Diarmuid had never met the Gorosei. He'd been in this world for many years and had made a name for himself in the Marines, but with his current rank, he had never once seen the Gorosei. He was in a phase where he could often hear their voices, but never saw their faces.
But whether he'd met them or not, Diarmuid never saw these five Supreme Celestial Dragons, who were publicly known as the "highest authority of the World Government," as useless.
How could the people steering an organization as vast as the World Government be incompetent?
He was proven right.
The Gorosei were indeed five highly capable individuals. At their level, they had long since abandoned "base pleasures." They had nothing to do with corruption and were nothing like the swarms of idiotic Celestial Dragons in Mariejois who did nothing but waste oxygen. On the contrary, the Gorosei genuinely hoped the World Government would have a better future.
They were keen to clear out the corruption, to cut the rot from the giant body of the World Government, and to let this crumbling behemoth of a ship sail the waves once more. They wanted to inject new vitality into the 800 years of decay.
The reason for this mindset was simple.
First, as the highest-ranking Celestial Dragons who had risen above petty desires, they knew that their power came from the World Government itself. If the World Government collapsed from its own corruption and decay, none of them would have a good outcome. They would be no different from fallen monarchs.
And given their ambition, why would they want to be fallen monarchs? They naturally wanted to find a way to make their power last and their authority even stronger.
To do that, the World Government had to improve; otherwise, it would all be a joke.
Second, there was their idealism.
From their high position, having transcended base pleasures and using the world as their chessboard, people at their level often had their own ambitions to change the world. Based on the previous point, their idea of changing the world was not to make it more chaotic and insane like a pirate or a lunatic would.
At some level, their position required their ideals to be about justice—to change the world and guide it toward a better future. Otherwise, they would be a regression in history, and the result of that would be self-evident: if they messed things up, they would eventually die and their lineage would be wiped out.
So, for a variety of complex reasons, it was clear that the Gorosei were driven by self-interest, working to consolidate and strengthen their power. Yet, what they did and what they thought was, unexpectedly but logically, quite noble.
However, after hundreds of years of decay, they faced significant obstacles even in their high positions. They couldn't make swift, decisive changes, and with the tumultuous Great Pirate Era upon them, they were even more hesitant to act rashly.
As they had said, "governing a great nation is like cooking a small fish." To bring about change in an organization as massive as the World Government, they had to proceed one small step at a time.
Therefore, from a macro perspective, it made sense that the five of them seemed so ineffectual. But to be fair, was it truly their fault that the World Government had become so rotten?
Of course, this was from the perspective of the Gorosei and their allies. But they weren't the only ones with a vision. The five of them were "monarchists" who wanted to slowly change the situation and maintain the status quo.
Dragon and the Revolutionary Army, on the other hand, were the true "reformers." These were people who had completely lost hope in the World Government. They didn't believe the World Government's upper echelons could change on their own and thought they were just deluding themselves.
Thus, they were prepared to use powerful and radical means to uphold the justice and ideals in their hearts, guiding the era and society toward a new future. They weren't wrong, either. But their opposing stances meant a fierce struggle was inevitable.
This was why the Gorosei viewed the Revolutionary Army as the only major enemy that could truly shake the World Government's foundation at this stage.
As for the Marines, the so-called "maritime power," they were in an awkward, in-between position. The changes in this epic struggle had very little to do with the system they had maintained for hundreds of years. They felt like outsiders. There wasn't much they could do.
So both Sengoku and Kong chose to turn a blind eye, not interfering or asking too many questions.
Now, the Gorosei were suddenly being so open, bringing up the massive internal problems of the World Government and the Revolutionary Army as an organization. This left Sengoku and Kong confused.
What were they getting at? What was their agenda? Were they going to have the Marines take over the authority of the CP agencies to wipe out the Revolutionary Army? Remembering how dejected Pask had looked when he left the office, it seemed like a possibility.
But Sengoku and Kong quickly realized they were wrong.
"We are telling you this for one reason alone," the golden-haired Gorosei said, his voice rising in anger as he slammed his hand on the table. "To make you understand that the situation has become a complete mess, and we can't let it continue! In less than three years, thirty-one member nations have been wiped out. I ask you, at this rate, will the World Government collapse within ten years!?"
Sengoku and Kong remained silent.
After his outburst, the golden-haired Gorosei quickly regained his composure. "We've made it very clear. The situation is a mess for two reasons: one is our own corruption and decay, and the second is the Revolutionary Army's growing embers. Do either of you have any objections?"
Sengoku and Kong exchanged glances, then shook their heads in unison. "No, we don't." There was nothing to object to; it was the truth.
"Then you should understand what our most important task is right now," the golden-haired Gorosei asked again.
