One Piece: Starting as a Marine Lieutenant, I Slack Off and Get Stronger

This is truly a city adorned with golden armor; this ship alone must be worth hundreds of billions!

"No wonder Tesoro is bribing the Celestial Dragons and currying favor with the Marine officers. If it weren't for the World Government, he would probably have been robbed clean long ago."

"He's a smart person!"

Nelson scratched his head and chuckled, "Hey, sir, I've heard this place is really nice. Can we go check it out?"

Carl turned to look at Nelson, who immediately shut his mouth and pretended nothing had happened.

Carl chuckled and patted Nelson on the shoulder: "Take them out and have some fun. They deserve a good rest. But they're all in your care now. If anything goes wrong, I'll hold you responsible!"

Nelson quickly saluted to show his determination: "Please rest assured, sir!"

To be honest, Karl was confident in Nelson's abilities as his longest-serving adjutant, but his strength hadn't improved at all.

This is actually quite normal. There are too many Navy personnel like Nelson. No matter how hard they try, talent is an insurmountable hurdle.

In addition, Nelson has no ambition. He didn't even want the Devil Fruit that Karl offered him. Then he said he didn't want to become a landlubber. What could Karl do?

After half an hour.

"Sir, we've arrived. Hey! Are those ships over there pirate ships?"

"Ignore them. This is a special zone; the navy can't deal with pirates here. Go and inform that world noble that we've arrived and he can come down."

"Yes!"

The Golden Tower.

"Boss, a naval ship is about to enter the port. Based on the ship's characteristics, it should belong to Vice Admiral White Raven, who has just become a naval hero. Karl, should I go to greet him personally?"

Tesoro, who had been dozing in his golden chair, suddenly opened his eyes: "Naval hero? Hahahaha, you just became a naval hero and instead of upholding justice, you're here to enjoy yourself so soon?"

Tesoro gripped the armrest, stood up, and looked at the monitor screen beside him. His pupils contracted when he saw the Celestial Dragons appear on the Holy Light.

"There are even world nobles here!"

Bakara, standing nearby, covered her mouth in astonishment: "Ameizing! Was that naval hero escorting world nobles here?"

"Then, BOSS..."

Tesoro waved his hand: "You don't need to worry about them. I will personally receive them. By the way, tell those pirate scum to behave themselves. If they dare to cause trouble, you know what to do."

Bakara nodded and turned to leave.

Tesoro stared at Ordesia on the monitor screen, a flash of hatred in his eyes, but it quickly disappeared. After quickly tidying himself up, he instructed his men to lead the Holy Light to the VIP passage, while he himself stepped into the elevator to receive the world's nobles.

Exclusive port for VIPs.

Carl leaned on the railing, looking around, thinking to himself, "Tezzolo is a real business genius! He's really taken his sense of superiority to a whole new level."

When they arrived, they were greeted by dedicated staff, given a private VIP passage and a private VIP port; even the facilities around the port were significantly more luxurious.

Most importantly, standing here you can see the pirate ships docked in ordinary ports below, instantly giving you a sense of superiority.

"Lieutenant General Karl, this is my first time here. Would you be so kind as to accompany me on a tour of the Golden City?"

Karl's expression instantly turned serious as he looked at Ordesia: "I'm sorry, I have no obligation to accompany you on your tour. As for safety, you don't need to worry. It's very safe here, and I believe the master of the Golden City would never allow you to be threatened in the slightest."

"The words of the naval hero are true, and we ask that Your Excellency, the Palace of Ordesia, trust us, we guarantee that you will have a pleasant holiday."

Tesoro, dressed in gold, walked forward and waved his hand. At that moment, the servants behind him surrounded Ordesia and provided her with impeccable service.

Tesoro grinned and turned to Karl: "The arrival of a naval hero is truly an honor to my humble abode. I am also deeply grateful. How about I give you a tour?"

"Haha, then I'll leave it to you. But I'll leave my men in your care. Hey, Nelson, don't you dare lose your pants too! Otherwise, I'll be furious!!!"

Nelson quickly shouted, "Yes!"

Tesoro, who seemed to understand Karl's subtext, quickly called Baccarat over, whispered some instructions in her ear, and then looked at Karl: "Lord Karl, rest assured, I guarantee your men will have a worthwhile trip. Baccarat, you must treat the naval hero's men well!"

"No problem! Colonel Nelson, please come with me!"

Upon seeing this, Carl couldn't help but nod. Sure enough, someone who could run a business to this extent must be a shrewd person; they understood immediately after just a few words.

Seeing that Karl seemed quite satisfied, Tesoro quickly put on a smile and flattered him: "Lord Karl is indeed as handsome as the rumors say. He truly deserves to be called the most handsome man in the world. I am really ashamed of myself!"

Carl waved his hand: "No need for flattery, I don't like that. Let's just get straight to the point!"

Tesoro's face stiffened for a moment, but he quickly regained his smile: "Please speak freely! Whatever your needs, I will do everything in my power to fulfill them!"

"I have a large quantity of gold on hand. I wonder if you can handle it?"

Chapter 189 Gold Trading

Tesoro paused for a moment, then immediately said, "Lord Karl, I'm not bragging, but no matter how much gold you have..."

"I can eat it all!"

Carl nodded: "That's good. Let's go, let's talk somewhere else, preferably somewhere more open."

"this way please!"

Tesoro snapped his fingers, and a super-luxurious golden tortoise-like chariot screeched to a halt in front of him. Tesoro smiled slightly: "Lord Karl, please get in!"

"It's a good opportunity for me to show my hospitality as a host."

Carl walked over to the tortoise-powered vehicle, patted the lead muscular tortoise, and it actually made a bleating sound before haughtily turning its head away.

“Hahaha, funny.”

As I settled into my seat, Carl immediately sank into the soft cushion, feeling as if I were sitting on a water-filled balloon—so soft and comfortable. I couldn't help but marvel once again at the excellent service.

No wonder it has become the world's premier entertainment city!

Along the way, Tezzolo enthusiastically introduced his city to Carl, and kept glancing at Carl's face as if trying to see his surprised expression, but unfortunately he was disappointed.

Throughout, Karl's eyes remained unchanged, always wearing a half-smile.

On the contrary, the pirates in the Golden City were shocked because the golden sports car was too ostentatious, especially since it was driven by the city lord himself, which attracted a lot of attention.

Then they saw Karl sitting in the back, and then their anuses tightened.

"Holy crap! Isn't that the naval hero? What's he doing here? Is he here to arrest us?"

"How could that be? This is the Golden City. Even naval heroes wouldn't dare lay a hand on us here. I think he's just like us, here to have some fun!"

Karl seemed to have heard this, and suddenly turned to look at the pirates who were discussing him, releasing his Conqueror's Haki to scare them. The pirates immediately broke out in a cold sweat, frozen in place, as if they would be killed at any moment.

Even after the golden sports car had driven far away, the pirates standing by the roadside were still shaken.

"This is terrifying! Is this the spirit of a naval hero? Just looking at him makes me feel breathless."

The Golden Tower.

"Your Excellency Karl, please look, this is the heart of our Golden City. We have everything you could possibly need. If you don't mind, please come with me to the VIP room for a chat, shall we?"

Carl nodded: "Yes, is all your money here?"

Tesoro raised an eyebrow and said without any concern, "That's right. All the money I've earned over the years is stored in the Golden Tower. It's a fortune of nearly 100 billion Berries. So, there are quite a few people who want to pry open my treasure vault."

"However, I'm used to it. Every now and then, some daring guys try to do it, but over the years, no one has succeeded."

"Hahaha, I think this is also a strategy you use to lure the pirates here!"

Tesoro quickly gave a thumbs up: "As expected, nothing can escape Lord Karl's discerning eye."

After passing through layer after layer of entertainment venues, we finally arrived at the so-called VIP room. The space here was huge, much larger than the presidential suite, and it was filled with an atmosphere of ostentation.

Karl sat on the sofa and gently raised his hand, and various gold artifacts poured out like a torrent. Tesoro stared wide-eyed at what he saw in disbelief.

No, he didn't even blink! How could he conjure up so much gold out of thin air?

"Here, how's the quality?"

Tesoro stared blankly at Karl: "Is that all?"

"Of course not. If I put everything out, your room wouldn't be able to hold it all. I just wanted you to see its condition and get an estimate."

"Oh, please wait a moment!"

Tesoro, as the user of the Gold-Gold Fruit, could tell the purity of the gold just by touching it, but he still pretended to examine it carefully so that Karl wouldn't think he was being too perfunctory.

"These gold artifacts are very old, and their purity isn't very high, only around 90%, but they have great artistic value. If they were auctioned off..."

"No need for all that trouble, just tell me how many peles are in one gram."

Tezzolo did a quick mental calculation: the current purchase price of gold was around 8641 Berries per gram, but Karl's gold had a lower purity, so he couldn't afford such a high price...

However, considering factors such as Karl's status and position, Tesoro thought it over and over again and looked at Karl and said, "Lord Karl, if you are willing to sell all your gold to me, the price is 8000 Berries per gram!"

Upon hearing the price, Karl frowned slightly. Was gold really that valuable? Wouldn't he be making a fortune?

Although he hadn't weighed it carefully, the gold in his system space must be at least seven or eight tons. At that price, it could fetch at least 600 billion Berries. Holy crap!

When Tesoro saw Karl frowning, he assumed Karl was dissatisfied with the price and quickly explained, "Lord Karl, even though this price is lower than the normal gold purchase price, I don't actually make much money."

"Look, the purity of yours is only about 90%, and I still have to recycle and smelt it. In the end, I'll only make a meager profit. This is the highest price I can offer!"

Seeing this, Carl waved his hand and grinned, "Alright, no need to say anything more, I'm very satisfied with this price."

"Okay, you find a spacious place for me to put the gold, and you count the quantity here."

"You can just leave it here. I'll call someone over to check it later, so please don't worry."

Carl patted Tesoro on the shoulder meaningfully: "Don't you dare try anything funny. Money is a small matter, but it would be bad if it affected our friendship, wouldn't you say?"