"We were wrong! We were truly wrong!"
Tesoro's face was pinned against the cold gold fragments underfoot, yet he dared not resist in the slightest. He could only plead humbly, "It was the World Government! CP0 told us to do it! We only provided the funds. They were the ones who actually carried it out!"
"I don't care who ordered it."
Lorne pressed down slightly harder, drawing a muffled groan of pain from Tesoro. "From today onward, Fearless Fortress will take over all your Black Market businesses and cash flows. If I catch you trying anything, next time, it won't be this building that gets smashed. It'll be your heads."
"Yes! Yes! We wouldn't dare hide anything!"
Luffield agreed hastily, pulling a thick stack of black cards and ledgers from inside his clothes and offering them to Lorne with trembling hands. "These give you control over all our Black Market funds, along with the money-laundering channels spread throughout the World Government Member States. Everything is here!"
Umit hurriedly handed over the golden compass that represented his power as the King of Shipping. "This gives you dispatch authority over every unmarked cargo ship in the New World. From now on, whatever supplies your Fearless Fortress needs, we'll deliver them immediately, free of charge!"
Lorne took the objects that represented supreme power in the Underworld and casually tossed them into the nearby ruins.
"Gild Tesoro."
Lorne looked down at the man beneath his foot and said coldly, "Take out your Encrypted Den Den Mushi. Tell the Five Elders I'm tired of their game."
Tesoro's body shuddered violently. He slowly raised his head and looked into Lorne's utterly cold golden eyes, understanding that he had no way out. If he refused, his head would be crushed like a watermelon the very next second.