Moria Arrives, Mihawk Applies to Become a Distinguished Guest!

Shanks, being a penniless pauper, naturally couldn't afford 200 million Belly, so he used his connections to introduce the loan shark king to Mihawk.

As for the exorbitant interest rates, even if it's that ungrateful bastard Mihawk, he deserves to be burdened with debt!

Meanwhile, at G-5 Marine Base, in Ortolan's office.

After hanging up on Mihawk's Den Den Mushi, Ortolan still seemed a little unsatisfied. How dare this guy question me?

So he picked up the Den Den Mushi again, and soon he got through to CP-9.

"Hello? Spandine? Send some more manpower to keep a close eye on Mihawk. Report any news to Vice Admiral Garp and get everyone moving. For justice, we must make sure Mihawk feels our care!" Ortolan said, his voice trembling with excitement.

Just as Ortolan was talking to Spandine Den Den Mushi, someone knocked on the door. Ortolan stopped talking to Spandine and hung up the Den Den Mushi, saying, "Come in."

As soon as he finished speaking, Vergo pushed open the door and walked in. He gave a standard salute and then said, "Vice Admiral Bane, Lord Moria has arrived."

Although Ortolan was very rude to Moria, Moria was, after all, a Shichibukai, and according to the rank of the Shichibukai, he enjoyed the treatment of a Headquarters Vice Admiral. It was not a problem for Vergo to call him "Sir".

Upon hearing this, Ortolan's eyes lit up, and he said, "So you didn't run away after all!"

Indeed, just as Vergo finished his report, Moria's tall figure was already standing at the door.

Upon hearing Ortolan's words, Moria looked slightly embarrassed and rubbed his nose, saying, "How could that be? I said I would be a righteous Shichibukai, fully cooperating with the Marines..."

In fact, Moria had considered escaping, but he had been reading the newspapers recently and often saw Mihawk getting beaten up by Marines Garp. Because he knew the inside story, he understood the implications even more.

To avoid ending up like Mihawk, Moria hesitated several times before finally deciding to meet Ortolan.

Just as Ortolan was about to ask Moria how things were going, Moria stepped aside and introduced, "This is Dr. Hogback. He's now under my command and will fully cooperate with our plan..."

Only then did Ortolan see the two figures behind Moria. Yes, two. One was Hogback, a man with a very peculiar appearance and a sinister look on his face, completely unlike a good person. The other was a little girl, probably about six years old, with pink hair and holding a plush toy in her hands. However, the toy was patched up and looked somewhat eerie, and two ghost-like things were floating around her.

Ortolan recognized her at a glance; this little girl was none other than Perona, who would later become Ghost Princess!

Seemingly noticing the somewhat surprised look in Ortolan's eyes, Moria took the initiative to explain, "When I met with Dr. Hogback, I unexpectedly encountered this little girl on that island. She was wandering alone, and I thought her abilities seemed interesting, so I took her with me..."

In the original story, Perona was indeed adopted by Moria from a young age, and now it seems that this is the origin of their fate.

Ortolan waved his hand, and Vergo wisely left. Then Moria, the reserved Hogback, and the curious Perona entered the office.

"Doflamingo has almost finished the preliminary preparations for the Flevance mission. It's chaotic there right now, with riots breaking out everywhere, and I heard that quite a few people have died. I was thinking before that we couldn't just kill all the pirates who crossed the sea and use their corpses for our mission; that would be too wasteful. But now it should be just right. There are already many victims there, so once you cross the sea, you'll have plenty of materials to use..." Ortolan said.

After a slight pause, Ortolan asked, "Hogback first..."

"Vice Admiral Bane, you can just call me Hogback," Hogback quickly replied.

Ortolan nodded again and asked with a smile, "Alright then, Hogback, how long would it take to assemble approximately 10,000 zombie laborers?"

"Ah..." Hogback seemed taken aback by the number. After a moment's thought, he said, "The quantity is somewhat unexpected. In that case, it will take about half a year. Lord Moria needs certain conditions to create zombies, such as the integrity of the corpses and..."

