Chapter 84: Beasts Pirates Development Plan Suggestions (part 2)
To be honest, this haul exceeded La’s expectations.
In fact, most of the Beasts Pirates crew, including Burufaruto and the others, haven’t fully realized the immense resources they now possess.
The mere expansion of territory has left them unsure of how to manage it all for the moment.
It’s like winning the lottery jackpot and not knowing where to spend it; they haven’t even discussed how much ‘protection fees’ to collect from the island’s residents.
La picked up the account book from when John was in charge and quickly flipped through it.
These account books, which detail the flow of wealth, are written very meticulously, indicating that the person who recorded them was quite thorough.
『 Ah, familiar handwriting. It must have been recorded by the owner of the room upstairs herself.
However, between the lines, there’s a hint of dissatisfaction and resentment towards John, suggesting that John’s faction was not united internally. 』
After reorganizing the account book in conjunction with the trade situations of each island, La gained a general understanding of John’s ruling policy.
In a word, it was—sustainable fishing of the pond.
Completely disregarding the development of people’s livelihoods and environmental planning, only thinking about how to scrape together as much wealth as possible, as quickly as possible.
If it weren’t for the island’s abundant produce and the frequent provisions from the executives guarding the island, there would have likely been a famine and a large portion of the population would have starved to death long ago.
On land where a handful of seeds would grow into food, there was nearly a famine…
Heh~
And this is just the situation on Fenrir Main Island; some other subordinate islands with less fertile land, or land unsuitable for growing food, have actually experienced famines several times.
『 No wonder the islanders looked at our people with such elation, as if welcoming conquering heroes. So, for them, things couldn’t possibly get any worse.
Well, it seems I need to plan properly and not do something like killing the goose that lays the golden eggs, like John did. 』
If nothing unexpected happens, these islands will be the foundation of the Beasts Pirates in the future, and they must be developed well, just like a bird meticulously tidies its nest.
Furthermore, the previous “grab, grab, grab” pirate-style development model needs to be abandoned. After all, how much money can you get from mere robbery?
Instead, formulating a long-term development plan to fully coordinate and utilize various resources, shifting the island’s economic development from short-term gains to long-term benefits, from rapid growth to stable growth, and from unsustainable to sustainable, has become a necessary and crucial step.
La rapidly constructed a complete economic and industrial development roadmap in her mind.
“From pirate crew to regional warlord, then to a military state… no, there’s no need to go that far.”
La felt that Kaido was already leaning in that direction.
He had mentioned more than once his desire to launch a great war that would sweep across the entire world, overthrow the World Government, and thus construct a new order.
The current Kaido would surely light up with excitement at the words ‘military state’ and eagerly push for it.
Compared to being a war-mongering military state, an uncontrolled war machine that couldn’t stop until self-destruction, becoming a world-class arms dealer behind the scenes is clearly a more suitable path.
Why would a strategist step onto the board themselves… it’s not like he’s a Big Man Chess Grandmaster.
『 I’ll need to persuade Captain Kaido later not to be blinded by a little immediate military might.
Rebellion requires widespread uprising, not one person trying to heat a cold stove. 』
After briefly organizing her thoughts in her mind, La took out a blank sheet of paper and began writing the report she might need for a discussion later.
『 I can’t believe that before graduating in my previous life, I’m now experiencing the life of a corporate slave in another world. 』
La gave herself a small self-deprecating laugh, but she felt no dissatisfaction about it.
Rather, the feeling of experiencing new things on a whim was precisely what she had always pursued.
Although it might seem like she has a short attention span to others, La is actually a very patient and focused person.
This can be seen from her ability to weave silk-like delicate clothes with divine threads.
It’s just that because of her current “divine talent,” many skills go from beginner to mastery in less than three minutes.
Others might have an “idea, then from beginner to giving up,” while she has “an idea, then from beginner to proficient, and then building her own new structure.”
After filling over ten sheets of paper with her writing, La put down her quill, picked up the papers, and blew on them lightly to dry the ink.
La’s handwriting is exceptionally beautiful and elegant, good enough to enhance the overall aesthetic of an art exhibition.
The entire report, tens of thousands of characters, was completed in one go without a single correction.
After carefully checking for any errors or omissions, La left the archive room with her 《 Beasts Pirates Development Plan Suggestions (Unofficial Version ）》) and went to the meeting hall.
“Is no one here? It seems Captain Kaido hasn’t woken up yet.”
Several hours had passed since La entered the archive room, and it was now past lunchtime, but Kaido seemed to still be asleep.
One could only say that pirates’ biological clocks are truly unpredictable.
“Let’s go to the kitchen first and prepare some fruit pastries. Osei and Obei will likely be called here too later.”
A report meeting without snacks is as soulless as Syracusan noodles without chocolate sauce, and preparing drinks for them will also prevent them from taking out alcohol during the meeting and filling the room with the smell of booze.
Using the map of the archive room imprinted in her mind, La arrived at the island’s pirate canteen.
I have to say, this place is more than twice the size of the old canteen, like the difference between a small convenience store downstairs and a five-story supermarket in the city center.
La walked into the kitchen. Since it was past the mealtime, there weren’t many people around. The cooking utensils and plates had already been washed and were drying, indicating that everyone had gone for their midday nap.
Looking at the ingredient section, there were still plenty of melons, vegetables, and many unidentifiable steaks left, likely raw materials prepared in advance for dinner.
