Well, it seems Patreon is intent on taking down my page, so I went ahead and made a new one: patreon(.)com/AlexandrusTL
If you want to read ahead of schedule and support my work, feel free to head over there.
For now, I can only post two chapters. It's really late over here, haha.
—————
Upon entering Pangaea Castle, one could see a large number of guards, with sentries every few steps.
Since a large number of affiliated country royals were gathered in Pangaea Castle, security was naturally a top priority. It's no exaggeration to say that if a problem were to arise here, it would completely rewrite the entire world's situation.
But it was also clear that there would almost never be any problems here.
The meeting was set to start today, and Diarmuid and Admiral Sengoku were walking toward the conference room. There were probably already many royals inside, and some, like Diarmuid and Sengoku, were on their way there. When they met on the way, they would even greet each other.
Of course, they were mainly greeting Sengoku, the veteran Admiral. Many people didn't know Diarmuid, which was a matter of seniority.
There was nothing to say about it. If he served as an Admiral for a few more years and participated in a few more of these meetings, people would naturally start to recognize him.
"Speaking of Devil Fruits, the Special Science Group has recently made some new progress. Dr. Vegapunk's Lineage Factor theory has led to the development of Devil Fruit Materialization Transmission technology…" Sengoku said, chatting with Diarmuid as they walked.
"Devil Fruit Materialization Transmission technology? What does that mean?" Diarmuid asked curiously.
"To put it simply, it allows objects like swords and guns to eat Devil Fruits and gain special abilities," Admiral Sengoku said with a laugh.
Diarmuid didn't react at all, but Hina next to him looked very surprised. This was the benefit of being a high-ranking officer's errand boy. Even though Hina was only a Commander right now, she was able to meet many of the Marines' true leaders because of Diarmuid and learn many things she wouldn't have been authorized to know from their conversations.
Of course, if there was something especially confidential, they would naturally be wary of her.
"You're not surprised at all?" Sengoku looked at Diarmuid and asked strangely.
"Why would I be surprised by that?" Diarmuid said, curling his lips. But after a moment, he asked, "Is this technology a big help to us?"
Sengoku thought for a moment, then said with a hint of helplessness, "I can only say it helps us make use of waste…"
Diarmuid thought about it for a second, then nodded in agreement. "That makes sense."
It was clear that this was a technology that only the rich could afford to play with.
Generally speaking, if someone got their hands on a Devil Fruit, wouldn't they quickly sell it for money, or eat it themselves, or give it to their subordinates?
Only a large organization, a behemoth like the Marines, with extra Devil Fruit reserves, could even consider using this technology.
And yet, this technology was a little redundant. Sengoku's "making use of waste" comment was referring to this. It was impossible to use a powerful Devil Fruit for an object.
For example, if Gion hadn't eaten the Rumble-Rumble Fruit and it was fed to a sword or a gun instead, it would only be able to generate electricity. But since Gion ate it, she would at least be on the same level as an Admiral in the future.
Was there any need to say which was more important?
As a result, only some useless Devil Fruits that everyone disliked could be used to increase a weapon's power. So, all in all, this technology sounded impressive, but in reality, it wasn't very useful.
After a laugh, Diarmuid asked, "So, all the funding the Special Science Group receives every year is used to research this useless technology? That's a huge waste, isn't it?"
Sengoku also laughed and waved his hand. "No, not at all. You could say this was just a serendipitous discovery, a derivative technology of the Lineage Factor theory. In reality, what they're truly focused on is..."
At this point, Sengoku glanced at Hina. But he quickly decided not to worry too much and said softly, "In reality, the Special Science Group is researching artificial Devil Fruits, and this was just a side project that came out of that."
Hina's eyes flashed with shock. 'Artificial Devil Fruits? This…'
Diarmuid was also a little surprised. He really didn't expect the artificial Devil Fruit project to have started so early. But then he thought about it. Scientific research wasn't easy. It could take ten years or even longer to get results. Who knows when this artificial Devil Fruit project would truly bear fruit?
"If this research is successful and we can mass-produce artificial Devil Fruits, the Marines' strength will skyrocket. At that point, we can even form a Devil Fruit user corps!" Sengoku said with a tone of anticipation. He then looked at Diarmuid and said, "Now do you think the Special Science Group's funding is a waste?"
"Hahahaha, not at all!" Diarmuid said with a big laugh. However, as far as he knew, the Marines never ended up forming a Devil Fruit user corps. On the contrary, that guy Kaido stole the Marines' research and ideas and, with Doflamingo's help, created a Zoan-type Devil Fruit user corps in Wano Country...
But there was no need to talk about these things with Sengoku. It wouldn't work anyway. He might as well let him have his dream. Besides, the world had already changed so much.
Moria had gone to join the Revolutionary Army, and Smoker was about to become a Warlord. So maybe it wasn't impossible for the Marines to create a Devil Fruit user corps!