Seeing that this guy was about to talk about professional matters, Ortolan quickly stopped him, saying, "Six months? That's just a short time. If you set off for the North Blue now, it will take you about two or three months to reach Flevance. Then you'll start preliminary preparations in Flevance. By the time you're done, it will be around 1504. I reckon Flevance can only hold out until 1504, right? At that time, we from G-5 will also send 10,000 pirate laborers there..."

At this point, Ortolan looked at Moria and said, "When the time comes, you'll be responsible for taking care of all those 10,000 pirate shadows and stuffing them into these zombies. Once the laborers and zombies are all moving, we'll be able to mine the Flevance Lead-Platinum Ore at maximum efficiency. Don't worry, my previous promise is absolutely true. Once Flevance is up and running, the profits will exceed our expectations. Not only will you not have to pay your 200 million, but we'll also give you a share of the profits every year."

Moria had no objection to this, nor did he ask how much of a share of the profits Ortolan would give him.

After all, it's a bit foolish to ask this question. You just accept whatever they offer, how could you possibly be dissatisfied?

Moria quickly asked again, "And then what? Will I be stationed permanently in Flevance, North Blue?"

Upon hearing this question, Ortolan didn't answer immediately, but instead asked, "Does your zombie ability require you to be nearby to oversee it?"

"No need. Doctor Hogback and I have already done some experiments. Once it takes shape, I won't need to pay any more attention to it," Moria said, shaking his head.

"Then you don't need to stay in Flevance in the North Blue. The North Blue is Donquixote Family's territory, and they will take care of you there." Seeing this, Ortolan had no intention of making things difficult for Moria and immediately waved his hand and said.

Moria breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this and said with a smile, "Then so be it."

"So what are your plans after this?" Ortolan asked again.

"I was originally planning to go to the First Half of Grand Line, recruit soldiers and build up my pirate crew, accumulate strength, and look for an opportunity to return to the New World to take revenge on Kaido..." Moria said with a slightly emotional tone.

Ortolan could only take in half of what he said; the rest he just assumed was bragging.

"Right now, I think we should find a place to settle down in the New World... that way we can all look after each other. What do you think?" Moria looked at Ortolan and asked for his opinion.

Ortolan saw no problem and immediately nodded, saying, "That's fine too. Even Doflamingo has already planned to establish a presence in Dressrosa, making it the Donquixote Family's base in the New World. If you also settle in the New World, we can indeed look out for each other, and it will be more convenient for everyone to handle any issues."

However, Ortolan was not entirely confident in Moria's abilities, so he advised, "You should choose a place closer to our G-5 to settle down. That way, if any crisis arises, I can come and help you."

This guy is crucial to the Lead-Platinum- lead project, directly affecting the amount of Lead-Platinum- lead mined. If he were to be killed inexplicably in the New World, Ortolan would suffer a huge loss.

"No problem, I also feel more at ease being closer to you," Moria said, expressing his strong agreement.

When facing Ortolan as an enemy, Moria felt his scalp tingle. But if he were Moria's teammate, he would find the guy to be a safe and reliable person!

Just then, the Den Den Den Mushi that Ortolan was playing with rang again. Ortolan looked down and said with some annoyance, "Is Mihawk never going to stop?"

Then, somewhat annoyed, he Den Den Mushi and said, "What is it now?"

On the other end of the Den Den Mushi, Mihawk calmly said, "I've gathered the two billion Belly."

While Ortolan's expression was still displeased, he immediately beamed upon hearing this, his tone becoming much more friendly as he said, "We in the Marines have an old saying: 'A wise man knows when to yield'... I knew you were a wise man the moment I saw you, Mihawk. Two billion Belly, and you sent me G-5. I immediately appointed you as one of the Shichibukai, and I guarantee no Marines will bother you anymore!"

In his office, Moria listened to these conversations, feeling a mix of emotions. Yet another pirate collaborator, unable to bear the torment from Ortolan, had chosen to compromise.