There was no doubt—Koshiro was an intelligent man. It was no wonder Dragon enjoyed discussing things with him.

  In truth, the Revolutionary Army had been incredibly useful. On one hand, it acted as a monitoring force for the new regime. On the other, the talents cultivated within the Revolutionary Army over the years could be handpicked by Cudius.

  Both sides ultimately shared the same goal. Cudius needed to ease css conflicts to stabilize the rule of the World Government. The idealists of the Revolutionary Army also sought to alleviate css conflicts and bring prosperity to the people.

  The only difference was that, at the moment, they cked a ptform. But once Cudius came to power, he would purge a batch of corrupt officials, creating vacancies. Those positions could then be filled by members of the Revolutionary Army—allowing them to serve the people while also reinforcing his rule.

  So, just as Dragon had realized, Cudius had essentially used the Revolutionary Army to cultivate a group of like-minded individuals—people he could trust to take power without immediately succumbing to corruption.

  "Enough—I get annoyed just thinking about it," Dragon muttered, shaking his head.

  "If you've figured it out, are you not going to express your stance to Cudius?" Koshiro asked with a smile.

  "Are you kidding? I'm still pissed off—I'm going to ignore him for a few days," Dragon said without hesitation.

  After a brief pause, he smirked. "You're surprisingly calm about all this."

  "Hahahaha, if it were me, I'd probably take a bde and go after him right now," Koshiro ughed heartily.

  Meanwhile, at the Holy Land—Mariejois…

  Sengoku was deep in conversation with Cudius, the atmosphere surprisingly pleasant.

  "So, you're saying… you've already handled Kuzan's ideological concerns?" Sengoku asked in surprise.

  Cudius sipped his tea before replying, "Yes. In my opinion, Kuzan isn't suited to be Fleet Admiral.

  He's perfectly fine as an admiral, but he and Sakazuki just don't get along. He may be a little easygoing, but at his core, he's still a man of justice. So, I simply arranged for him to transition to CP-X.

  That way, he can still uphold justice."

  Sengoku nodded. "That makes sense. If he's with CP-X, at least we can rest easy. Has he agreed?"

  "Almost. He didn't give me a direct answer, but I know he'll seriously consider it. He's just too proud to accept it right away," Cudius said with a smile.

  "That's exactly his style," Sengoku agreed.

  But then, after a moment of thought, Sengoku's eyes narrowed as he said, "Wait a minute… If I think about it, Your Highness—you're not trying to take my position as Fleet Admiral, are you?"

  "Hahahahaha, what do you think?" Cudius ughed openly, making no effort to deny it.

  Sengoku sighed, rubbing his temples. "So much for enjoying the privileges of power. In the end, am I just going to be tossed aside once I'm no longer useful?"

  "Hey, that's harsh. Do I seem like that kind of person?" Cudius said, grinning. "How about this—I'll set you up as the Supreme Commander of the military?"

  Sengoku fell silent, his brow furrowing slightly before asking, "And what about Kong?"

  The current Supreme Commander of the military, Kong, was a veteran Marine. Back when Cudius proposed the Marine's Calm Belt pn, Kong had approved it. He had also given his blessing for the integration of Sky Isnd's gold reserves.

  In a way, Kong had been one of Cudius' quiet supporters.

  While the World Government and the Five Elders remained oblivious, Kong had been well aware of Marine's secret dealings with Cudius. In fact, it was thanks to Kong that the Five Elders hadn't caught wind of their cooperation.

  But ultimately, Kong had never intended to get involved in power struggles. He had even subtly conveyed his wishes to Cudius—once everything settled, he hoped to retire in peace and enjoy his remaining years.

  After all, he wasn't young anymore.

  Cudius respected that.

  Although he and Kong had some level of camaraderie, it wasn't as deep as his bond with Sengoku.

  If Kong was willing to step down, then Sengoku could step up as Supreme Commander, and Cudius could continue working closely with him.

  There would be no issues. In fact, it would be an excellent arrangement.

  "The commander wants to retire—he told me so himself," Cudius said calmly.

  At that, Sengoku felt a weight lift from his shoulders. He sighed in relief and said, "That's good. Kong is getting old, after all."

  "And you think you're still young?" Cudius quipped.

  Over time, Sengoku had been influenced by Cudius' shameless attitude. He simply waved a hand and said, "Compared to Kong, I am young. Look at my thick, bck hair!"

  "You dye it," Cudius shot back without hesitation.

  "Ahem, don't worry about the details," Sengoku deflected.

  After a brief pause, Sengoku sighed, "I originally pnned to become Marine's Chief Inspector after stepping down. But it looks like I'll be working a little longer."

  "Your focus will shift significantly. You'll have to look beyond just pirates. As Supreme Commander, you'll need to help me clean up the corruption within the military," Cudius said, his tone turning cold.

  Sengoku's expression grew serious. "I was powerless to fix it before, and that always bothered me. But now, if Your Highness is committed to tackling this issue… then as Sengoku, I'll support you without hesitation."

  Cudius nodded, then suddenly chuckled. "Listen to us—we sound like we've already won. Should I go ahead and reserve our cells in Impel Down? If we mess this up, we're going straight to Freezing Hell."

  "Hah! Don't worry—I've already built a house for you there," Sengoku joked with a grin.

  "Wow. Thanks so much," Cudius said, rolling his eyes.

  After chatting a bit longer, Cudius suddenly leaned forward, smiling mischievously. "You know… I keep stealing people from the Marines. That's not fair, is it? I think it's time I return the favor and send you some talent instead."

  Sengoku raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

  "Think about it—once Kuzan leaves and Sakazuki becomes Fleet Admiral, that leaves two vacant Admiral positions. That's not a good look," Cudius pointed out.

  "Marine still has Admiral candidates," Sengoku said after some thought.

  "Come on, do you really think they're ready?" Cudius scoffed. "Gion might be qualified, but what about the other position?"

  Sengoku hesitated. "Maybe Garp?" Even as he said it, he sounded uncertain.

  Cudius rolled his eyes. "You can forget that. Wanna bet? If we call him right now, he's probably drinking some fancy wine and goofing off somewhere."

  Sengoku knew it was true. Garp was cut from the same cloth as himself—reckless and impossible to control. He had refused promotions before, and forcing him into an Admiral role would only make him miserable.

  "So, what's your suggestion, Your Highness?" Sengoku asked.

  "What do you think of Fujitora?" Cudius raised an eyebrow. "I'm pnning to send him to Marine."

  Sengoku fell silent, thinking it over carefully.

  Meanwhile, Cudius had his own pns in mind.

  Unlike in the original timeline, the Marines were currently in peak form thanks to their Calm Belt initiative.

  Though they had suffered losses in their battle against the Whitebeard Pirates, their core strength remained intact. There was no need for a world conscription—the risks were too high.

  Instead, Cudius intended to push both Gion and Fujitora into Admiral positions.

  "Of course, he'll need field experience first," Sengoku finally said.

  "I agree. I'll have him report to Marine soon. Start him off as a Vice Admiral—let him get a feel for things," Cudius said with a smile.

  ***

  This book is complete. Support me on Patreon to read all advanced chapters: patreon.com/Blownleaves.