Vergo left awkwardly to contact Doflamingo.
Diarmuid had nothing to do, so he turned to Hina, who was watering the flowers. "I heard the Fleet Admiral gave you all my bonus?"
"Yes, I gave it to Gion-neechan," Hina said while watering.
After a slight pause, Hina complained, "All the plants were nearly dead while we were away. Shouldn't we hire someone to specifically help water them during those times?"
Diarmuid looked somewhat surprised. "Why did you give my bonus to Gion?"
"Is something wrong with that?" Hina asked, a bit puzzled.
"Ah, well..." Diarmuid wanted to say something, but ultimately shook his head, a smile crossing his face. "Nothing."
Good thing I have enough private savings...
He continued chatting with Hina while waiting for word from Doflamingo.
A short while later, Vergo knocked on the door again. After Diarmuid answered, Vergo walked in holding a Den Den Mushi. He said softly, "Admiral, my Young Master wants to explain to you personally."
"Hm." Diarmuid acknowledged, and Vergo placed the Den Den Mushi on the desk.
"Hello?" Diarmuid said.
"Fuffuffuffu, Admiral Diarmuid, congratulations." Doflamingo's slightly sinister laugh came through the Den Den Mushi.
Diarmuid also smiled and replied, "Congratulations for what?"
"Of course, congratulations on leading the Marines to a glorious victory in the New World. Congratulations on seizing the title of the strongest." Doflamingo said with a chuckle.
"I appreciate that," Diarmuid replied.
"I apologize about the Dark-Dark Fruit. There is no news yet, but I am intensifying the search efforts..." Doflamingo explained.
"Mhm, I know," Diarmuid answered calmly.
He paused slightly, then asked, "What was that nonsensical talk you had Vergo give me? What do you mean you want to become a Warlord of the Sea? Did he misunderstand the message? Did you mean to say, 'I don't want to be a Warlord of the Sea' anymore? Should I arrange your retirement?"
Doflamingo: ???
I'm about to be retired?
Are you messing with me on purpose?
A massive war breaks out in the New World right after I become a Warlord, and you keep me idle the whole time, and now that the war is over, I'm going to be retired?
What was all my busywork for?
Even though Doflamingo knew Diarmuid was teasing him, he still explained with a hint of helplessness, "No, no, no, I have absolutely no intention of leaving the Warlords of the Sea. Speaking of which, Admiral, I've been studying the Warlord organization recently and have discovered many interesting things..."
"What's there to study..." Diarmuid said softly.
A subtle change appeared in his eyes, and Vergo noticed it. He was surprised. Could there really be something wrong with the Warlords of the Sea? And this talk of 'true' or 'fake'?
"Fuffuffu, well, I am a Warlord of the Sea now, so naturally, I need to learn from the experiences of my predecessors to set an example." Doflamingo laughed menacingly.
"If you continue to talk in circles, Doflamingo, my temper isn't very good," Diarmuid said with a slight smile on his lips, his voice cold.
Hearing Diarmuid's words, Doflamingo's eyes lit up instead, as if he had confirmed something. He said softly, "That's how it is, Admiral Diarmuid. The situation in the New World should have settled down now, correct? Can I proceed with actions as a Warlord of the Sea?"
Diarmuid found Doflamingo's change of topic strange, but he followed up. "What action do you intend to take?"
"It's this: my Donquixote Family once ruled all of Dressrosa. Have you heard of Dressrosa? It's a country in the New World..." Doflamingo began.
"Of course. The 'Land of Love of Passion,' right? I seem to recall hearing that the people there are very enthusiastic. I used to look forward to visiting Dressrosa and having a perfect rendezvous there, especially since the beautiful women of Dressrosa... Cough, cough, cough..." Diarmuid stopped talking when he saw Hina starting to write in her small notebook. He quickly changed the subject. This girl might have already defected and become a spy!
"Fuffuffuffuffu, that's right. The people of Dressrosa are indeed very passionate," Doflamingo laughed over the Den Den Mushi.
Diarmuid didn't respond, so Doflamingo continued, "Currently, Dressrosa is ruled by the Riku royal family. How should I put it? As a king, he might be a little too benevolent, a little too idealistic. Under the Riku family's leadership, Dressrosa's economy has been declining, and in the last decade, the poverty has been overwhelming. I believe this is a dereliction of his duty as king. So, I plan to reclaim the throne of Dressrosa in the name of the Donquixote Family. What do you think?"
Diarmuid showed a flash of surprise in his eyes. He wasn't surprised by Doflamingo's idea; in fact, he had long guessed Doflamingo would have this intention.
Diarmuid's surprise was that Doflamingo would actually tell him his plan!
"Interesting. Since when did a Warlord of the Sea have to report their actions to me?" Diarmuid smiled and asked pointedly.
"I don't know about the other Warlords, but starting today, this Warlord is very happy to work for you, Admiral, very happy to participate in your plans, and to follow your arrangements and instructions. Just as I said before, I hope to become a true Warlord of the Sea," Doflamingo said.