Sengoku didn't speak, but Kong considered it for a moment. "To eliminate the Revolutionary Army..."
The golden-haired Gorosei looked at Kong. "You are a soldier, after all. Even with your exceptional abilities and intellect, your position still limits your judgment. Otherwise... we would have promoted you to Commander-in-Chief so you could stand on a higher ground and view the world with a broader perspective, Kong!"
Kong was taken aback. The Gorosei were clearly not satisfied with his answer. But their words also hinted at something else—that they might be considering him for Commander-in-Chief at the right time.
Kong quickly calmed himself down. This was probably just a trick of their words, a carrot before the stick.
Sure enough, before Kong could even process it, the golden-haired Gorosei continued. "Eliminating the Revolutionary Army is a necessity. No matter what, we must find a way to wipe out those scoundrels, or they will become a threat that shakes our foundation. But that's not your job, Kong. I will tell you frankly: we have only two expectations of the Marines right now... It's not to eliminate the Revolutionary Army, that's not within your scope. And it's not to stop the Great Pirate Era as that can't be solved in a short time!"
Kong and Sengoku straightened up, ready to hear the Gorosei's "expectations."
"Our two expectations. First, there must not be another Pirate King on the seas. Laugh Tale must not be found by anyone. You must destroy anyone who has the potential to find it!" the golden-haired Gorosei said in a low voice.
Laugh Tale was certain to hold Roger's secret. Roger had even uncovered the truth of the Void Century. His great treasure "One Piece" left behind before his death might seem like wealth to others, but the Gorosei didn't think Roger was that vulgar.
One Roger had already ruined the era enough; if another Pirate King appeared, it would not only create more problems but could completely destroy the current order.
The Gorosei could never accept such a result. They were giving the Marines a death order: no matter what, there could never be a second Pirate King.
There was nothing to argue about here. As Marines, neither Sengoku nor Kong wanted another Pirate King to appear. A "Marine King" would be a different story. Otherwise, what would become of justice? How could the people of the seas be protected?
Kong responded with a serious tone, "Yes, we Marines will dedicate our full effort to this!"
"Good. Second, as I said, the Great Pirate Era has already become a reality and cannot be quelled in a short time. In these past three years, we have seen this to be true, so we won't ask the impossible of you. Therefore, our second expectation for the Marines is for you to quickly balance the situation on the seas and stabilize this chaos! If more than twenty member nations are destroyed in the next three years and the total number doesn't return to the 170 level, I will be the first to sacrifice your head, Kong! Do you understand?!" the golden-haired Gorosei said, his voice sharp again.
Kong's heart sank, and he responded seriously once more, "Yes!"
After a moment's pause, he continued, "My Lords, balancing the situation on the seas and quickly stabilizing this chaotic mess requires a great deal of manpower and resources. With the pirates growing stronger, we Marines need more nourishment..."
This was his way of hinting that the Gorosei needed to provide more funding; otherwise, it would be difficult to do as they asked.
To his surprise, the bald Gorosei asked with a meaningful expression, "Kong, if the World Government were to increase the Marines' budget by 15% every year for the next three years, could you meet our expectations?"
Kong was stunned. He was about to agree, but Sengoku immediately spoke up. "I'm sorry, but I believe we are not capable of that. It takes time for the budget to translate into combat power. It would be difficult to stabilize the situation in three years. Furthermore, I believe your request to 'quickly maintain the balance and stability of the seas' is somewhat impractical."
Sengoku was truly stubborn. He was openly calling the Gorosei unrealistic. Yet, the Gorosei seemed to have already anticipated this and showed no sign of anger.
"Then how long do you think it would take?" the bald Gorosei asked Sengoku.
Sengoku was silent for a moment before answering conservatively, "It would probably take ten years, or even longer."
"You make a good point," the bald Gorosei said calmly, still not showing any anger. "Do you think the World Government will continue to weaken during those ten years?"
"If the situation is not stabilized, a decline is inevitable," Sengoku replied.
"In other words, you, Sengoku, also believe that the most urgent matter is to find a way to quickly stabilize the situation on the seas, or the World Government will suffer endless calamities. Is that correct?" the bald Gorosei asked again.
Sengoku felt like something was off, but when he thought about it, he couldn't find anything wrong. He frowned and nodded. "Yes!"
"Very well. So, to put it simply, we must stabilize the situation as soon as possible, but you Marines are temporarily incapable of doing so. Therefore, we are now in a dilemma, is that right?" the bald Gorosei asked.
"That's right," Sengoku said, feeling a sense of dread but steeling himself to answer.
"Then take a look at this," the bald Gorosei said with a smile, tossing two more files onto the table in front of Sengoku and Kong.
On the cover of the files, in bold letters, were the words: "Warlord System Draft"!
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