It took Lancelot a long time to accept this reality.
At this moment, Burns added.
"This time, you should be promoted to Headquarters Vice Admiral soon."
"Headquarters Vice Admiral?"
Lancelot looked astonished. After all, the difference between Commodore, Rear Admiral, Vice Admiral, and Admiral was merely a single character, yet the achievements required for promotion grew exponentially.
Especially between Vice Admiral and Admiral.
Not only did it require merit, but also sufficient seniority.
Therefore, even though he knew his strength had already reached the level of an Admiral, he only planned to wait for the World Military Draft to leap directly into the Admiral position.
After all, under normal circumstances, two years couldn't even be considered seniority.
Without five or six years, one couldn't hope to become a Vice Admiral.
As for the Admiral position, it would take at least ten years.
But he never expected to become a Headquarters Vice Admiral so quickly…
Well, this was fine too—he could receive the rewards for promotion to Vice Admiral earlier.
Burns paused for a moment, giving Lancelot enough time to digest the information.
After all, he knew that his words carried an overwhelming amount of implications.
However, the most important part was yet to come.
A long while later, after Lancelot had recovered, Burns added.
"Figarland Shamrock also said that once you become the Fleet Admiral, he will grant you the Figarland surname, making you a member of the Figarland clan… a true Celestial Dragon."
"What?"
This time, Lancelot couldn't remain seated.
Being supported by the Figarland family and becoming a member of the Figarland clan were two entirely different things.
First.
Since Figarland Shamrock had said so, then when he became Fleet Admiral, he should genuinely become a Celestial Dragon.
Because Celestial Dragons wouldn't joke about such matters.
Second.
With this promise from Figarland Shamrock, it was clear he valued Lancelot's strength.
After Lancelot assumed the position of Fleet Admiral, he would increase the Figarland family's influence in Mariejois.
Thus, for the short term, they would be allies with shared interests.
Figarland Shamrock's support would naturally be wholehearted.
Once Lancelot became an Admiral, the next Fleet Admiral would undoubtedly be him.
Of course, with his identity changed, Lancelot's approach to handling matters would naturally shift as well.
The position of Fleet Admiral had never been his ultimate goal.
Previously, he had planned to eliminate all the Celestial Dragons.
But now… he intended to make the Fleet Admiral position his stepping stone into Mariejois.
Once he entered Mariejois and grasped real power, he would find a way to eliminate the Five Elders and Im.
Then he would become the true ruler of Mariejois, and even the entire World Government.
At this thought, Lancelot narrowed his eyes.
If he had held back before, now, with Figarland Shamrock—and even the entire Figarland family—backing him, there was nothing left to fear.
...…
After ending the call, Lancelot narrowed his eyes thoughtfully.
"Thud, thud, thud…"
Just then, a loud commotion came from outside the tavern.
Lancelot was slightly taken aback; he hadn't expected anyone to dare approach.
Then his eyebrows raised slightly.
Because the noise was truly immense—abnormally so.
He could tell they were footsteps, but how could a normal person's footsteps be so heavy?
Each step sounded like a massive boulder crashing down.
"A Giant!"
Lancelot instantly had the answer.
He couldn't help but think of Andrew.
It had to be said, the Giant Tribe possessed innate advantages… once they matured.
At the very least, they were all at the level of ordinary Vice Admirals.
This was one of the reasons Big Mom couldn't forget about them.
And what if these giants were to eat Devil Fruits?
Then they would undoubtedly reach the level of Marine Headquarters Vice Admirals.
Some of the more talented ones might even achieve the level of elite Vice Admirals…
At this thought, Lancelot couldn't help but feel tempted.
So he walked out of the tavern, and as soon as he stepped outside, he saw two giants approaching.
The one leading the way was a giant with long, dark brown hair that reached his thighs and a dark brown beard.
He wore a metal helmet on his head and goggles over his eyes.
His attire included massive metal gauntlets, a brown belt over black shorts, with dark brown cloth strips resembling a skirt hanging from the belt, and dark brown long boots.
In the entire pirate world, there was only one giant dressed like this.
He was Hajrudin, captain of the New Giant Warrior Pirates, and he was also a mercenary.
The second was a tall, slender female giant.
She had long golden hair, with two braids hanging on either side of her head.
Her eyes were light blue.
She wore a revealing purple fur garment that extended from her collar down to her abdomen, leaving the sides of her legs completely exposed.
On her left leg, she wore a long black and yellow striped stocking that reached almost to her waist, along with a tattered eggshell-patterned cloak and fur boots.
This was Gerd, the doctor of the New Giant Warrior Pirates.
Seeing these two, Lancelot's eyes lit up immediately.
These two held very special positions among the giants.
First, Hajrudin: a giant, son of King Harald of Elbaf, and the half-brother of Prince Loki.
He was also the current captain of the New Giant Warrior Pirates!
In the original story, even Figarland Shamrock, in order to recruit Prince Loki of Elbaf into the God's Knights, brought along another member of the God's Knights and used a magic circle to teleport to Orst Castle near the western village of Elbaf.
This clearly demonstrated Figarland Shamrock's high regard for the giant race.
Of course, it also reflected the World Government's emphasis on the giants.
If he could recruit Hajrudin under his command, it would hold immense political significance for both the World Government and the Marines.
It would undoubtedly be a great achievement.
Lancelot narrowed his eyes thoughtfully.
It seemed that after his fight with Kaido, he needed to find an opportunity to obtain the Paramecia-type Millet-Millet Fruit (Kibi Kibi no Mi).
This fruit… was a crucial tool for his plan to dominate the world.
He absolutely couldn't miss it.
As for Gerd, she was also an incredibly remarkable figure… 63 years ago, Gerd lived with Charlotte Linlin at the Sheep's House, and the two little girls became friends.
She often played with Linlin.
When Linlin went on a rampage due to a hunger pang episode, Gerd called Mother Carmel to the scene and watched in horror as Linlin caused destruction.
After Linlin inflicted fatal injuries on Yorul, Gerd witnessed it all, and Carmel created Pandora from the flames ignited by Linlin.
In other words, she had witnessed everything that happened back then.
However, he was a bit curious.
Why were there only these two? If he remembered correctly, the New Giant Warrior Pirates had five members.
"Hmm…"
At that moment, Hajrudin and Gerd also noticed Lancelot.
Looking at the Naval cloak on Lancelot, they fell into silence for a moment.
There was no helping it—the Navy was far too conspicuous on this small island.