"Alright, I'm done haggling with you."
Carlos finally lost his patience and stood up, looking at Kong and speaking bluntly:
"It's not impossible for me to go undercover in the Rocks Pirates. But what about the benefits?"
"Benefits?" Kong was stunned and said subconsciously: "You can get double the military merit. After all, we know being an undercover is too dangerous, so you'll be able to raise your military rank quickly..."
"Those are all empty promises!"
"Military merit... where can't I get that?"
"Then you... what else do you want?" Kong hesitated.
"I want something substantial!"
"Wealth!"
"Status!"
"Power!"
"I want it all!"
Carlos reached out his right hand and clenched the air.
His temperament suddenly became much more domineering.
His eyes were sharp, full of edge, and extremely aggressive.
Kong looked at the cigar in his hand, "Wealth... are you short on money?"
"Who would complain about having too much money?!" Under Kong's pained gaze, Carlos spat out the half-smoked cigar in his mouth and stuffed a new one in.
Kong asked tentatively: "Then how much money do you want?"
Carlos held up one finger.
"One hundred million Berries?" Kong raised an eyebrow.
Carlos didn't say a word.
"One billion? That's too much, isn't it?" Kong frowned.
Carlos relit the cigar in his mouth, exhaled a cloud of smoke, grinned, and shook his finger.
"No, ten billion."
"What???"
Kong jumped up as if his ass was on fire.
He looked at Carlos like he was looking at a madman.
A screech like a rooster crowing came from his throat.
"Are you crazy? Ten billion?"
"Do you know how much money that is?!"
"A fully armed large warship only costs one hundred million Berries! Ten billion Berries is enough for me to arm a force of one hundred thousand men and build several more Marine bases in the Grand Line!"
"I can't possibly agree to that! The World Government won't agree either!"
Carlos bared his snow-white teeth, smiling like a greedy wolf.
"I don't care about that. If you want the horse to run, you have to let the horse eat grass first."
"Since you want me to risk my life in such a dangerous place, you naturally have to pay enough benefits."
"Ten billion. If it's one Berry less, let someone else go."
Kong felt a bit stifled and said angrily: "But you're a Marine. As a soldier, you should obey the orders of your superiors..."
Carlos's smile gradually turned cold: "Superiors? Are you referring to the Marines or the World Government? If it were just a Marine order, maybe I really would go."
But the World Government... are they even worthy of me risking my life?"
My justice isn't like my dead old man's—loyally being their dog, only to have his Admiral codename stripped away after he died."
"Hey! Carlos! Watch your words!" Kong's face changed, and he subconsciously glanced at the slightly ajar door.
"Watch my words? My ass!"
"I'm not the only one who thinks this way, Garp thinks so too! If the Marines didn't still have a bit of conscience and justice, we would have left long ago! The World Government's orders don't mean jack!"
Kong: "..."
A bitter smile.
A bitter smile!
Still a bitter smile!
There was no other expression on Kong's face at this moment except for a bitter smile.
He sighed: "Fine, I will relay your demands to the Gorosei. Any other requests... say them all."
"Besides wealth, I want status!"
"Not some military rank! I want autonomy over a Marine military base in the New World!"
"I want to be the Base Commander and have complete control over the base's operations! Anyone, including high-ranking Marines and the World Government, can make suggestions but has no right to directly interfere with the base's operations!"
"Finally, and most importantly, power!"
"I want a sufficiently powerful Logia Devil Fruit, or a Mythical Zoan fruit!"
"A top-tier one! Don't try to brush me off with trash like smoke or gas!"
"Without enough power, I have no way to protect myself in a place like the Rocks Pirates!"
"Additionally, even if I go undercover, the Marines and the World Government cannot contact me without permission, otherwise it will very likely get me killed!"
"That's all the requests for now."
"Old man Kong, you can't make the decision anyway, so just tell the Gorosei. If they agree, I'll go. If they don't, or if they're so angry they want to punish me, then bring it on!"
Carlos stated his points one by one.