Diarmuid fell silent for a moment. He looked at Vergo, whose expression was confused. This suggested that Doflamingo hadn't discovered any intelligence; rather, he had simply deduced something himself.
What a clever fellow...
After thinking it over, Diarmuid asked, "So, Doflamingo, tell me, in your recognition, who are the true Warlords of the Sea?"
"Fuffuffu, I'm guessing Smoker, Bartholomew Kuma, Jinbe, and Hancock are all true Warlords of the Sea?" Doflamingo said with an evil laugh.
"You're getting close to the truth," Diarmuid smiled.
From that answer, Diarmuid understood a lot. For example, Doflamingo at least didn't know that the Warlords were also connected to Dragon, and Doflamingo was still only suspicious.
Doflamingo was a bit surprised. During his research, he truly believed these four should all be Marine assets, or at least Diarmuid's people.
For Smoker, he had basically confirmed this already and required no further explanation.
For Jinbe, he was once Diarmuid's direct subordinate, then mysteriously defected because of Fisher Tiger, but later became a Warlord of the Sea again because of Fisher Tiger...
For Hancock, because Vergo had previously been exposed to matters in the Calm Belt and G-7, Doflamingo used various clues to roughly deduce that Hancock was likely similar to Smoker. Furthermore, large quantities of resource-type goods for the Amway Group were produced in the Calm Belt, which she ruled. He couldn't help but suspect she was also Diarmuid's person.
And as for Bartholomew Kuma, when this man was still a king, it was Diarmuid who led people to remove him from his throne. Later, Kuma wandered the world, slowly becoming a pirate. Shortly after the Warlord of the Sea system was implemented, Bartholomew Kuma became a Warlord.
After that, he practically lived with the Marines, completely becoming a partner of the Marine organization. Moreover, a closer look at Bartholomew Kuma's history reveals that when he was a pirate, he only attacked other pirates and never casually plundered ordinary citizens. Is it possible for him not to be a Marine asset?
In fact, among these four, Doflamingo was most certain that Bartholomew Kuma was a Marine asset because Kuma was the earliest Warlord to have contact with Diarmuid and whose conduct was the most Marine-like.
In the absence of information, Doflamingo would never have guessed that Bartholomew Kuma was actually one of Dragon's people.
Now he was basically certain these four were Diarmuid's people, yet Diarmuid said he was close to the truth. This surprised Doflamingo.
Are there others?
"Could it be that Crocodile guy is really..." Doflamingo asked in astonishment.
"Hahahahahaha! Is he worthy?" Diarmuid burst into laughter.
"Then it must be Mihawk?" Doflamingo guessed again.
"Incorrect answer," Diarmuid said. Before Doflamingo could speak, Diarmuid continued, "Enough. You don't need to be too involved in these matters. That so-called 'true Warlord of the Sea' you're talking about is utterly meaningless. Doflamingo, just focus on what you need to do. Just as I said before, this time, the situation still allows for a choice..."
"I hope to place that choice on you," Doflamingo said seriously.
"In Dressrosa, don't leave any embarrassing issues behind. Since you want to take it, use clean methods," Diarmuid instructed.
"Understood. I'm quite confident in that regard," Doflamingo replied softly.
"Very good. I don't care what you plan to do in Dressrosa, but fifty percent of the net profits go to me. Any problem with that?" Diarmuid asked.
Doflamingo's eyes lit up, and his breathing became slightly heavier. Even though Diarmuid was demanding fifty percent of the profits, Doflamingo felt only joy.
What was Doflamingo's ultimate goal? Although he appeared to be a profiteering dark-world merchant and middleman, he wasn't genuinely chasing money; he was chasing revenge.
So he replied without hesitation, "Absolutely no problem. I only need thirty percent to keep things running."
"Just take fifty percent," Diarmuid said noncommittally. After a slight pause, he added, "I will arrange for Smoker to enter into comprehensive cooperation with you. If you feel this is what a 'true Warlord of the Sea' is, then let it be. Hehehe, as long as you don't disappoint me and provide me with sufficient value and profit, I will also consider you a true Warlord of the Sea, Doflamingo..."
Doflamingo's heart settled. He had finally received some kind of promise and relaxed a bit. "I won't disappoint you, Admiral."
"Finally, you came out of Mariejois. Whether it's the Gorosei or anyone else, their attitude toward you proves that you hold secrets interesting enough, right?" Diarmuid asked softly.
Doflamingo hesitated this time, but after three to five seconds of silence, he replied, "Yes."
"Don't be so nervous. I don't trust you, and you don't trust me. That's perfectly normal. So, seize this opportunity to see if we can build a truly trustworthy bridge, Doflamingo... When the time comes that I need it, and when you feel it's appropriate, then calmly and willingly... hand over the secrets you possess to me." Diarmuid said softly.
Doflamingo remained silent for a while, then finally replied, "Thank you."