La picked up an unfamiliar fruit and took a bite.
Hmm, it tasted different from anything in her memory.
Seeing the ingredients on the table whose names she couldn’t recall, La’s heart stirred slightly.
For someone who enjoys trying new things, creating unknown dishes with these ingredients would be as enjoyable as a card player using a spur-of-the-moment deck to make their opponent repeatedly ask “What?!”
『 Hmm~ Considering the time, I should make them afternoon tea pastries.
Since there’s no tea, I’ll substitute with juice. It’ll also help sober them up… 』
…………
“Hey, King, have you seen Big Sister?”
The two somewhat aimless young ones were wandering around the island and happened to see a passing Lunarian, so they asked.
“Yeah, Sister La hasn’t been back since she went out this morning. We didn’t even see her at lunch.”
Osei also realized she hadn’t seen La all day.
“She should be in the archive room.”
King stopped walking and replied.
“Captain Kaido will likely call us to discuss the crew’s next moves after he wakes up, so you two will need to be there too.”
Even though the two young ones are not even as tall as King’s thigh, their strength is already sufficient to participate in the high-level meetings within the Beasts Pirates.
If it weren’t for their young age and their Haki not being sufficiently proficient yet, the Beasts Pirates would likely have gained two more executives.
“Eh—a meeting? But I really don’t want to go~”
Osei was now like a university student whose holiday was suddenly interrupted by a phone call from their counselor asking them to attend a meeting.
Shouldn’t she be enjoying life after coming to another world?
I had meetings before crossing over, and I still have meetings after crossing over. Did I cross over for nothing?!
“This is also what Captain Kaido and Burufaruto intend. You two will have to deal with these things sooner or later.”
“What time and where?”
Compared to Osei’s reluctance, Obei didn’t have many complaints.
She preferred to find a quiet place to sit rather than being dragged around outside by Osei.
『 I wonder if the meeting will offer snacks and small cakes… 』
“The time is not set yet; it depends on when Captain Kaido wakes up. The location should be the meeting hall.
You two can head over there first; I estimate Captain Kaido will wake up soon.”
King, as the earliest follower of Kaido, was remarkably knowledgeable about Kaido’s habits despite his young age.
As expected, just as King finished speaking, Kaido’s Den Den Mushi rang.
Kaido on the other end of the Den Den Mushi sounded groggy, as if he had just woken up.
“Aaaah~ Mmm~—King, call Burufaruto and the others to the meeting hall now. We need to discuss our next moves.
Oh, and don’t forget to bring those two brats.”
“Yes, Mr. Kaido.”
After the other end hung up the Den Den Mushi, King pointed in a direction and said to the two:
“You two go ahead. I’ll go inform Burufaruto and La.”
……
Half an hour later, in the meeting hall—
“Mmm! Sister La, this small cake is so delicious!”
Osei said vaguely while devouring the fruit cake in front of her, resembling a squirrel with its cheeks stuffed with nuts.
Obei next to her was also eating with gusto, but with much more decorum and without the loud exclamations like Osei.
“I’m glad you like it. And don’t talk while you’re eating.”
La looked at Osei, who had no regard for her image, with a hint of helplessness before cutting a small piece of cake with her fork and putting it into her mouth.
『 Hmm, the taste is slightly different from when it was freshly baked. Is it because the fruit slices have cooled down… 』
The plates in front of Burufaruto and King were already empty.
Given their size, these small cakes were truly “small.” Although La had intentionally made them larger, for them, it was like a difference of one bite versus two.
“Haha, Little Brat Osei is right, La, your craftsmanship is incredible!
Even King, who hardly eats sweets, couldn’t resist picking up a fork. It looks like we’ll have a feast at future meetings.”
Burufaruto, still wanting more, picked up the juice beside him but didn’t drink it immediately. Instead, he examined it carefully.
The juice looked as colorful and distinct as a rainbow, reminding him of a cocktail he saw a Noble order at a very high-end bar once.
Out of curiosity, he secretly glanced at the price and almost popped his eyes out.
With anticipation, Burufaruto took a small sip and felt as if he had descended into paradise, all fatigue vanishing.
“La, are you truly a cook who ate a Cooking-Cooking Fruit?”
To be honest, Burufaruto felt that even a Devil Fruit ability wouldn’t be able to produce such delicious juice.
“Unfortunately, I’m not an Ability User of a Cooking-Cooking Fruit. Making these pastries was just a whim.
If you like them, I’ll make some more for the next meeting.”
“Hmm… I think our Beasts Pirates crew has too few regular meetings.
How about we change it to once a week… no, once every three days, King?”
Burufaruto suddenly said in all seriousness.
“Uro-ro-ro-ro! I don’t have the patience for daily meetings.”
Judging by the voice, Kaido, the organizer of the meeting, had finally arrived.
“Hahaha, Boss Kaido, why are you just waking up now~ Come and try this juice, it’s more potent than any alcohol I’ve ever drunk!”
“Oh? For you to say something like that, I must certainly try it.”
With that, Kaido picked up the rainbow-colored juice placed before his seat and drank it in one gulp.
“How was it? I didn’t lie to you, did I, Boss Kaido.”
“Tsk~ It’s sweet and sour, nothing interesting. I still prefer alcohol.”
『 He’s clearly still smacking his lips… 』 Burufaruto thought to himself.
“Alright, you all know why I called you here. Speak up, what are your thoughts?”
……