Kong listened to them one by one.
At first, he showed expressions of being dumbfounded and miserable.
By the end, he was completely numb.
After hearing everything, he nodded stiffly, took out a silver den den mushi, and walked out.
"Wait a moment, I'll go inquire..."
Kong hadn't been gone for even five seconds.
Carlos, who had sat back down on the sofa, heard the sounds of exasperated roars and arguments from the den den mushi in the hallway, as well as Kong's humble explanations.
He listened with great interest.
While crossing his legs and lying back on the sofa.
Smoking a Douglas cigar that cost one hundred thousand Berries each.
Sipping on bubble wine, a specialty of the Sabaody Archipelago.
He looked completely at ease.
The noise outside lasted for more than half an hour before it gradually stopped.
Then Carlos saw Kong walking in, wiping away cold sweat.
That exhausted appearance made him look more tired than if he had fought a fierce battle for three days and three nights.
Carlos couldn't help but joke: "Uncle Kong, you look a bit weak. I have a bottle of divine oil from Elbaf, do you want it? Drinking it will make you as tough as a Giant."
"Shut up! It's all because of you!" Kong gave the grinning Carlos a frustrated glare.
He walked over, snatched the bubble wine from Carlos's hand, and downed it in one gulp.
He tossed the bottle aside, "Your conditions have basically been accepted by the higher-ups."
"Basically?" Carlos raised an eyebrow.
"The ten billion Berries and the top-tier Devil Fruit you wanted, the Gorosei agreed to give them to you."
"The New World Marine base you wanted can also be given to you, even the autonomy you desire."
"But..."
Kong sighed, looking at Carlos with a complex gaze.
"But the World Government will not provide this Marine base, including the soldiers, everything inside the base, or even the island where the base is located.
The Gorosei said that if you really have the ability, you should conquer an area in the New World yourself and build the fortress you want. Otherwise..."
"They don't believe in my ability." The corners of Carlos's mouth curled up slightly.
"Building a Marine base from scratch in a chaotic place like the New World—how could that be easy?"
"Even for us Marines, we've only just built the first Marine base, G1, and it faces the risk of being overrun by New World pirates at any time."
"Not to mention you're only one person, and you're there as an undercover..."
Kong shook his head.
Clearly, he didn't have high hopes for Carlos.
But there was no other way.
This was already the maximum compromise the Gorosei could make.
One should know.
On the den den mushi just now, the Gorosei were so angry they wanted him to arrest Carlos immediately and throw him into Impel Down.
If it weren't for the fact that the Rocks Pirates were expanding too quickly.
And the threat they posed to the World Government was increasing day by day.
The World Government desperately needed to break the deadlock and shatter the Rocks Pirates' hegemony in the New World.
Those misers in the Gorosei.
How could they possibly hand over such a massive amount of benefits to a mere Headquarters Major like Carlos?
Having secured the benefits, Carlos's mood brightened, and a smile appeared on his face.
"Then what about the money and the fruit? When will they be given to me?"
Kong was somewhat envious,
"The money will be deposited into your World Government bank account."
"In installments. You asked for too much, the higher-ups can't give it all to you at once, and you need to exchange it for intelligence."
"As for the Devil Fruit, it's expected to be delivered within the next two days. Just wait here in Sabaody. I'll have Marine Base 66 prepare a coated ship for you to head to the New World."
He was also a bit curious, "How do you plan to infiltrate the Rocks Pirates?"
Carlos leaned back on the sofa, "Don't worry about that, I have my ways. Alright, hurry back to your headquarters. I know you're a busy man as a Marine Admiral, Uncle Kong."
"Hmph, fine, don't tell me then."
Kong turned around grumpily, preparing to leave.
When he reached the door, he seemed to remember something, stopped his pace, and looked back.
Carlos thought he was worried about his safety and wanted to give him a few more instructions.
As it turned out... "Uh... right, Carlos, that Elbaf divine oil you mentioned just now..."
"Does it really work?"
Carlos: "..."