On the other end of the Den Den Mushi, Old Falcone fell into silence, as if brewing something over.
"Fred, my good son."
Instead of answering Rear Admiral Black Crow's question right away, he asked a question of his own. "Do you know what the foundation of our Falcone Family within the World Government is?"
"Uh, well... it should be scientific research, right?"
Fred answered. Although this ambitious young man whose head was filled with nothing but becoming an Admiral didn't care much for science and technology, the "Black Crow" still knew very well what his own family did.
After all, the equipment used by the Scavenger Squad to efficiently and quickly clean up oil pollution on the sea surface was independently developed by his family.
"Exactly. Technology," the Den Den Mushi nodded in perfect imitation of his mannerisms.
"The mining of Dyna Stones, the processing of Sea-Prism Stone, the design of new weapons, the research and development of powered armor... almost everything related to science and technology in the Marines has seen the involvement of the Falcone Family's scientific team."
"Back then, when people talked about technology, the first name that popped into their minds was Falcone." A look of nostalgia appeared on the Den Den Mushi. Then, Old Falcone let out a heavy, troubled sigh and said in a very bitter, distant voice, "Until a few decades ago, when that man appeared..."
Fred's body shuddered. Although his old man didn't explicitly say the person's name, a name flashed through his mind like a shooting star—a name that resonated like thunder within Marine Headquarters.
Vegapunk!
Although the Falcone Family's research team was long-renowned, they were still completely obliterated by this genius scientist, who was said to possess an intellect 500 years ahead of humanity, leaving absolutely nothing left of them. People nowadays only know Vegapunk, but who still cares about Falcone, the former titan of the scientific community?
"Ever since Dr. Vegapunk appeared, our Falcone Family's influence has been declining day by day." The Den Den Mushi vividly made a gloomy, cloud-covered expression.
"Though the accumulation of time prevents the family's status from plummeting instantly, who can say for sure what will happen in the future?"
"In order to consolidate the Falcone Family's position, we must win back a round in the field of science."
Fred remained silent. From what he knew, this kind of scientific research race where both sides climbed their respective tech trees had happened more than once or twice. Unfortunately, in the face of Dr. Vegapunk's various cheat-like "black technologies," the Falcone Family had never gained the slightest advantage.
Seemingly sensing his son's thoughts through the expression of the Den Den Mushi, Old Falcone asked once more, "Fred, you are a Logia user. So let me ask you, why do you think Logia types are called the strongest among the three classes of Devil Fruits?"
"Naturally, it's elementalization."
Rear Admiral Black Crow answered without a second thought. The ability of elementalization to grant immunity to physical attacks was truly too broken. Furthermore, if it weren't for his Devil Fruit ability, Fred's absolute trash physical combat skills would never have allowed him to sit securely in his position as a Rear Admiral of Marine Headquarters.
"Yes, it is elementalization. This is also the most prominent characteristic of the Logia type. Aside from Sea-Prism Stone, Haki, and certain special substances or Devil Fruit abilities, elementalization is practically an invincible existence."
Old Falcone pondered for a brief moment before lowering his voice to a rather mysterious tone, "In that case, could an army composed entirely of soldiers capable of elementalization also be called an [Invincible Army]?"
!!!
Hearing this somewhat fantastical and terrifying hypothesis, Fred immediately and subconsciously sucked in a sharp breath, his face filled with fear and shock.
"How is that possible?! Where would we get so many Logia Devil Fruits? An army composed of Logia users?! Father, this... this is way too unrealistic!"
Rear Admiral Black Crow was a staunch believer in Logia invincibility. This could be seen from his simplistic belief that only Logia users were fit to become Admirals. Moreover, as a rare Logia Devil Fruit user himself, Fred had always been secretly smug about it.
And now, his old man actually claimed out of nowhere that he wanted to build a Logia army? This was pure, straight-faced nonsense! Had Logia types become common street goods now?
P.S. The Straw Hat Pirates say: Well... they're pretty much street goods by now. Counting you this time, we've encountered nothing but Logia enemies all the way from Loguetown...
