For many people, tonight was destined to be a sleepless night.
Most were excited. For Neptune and Otohime of the Ryugu Kingdom, however, the feeling was worry.
Ye Mu's appearance here had caught them both completely off guard. What they learned next from the Shark General shocked them even more.
Otohime's first instinct was to stop it. She wanted to achieve equality without resorting to force, but Neptune held her back. He could not forget the way people in Holy Land Mary Geoise had looked at them today, as if they were monsters.
The night passed, and when the sun rose again, the Reverie finally began...
Pangaea Castle.
In the vast circular conference hall, the kings of the Fifty Kingdoms gathered beneath the tolling of solemn, majestic bells.
Ordinarily, the kings of the Fifty Kingdoms took turns chairing each Reverie. Today, however, there was one more person present.
Sengoku appeared in the imposing uniform of a Fleet Admiral, standing tall and straight.
The kings were curious about the newly appointed Fleet Admiral. They also knew he was the reason this Reverie had been moved forward.
Aside from a few who grumbled, most welcomed Sengoku's presence.
"Now... I believe you all know who I am, so I'll skip the pleasantries. Time is short. Let's get straight to the issues before this Reverie... The first is the World Military Draft Plan..."
The conference hall erupted into discussion.
When it came to the World Great Recruitment, the most pressing issue was money.
Every Marine deployment required enormous funding. The Marines' very existence depended on financial support from the World Government and its member states.
The World Military Draft Plan depended on those states' support even more.
On the surface, Sengoku's plan seemed simple.
To tackle piracy at its source, the Marines would