Once Admiral Sengoku finished going over everything, there was nothing left to discuss about the Admiral appointments, so Sakazuki and Kuzan took their leave.
Ortoren, however, was stopped by Sengoku, who said he had something to speak with him about in private.
As soon as Kuzan and Sakazuki closed the door, Ortoren flashed a bright grin. "Admiral, this birthday present may be early, but I'm sure you'll like it, right?"
Sengoku shot him a fierce glare, then lowered his voice. "You're far too reckless. If even one thing had gone wrong, who do you think would've been able to deal with the consequences?"
"Relax, Admiral. I built in layers of protection. Even if something had gone wrong, no one could've traced it back to me," Ortoren said confidently.
Sengoku nodded, sat down across from him, then suddenly asked, "Was the Supreme Commander really killed by Shiki?"
Ortoren blinked, stayed silent for a moment, then nodded seriously. "Of course. Truer than true. It happened right in front of me."
Right in front of him… which only made the whole thing more questionable. And that moment of silence before answering was already an answer.
Sengoku understood perfectly well. He knew exactly what Ortoren meant.
So he didn't press further. He simply sighed. "If nothing else, at least it gave him some dignity."
After a moment, Sengoku continued, "Saint Warcury has taken quite an interest in you. Once you take office as Admiral, I'll need to go to Holy Land in my new capacity as Fleet Admiral. You will accompany me to meet them."
"Hah?" Ortoren pulled a bitter face. "I'm not interested in him at all… Can I not go?"
"Even perfunctory attendance is fine. With your background, he may have things he wishes to tell you. In any case, it's settled." Sengoku gave him no room to refuse.
Seeing this, Ortoren could only shrug. "Rank crushes all. You're the Fleet Admiral—your word is absolute."
Sengoku chuckled, then his expression grew serious. "Ortoren, the uproar caused by the Holy Land incident is enormous. And now that you're becoming an Admiral, I need to tell you this directly: once you return to the New World, don't do anything risky for a while. Proceed steadily. Let the storm pass first. Understand?"
Ortoren thought for a moment. He didn't have any major "sins against heaven" planned in the near future anyway, so he nodded readily. "Got it… But fighting pirates shouldn't be an issue, right? I was planning to wipe out Hachinosu once I get back…"
"Hachinosu?" Sengoku looked at him in surprise. "Ochoku's been keeping quiet. Why stir up trouble with him?"
"I need Hachinosu to open more trade routes in the New World. Once Ochoku is eliminated, our markets can expand dramatically. The interests involved are huge," Ortoren explained plainly.
"I see…" Sengoku thought for a moment. "Ochoku is a vile criminal. As a Marine Admiral, punishing evil is your duty. Don't hesitate—do what you must."
Sengoku's righteous tone no longer fazed Ortoren; he'd long since grown immune to it.
Right, right, right. As long as it doesn't touch Marine interests, he's harmless and peaceful. But once it does, suddenly he's an unforgivable monster. Makes perfect sense!
After that matter was settled, Sengoku asked, "While you were at G-5, I didn't pry into your situation. But now that you're leaving, there are many things you need to brief me on. Also—who should take over G-5 after you?"
Since they were in Sengoku's private office, Ortoren wasn't worried about eavesdropping.
He thought for a moment before saying, "Currently, counting all forces under G-5 command, I have nearly a hundred thousand troops under me—sixty thousand of them battle-hardened elites who've fought New World pirates repeatedly. Recruitment and garrison operations are all on track. We're deliberately controlling the pace of expansion; for the next one to two years, there shouldn't be major growth in numbers. After that, according to the original plan, G-5 will focus on restructuring its internal organization…"
Sengoku had already expected Ortoren's forces to be large, so although hearing "a hundred thousand troops" still shocked him internally, he managed not to show it.
"What exactly do you mean by adjusting the internal structure?" Admiral Sengoku asked again.
