Marine Era 1461, February.
New World.
More than a month had passed since they left Elbaf. During that time, they had stopped once at an unknown little island, but spent most of the rest of it at sea.
The reason.
"We're out of money!"
Sitting on the fishing platform of the Black Pearl, Mongge looked utterly grim.
Back in Elbaf, they had eaten the giants' food and lived off the giants. If they were still hungry, they could hunt in the forest. Elbaf's jungles never lacked prey—as long as you had the ability to hunt it.
But once they put out to sea, the problem began.
Mongge and Lipri were both Devil Fruit Users, so they couldn't dive into the water to catch fish. Fishing alone might not leave them going hungry nine meals out of ten, but they certainly couldn't count on fish to fill their stomachs.
Mongge had still had a few million Beli, but he had handed all of it to Garumoro as the down payment for getting Linlin aboard.
As for the bounty on Blood Skull Farrell, whom they had taken down six months ago, Mongge had asked two Giant Tribe Pirate Hunters to collect it. But before they returned, he had already put out to sea again.
"Our pirate crew is actually short on money?"
Lipri's eyes widened at Mongge's words. She couldn't believe it.
As far as she was concerned, the White Wolf Pirates might not have enough money to buy several countries, but they shouldn't have been reduced to being broke.
Blood Skull Farrell had thought the same.
"Before the fleet disbanded, we did have some savings. But after we divided it up, my share was only enough for one old man to live out his days in comfort."
Mongge wore a helpless expression.
"So now we have to figure out how to make money."
"That's easy!"
At Mongge's words, Rocks's eyes lit up, and an evil grin spread across his face.
"We can just find a couple of merchant ships to rob—ow!"
Rocks clutched his head and glared at Mongge. "Why'd you hit me?"
"Because that's shameful!"
Mongge looked at Rocks and sneered. "Our fleet doesn't have a habit of bullying the weak."
"Then what do we do?" Rocks spread his hands. "If we don't rob merchant ships, do we rob pirates instead?"
"That's an option."
Mongge didn't deny it. Pirates preying on other pirates was only natural, even if the other crew didn't have anything valuable aboard.
What about the captain's head?
Any pirate crew active in the New World had a captain whose bounty exceeded ten million Beli, however low it might be.
"But that's only a stopgap."
Mongge set down his fishing rod, spread his arms, and embraced the sea.
"If pirates want to make it big, they have to seize territory!"
In the New World, a pirate's reputation depended on how many pirates they could intimidate and how many countries they could protect.
Only when a crew had a territory of its own could it truly establish itself in the New World.
"The old White Wolf Pirates only needed to manage one fleet, so there was no need to expand. But things are different now."
Mongge's eyes blazed with ambition.
"I won't be content with ruling a corner of the sea. As long as time doesn't stop me, neither will this ocean!"
"I'm going to rule these seas!"
Mongge made no attempt to hide his ambition from Rocks and Lipri.
In the past, he had dreamed of changing the world, but he had failed. His lack of strength had forced him to stand still.
Things were different now.
With Admiral-level strength, Mongge had finally gained the power to face the Navy's attempts to wipe him out head-on. He now had the leverage to negotiate with the World Government.
Of course.
He still wasn't strong enough to stand as an equal with the World Government and the Navy. But it meant he had taken a solid first step along his own path.
Laugh Tale?
Who cared about that?
In this era, when Pirate King Roger hadn't even set sail yet, the so-called final island was more a symbolic landmark than anything of practical importance.
At first, Mongge had thought he wanted to follow the same path as Pirate King Roger.
But now that he thought about it—
What he wanted to do wasn't all that different from what Rocks would do in the future!
"Sorry, Rocks."
He'd once thought Rocks was a loser who had failed to compete with Roger for the title of Pirate King. He had been wrong. The two had never been running the same race, so how could one call either of them a winner or a loser?
If Rocks lost in the future, it would be to the World Government and his own arrogance—not to Roger.
And now Mongge wanted to walk a path much like Rocks's.
"Maybe one day, we'll become enemies!"
Mongge had no intention of lying to Rocks. If he couldn't make room for his subordinates' ambitions, he wasn't fit to become a ruler of the seas.
At Mongge's words, Rocks laughed.
"Hahaha! You old geezer, if that day really comes, I'll make sure to leave you alive so you can enjoy your retirement."
Rocks just kept laughing, until tears nearly came to his eyes.
Who personally trained their own enemy?
But Rocks could tell Mongge wasn't joking.
If he still wanted to become a ruler of the seas, then sooner or later he and Mongge would clash, and the two of them would become enemies.
He could also tell that Mongge had no intention of suppressing him.
Mongge was looking forward to it.
Looking forward to Rocks growing stronger, looking forward to him challenging his captain.
"When that day comes, I won't go easy on you!"
"Haha! If you lose, you'll be my apprentice for the rest of your life!"
Mongge and Rocks picked up their wine glasses and clinked them lightly.
Then they heard a resentful voice.
"Hey, did you two forget about me?"
Lipri glared at the father and son, who had completely forgotten about fishing. "If we're talking about ambition, mine is every bit as great as yours!"
"Oh?"
Mongge's interest was piqued, and even Rocks couldn't help pricking up his ears.
"Hehe, my ambition is—"
Toot—
A sudden blast from a steam whistle drowned out Lipri's words. She pouted, and both Mongge and Rocks frowned.
The ship before them was enormous, with most of its hull clad in iron armor. Even Mongge rarely saw ships like this on the open sea, let alone Rocks and Lipri.
In a pirate world where sailing ships were still the norm, steamships could be found only in a handful of technologically advanced countries.
Even the Navy's warships weren't all equipped with the steam boilers unique to steamships.
But the three of them could all see the flag flying above the ship.
Its emblem was shaped like a cross, with circles at the four ends and in the center. Beneath the cross was a line of writing.
[WORLD GOVT.]
It was the flag bearing the emblem of the World Government!
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