Additionally, according to Stussy, given the enormous disparities in individual combat power in this world, along with the harsh reality that the Celestial Dragons had grown more and more useless with each generation, special regulations had been established to prevent desperate servants from murdering their masters. These regulations clearly defined the rights and duties of both masters and servants. Celestial Dragon masters could not excessively abuse or humiliate the powerful CP0 agents under their names. Those unwilling to accept this could appeal to the Joint Council for arbitration.
As a result, the lives of official CP0 members in this world were far better than those of bannermen under the Qing Dynasty. Other than being unable to travel freely and often having to conceal their identities, they had authority when they wanted authority and income when they wanted income. Even the Marines could not compare.
It should be known that Marine officers, especially those at Marine Headquarters, already received astonishing benefits.
As Mousse understood it, an ordinary Marine Headquarters Rear Admiral could earn at least thirty to forty million Berries a year, including special allowances similar to a "loyalty bonus," which normally could only be collected after retirement.
Yet even so, they paled beside the servants of CP0. Taking Stussy herself as an example, her official annual income alone exceeded fifty million Berries.
On top of that, her Celestial Dragon master occasionally rewarded her. In the year that was about to end, that income alone had been no less than her annual salary.
Then there were the enormous subsidies granted to personnel stationed abroad, especially since the Pleasure District was such a lucrative place.
Including side income, Stussy's total annual earnings exceeded one hundred million Berries—more than the annual salary of a Marine Admiral, or even a Fleet Admiral, without counting allowances, bonuses, and other additional income!
So CP0 really was tightly bound to the Celestial Dragons, just like eunuchs in ancient China. The Marines still had the slightest possibility of betrayal, but CP0 had none at all. As Mousse thought this, a question suddenly occurred to him.
But speaking of the Marines, I remembered that Marine Admirals were obligated to answer Celestial Dragon summons at any time, right? Yet Sengoku was the only Marine Admiral publicly known to exist now. Did that mean he had to remain permanently stationed at Marineford and could not leave? Could it be that this was simply impossible, so they had given up and refused to fulfill that legal duty? Uh, could Fisher Tiger's escape after setting fires and rescuing people at Mary Geoise be connected to this as well? Even if CP0 had been slacking off, he still could not have escaped if a Marine Admiral had fulfilled his duty!
Stussy's reply confirmed Mousse's guess, while also casually revealing a secret he had never expected.
"I knew Garp refused promotion to Marine Admiral, but even Red—no, Akainu refused it as well?" Mousse was genuinely shocked this time. His mouth hung open for quite a while before he managed to close it.
Stussy immediately realized she had said too much. But then she considered that even if she said nothing, he could ask the Homies made from her soul. So she simply gave up and continued telling the truth.
"Yes. The Marines said, 'Sakazuki, Dragon, and Borsalino are not far apart in either seniority or strength. How could only one of them be promoted to Marine Admiral? If there is to be a promotion, all three should be promoted together!' But the Five Elders refused to agree, so the two sides have remained deadlocked until now. Such a vast Marine force has been left with only Sengoku, a lone Marine Admiral, for quite some time now."
"Why would the Celestial Dragons refuse? They would rather lose the Marines' direct protection than promote two more Marine Admirals? Even if Marine Admirals were paid very well, that was hardly a significant expense to the World Government, was it? Did they really need to be that stingy?" Mousse was even more puzzled after hearing this. He knew that this deadlock would continue for a very long time.
Even when Arlong was captured by Kizaru, the latter was still only a Navy Vice Admiral!
Stussy was somewhat surprised by his question, but one look at Mousse's childish and adorable appearance made her realize the mistake was hers.
He had only just turned six. He was simply too young; no matter how clever he was, he could not possibly know everything at his age.
His book knowledge was already extensive, yet it was not strange at all that he did not understand certain bits of common sense that ordinary people knew.
But since it was merely common sense, there was no need to hide it. He would learn it sooner or later anyway.
Thus, Mousse finally came to understand certain aspects of the Marine system that had never been mentioned in the manga. In this world, a Marine Admiral represented more than just a rank; each of them was also a Governor-General of the Naval Base who wielded enormous power.
Unless they were too old and had retired to a secondary role in name only, every Marine Admiral would be assigned at least two Marine Headquarters Vice Admirals, eight Marine Headquarters Rear Admirals, numerous vessels including twenty main warships, and at least two first-class Marine bases under their full command.
If Marine Headquarters could not provide enough personnel, Marine Admirals could even recruit people independently from outside. They possessed tremendous autonomy, and once that authority was granted, it could not be revoked unless a Marine Admiral retired or committed a major crime and was stripped of office.
"Why would ten generals need twenty warships, when Marine Admirals do not even have dedicated flagships? Because warships cannot cross the Red Line through Holy Land Mary Geoise! If one warship was not stationed on each side, then when an emergency summons came, would they have time to spend months sailing around the world? You mean coating ships and diving through Fish-Man Island? What if something went wrong beneath the sea? Any situation requiring troops to be deployed to the other side of the Red Line is a major event that cannot tolerate the slightest mishap! If it can be solved with money, it is actually worth the expense. Let me put it this way: last year, the World Government's entire military budget for the Marines was only a little over sixty billion Berries. Every additional Marine Admiral would increase that budget by at least fifteen billion! That is why there are usually only two Marine Admirals. Three are appointed only when facing a grave crisis that concerns their very survival."
The various pieces of common sense Stussy casually revealed rapidly filled out Mousse's understanding of this world. Even the terrifying figures that had initially startled him now began to seem perfectly reasonable.
This was no ordinary officer. They held command authority, personnel authority, and financial authority, and they could not be casually transferred or removed from office. Even the Jiedushi of the Tang Dynasty could not compare. How much territory and how many troops did an ordinary Jiedushi command? Yet a new naval base alone possessed at least one-quarter of the Marines' current strength! Only an exception like An Lushan, who commanded three military districts by himself, could compare. Or perhaps a provincial governor at the end of the Han Dynasty—but only one of a major province, like Yuan Shao. In practice, this was already a regional lord with the ability to rebel!
Mousse now completely understood the World Government's—or, more precisely, the Celestial Dragons'—way of thinking. It was much like the attitude of ancient Chinese emperors toward military governors.
No, it was more than that. The fact that the three Marines were willing to advance and retreat together showed that they were close and formed a clique—or, more terrifyingly, that the Marines as an organization had developed a collective consciousness of their own. The Celestial Dragons' rule was especially unpopular, and even they themselves knew it. At the very least, the Five Elders and Im certainly understood. Meanwhile, the Marines had always championed and preached justice. There would inevitably be some simple-minded people who genuinely believed in it and grew dissatisfied with the Celestial Dragons and the World Government. Naturally, that made the latter even more wary of the Marines.
Mousse gradually sorted out the relationship between the Marines, the World Government, and the Celestial Dragons, yet his expression slowly became more relaxed instead.
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