Tesoro spent the entire morning talking things through with Ortoren. By the end of it, Ortoren finally got the message.
G-5 had solid growth prospects and could rake in huge profits next year, but right now, it was buried under a mountain of debt. The fiscal deficit was pushing two hundred billion Belly—it needed to be patched up fast.
In other words, Tesoro had come to Ortoren today to ask for money.
"Two hundred billion isn't small change. Where the hell am I supposed to find that on such short notice..." Ortoren groaned, clutching his head.
Tesoro just shrugged, like there was nothing he could do. If the Base Commander wasn't handling this, then who would?
"Hang on, let me reach out to a few friends..." Ortoren waved Tesoro off, then pulled out his Den Den Mushi and dialed that Doflamingo guy.
A moment later, the line connected. Before Doflamingo could even get a word in, Ortoren burst out laughing.
"Hahahahaha! Doffy, congrats on your big payday!" Ortoren said, laughing loudly.
Back in Dressrosa, in the palace atop the Royal Plateau, Doflamingo hadn't even had time to settle into his throne when he heard Ortoren's booming laugh. His heart sank.
This was bad. Really bad.
He swallowed hard and forced a smile. "Payday? I'm broke enough to be panhandling..."
"How can you say that? What a jinx! You just became King of Dressrosa! Who knows? You might end up attending those big meetings in Mary Geoise with the Admirals like Sengoku one day. If that's not striking it rich, what is?" Ortoren wasn't buying his act and kept laying it on thick.
Doflamingo felt a bit uneasy, so he casually asked, "Is the Admiral satisfied with our work?"
"You mean the Dressrosa thing?" Ortoren raised an eyebrow.
"Yeah, that."
"Like I said before—what throne isn't usurped? You think kings are born? Member nations swap out monarchs all the time. A powerful minister taking over isn't all that different. As long as it's handled cleanly, no one can complain. Besides, hasn't Mary Geoise already issued a statement backing you? It's fine."
Doflamingo finally relaxed and let out a laugh. "Well, that's a relief…"
"But now that you've made it big, become the rich landlord and all, don't go forgetting us poor brothers out here…" Ortoren suddenly changed tone.
Doflamingo sighed internally, clearly seeing where this was going. He gave in with a smile, "Of course not, of course not. If there's anything you need, I'll help however I can…"
"Well, I really do need a favor," Ortoren said bluntly. "It's the start of the year, and we've finalized G-5's accounts from last year. Guess what?"
Doflamingo could already hear the bad news in his voice. He thought for a moment, then said, "You're in the red?"
"In the red? I'm bleeding out! Lost nearly two hundred billion Belly! We can't even make payroll right now. If G-5 can't pay its people, the New World's going to spiral into chaos—and when that happens, it's bad for everyone. So, for love and peace, I figured it's time to lean on our brothers a little. If you've got any surplus, slide it my way. Once I've got some breathing room, I'll pay you back…"
Doflamingo was stunned for a moment, hesitated, then asked, "Vice Admiral Benn, speaking of which—do you remember the equipment we bought for Shipbuilding Island?"
"What about the equipment?" Ortoren asked, clearly not following.
"Uh... well, about the payment... you still owe me over three hundred billion from that deal..." Doflamingo said cautiously.
Ortoren hesitated for a moment, then turned to Tesoro and asked, "Is that true?"
Tesoro nodded seriously. "Yes. I didn't include those debts in the fiscal deficit report, but we do still owe the Donquixote Family over three hundred billion Belly…"
"Hahahahaha… Relax, next year our business is definitely going to boom!" Ortoren brushed it off with a laugh, then added, "Since we already owe you, how about lending me a bit more? Once things ease up, I'll pay it all back together…"
Doflamingo thought to himself, You've said that more than once already… and I haven't seen a single Belly paid back!
Still, he wasn't too bothered. He had high hopes for G-5 and their business ventures. Like Ortoren said, they're not fully operational yet—being in debt was to be expected. Once the gears started turning, repaying it all would be easy.
He wasn't worried that Ortoren would stiff him.
After thinking it over briefly, Doflamingo said, "Since you've already put it that way, as your brother, I can't just turn you down. But I don't have much spare capital either—what with Flevance's arrangements, the previous dealings in Mary Geoise, and now the expenses in Dressrosa… it's all piling up. Why don't you give me a figure, and I'll see what I can move around?"
"Alright, how about we cut it in half… lend me a hundred billion for now. When I settle everything, I'll return a total of one hundred and fifty billion. That extra fifty's interest. How's that? Sincere enough?" Ortoren offered warmly.
In his view, that was plenty generous. And it was only because it was Doflamingo—someone he'd worked with many times, someone he trusted. He genuinely considered him a friend.
Anyone else? Who the hell would he bother offering interest to?
The moment Doflamingo heard "one hundred billion," his head started throbbing. He quickly replied, "It's not that I don't want to help, Vice Admiral Benn, I just don't have a hundred billion Belly to spare…"
Sure, the Donquixote Family was massive. If he liquidated everything, a hundred billion wouldn't even be a problem—he could easily cover five hundred billion.
But most of those assets were tied up as fixed, non-liquid holdings. And the cash he did have was keeping his business empire running. If he scraped together a hundred billion for Ortoren, it would snap his entire cash flow chain. Instant bankruptcy.
"I see…" Ortoren mulled it over. He figured it wasn't right to just bleed Doflamingo dry. After a short pause, he asked, "So, how much can you spare?"
"I just got two hundred billion from King Riku in Dressrosa. Let's round it up—make it three hundred billion. Don't worry about interest on what you already owe. We're friends, no need to be that formal. Just pay me back five hundred billion when you're in a better spot. Consider that extra hundred billion my contribution to G-5. For justice!" Doflamingo said after a bit of thought.
Ortoren didn't hesitate. "Alright, thanks a ton. I'll figure out the rest myself."
"Good. I'll send the money along with this shipment to Dressrosa," Doflamingo added, clearly relieved that Ortoren wasn't pressing for more.
Soon after, the two ended the Den Den Mushi call. Tesoro, looking a bit anxious, said, "Three hundred billion still won't be enough..."
"Don't worry," Ortoren waved it off. "I've got plenty of friends."
He fiddled with the Den Den Mushi again. After a few clicks, a respectful voice came through.
"Benn-sama?"
"Long time no speak, Mr. Lu Feld," Ortoren greeted him with a smile.
That's right—this time, he was reaching out to none other than the loan shark king of the underworld, Lu Feld himself.
"My apologies, truly. I'd meant to check in with you sooner, Benn-sama, but I didn't want to interrupt any of your important affairs. Ever since we parted ways at Whole Cake Island, I haven't had the chance to reconnect," Lu Feld said politely with a laugh.
After a bit of small talk, Ortoren gave a sheepish chuckle and said, "To be honest, I feel a little guilty—getting in touch just because I need something..."
"No need to feel that way. Friends are meant to help each other. I, Lu Feld, love making friends with honorable men like yourself. Whatever you need, just say the word!" Lu Feld replied, full of bravado.
"Well, I was going over our accounts and realized... we've run into a bit of a cash shortage," Ortoren said carefully.
"What!?" Lu Feld exclaimed. "That's serious! Everyone knows that under your command, Benn-sama, G-5 is the stabilizing force of the New World. It's thanks to G-5 shedding blood on the frontlines that small businessmen like us can operate in peace. If you're in trouble, it affects all of us. Helping you through this is helping ourselves. Just tell me—how much are you short? I've got some funds lying around..."
Ortoren was about to say one hundred seventy billion, but after a brief pause, he said instead, "Two hundred billion Belly. Is that manageable?"
"Easily!" Lu Feld responded without hesitation—this guy was seriously loaded.
No wonder they called him the loan shark king. With his influence and financial strength, two hundred billion was nothing. After all, he once dared to invest in the MADS research team... now that was a true money pit. His wealth clearly ran deep.
Ortoren chuckled and said, half-seriously, "Then I'll leave it to you. Though... about the interest—if you could give me a bit of a break there, I..."
He didn't even finish the thought before Lu Feld cut in confidently, "Interest? Come on, this is a loan between friends. How could I possibly charge you interest? Just pay me back whenever you're in a position to. No deadlines necessary."
He paused for a moment, then added, "That said... I do have a friend who's hoping to meet you—maybe talk business, see if there's room for collaboration. Would that be alright with you?"
Favors beget favors. Lu Feld had just offered him two hundred billion without blinking—this kind of gesture couldn't go unanswered. So Ortoren immediately said, "Your friend is my friend. Of course it's alright. Let's set a date—you both come to G-5, and I'll treat you to a meal. My way of saying thanks!"
...
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