It Looks Like Dragon Really Was Terrified of Being Poor!
After finishing his conversation with Doflamingo about the Coast Guard, Vergo came in to report that all the invited people had arrived.
Ortolan immediately instructed Vergo to invite everyone over to prepare for a large meeting to discuss matters with them.
After receiving the order, Vergo quickly dismounted.
After Vergo left, Doflamingo asked with a smile, "Before, you needed Vergo as a medium to communicate with me, and also as a shackle. Now that we're so familiar with each other, do you still want to keep Vergo by your side?"
"What? Are you short-handed over there?" Ortolan asked with a smile.
"You suddenly want me to form some kind of Sea Police Force, but as you know, I'm a self-taught individual. I used to be a gangster in the North Blue, and now I'm a pirate in the New World. I've never really run a regular army before, and there will definitely be many problems if I take it on. On the other hand, Vergo is someone who followed you and watched you build up the G-5 Marines step by step. His experience in this area is definitely more extensive than mine. I was thinking that if you don't have any specific needs, just let Vergo come to me, and I'll have him take charge of this Sea Police Force." Doflamingo said frankly.
His relationship with Ortolan was no longer a simple collaboration; it was more like a deep entanglement, with their interests so intertwined that they were practically one.
Everyone on the high seas knows that Doflamingo's biggest backer is Ortolan. If Ortolan falls today, Doflamingo will be in trouble tomorrow.
Therefore, there is no need for Vergo to act as a medium.
Hearing this, Ortolan thought it made sense, so he nodded and said, "Well then, since the military and police are cooperating, it's perfectly reasonable for me to have Vergo, as Marine Admiral, serve as an instructor to guide the establishment of your Sea Police Force... As for letting him leave the Marines, I don't think it's necessary. I've returned him to you; the title is just a title. He worked hard to get to the position of Rear Admiral, so it's always good to have a nominal title. In the future, when you become Vice Admiral, you can have him assist you."
Doflamingo had no objection to this; it was indeed a good arrangement.
As the two were talking, there was another knock on the door. There was no need for Ortolan to respond; Katakuri simply pushed the door open and walked in.
"Have you finished discussing your private matters?" Katakuri asked as he entered.
"Almost there... Second Brother, please have a seat." Ortolan greeted him warmly.
Katakuri didn't stand on ceremony and sat down opposite Ortolan. Soon after, Dragon, Spandine, Fisher Tiger, Moria, and others also arrived.
Then Yixiao and the Momonga followed them in.
Basically, everyone who was supposed to come has arrived.
Although it was called a meeting, the place was actually quite simple, and there was no proper meeting room, so everyone sat down on the sofas around the coffee table.
When Ortolan had his little meeting with Doflamingo earlier, everyone else had already met each other and knew each other well, so there was no need for Ortolan to introduce them separately.
After everyone was seated, Ortolan spoke first, "Thank you all for giving me the honor of sitting down and having a meeting together."
Upon hearing this, the others exchanged a few polite words, but they themselves were also somewhat impressed. It was only because Ortolan had such unconventional methods that he could actually bring together such a group of big shots from different factions. No one else would have had this ability.
After exchanging a few polite words, Ortolan said, "Let me start with the first thing, which concerns everyone in our constellation... I have a great idea, and I hope to cooperate with you all."
While it's said to be everyone, Moria, Doflamingo, Spandine, and the other Marines can all be considered Ortolan. Therefore, the only ones who truly need to cooperate are Katakuri, Fisher Tiger, and Dragon.
The three of them were fully aware of the situation. After exchanging glances, Dragon spoke first, asking Yu, "What big deal?"
"I'm planning to open an Entertainment City. If any of you are interested, we can invest together," Ortolan said with a grin.
Dragon was a little confused by what he heard. That's it?!
Why would you need to call all of us here for something as trivial as opening a small Entertainment City? Someone with a poor conscience might think you're planning to rebel against the government, raise a banner, and form a group to overthrow the World Government.
Because it was somewhat outrageous, Dragon felt that there must be more to it than met the eye, so he asked again, "What kind of Entertainment City?"
