Nordman thought Brian had to be crazy — otherwise who would dare do something this reckless?
That said, Brian had been in the West Blue for a year and had indeed brought Nordman huge benefits. Nordman had gone from a second-hand trader to an arms dealer; in the West Blue's underworld everyone knew Nordman's shop supplied quality military hardware.
So Nordman followed Brian's orders and went to the black market to recruit some killers. Whether the assassination would succeed was no longer his problem.
Inside the 243rd Division base, five days had passed since the operation to root out Astona.
During those five days Brian was plotting a much larger plan. If it succeeded, his power in the West Blue would balloon — the profits would be unimaginably huge.
But you can't make a tycoon in one bite; this seemingly insane plan needed much more careful arrangements.
Sometimes Brian couldn't help admiring himself for how devious he could be.
"Sno." Brian stubbed out his cigar and summoned his steward.
Sno was dark-skinned and looked honest and simple — the sort of man you'd call a good, dull fellow. Hard to imagine someone so taciturn had been promoted by Brian to oversee daily affairs and, at the same time, manage the base's finances.
Being steward was a plum post — especially at the 243rd, where gray income flowed freely. There was a lot of gravy to be had.
"Lord Brian, please give orders." Sno saluted mechanically and held the pose.
Brian yawned. "Get the betrothal gifts ready. The day after tomorrow you'll go with me to the Nasia Kingdom."
"How much budget shall I set aside, Lord Brian?"
"They're royalty — don't be stingy. Around twenty million Berries. You arrange it."
"I know what to do. Any other instructions, Commander Brian?"
"Right — your brother graduates from basic next month. I've transferred him here to be a squad leader. Go buy some presents for the new recruits."
When Sno heard that, tears brimmed in his eyes and he choked out,
"Thank you, Lord Brian, for your trust. My brother and I will repay you with our lives!"
"Sno, I like how dumbfounded you are. Whether you cry or laugh, you're ugly either way."
"Please forgive me, Lord Brian. Sno will never make the same mistake again!"
What was meant as a joke Brian tossed off, Sno took as a solemn command and burned it into his heart.
"All right, go handle it." Brian waved Sno away.
Sno was an honest, unconnected man who hadn't seen much of the world and tended to offend people with his bluntness — but Brian liked people like him. Brian was always scheming and didn't want subordinates coveting his wealth or betraying him. A simple, utterly obedient man who'd be grateful for a small reward was exactly the kind of subordinate he trusted.
"First marry the Nasia Kingdom's eldest princess, then kill her brother, and a few years later engineer accidents for her cousins — then the eldest princess will be the sole heir. The Nasia Kingdom will fall into my hands, and that's close to a hundred billion Berries a year… hehe…" Brian's mouth twitched up; whenever he was pleased he had that little smile.
BRRBRR… BRRBRR…
At that moment the yellow phone-bug on Brian's desk buzzed.
That yellow bug had been a gift from Zephyr at graduation. In the year since it had only rung twice — both times for lectures about military discipline and to warn Brian not to disgrace the Navy.
"Could Headquarters have already accepted Ann's complaint and be disciplining me? No way — HQ is that efficient? Besides, I slid money to Vice Admiral Ensto who handles discipline. They should turn a blind eye…" Brian hesitated but picked up.
The phone-bug mimicked Zephyr's booming voice: "Brian!"
"I heard you. I heard you — don't shout so loud." Brian was irritated.
"Explain why during the operation against Astona you deliberately didn't act, and why your men retreated in the face of battle. Explain!"
Brian muttered, "So they really are coming to berate me."
"You bastard, what are you saying? Explain! Now! Immediately!"
Zephyr's anger rose; Brian could practically hear him slamming the table.
"Teacher Zephyr, my chief engineer made an operational error which caused an engine room explosion and fire, so I had them pull back for repairs. That much is true, right?" Brian offered.
Zephyr pressed down his rage. "Then why did you delay acting after receiving Governor Karl's order?"
"Teacher Zephyr, I'm just a small branch commander in the Western Sea — a mere colonel of a tiny division. Astona's notorious across the Western Sea, ruthless, wanted for over a hundred million Berries. I was afraid. I thought Governor Karl—he's strong, with elite troops. He didn't need me to step in…"
"Enough, Brian!" Zephyr snapped.
From Marineford, Zephyr no longer wanted to listen; he could tell Brian was trying to squeeze him.
"Teacher Zephyr, I'm just being honest. If I were a vice-admiral or an admiral at Headquarters, of course I'd throw myself at these pirates… Hello, Teacher Zephyr… you there?" Brian said as he ended the call.
By the time Brian put down the phone, Zephyr at Marineford was almost exploding with anger.
Beside Zephyr, Tsuru poured him a cup of tea to calm him down.
"Hahaha…" Garp laughed uproariously, "See? I told you. If you put him out in the Western Sea, trouble would happen. You didn't believe me and said you'd teach him a lesson first…"
Garp's words were clearly pouring fuel on the fire. Seeing Zephyr's veins bulge, Sengoku quickly put a hand on Garp's shoulder.
"Enough, Garp. Don't say more. I agreed with Zephyr's posting too — I share responsibility."
Tsuru sighed. She first soothed Zephyr and then stuffed a senbei (rice cracker) into Garp's mouth to shut him up.
"It's too late to argue about that now. What we must think about is how to deal with Brian — a monster who possesses admiral-level strength and potential. Are you really going to sideline him for life? Or are you going to let him leave the Navy full of hatred and become a pirate?"
◇ I'll be dropping one bonus chapters for every 10 reviews. comment
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones.
Author's Note:
Leave some comments or data to cheer the author on—your support makes the chapters come faster!
✨ Special Thanks to our supporters