Chapter 1198 - 701: Letter of Marque (2)

Conqueror’s Haki is Conqueror’s Haki... but what does it mean if it twists into a knot? Every thread, every strand of Haki, is compressed to such a degree that if it hits someone, who could withstand it?

No one dares to say something stupid like ’Why should we do business with you?’ if they’re already here. Of course, they came with a mindset of cooperation, and some are even prepared to be assimilated.

Fame is there, and there’s nothing to be done about it.

Now that it’s just business, some people are relieved, while others are a bit disappointed...

"Since there are no objections, let me talk about my route."

Sage laughed, "A lot of people here bought my ships, right? You know the performance of my O’hara Battleships. Now, I’m launching an updated battleship that is faster, more agile, and stronger. In addition, it has an important function: the ability to sail without wind and a technology that can block the perception of Sea Kings over large areas."

After he spoke, the eyes of several billion-Belly pirates widened as they perceived something.

None of them were fools.

Whether the ships are sturdy isn’t the point, but that ability to block Sea Kings and sail without wind... doesn’t that mean you can cross the Calm Belt!

Crossing the Calm Belt means facing the vast West and North Seas!

This ability to sail without wind isn’t really an issue for ordinary ships—it can be rowed if needed. And how can there not be wind at sea? Maybe there are a few days of calm, but there’s always some sea breeze. But in the Calm Belt, there genuinely isn’t any wind; the sea is as still as death, smooth like a mirror.

If you can navigate through it, that means you can cross the Calm Belt.

"Yes, you’re right,"

Sage chuckled, "With the technology to cross the Calm Belt, facing the North and West Seas is possible. With this ship, you can cross from the dangerous New World to the prosperous lands of the two seas."

The New World is only so large, with many islands, but with more pirates, what’s to be found has mostly been found. There might be some untapped islands that haven’t been plundered, but their numbers are nothing compared to the swelling number of New World pirates drawn from around the world.

That means the plundering is almost done, and any sustainable fishing involves harvesting islands that had time to recover between raids, while some sustain a semblance of a living through periodic exchanges.

But no matter what, the axiom holds true: the more pirates there are, the poorer the world becomes, and the poorer the world becomes, the more pirates it breeds.

Though there’s a tradition of infighting among pirates, more are concerned about robbing those islands which are less capable of resisting compared to their peers.

But now production can’t keep up with the pillaging pace, and wave after wave of pirates have almost stripped the latter half clean, bar a few stragglers. Otherwise, why does Teach have to dwell in cave-like dwellings on Hive Island, living like a primitive? Is it because he doesn’t wish for something more lavish?

What’s the use of money if there’s no product from Sage? Without it, