One Piece: A Guide for Ordinary Players

Robert laughed and said, "Of course it's the mercenary business of Bucky's Express. We can't expect our Thunder Division pirates to come to Dressrosa for recuperation regularly, can we?"

Crocodile exhaled a puff of smoke: "Your Thunder Division is strong and well-equipped, why do you need to hire pirates from Buggy Express? Who would believe that?"

Robert looked worried: "Even if we have a strong army, it depends on who we're compared to. In the early days of our Thunder Division, many of our brothers were new recruits. How could we compare to the deep foundation of the veteran Four Emperors?"

Crocodile scoffed, "So what? Are you going to start a war with the Four Emperors?"

After he finished speaking, his eyes suddenly widened: "You're going to officially start a war with the Four Emperors!"

Crocodile and Buggy simultaneously recalled Robert's polite words when he first arrived: he said he was late because he had gone to talk to Kaido, which had taken up some time!

Based on news reports, Robert just fought Kaido on Whole Cake Island. Now that the two have met, could they be talking about getting Kaido to stop interfering with his war against Whole Cake Island?

"You're going to hire Buggy the Deliveryman to hold off Kaido's reinforcements and buy you time to attack Whole Cake Island?"

Robert laughed and said, "No, no, no, we hired Buggy the Delivery to hold off Whole Cake Island and buy us time to attack the Beasts Pirates!"

Crocodile always prided himself on his intelligence, but every time he negotiated with Robert, he felt that his brain wasn't quite up to par.

"You want to fight two Yonko at the same time?"

Robert sighed: "Actually, there are three. I've fought Shanks several times before, and I'm really afraid he'll take advantage of my weakness and kick me when I'm down."

Bucky's voice trembled slightly: "Although I have some connections with Shanks, but... you know..."

Robert grinned at Bucky: "Look at you, I never said that Bucky Express should block both Big Mom and Shanks at the same time. You only need to deal with Whole Cake Island. I have other ways to deal with Shanks."

Crocodile suddenly spoke up: "Alright, we'll take the job!"

Bucky quickly gave him a meaningful look, but Crocodile acted as if he didn't see it: "When are you planning to make your move?"

Robert counted on his fingers and said, "The World Conference is starting in less than a week. I suggest you set off now to contact those old friends. Once you have news, I will take action immediately."

Crocodile narrowed his eyes: "Are you really confident that this World Conference will abolish the Seven Warlords system?"

Robert said with a calm and confident expression: "Leaving aside other countries, do you think Dressrosa, which was first ravaged by Doflamingo for seven or eight years, and then forcibly taken over by me and Law, and is now in Buggy's hands, doesn't hate the Seven Warlords?"

Pakistan squinted: "Actually, it doesn't matter whether Dressrosa has a king or not. Why don't we just wipe out the Riku family and rename it Pakistan!"

Robert hadn't expected Buggy to still be thinking about the promises he'd made to him, so he quickly interrupted, "In the New World, it's normal for pirates to protect a country, but if pirates kill the ruler of a country, that would incur the wrath of the people."

"With so many countries in the world, if each country contributes some money and manpower, they can assemble an enormous force led by naval experts, which no force can withstand."

Bucky's face turned sinister: "Then I'll think of a way to prevent them from going to this World Conference!"

Crocodile couldn't stand it anymore: "Why stop them? Not only should we let them go, but we should also make King Riku complain and propose to abolish the Seven Warlords system. Only then can we win over more partners!"

Robert waved his hand: "There's no need to deliberately provoke the Riku family in these last few days. The World Conference has never been a democratic conference where countries propose a topic and then vote on it."

"The abolition of the Seven Warlords of the Sea is not the demand of the member states, but the result of the efforts of the entire Navy. The World Government is considering the opinion of its most powerful force. As for the member states, they are just a facade of democracy."

"Even if the Riku royal family doesn't raise the issue of abolishing the Seven Warlords of the Sea, other countries will naturally bring it up."

Crocodile looked at Robert with suspicion: "You were so confident when we last met. What was your source? Were you really so sure?"

Robert knew that such a big matter couldn't be fully reassured by just a few words, so he lowered his voice and boasted:

"Does Lieutenant General Tsuru know?"

Crocodile could not possibly be unaware of Vice Admiral Tsuru, who was the Chief of Staff of the Navy, and immediately nodded.

"She has a granddaughter named Peacock. I have a little romantic entanglement with her, and I get a lot of information about the Navy from her."

Crocodile rarely showed a gossipy expression, while Robert continued, "Moreover, the Ryugu Kingdom will also be participating in this World Conference on a rotating basis. Even if no other country raises this issue, I will instruct King Neptune to submit it."

Crocodile gritted his teeth: "Fine! I'll leave in a bit. When will your funds arrive? Dressrosa really can't squeeze out a single penny!"

Robert smiled and said, "Haven't you visited the national treasury in a long time?"

Bucky's face fell: "It's been emptied out long ago, what's there to see?"

He suddenly seemed to realize something, swallowed hard, and said, "Should I send someone to check it out now?"

Robert gestured for him to do as he pleased, and Bucky's excited voice trembled slightly: "I'll go myself! Right now!"

He rushed out of the conference room, and Robert said to Crocodile, who was clearly relaxed, "Bucky has some luck on his side. I did manage to screw him over in Dressrosa."

"Back then, I secretly fought several battles with the Celestial Dragons. They hated me to the bone. Their territory and subjects were my Achilles' heel, so I found a way to get Buggy to take over this place."

"To be honest, if the Riku royal family hadn't been so clever as to drive the Indians away, Dressrosa wouldn't have had to worry about funding at all."

Seeing Robert's sincerity, Crocodile relaxed his ulterior motives somewhat: "Don't worry, it was just because the hole that Dressrosa needed to fill was too big. When I came, the national treasury had already been emptied. Even if I robbed Peter to pay Paul, it wouldn't last long."

"As long as we get through this period smoothly, Dressrosa can become self-sufficient, and when you want to take it back, I guarantee it won't be a mess."

"Now it's just the two of us, so give me the real story."

"Whom do you intend to step over on to ascend to the throne of the Four Emperors?"

The World Conference, Chapter 20, is about to begin!

Robert laughed and said, "I already made it very clear last time that the vast majority of our Thunder Division's fighting force was directly inherited from Father's Whitebeard Pirates. We are one of the Four Emperors, so we don't need to prove anything further."

"After a series of battles, the Whitebeard Pirates needed to recuperate, which is why I cut off all their territories."

"But that doesn't mean the Whitebeard Pirates have been removed from the list of Yonko. After all, no new power has ever replaced us at sea, has it?"

Crocodile frowned: "So you mean?"

Robert clenched his fist: "A fist has more power when it is pulled back first."

"When we attacked Marineford, it was like a punch that had been waiting for a long time to be thrown, which is why we were able to overturn the Navy Headquarters by ourselves."

"But after that, my father died. If the rest of us keep putting on a brave front, we'll just be all bark and no bite."

"So I gave up all my territories and pulled back my fists, but pulling back a fist isn't like amputation. In the end, we won the decisive battle against Blackbeard, even if it was a Pyrrhic victory!"

"So now, if we want to return to the ranks of the Four Emperors, we don't need to kill any of the old Four Emperors. We just need to conquer a suitable territory and announce that we're back!"

Crocodile tentatively asked, "So you actually reached an agreement with Kaido a long time ago, right? Just like Buggy temporarily guarded Dressrosa for you, Kaido will also temporarily protect the original Whitebeard territory for you?"

Robert gave a cryptic smile and didn't answer the question, and Crocodile wisely refrained from asking further.

Bucky rushed back excitedly: "It's full! The treasury is overflowing with gold!"

Robert shrugged like a nouveau riche: "As you know, Tesoro doesn't have much cash on hand. Most of his assets are in gold, and I don't have time to exchange them for Berries. You'll have to make do with what you have for now."

Crocodile had completely given up on trying to gain more benefits from Robert. When facing someone slightly stronger than himself, he still had some thoughts of waiting for the right price. But when he realized that Robert was no longer on the same level as him, Crocodile simply gave up all his little schemes.

"You have shares in Pakistan Express. We won't ask you to increase your shareholding with the additional funds you've invested. Just consider it as you developing your own territory. Dressrosa will have to be returned to you sooner or later."

Robert didn't refuse. Dressrosa was practically his base of operations, and he wouldn't have actually given it to Bucky anyway. Now that Crocodile saw things so clearly, many things were actually easier to handle.

-----------------

As the World Conference approached, the Navy was roaming the world like madmen. Member states from all over the world rushed to Mary Geoise under the escort of warships. Most of the villains consciously retreated to their lair to avoid being killed by the Navy when it passed by.

Even the New World has become much more stable. The Straw Hat crew, who are always addicted to causing trouble, and Robert's newly established Thunder Department have both disappeared. Whole Cake Island, which has just suffered a great humiliation, is not in a hurry to send troops to retaliate.

As if by unspoken agreement, everyone fell silent before the world conference began, waiting for a signal.

The entire Riku royal family set off, with Dordre III, along with his son-in-law Cyrus and granddaughter Rebecca, boarding a ship provided by the Pakistani Express, heading to Mary Geoise with trepidation.

Princess Violet was supposed to go along as well, but now the Riku family only knows that Robert took her away in public, and they don't even know where she was taken.

Watching the ship depart, Bucky scoffed, "Aren't you and Robert at all worried about them spouting nonsense at the World Conference? You just let the whole family go without any precautions? You could at least have taken Rebecca hostage!"

Crocodile sneered, "If the Riku family had any cunning, they should have behaved themselves at this World Government Summit."

"After all, they are now considered the legitimate rulers of Dressrosa. Even though we actually control the whole country, their prestige is still very high, and we really don't dare to do anything to them."

Bucky became even more anxious: "So, they're so emboldened. What if they take advantage of the World Conference and don't come back, instead staying in Mary Geoise for refuge, and then let the Navy come and hunt us down?"

Crocodile sneered, "First of all, the World Government is not the babysitter of these member states. They only recognize the Celestial Gold. The World Government doesn't really care who is in charge of the country."

"Dressrosa was completely ruined by Doflamingo. Anyone who takes over this place will be a mess, except for a bastard like Robert who has so much money he can't even fill the sea."

"Do you think the World Government would support the Riku royal family, which has extremely strong legal principles but is completely incapable of collecting Celestial Gold?"

"Could it be that they're sending their navy to capture Dressrosa and then allocating funds from Mary Geoise to aid them?"

Buggy thought about it and realized it made sense. The World Government would rather turn a blind eye to pirates controlling a certain member state, as long as the Celestial Gold could be delivered to Mary Geoise on time for the Celestial Dragons to enjoy.

Crocodile continued, "And even though I let their whole family go, that's actually the only way they'll dare to do anything underhanded at the World Conference!"

Bucky still didn't understand: "Why don't they dare? What if they really come back with the navy?"

Crocodile sneered, "Mary Geoise isn't close to here. Our Bucky Express mercenaries are all over the sea. As soon as we get news that the Navy is coming, we'll leave immediately."

Bucky was shocked: "Leave? Where do we go if we leave here? This is the stronghold Robert gave me!"

Crocodile sneered, "What stronghold? Our base is mercenaries. How many people are stationed on this island right now?"

"Don't you know how much money is in the national treasury? Can the money Robert sent support the country's development for six months? If they dare to bring their navy, we dare to empty the national treasury and leave calmly."

"Before we leave, we must tell the whole country that it was King Riku who secretly colluded with us to force Robert's men to leave, and now he has asked the navy to drive us away as well."

"Guess what will happen when those royals who only know how to shout slogans return and inherit a treasury that can't even produce a single Berry?"

Bucky's eyes lit up: "Those fools are probably going to tear King Riku's family apart! When King Riku brought Raleigh to me, those commoners in Dressrosa were cursing him all the way there!"

Crocodile boarded a small boat with a cold smile; Mr. 1 on board had already prepared everything.

“I even suspect that the reason Robert hasn’t taken Dressrosa back is because he wants to use us to get rid of the Riku family.”

"So don't worry, I'll be back. Even if the navy comes to surround and annihilate us, we won't be afraid!"

Chapter 21: Debts of gratitude are the hardest to repay.

The royal family of the Ryugu Kingdom ascended to the surface of the sea directly by warship. Vice Admiral Garp's flagship was coated with a protective film, and he personally dived to the seabed at a depth of 10,000 meters to bring the family to the Sabaody Archipelago.

The fact that Garp is Ace and Luffy's grandfather is common knowledge on the high seas. Now that the Ryugu Kingdom is under the protection of the Raibu, where Ace is located, any other Marine would probably just have to wait on the surface for King Neptune and his family to surface on their own.

However, Garp, being Ace's grandfather, had already made contact with the Ryugu Kingdom, and his warships sailed straight to Fishman Island without any worries about being ambushed along the way.

The entire Neptune family did not travel to Mary Geoise. Only King Neptune, his three princes, and a few fish-man warriors as guards boarded the warship, but Princess Shirahoshi was nowhere to be seen.

Garp scratched his head in confusion: "Isn't Princess Shirahoshi going?"

Neptune chuckled and said, "Miss Uta held a concert here before, and afterwards she promised to take Shirahoshi to travel elsewhere."

"She had been cooped up at home for years and couldn't go out, which was really suffocating. This time she made some friends, so she went with them to travel the world."

Garp said somewhat helplessly, "Lord Neptune, Uta is now a wanted criminal by our navy. He should be more careful with his words in Mary Geoise, otherwise those bastard Celestial Dragons might make a big fuss about it."