"With G-5's current framework, this troop size is already the limit. Any more and I won't be able to keep the disguise intact," Ortoren admitted a bit awkwardly.
A normal Marine base—no matter how well developed—tops out at around twenty thousand troops. Now G-5 was secretly coordinating a force of one hundred thousand. That was already the absolute maximum a single base could plausibly conceal.
Ortoren's original plan had been to restructure G-5 internally after reaching this point, temporarily halt further troop expansion, and then revisit the issue once he had become an Admiral. He hadn't expected the opportunity to come so abruptly, letting him jump straight into the Admiral position.
"So how do you intend to restructure it?" Sengoku asked with genuine curiosity. He wanted to see what new tricks this Ortoren could possibly pull in a situation like this.
"Well, G-5 has already drafted an entire plan for this. According to the original strategy, we still intend to use the various kingdoms within our jurisdiction as the core layer of cover…" Ortoren began.
"So you're expanding that 'Naval Reserve Training Camp' again?" Sengoku interrupted, puzzled.
Did this really require such elaborate re-planning?
"No, no. I plan to establish a joint maritime police force in the name of the royal families across our jurisdiction," Ortoren said with a smile.
"Maritime police!?" Sengoku blinked, completely thrown off. "What's that supposed to be?"
"Think of it like sheriffs—roughly the same idea. Officially, their stated duty will be to 'resolve maritime disputes.' Ships sailing the seas get into conflicts all the time. Sometimes two rival merchant companies run into each other and even fire a couple of warning shots just for fun. That's a dispute, right? That's a problem."
"But within my territory, I want to build an environment where everyone can sail safely and develop in peace. And for trivial matters like these, dispatching the Marines would be overkill. So I plan to create a maritime police force dedicated to handling such issues. Nothing wrong with that, right?" Ortoren said with righteous confidence.
Although this was the first time Sengoku had heard the term, as a strategist he instantly understood what Ortoren meant.
Just another layer of disguise. Call it "coast guard" in peacetime—then once Ortoren wants to stir up trouble, one wave of his hand and the damn coast guard becomes a Marine force overnight.
"Not enough," Sengoku said, shaking his head. "If such a combat-oriented organization suddenly appeared, Holy Land would notice immediately. Your justification is far too shallow. Once scrutinized properly, this plan won't pass. You might even stir up bigger problems…"
Ortoren nodded seriously and put on a humble expression. "Then what brilliant insight does the Admiral have?"
Of course he had alternative explanations ready—but letting the superior speak first was always better. If Sengoku really had a good idea, great. If not, he could claim to have followed Sengoku's line of thought and suddenly had a "flash of inspiration," presenting his plan as something refined thanks to the Admiral's guidance. One way or another, the superior had to receive some credit.
Just because he was about to be promoted to Admiral didn't mean he could ignore his old commander. That would be disastrous—especially when that old commander was about to become Fleet Admiral. Without the Fleet Admiral's support, how could he flex his strength in the New World?
Sengoku gave him a meaningful look, then said, "After what happened in Holy Land, the Revolutionary Army has grown bolder than ever—they even dared to launch a terrorist attack against the Holy Land itself. If this frightens the royal families of other Member Nations into forming a force similar to the 'maritime police' you described—intended for regular patrol, security, and countering Revolutionary Army infiltration—then, given the current situation, Holy Land would be delighted to hear it. Understand?"
Ortoren hadn't considered this angle at all. His eyes lit up instantly.
Right—under current circumstances, this was the perfect excuse.
If he acted according to his original plan, Holy Land might've found it suspicious. But if he framed it the way Sengoku described, they might even praise him. In today's climate, anything that targeted the Revolutionary Army was absolutely politically correct! Anyone who opposed the Revolutionary Army was part of the righteous camp!!!
Having an elder is like having a treasure. After thinking it over, Ortoren raised a thumb in admiration.
"Brilliant insight, Commander."
That was Sengoku for you—his political instincts were insanely sharp.