Chapter 824: Chapter 504: After My Death, I Couldn’t Care Less

The Five Elders’ plans were a mystery to Sage, who only knew he was going to strike it rich!

Gulan Tesoro, Sage said to the Navy and Government officials who hadn’t managed to retreat in time and were now stuck:

"Pay up."

Before him, a crowd of surrendering Navy and Government officials, including high-ranking officers and Admiral Candidates, had gathered.

A group of pirates surrounded them, occasionally flashing sinister grins, with some deliberately licking their blades for intimidation.

How to put it...

Clad in metal-studded leather armor, licking their blades, and standing amidst a battleground that had just turned to ruins...

A familiar yet somewhat jarring sight.

"Boss Calamity, aren’t you being a bit harsh? We’re all sailing the same sea, we’ll be dealing with each other for a while."

Chaton, with a cigarette in his mouth, showed no sign of understanding the seriousness of being a captive.

Sage rolled his eyes, "What dealings between pirates and the Navy? Love and war?"

"It’s not impossible, you know. Garp chased Roger for a long time. Back when we were recruits, it was well-imprinted in our minds that any news related to Roger would spur Garp into action."

Chaton continued, "Like how Whitebeard was frequently pursued by Sengoku in those days."

The Navy and pirates are, in some sense, ’both love and war.’ Back then, those two pairs tangled fiercely at sea.

"Huh? You’re a Navy officer. Is it appropriate for you to say that?"

Renedia exclaimed, "Shouldn’t you be saying something like, even in death, we will not yield to the evil pirates..."

"I’m just making a living here. If we can’t catch them, what more can I do?"

Chaton shrugged, "If I had to deal with Boss Calamity’s strength every day, I’d consider quitting."

"You’re an Admiral Candidate, right? Is it okay to say things like that?"

Renedia paused, "Such defeatist talk isn’t allowed in the Navy, is it?"

"Hehehe..."

Chaton blew out some smoke and said no more.

"Oh my, you seem to have it all figured out," Marika smiled.

"Just trying to make a living." Chaton chuckled, looking at Sage, "Boss Calamity, even Saint Saturn retreated. Stop making it hard for us ’little guys’."

It’s not that Chaton has a clear understanding, but the sea is precisely like that. In his eyes, the Navy is nothing sacred, just a job fighting pirates.

If it’s a job, then there’s always the possibility of quitting or changing careers. Even Admirals can resign at will and just stop working whenever they choose.

As for carrying secrets or being tightly bound to the World Government... such notions simply don’t exist.

Even when the Fleet Marshal retires, if not for the World Government keeping him on as Grand Inspector, he’d probably just be a wandering old man with nothing better to do.

"No way." Sage’s answer was blunt, "That spider teleported away, I simply couldn’t stop it."

"But I saw Rob Lucci retreating from your place!"

"Oh, I allowed that, don’t ask, just call it a secret deal." Sage said nonchalantly, "Anyway, you need to pay the ransom. If you’re unhappy, feel free to leave on your own, I won’t stop you."

Though he said that, they really couldn’t leave.

The title of Admiral Candidate sounds intimidating, but their actual strength...

In this sea filled with wind pressure and whirlpools, attempting to leave with a ship was out of the question.

They had a chance earlier when they could have slipped into the Death Star during Sage’s fight with Saturn and broken through the defensive line at the only exit.

But with the Five Elders present, they didn’t dare try to escape.

Now, they had no chance of leaving, with Sage watching over everything.

"Don’t say pirates are unreasonable, damn it, I’ve never been reasonable."

Sage stated, "It’s the pirates’ god-given right to loot. I’ve taken a liking to this ship, and I’ve defeated Tesoro, so it should belong to me. You came onto my property and started causing destruction without permission, and restoring it isn’t exactly cheap for me."

"Now, because I’m in a good mood, I won’t fuss over it. Just compensate me with some money. Otherwise, neither the World Government nor the Navy would want to lose this batch of their combat forces, right?"

He bit on his cigar, blew out some smoke, and surveyed the Navy and Government officials, "I’ve already fought the Five Elders; facing a Navy Admiral is nothing. Even if Kizaru and Akainu themselves came today..."

He tossed away his cigar, stomped it out, and said menacingly, "They’d still have to pay!"

Besides the equivalent of 500 billion Belly in gold, these people were also the main contributors to the ransom.

Not to mention the casino high-rollers who gave up entirely and were obediently preparing their ransom to leave. Anyone making it to Gulan Tesoro surely had money on them.

Even those here on assignments—it’s only natural to carry plenty of money when visiting ’the biggest entertainment city’ for work.

Chaton defiantly glared at Sage, "We have ten more warships on their way!"

"And what do you want to do with that?" Sage snorted.

"Get a discount!"

Chaton gritted, "At least give me a 20% discount, I finally won a little money, let me take some back!"

"..."

"Hah!"

Sage sized up the guy in the dull yellow garb draped in a Navy coat, "You’re quite interesting, fine, let’s do it your way."

Whether the ten warships would come, or whether they’d have the guts to attack if they did, was a matter for later.

Sage was focused on collecting money now.

As for people possibly hiding their assets...

"Baccarat!"

Sage waved her over, "Check who among them are rich high officials and who have money on them, and bring them out. This is your first task!"

"Understood, Governor Sage."

Baccarat quickly adapted to her role.

She often entertained these big shots on this ship, always jotting notes on who was wealthy and who held significant positions, knowing all these details thoroughly.

When they saw Baccarat, those disguised individuals with some positions in the World Government all had their expressions darken. All the little schemes were snuffed out, and they obediently handed over their money.

"Boss Calamity, with all this money, what do you actually intend to do? You’re a pirate, right? And one of the Four Emperors, even if you retire, we won’t stop watching you. There’s nowhere to spend all that money, isn’t there?"

Chaton was the first to pay up, having his men bring over a suitcase, totaling sixty million Belly.

"Of course, there’s a use for money, how could it be unspendable; you of all people should know that the World Government’s influence is massive, with the whole world using Belly. It can buy a lot of resources. I want my territory to be as flourishing as Gulan Tesoro, and money is essential for that," Sage replied.

"Oh...I have heard things like that, but Boss Calamity, you do realize it’s really meaningless, right?"

Chaton lit another cigarette for himself, then offered one to Sage.

Sage glanced at him and didn’t refuse, taking the cigarette and putting it in his mouth. Chaton flicked his lighter to ignite it, casually familiar as if the two weren’t enemies.

If you disregard the issue of their stances, perhaps they really aren’t...

"When you fail, or when you’re gone one day, everything you’ve done will become a mere illusion, with all the things and money you’ve painstakingly seized ending up as nothing."

Chaton chuckled, "I’ve seen too many such nations, where the first King was formidable, making the nation prosperous. But in a few generations, they either get raided by pirates or squandered away by a new King."

"Why not live in the moment, enjoy it first, and have no regrets in life."

"You’re a bit of a nihilist, aren’t you..."

Sage eyed him, "Whether it’s meaningful, or what happens in the future, isn’t my concern, nor am I wanting anything eternal...what I’m doing now, is purely because I like it."

He likes prosperity, likes ruling over more prosperous places, likes those thriving people paying tributes to him, likes satisfying his desires to the fullest.

As for the future...

"When I’m dead, if the sea engulfs the whole world, it won’t bother me. Why should I care so much?"