Celestial Gold (Part 1)

At the end of the day, Charlotte Linlin's killing of prisoners had truly and irreconcilably offended only the Marines, strictly speaking.

The World Government, especially the Celestial Dragons, were certainly deeply dissatisfied with the prisoner-killing incident as well. But because they were wary of the Marines, they might actually have been pleased to see the latter suffer a narrow victory against the still-formidable BIG Pirates. It killed two birds with one stone!

When Mousse voiced this thought, Stussy initially found it utterly absurd, but after thinking it over carefully, she felt as though she had been enlightened.

Though Stussy had not yet entered the core ranks, she knew that CP0's greatest value to their masters, the Celestial Dragons, was actually monitoring and intimidating the Marines to prevent their betrayal.

Therefore, so long as it did not weaken them to the point of affecting their rule, the Marines expending some of their strength while fighting Great Pirates was indeed a good thing for CP0.

Especially now, when the Marines were overflowing with talent. Even if Garp and Sengoku were not the strongest Marines in eight hundred years, they were at least the strongest of the past century. And among the younger generation, there were at least six or seven monsters with the potential to grow powerful enough to serve as Marine Admirals!

Furthermore, the current Fleet Admiral, Steel Bone Kong, was actually only a few years older than Sengoku. Even if he stepped back to become General Commander, his combat power and influence would not decline by much.

It was foreseeable that, in another ten or twenty years, the Marines' strength would reach unprecedented heights—and they would be far more than merely a little stronger than before. If some of that strength was not worn down, CP0 might truly be unable to keep them in check by then.

After all, even an open military force like the Marines usually had only three top-tier powerhouses, including the Fleet Admiral. As a secret organization, CP0 could not possibly have more; they likely had only two, perhaps even fewer.

Compared to the Marines' inevitably glorious future peak, that number was simply far too small.

"So Auntie, informing us wasn't betraying the organization at all! You were clearly sacrificing yourself for the greater good!" Mousse spread his hands, wearing a little-devil smile as he tempted Stussy.

Though she was a veteran agent who had stood the test of time, Mousse's words directly erased the reason for her persistence. Stussy was not some inflexible fool, so she naturally made the right choice.

"Compared with Garp's Iron Fist, I'm more worried about Sengoku and Vice Admiral Tsuru's schemes. We were already weaker than the Marines. If we fall into a trap and they catch us at a weak moment, then we won't be able to fight at all. So, Auntie, your information is very important to us. As long as you accurately warn us in advance about Marine attacks, Mama will return your lifespan to you—ten years per warning. And if the intelligence is more detailed, you can receive even more."

Mousse spoke very frankly, and the terms he offered were not bad. Yet Stussy did not immediately agree, because there was another possibility to consider.

"What if the Marines never come to attack Totto Land? I only have that little lifespan left. I can't wait long!" Mousse was not surprised by Stussy's question.

He had considered that possibility long ago. He had simply wanted to use it to test Stussy's true intentions, which was why he had not rushed to bring it up.

Now that Stussy's answer had satisfied him, Mousse no longer hid anything.

"If the Marines don't attack Totto Land, then our goal will have been achieved. Even if you did nothing, it would still count as your contribution, Auntie. How about this? If the Marines do not attack Totto Land within one year, Mama will return ten years of lifespan to you. If they do not attack within two years, she will return twenty years. If they still have not attacked within five years, then she will return it all to you. And that is separate from everything else. Any contributions you make during that time will be counted separately."

After hearing Mousse's explanation, Stussy was happy for only a few seconds before a cloud once again settled over her face. The terms Mousse offered were too generous—so generous that she could hardly believe them. "Only five years?"

Mousse did not hide the truth from her and immediately explained.

"Because if they still haven't attacked within five years, then there's an eighty percent chance that no fight will happen at all. The World Government and the Marines only want to destroy my family because they can't let go of their pride. It isn't worthwhile in terms of benefits. If they drag it out for five years without resolving it, the impact of that incident will have already fully dissipated. Even if they destroy my family afterward, it won't mean much. As for Mama, she has mostly calmed down already. And unless they have no other choice, no pirates are willing to fight the Marines to the death."

Stussy thought about it and realized that was true. At last, a faint hint of joy appeared on her face. If so, as long as she was lucky enough, she would lose only a mere five years of lifespan.

For a profession like an agent, where they already lived with their heads on the line, that was completely bearable psychologically.

With the most important issue clarified, Stussy could leave Totto Land.

As she had said, this was an extremely sensitive time. The longer she stayed, the more her superiors would suspect her.

Naturally, Mousse understood that as well, so he did not insist on keeping her. However, while seeing Stussy off, he took the opportunity to ask about some intelligence that seemed unimportant but was difficult for outsiders to uncover.

You never knew until you asked; once he did, he was shocked.

Completely unlike the overcrowded imperial clans of late ancient Chinese dynasties, the Celestial Dragons' nineteen families had produced only a little over three hundred people after eight hundred years of reproduction.

No wonder the Celestial Dragons could wreak havoc everywhere in the original story without ruining their own empire!

A mere three hundred or so people was far too few. After learning this, Mousse even entertained an absurd thought: Could it be that Celestial Dragons were truly a different race from ordinary humans, with exceptionally low fertility rates?

Fortunately, Stussy could clear up his confusion. Unless a family line was about to die out, both parents had to be Celestial Dragons for their children to receive Celestial Dragon status. Naturally, this greatly reduced the "effective birth rate."

Especially since Celestial Dragons, men and women alike, kept large numbers of slaves and could freely seize any commoners they took a liking to. It was difficult for them to retain much enthusiasm for spending time with their legal partners, making the number of legitimate children pitifully small.

In fact, Celestial Dragon families occasionally even had to give those "bastards" a chance to become legitimate in order to avoid dying out. The severity of this problem surpassed even that of the royal and noble families of medieval Europe on Earth.

Yet objectively, this extended the Celestial Dragons' rule. On one hand, the infusion of fresh blood slowed the gradual decay of the Celestial Dragon population. On the other, it gave those "Half-Dragon Humans" with Celestial Dragon blood a sliver of hope, enticing them to work even harder for their masters.

It was rather ironic. Though they were merely backups with almost no chance of becoming legitimate, much like the so-called "white slaves" before the American Civil War in Mousse's memories, they resented the injustice while generally taking pride in their partial Celestial Dragon blood and looking down on "mortals" without the "blood of gods."