Pirate: It’s not a phantom beast, it’s a phantom god!

Chapter 85 World War Plan (Part 1)

I have to say that Kaido was quite open-minded in the early days of his business.

Apart from sometimes being so drunk that he couldn't be found and almost completely ignoring the daily affairs of the group, he would still actively listen to other people's opinions on some important issues and major decisions.

Teacher Kai has not yet developed the habit of being stubborn and self-willed.

"The primary problem we are facing now is lack of manpower." Burfat was the first to express his opinion.

"The territory we've conquered this time is too vast. We won't be able to defend it with only the thousand or so people we have now."

"Right now, the defenses of the islands below are as weak as paper. Once they encounter an enemy, even if they are just newcomers with some strength, they will be easily broken, Boss Kaido."

Although the previous Beasts Pirates only had a few hundred people, they only occupied three small islands, so the guarding force was sufficient.

Now that the territory has increased nearly tenfold, the manpower below has not kept pace, and the mid- to high-end combat forces such as cadres have not been replenished...

It can be said that all beasts now are like pythons that have swallowed prey larger than themselves, and are in a dangerous period of pain caused by rapid expansion.

"Well, we are indeed short of manpower now."

Jin also nodded in agreement with Burfat's point of view.

"And compared to manpower, our weapons and ammunition reserves are even more stretched."

"I've checked. Due to lack of management, the weapons warehouse on Skul Island now has only one tenth of the ammunition left. Even if we add the ammunition we brought back from Beehive Island, it's still not enough for what we have now."

There weren't actually that many weapons Kaido and his men brought from Beehive Island. After all, most of them were distributed to his subordinates by John before the war.

"There are only a few warships left on the island. Even if we deploy all our patrol boats, we won't be able to cover even one-fifth of the territorial waters."

"Well, the biggest problem right now is a lack of men, ships, and weapons. In short, we're short of everything."

Burfat gives a summary.

"So I think we should actively recruit new members and purchase existing weapons and ships through various channels as quickly as possible."

"The good news is that we don't have to worry about money for now.

Although the treasure looted from Beehive Island is not much, it should be enough to purchase some weapons and ammunition to slightly arm the various islands.

Combined with the protection taxes collected from the various islands, we should have no problem getting through this period."

Jhin drank the remaining juice in one gulp, but did not put the mask back on.

He doesn't mind revealing his true appearance only when people like Kaido are present.

"Well, that's a good point."

Kaido's idea is the same as the other two, or it can be said that most ambitious pirate groups develop in this way - recruit people → seize territory → recruit more people → seize more territory...

This cycle repeats until the pirate group is defeated and annexed by other stronger pirate groups or the captain dies, and the pirate group disbands due to internal strife.

"La, do you have any ideas?"

Seeing that the other party didn't say a word in the discussion just now and just sat there, Kaido couldn't help but feel curious about what Ra was thinking.

He didn't think that the other party couldn't get a word in because he knew nothing.

When he heard the captain's order, La took out the plan he had prepared long ago.

Although I have memorized every word above, it still looks more formal when I hold it in my hand.

Pushing her own bite-sized cake in front of Ossi to clear the table, La began her speech:

"Burfat and Jin have clearly explained the current problems faced by the pirate group and how to solve them.

I only have a few additions and some thoughts on the future development of the pirate group, so please just listen to them."

Everyone couldn't help but complain when they saw the thick stack of papers on the handle.

This doesn't sound like 'a little bit'...

Then everyone sat up a little straighter, except for Osi and Obei, who had no interest in this meeting.

Ou Bei continued to savor La's special cake, taking small bites at a time, and he looked as if he wanted to eat a piece of cake until tomorrow.

Osi, on the other hand, ate the portion that La had just pushed over to her without any hesitation. She had already finished her own little cake and even licked the plate several times.

"This is a simple plan I've compiled after a brief review of data and information collection, an analysis of the various forces currently at sea, and a conservative forecast of the future situation. It combines the actual situation within my group and the resource distribution of the subordinate forces, along with some personal analysis."

"I'll call it 'The Hundred Beasts Development Plan Proposal (Informal Version)'"

La's voice was still as pleasant as ever, but the unhurried tone now sounded like an extremely effective lullaby, making people unable to help but feel sleepy.

"Uh... what's this planning version? It sounds like those inane official statements in the newspapers.

Are you sure this is for the pirate group?"

As a cultured fish-man whose literary literacy was enough to barely understand the standards of a newspaper, Burfat's question hit the nail on the head.

The other two were a little confused, and Kaido even yawned.

La nodded and explained briefly:

"In theory, whether it's pirates or the navy, official or unofficial, the steps and internal logic a force must go through to grow and develop are fundamentally the same."

“It’s nothing more than integrating and utilizing existing resources and then gradually absorbing other resources.”

La put down the manuscript in his hand and made an 'eating' gesture.

"The specific steps involved, including what to do, how to do it, and to what extent, are what we call 'development planning.'"

"Of course, if you're not used to such a straightforward name, you can call it 'The Great Beast War Plan' or 'World War Plan'."

Sure enough, as soon as these words were spoken, everyone instantly became excited.

Kaido and King even stood up directly with their aura released, no longer looking lazy as before.

This shows that a good title is very important. This is a victory for journalism! "Wow! Interesting! Tell me quickly, what kind of world war is this!"

Kaido can't wait any longer.

"Simply put, it's a four-step process: first, accumulating wealth and resources; second, acquiring weapons technology; third, monopolizing the weapons market; and fourth, gaining control of the world's war effort."

He raised his fingers one by one and briefly summarized his future plans.

"Wow~ Isn't this the routine of those barbarians? Sister La doesn't seem to care what the world becomes~"

When Osi heard La's words, he immediately thought of some world troublemakers, so he put down the plate that had been licked again and turned his head to whisper to Oubei beside him.

"Maybe Big Sister has her own considerations. After all, we have nothing to do with this world. Don't get too involved."

Ou Bei has always trusted La.

Osi was silent after hearing this.

"..."

"I know. I don't know if Sister La has found a way to go back."

"Eldest sister always walks ahead of us. Maybe she has already seen the opportunity to go back. Let's believe her."

As Oubey spoke, he moved the plate of cake to the side, keeping it away from Ossie's somewhat dirty little hands.

"Tsk~"

……

"Mastering the power of war... Interesting! Keep going."

Kaido felt that his mind was suddenly opened up, as if he had suddenly arrived at a vast wasteland from a country road.

"Ah."

La didn't keep the audience in suspense and continued to talk.

“The first step is to accumulate wealth and resources.”

"This is literally what it means. To realize the subsequent plans, we first need a lot of money and various resources, which requires a multi-faceted approach."

Having said that, La put down the manuscript in his hand and asked Kaido and the others a slightly strange question.

"What do you think is the fastest way to get money?"

"Of course I just grabbed it!"

Burfat answered without hesitation, as if he felt that the question was a bit too unprofessional.

"It's the protection fees collected from various territories. This was also the largest source of income for our group before."

King denied Burfat's answer. As the person who actually managed many affairs within the pirate group, he was very clear about the actual situation within the group.

"Eh?! Yes, is that so?" This counterintuitive answer surprised Burfat.

"Ah."

Jin nodded, and then added:

“But this is based on the overall situation.

In fact, the amount of wealth we obtain from each raid is always greater than the protection fee paid by the island that month, but if we calculate the total, the former is less than half of the latter. "

"Furthermore, every time we go out to plunder, we have to take into account casualties and the consumption of weapons. The final harvest is far less stable than protection fees."

"You mean we won't go out to sea anymore and just sit there and collect protection money?"

"Isn't this just like those noble lords!" Burfat was obviously dissatisfied with this approach.

"That's about the same. That's why I said the underlying logic of power development is pretty much the same."

La nodded, but seeing that the other party was about to say something, he waved his hand and continued:

"But compared to this somewhat passive approach, we can actually participate more actively in the development of the subordinate islands."

"Jin mentioned before that the biggest source of income for the pirate group comes from protection fees for their territory, which is essentially a tax."

“And where do these taxes come from?”

La guided him step by step.

"Of course, we collected it from the townspeople."

"Then where does the money come from? After all, there's no machine in this town to print Baileys. We ask for quite a bit every month, so how can they always afford to pay?"

"They seem to often sell food, fruits, and other things to people outside...Okay, okay, enough of the suspense! Let's get on with the story."

The unthinking little boy Burfat interrupted the class's question-and-answer game.

Seeing this, La did not hesitate any longer and said directly:
"Actually, as you just said, the townspeople's source of Bailey is indeed trade with the outside world."

"The islanders achieved a trade surplus and brought in wealth by selling various specialty resources.

What we need to do is to expand this surplus and continue to widen the channel through which Bailey flows in.”

Hearing this, Kaido and King nodded. It was obvious that they had some economic common sense.

“So the first thing is to change the previous development ideas.

We can no longer treat the islands under our command simply as a place to dock ships and collect Baileys, but we must actively participate in their management and operation.

We must make these islands our true base.”

"In a nutshell, it's about achieving the transformation from a pirate group to a pirate nation."

(End of this chapter)