"No, no, no, not Logia ability users. Those elemental soldiers can merely perform elementalization. Well, perhaps they can also exert a basic control over the elements, but their power probably wouldn't even be one-ten-thousandth of a true Logia user." The Den Den Mushi shook its head, explaining at an unhurried pace.
"Although these elemental soldiers capable of elementalization are completely insignificant in the eyes of powerhouses who have reached a certain level of strength, to the vast majority of pirates, an undying army that ignores physical attacks is absolutely a disaster-level existence!"
(Indeed, even though there are ways to counter Logia elementalization, they can be completely ignored in ordinary battles,) Fred lowered his head in deep thought.
Armament Haki? Even in the New World, the final sea where Haki is most prevalent, it isn't something just anyone can master.
Sea-Prism Stone? The technology to process this rare substance into weapons is still far from mature.
Furthermore, how many people would there be in an army? Ten thousand? One hundred thousand? Or even a million?!
Silently imagining the scene of a fearless elemental legion conquering cities and capturing territories, Fred became more and more alarmed the more he thought about it. He even felt that if such an army really existed, the Great Pirate Era would soon be brought to an end.
"So, that Logia Devil Fruit is meant to be used for..." Since the conversation had reached this point, Rear Admiral Black Crow could faintly guess what his old man needed a Logia Devil Fruit for.
"Exactly! It is one of the most vital materials in the [Elemental Legion Project]!" At the mention of scientific research projects, Old Falcone's voice suddenly spiked, and even the Den Den Mushi showed a fanatical expression.
"In recent years, there are mainly two scientific research projects commissioned by Marine Headquarters. Aside from the [Elemental Legion Project], the other is Vegapunk's [Pacifista Project]."
Mentioning the Pacifista Project, Old Falcone couldn't help but let out a soft snort.
"Speaking of which, both sides focused their research directions on Logia abilities this time. The human weapon known as the Pacifista was actually grafted with Admiral Kizaru's laser ability. Pfft, it's truly putting the cart before the horse. You must know that the strongest ability of a Logia type is elementalization!"
Fred nodded noncommittally. Originally, he didn't care about the so-called Pacifista at all. However, upon hearing that the thing had actually been grafted with an Admiral's Devil Fruit ability, he suddenly developed a bit of interest.
"Father, what stage has that Pacifista Project reached?"
"..." Upon hearing this, the other side of the Den Den Mushi instantly fell into a mysterious silence. Rear Admiral Black Crow's heart skipped a beat, wondering if he had asked something he shouldn't have.
Old Falcone remained silent for a moment.
"A little over a month ago, because Vegapunk's research team lacked a suitable shape-memory alloy, the Pacifista Project fell into a delightful bottleneck."
The Den Den Mushi wore a look of sheer exasperation, its teeth gnashing as it continued, "But according to the latest intelligence, a trading company called [Goldglint] popped out of nowhere. The president of that company marketed a new type of alloy to the World Government, and by some absolute stroke of terrible luck, it just so happened to perfectly meet all of Vegapunk's requirements!!!"
Whoosh—Crash!!!
The crisp sound of glassware shattering against the floor echoed from the other end of the Den Den Mushi, causing Fred to instinctively shudder.
After taking a few heavy breaths to calm his composure, Old Falcone continued, "Thanks to that bullshit trading company and their bullshit alloy, the Pacifista Project is nearing its completion. It's estimated that in a few more months, the first batch of mass-production models will be put into trial use... Heh, what a wonderful assist they handed over."
"It seems I really ought to properly thank that trading company president for providing help in their hour of need on Vegapunk's behalf. Yes, a 'thank you' straight from the Falcone Family!"
Emphasizing the word with venom, the corner of the Den Den Mushi's mouth curled into a sinister arc, looking somewhat comical yet deeply unsettling.
Gulp.
Fred silently swallowed his saliva, mourning in his heart for three seconds for the never-before-seen president of The Goldglint Trading Company.
The reason why he, as a son, feared his father so much was largely due to Old Falcone's extreme, ruthless, and unsympathetic way of doing things.
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