"By the way, I heard that Smoker kidnapped the king of the Gorillan Kingdom?" Sengoku suddenly asked.
"Yep. Did it cause any problems?" Diarmuid asked, raising an eyebrow.
"No, but you're the one who arranged this, right?" Sengoku asked again.
"That's right. According to our intel, that guy wanted to set us up at the Reverie, so I arranged for his early exit," Diarmuid said with a laugh.
"Your methods are a little too radical…" Sengoku mumbled. But then he shook his head. "But Smoker's existence is precisely for doing the things that are inconvenient for us to do. You just need to control the extent of it."
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing," Diarmuid said, nodding.
Hina next to him was completely stunned. Although she had guessed it before, she could now fully deduce the truth from the conversation between Admiral Sengoku and Admiral Diarmuid.
Smoker didn't actually go to be a pirate; he was sent on some secret mission!?
Diarmuid hadn't expected Sengoku to just blurt it out, but he wasn't wary of Hina. He trusted her a lot. The reason he hadn't told her the truth was partly because he enjoyed teasing her.
Since Sengoku had already spilled the beans, he didn't hide it anymore. He followed up by saying, "Smoker's matter can't be delayed for too long. After the Reverie, we'll find a way to get him appointed as a Warlord."
"I was thinking the same thing. But we can't push for it directly from the Marines, or it will look too obvious. Do you have any other ideas?" Sengoku asked quietly.
Just then, Diarmuid's steps stopped. He looked at the end of the hallway, at the entrance to the conference room, where a beautiful woman with a captivating and alluring aura was standing there, smiling at them.
Stussy, the Queen of the Pleasure District...
It had been a long time since Diarmuid had seen her. He had said he would go to the New World to "talk" with her and have a "deep conversation," but he never went, leaving her hanging. And now he ran into her here?
Diarmuid was only slightly distracted. The moment he saw Stussy, he seemed to think of something and nodded. "Yes, I have a good friend. The kind of close friend that's 'gone to war and had a drink' with me. She's doing very well in the New World. It should be no problem to ask her for a favor and give Smoker a push…"
"Is that so?" Sengoku nodded, speaking with some approval. "That does sound like a good relationship."
Diarmuid said with a serious expression, "Of course. A true comrade-in-arms!"
With that, Diarmuid and Sengoku arrived at the entrance to the conference room. Stussy smiled and greeted both of them. "Admiral Sengoku, Admiral Diarmuid, it's been a while. My apologies for not reaching out sooner." As she spoke, she extended her hand.
Sengoku naturally shook Stussy's hand and nodded. "It has been a long time, Stussy-san."
Sengoku's impression of Stussy was decent. After all, Stussy came from CP-9, and CP-9 was one of the few Cipher Pol agencies that had a relatively good and harmonious relationship with the Marines.
After that, Stussy had also maintained a relatively friendly relationship with the Marines. In Sengoku's eyes, Stussy was a Marine-aligned member of the Cipher Pol agencies. However, that was all she was. She wasn't to be trusted. They just had to keep up appearances. So after he shook her hand, he pulled it back.
Diarmuid then naturally took Stussy's hand and said with a chuckle, "Stussy-san, have you been busy lately? It's been a long time since we've seen each other."
Stussy had a seductive smile on her face and said with a meaningful tone, "Sigh, I haven't been too busy. I've just been stood up a lot. I've been waiting in the New World for a long time for the person I wanted to see…" As she said this, her finger lightly traced Diarmuid's palm, making it very tempting.
Diarmuid's expression didn't change. He just nodded and said, "You'll definitely see him."
With that, he pulled his hand back. In a public place like this, there was no need for the two Admirals to talk to Stussy any more than they had to. After a brief nod, Diarmuid and Sengoku walked into the conference hall.
Stussy looked at Diarmuid's back, a smile appearing on her face. She didn't linger and turned to leave. It was normal for her, as a CP-0 member, to be here, but she wasn't qualified to participate in the Reverie.
To be honest, she had heard that the newly promoted Marine Admiral, Diarmuid, would be coming today, which was why she waited here for him. Now that she had seen Diarmuid, she was content and prepared to leave.
They waited in the conference room for another half an hour. He saw his sensei Zephyr and Fleet Admiral Kong also coming to the meeting. The four of them sat together, and one by one, the royals from the various countries arrived.
It was only then that the figures of the Gorosei finally arrived and formally entered the conference hall.
This was the first time Diarmuid had seen the true faces of the Gorosei. It had to be said that at this time, these five old men were not as decrepit as they would be in the future. They looked full of spirit and had a very strong presence.
As soon as they entered, the entire conference room fell silent without them saying a word. Then, the five of them walked to the head of the conference table and sat down.
The Gorosei first scanned the people in the room. Whether it was his imagination or not, Diarmuid felt like they stared at him for a few extra seconds.
"Welcome to Mariejois, everyone, for the World Government's quadrennial Reverie for the affiliated countries," the long-bearded Gorosei said softly with a serious expression.