Ortoren never once took Aramaki seriously. From beginning to end, he could not even be bothered to exchange a single word with him.
He had never regarded Marine Headquarters as an enemy either, not even when Sakazuki was the one in command.
Just like before, when he had sailed his flagship straight into the encirclement of Sakazuki's fleet alone, without the slightest hint of fear.
One reason was his absolute confidence in his own strength. The other was trust.
Part of that trust came from Sakazuki himself. They had worked together for many years as fellow Marines, and Ortoren believed Sakazuki was not the kind of man who would betray the Navy. He trusted that Sakazuki would ultimately make the right choice.
But the greater part of that trust was placed in Fleet Admiral Sengoku.
Ortoren spent most of the year away from Headquarters, but Sengoku was different. Ever since he had been an Admiral, he had been stationed at Headquarters almost year-round, rarely leaving his post.
His influence and control within Headquarters were nothing short of overwhelming.
And yet, even before departing Headquarters for Mary Geoise, Sengoku had not moved against Sakazuki at all, still leaving him in charge of Headquarters. That fact alone already said more than enough.
For the World Government to believe it could control Headquarters through people like Aramaki was nothing more than a gross underestimation of Fleet Admiral Sengoku.
That said, the people up in Mary Geoise had always been arrogantly overconfident, so it was hardly surprising.
Ortoren's warship and Sakazuki's fleet arrived at the New World port of Mary Geoise at the same time.
By the time Ortoren disembarked, he saw Onigumo and several other Vice Admirals rounding up another group of Marines, forcing them to their knees along the harbor's shoreline.
Among them were two men wearing Vice Admiral insignia on their shoulders, and Ortoren recognized both of them at once.
They were veterans of the Navy.
"What's going on here?" Ortoren asked, standing before them with a slightly raised brow.
"Admiral Sakazuki ordered us to take action as soon as we received his signal," Onigumo explained, then added, "They're all Marines loyal to Mary Geoise."
Ortoren nodded, then looked toward the two Vice Admirals being held half-kneeling on the ground. His voice carried a trace of sorrow.
"Vice Admiral Stainless. Vice Admiral Vander. Don't you feel any shame?"
The two Vice Admirals raised their heads, teeth clenched, hatred burning in their eyes.
"Ortoren, aren't you the one who should be ashamed? Betraying the World Government!?"
"The Five Elders truly misjudged you!"
"You're nothing but an ambitious warlord. With the Navy in your hands, it's only a matter of time before everything collapses!"
Ortoren let out a soft sigh.
"All these years, justice was never truly something you carried in your hearts. It seems you only ever treated it as a slogan to exploit. Mary Geoise deceived the Navy, and we called ourselves righteous while committing crime after crime… But forget it. There's no point saying any of this to you."
He waved his hand dismissively, clearly no longer interested in speaking with these diehards.
"Borsalino will take action at Headquarters as well. He'll purge their people there," Sakazuki said.
"Will Borsalino have enough manpower?" Ortoren asked.
"He'll coordinate with the New World Navy faction you planted inside Headquarters," Sakazuki replied without hesitation. "There's no need to worry. This is a trivial matter. It's not something he could mishandle."
"That's true," Ortoren said, nodding.
"Then what should we do with these men?" Sakazuki asked next.
Vice Admiral Dalmatian, standing nearby, hesitated for a moment before speaking.
"Vice Admiral Stainless always fought on the front lines. Back in Sea Circle Calendar Year 1502, he nearly died in battle. That was also when he was promoted to Vice Admiral. Among the Marines, he's considered a man of great merit…"
Not just Vice Admiral Stainless. Vice Admiral Vander was the same.
Within the Navy, those who rose through the ranks to Vice Admiral through the normal promotion process were almost always men with distinguished records and outstanding achievements. Very few were like Aramaki, who had been elevated without any real accomplishments to his name.
Ortoren fell silent for a moment. It was obvious that Dalmatian was trying to plead on their behalf.
After a short while, Ortoren finally spoke.
"Detain them all for now. We'll deal with them after the real business is settled."
Dalmatian let out a quiet breath of relief and nodded.
"Yes."
As long as they were not executed on the spot, these men were unlikely to be put to death later. After a period of confinement, if Admiral Benn happened to be in a good mood, it would probably end with a simple purge from the Navy, sending them away and calling it done.
That alone was enough to preserve some measure of the bond they had built over years as fellow Marines. Though they stood on different sides now, they had spent countless years fighting on the seas, saving one another, backing each other up. It was impossible for there to be no feeling left at all.
…
At the same time, atop the Holy Land, Mary Geoise.
Within the Port Passage Defense Zone, the God's Knights were stationed alongside the Mary Geoise Guard and members of the CP organization, commanding the entire area.
The camp was arranged in concentric rings. The outermost layer consisted of a servant army formed from slaves conscripted by Mary Geoise, overseen by CP personnel. The second layer was made up of support forces assembled from the household servants and guards of various nobles and Celestial Dragons. Only the third layer was the official Mary Geoise Guard.
At the very center of the guard encampment were the God's Knights themselves, along with CP personnel.
At this moment, the Supreme Commander of the God's Knights, Figarland Garling, sat inside his command tent.
Behind him stood eighteen knights clad in armor of various styles.
Including Garling himself, there were nineteen in total.
Those nineteen were the entirety of the God's Knights. No more, no less. Each one corresponded to one of the nineteen Celestial Dragon families currently in existence within Mary Geoise. Every single member of the order was a Celestial Dragon.
"So the Marines down at the port have all defected?" Garling said calmly as he listened to the report from a CP agent kneeling before him. "As expected, that idiot Aramaki is completely useless. And Sakazuki… he truly was not worth trusting."
From his expression, it was clear that this outcome had not surprised him in the slightest.
After a moment, he waved his hand, dismissing the CP agent from the tent.
Once only the God's Knights remained, Garling spoke again.
"To let our own dogs bite back at us to this extent… those five really have grown lax over the years, to allow such a farce to happen."
"Lord Garling," one of the knights said with a cold laugh, "perhaps this is an opportunity for us."
"It is indeed an opportunity," Garling replied, the corners of his mouth lifting faintly. "Those five seats of supreme authority have remained unchanged for far too long. This embarrassment may finally push Imu-sama to replace the ones sitting there. And as for who is most qualified to take those positions, that goes without saying."
As members of the God's Knights, all of them were well aware of Imu-sama's existence.
After a brief pause, Garling sighed softly.
"But now is not the time to fight over power. First, we must deal with the dogs who dare bare their fangs at their master. Benn Ortoren… the man who claims to have reached the end of power and stepped onto the far shore. To be honest, I once thought highly of him. If he had been willing to follow the wishes of those five and become a Celestial Dragon, the Figarland family would have welcomed him."
Garling believed the God's Knights to be exceptionally powerful. The eighteen knights behind him were all formidable, with five Great Knights possessing strength on par with Navy Admirals.
As for himself, he considered his own strength to surpass even theirs.
Even so, despite the confidence he displayed, he could not completely dismiss the unease in his heart. Ortoren was a man who had defeated Whitebeard head-on. Aside from Whitebeard himself, no one truly knew how strong Ortoren was.
As for Kaidou and Charlotte Linlin, the outside world had no idea that the two of them had once joined forces against Ortoren, only to be defeated all the same.
"Still," Garling thought to himself, "I only need to do my best. No matter how strong Ortoren may be, Imu-sama will surely be able to suppress him."