After discussing matters concerning the Marine Police with Doflamingo, Vergo arrived to report that all the invited guests had already gathered.
Ortoren immediately instructed Vergo to bring everyone over so they could begin the general meeting.
Vergo accepted the order and quickly departed.
Once Vergo had left, Doflamingo smiled and asked, "Before, you needed Vergo as an intermediary to communicate with me—and also as a restraint. Now that we're this familiar with each other, do you still need to keep Vergo at your side?"
"What? Short on manpower over there?" Ortoren asked with a grin.
"You suddenly want me to build this Marine Police force, but you know my background—I was a gangster in the North Blue, now a pirate in the New World. I've never run a proper military unit. Once I start managing it, problems are bound to come up. But Vergo—he followed you, witnessed firsthand how you built G-5 up from nothing. His experience is certainly richer than mine. So if you don't urgently need him here, I was thinking you might let him return to me. I'd have him oversee the Marine Police operations." Doflamingo said this openly, without pretense.
His relationship with Ortoren had already gone far beyond a simple partnership. They were deeply bound—practically one body with intertwined interests.
Everyone on the seas knew Ortoren was Doflamingo's greatest backing. If Ortoren fell today, Doflamingo would suffer the consequences tomorrow.
So there was no need for Vergo to remain a "mediator."
Ortoren found Doflamingo's reasoning sound. He nodded. "That's fine. This cooperation between Marines and Police works out well. I'll have Vergo serve as an instructor under his Navy Rear Admiral rank to guide your Marine Police force's establishment—it's perfectly reasonable. As for removing him from the Marines, there's no need for that. I'm already sending him back to you. His title is just a title anyway. He worked hard to reach Rear Admiral—it's worth keeping. When you eventually become a Vice Admiral, he could even serve as your aide."
Doflamingo had no objections. The arrangement was indeed ideal.
As the two continued speaking, a knock sounded at the door. Before Ortoren could respond, Katakuri pushed it open and walked in.
"Done with your private business?" Katakuri asked.
"Pretty much... Second Brother, sit," Ortoren said warmly.
Katakuri sat directly opposite him. Shortly after, Dragon, Spandine, Tiger, Moria, and the others arrived.
Issho and Momonga followed soon after.
Everyone who needed to be present was now there.
Though they called it a meeting, the setting was crude; there was no proper conference room. Everyone simply sat around the small coffee table on the surrounding sofas.
During Ortoren and Doflamingo's earlier private talk, the others had already exchanged greetings, so Ortoren didn't need to introduce anyone.
Once everyone was seated, Ortoren began, "Thank you all for giving me this honor and gathering here today."
The others offered polite responses, though inwardly they were impressed. Only someone as wild and unconventional as Ortoren could actually pull a group like this—people from totally different factions—into one room. Anyone else would have had no chance.
After the brief courtesies, Ortoren continued, "First matter of business. This concerns every one of you here... There's a major venture I hope we can undertake together."
Although he said "everyone," the truth was that Moria, Doflamingo, Spandine, and the Marine members were essentially Ortoren's own people.
The real partners he needed were Katakuri, Tiger, and Dragon.
All three understood that very well. They exchanged glances before Dragon spoke first.
"What kind of major venture?"
"I plan to establish an entertainment complex. If any of you are interested, you're welcome to invest," Ortoren said with a grin.
Dragon was stunned. That's it?
An entertainment complex? You dragged us all here for that?
Anyone who didn't know better would think you were planning to overthrow the heavens, raise a banner, and rally us to rebel against the World Government.
But because it sounded so absurd, Dragon was sure there had to be something deeper. He asked again, "What kind of entertainment complex?"
"It started when I spoke twice with Lu Feld, the underworld's loan-shark king. He intends to build a massive entertainment complex in the New World—combining shopping, tourism, shows, gambling, competitions, everything in one. He asked if I was interested. Afterwards, we discussed it internally and concluded this could be a massive opportunity. And if we're going to do it, we should build a true, world-class, one-of-a-kind mega entertainment complex..." Ortoren explained.
Before the others could respond, Ortoren continued, "Everyone knows the world's wealth lies in the hands of a few. A single banquet held by a top noble or tycoon could cost more than the combined lifetime earnings of an entire village—or even a town—and still not be enough..."
The others nodded. Indeed, unequal distribution of resources was one of the fundamental contradictions plaguing the seas. But this contradiction had no solution—not even Ortoren could solve it.
Intelligent species are inherently social, and social systems inevitably create hierarchy. The strong enjoying more resources was natural.
In a sense, that guy Aramaki wasn't wrong—people find comfort through discrimination, and survive by stepping on others. It wasn't entirely untrue.
"And these top-tier entertainment complexes cater specifically to the wealthy elite. Making money from them is relatively easy as long as the service is impeccable. Until now, similar projects have all raked in profits so long as they were managed properly... but I still think that's not enough. No matter how luxurious an entertainment complex is, it's still one step short of being truly 'top-tier.' And that step is absolutely critical—security." Ortoren lifted a brow as he spoke.
"Security?" Katakuri glanced at Dragon, then scanned the rest of the room. A hint of realization flickered in his eyes. "So that's why you want us to work together? To gather the major forces of the seas, pool resources, and build an entertainment complex backed by multiple factions—maximizing its security?"
"The Marines, the Shichibukai, the World Government, top-class pirates, and the Revolutionary Army—if all these backgrounds converge in one place, I doubt anyone would dare question its safety. And that's only the first phase. My goal is to turn this entertainment complex into a truly neutral platform." Ortoren said.
He then began outlining the concept in detail, which was essentially the same idea Tesoro had pushed with the Golden City in the original story.
When Ortoren finished explaining, Dragon immediately seized on a key issue. "Who would take the lead on this? The World Government?"
As the leader of the Revolutionary Army, he could never take point. And as a Marine Admiral, Ortoren couldn't lower his status to personally front the project—people would talk, and it would violate Marine protocol. Tiger might be seated at the table, but compared to the others present, his status was far lower, and Fish-Man Island's background made it impossible for them to lead something like this.
As for the Shichibukai… Doflamingo certainly had the qualifications. If Katakuri hadn't been here today, Dragon would have assumed from the start that Ortoren intended for Doflamingo to handle it.
But with Katakuri present, that changed everything.
The Big Mom Pirates—Totto Land—absolutely had the standing to lead such a project.
Of course, Dragon couldn't just outright say that. So he tossed out the World Government—the faction most at odds with the Revolutionary Army—as a way to test the waters.
Ortoren immediately caught Dragon's meaning. Inwardly, he thought, This guy is being unusually cooperative today. Must really be strapped for cash.
"No, no, no. Before I returned from Holy Land to the New World, I met with the Five Elders. They specifically told me to maintain good relations with the Big Mom Pirates, and they expressed hope that the World Government could establish some cooperation and contact with Totto Land. So I think this is the perfect opportunity. In the past, getting the World Government to support this idea would have been difficult, and the concessions required would've been huge. But now, with the Big Mom Pirates stepping forward, the World Government will likely make certain concessions for political reasons."
"So my plan is for Totto Land to take the lead on this project." Ortoren said without hesitation.
Katakuri folded his arms, deep in thought. After a moment, perhaps deciding that Totto Land could indeed afford the investment—and hearing from Ortoren that preparations were already underway—he also realized that if they managed to spearhead this so-called "neutral zone," it would bring tremendous prestige to the Charlotte Family, greatly boosting their influence across the seas.
So after some contemplation, Katakuri nodded. "It's worth considering..."
...