!”
“Wait…”
Hearing this obvious nonsense, Smith was stunned, but just as he wanted to ask more, Spandine promptly called him out.
“Smith staff officer, we’re heading to the hot springs hall for a drink later. Care to join?”
“Ah? Oh, sure.”
……
With the agreement signed with the World Government and Navy, the Beasts Pirates’ arms trade officially entered a period of rapid expansion.
Though there was pressure from above and considerations to limit Beasts Pirates’ weapons flowing into the pirate market, when Navy higher-ups actually received weapons stamped with ‘Beasts Heavy Industry’ and distributed them to soldiers below, they felt a mix of emotions.
What made them even more uncomfortable was that aside from some soldiers with purist mentalities who preferred old flintlock guns over pirate-made weapons, the rest—officers and soldiers alike—were all very fond of Beasts Pirates’ weapons.
Foreign gadgets are so cool~.jpg
Long range, high precision, great power… and they even look good.
In fact, many Navy personnel had long privately acquired several Beasts Heavy Industry guns, but due to their status, they couldn’t openly display them.
Now it was fine; no need to hide anymore. Some were already carrying eight guns of various models openly for daily training.
……
“Sengoku, do you think agreeing to let Beasts Pirates’ arms into the Navy was the right move or the wrong one?”
Looking at the latest Beasts Pirates semi-automatic pistol on the table, Fleet Admiral Kong in his justice Fleet Admiral coat had a rather unpleasant expression.
Compared to the initial revolver pistols, this model had gone through several iterations as a brand-new version, with parameters so excellent that this old-era Navy admiral couldn’t comprehend it.
“Slurp~”
Sengoku gently sipped the steaming tea, set down the cup upon finding it too hot, then picked up a bag of grilled rice cakes and said while eating:
“For now, it seems the pros outweigh the cons, Fleet Admiral Kong.”
“Leaving aside that one of Beasts Pirates’ conditions was requiring the World Government to open trade channels, they also used a Seven Warlords as the public-facing agent, avoiding much public backlash.”
“Just take their weapon quality and iteration speed. If we stuck with old flintlock guns while these new weapons we bought now flood the market, our soldiers would face exponentially higher casualties in the future.”
“Sigh~”
Hearing Sengoku’s analysis, Kong sighed helplessly.
“Never thought the day would come when the Navy relies on pirate weapons. This is truly…”
“That’s not the issue. The key is that our Navy needs to establish its own weapon research and development team like Beasts Pirates.”
“In the past, due to various interest entanglements, our weapon R&D has been hindered by our own people. Now, Beasts Pirates shaking things up like a catfish has broken these messy interest networks, giving us the perfect chance to act.”
Sengoku stood up, came before Kong, and said earnestly:
“Fleet Admiral Kong, I hope you’ll apply to the Gorosei in the Fleet Admiral’s name to establish a Navy-exclusive ‘Science Unit’.”