"Well, it all started when I spoke twice with Rude Field, the loan shark king of the Underworld. He was planning to open a comprehensive Entertainment City in the New World, integrating shopping, tourism, entertainment, gambling, and various sports events. He asked me if I was interested. Later, we internally thought about it carefully and felt that this idea was very promising. If we were to do it, it should be a truly world-class and unique super-large Entertainment City..." Ortolan said in a deep voice.
Then, before anyone else could speak, Ortolan continued, "It is common knowledge that the world's wealth is concentrated in the hands of a few. A top-tier noble or wealthy person might spend enough on a single banquet to equal the total lifetime Belly of an entire village, or even a town, and still not enough..."
Hearing this, the others couldn't help but nod. Indeed, the unfair distribution of resources was one of the main contradictions on the high seas. This contradiction was currently unsolvable, and neither was Ortolan. Intelligent races were social beings, and this sociality itself represented a certain class division. It was reasonable for them to 'force' to enjoy more resources.
From a certain perspective, it's not wrong for Aramaki to believe that people can live peacefully by discriminating against others and survive by oppressing them.
"And these top-tier Entertainment City serve the wealthy class. Making money from them is relatively easy if the service is up to par. Up to now, similar Entertainment City projects, as long as they are managed well, can all make a fortune... But I think it's not enough. No matter how luxurious Entertainment City is, it still falls short of truly becoming 'top-tier,' and that step is crucial: security!" Ortolan raised an eyebrow.
"Safety?" Katakuri glanced at Dragon, then looked at the others present, seemingly understanding. He said softly, "Is this why you want us to cooperate? To bring together the major powers at sea, jointly invest in and operate an Entertainment City with multiple background protections, thus maximizing the use of the safety factor?"
" With the Marines, the Shichibukai, the World Government, top-tier Great Pirate, and the Revolutionary Army all combined, I think no one would doubt the safety of this Entertainment City... And this is only the first phase. What I mean is, to build this Entertainment City into a truly 'neutral platform'!" Ortolan said.
After that, it was Ortolan's introduction of the concept of this Entertainment City, which was basically the same concept that Tesoro had created in the original novel Golden City.
After Ortolan finished speaking, Dragon keenly grasped a key question and asked, "Who can take the lead in this matter? The World Government?"
As a rebel leader in the Revolutionary Army, he certainly couldn't take the lead. As Marine Admiral, Ortolan couldn't possibly lower himself to do this kind of thing. It wouldn't sound good, and it would also violate the Marines's rules. Although Fisher Tiger was sitting at the table, in reality, his status was much lower than the people at the table, and given the background of Fish-Man Island, it was impossible for him to arrange such a thing.
As for the Shichibukai... Doflamingo is somewhat qualified. If Katakuri weren't sitting at the table in the sky, Dragon would immediately think that Doflamingo must have been the one arranged by Ortolan to take the lead.
If Katakuri were here, things would be different.
Big Mom Pirates... or rather, Totto Land Totto Land, are qualified to be the ones to lead this effort!
However, Dragon couldn't just say that right away, so he mentioned the World Government, which was most at odds with the Revolutionary Army, as a way of getting the ball rolling.
Ortolan immediately picked up on the conversation that Dragon had given him, thinking to himself that this guy was being so accommodating and enthusiastic this time, it seemed he was really afraid of being poor!
"No, no, no, before I left Mary Geoise for the New World, I met with the Five Elders. They specifically instructed me to cultivate a good relationship with the Big Mom Pirates and hoped that the World Government could cooperate and communicate with Totto Land Totto Land Island. Therefore, I think this is the best opportunity. In the past, it would have been difficult to gain support from the World Government for this idea, and the concessions would have been substantial. But now, with the Big Mom Pirates taking the lead, the World Government should be willing to make some concessions on the matter for political reasons... Therefore, my plan is to have Whole Totto Land Totto Land unify this project!" Ortolan said without hesitation.
Katakuri crossed his arms and looked as if he was deep in thought. After a moment, perhaps he felt that the Totto Land could afford this project, and judging from Ortolan's words, they were quite confident and had already made certain plans and arrangements. Moreover, if they could really take the lead in developing this so-called 'neutral zone,' it would definitely be a great honor and a source of pride for the Charlotte Family, which would effectively increase their prestige on the seas.
Therefore, Katakuri nodded. "That's something we can consider..."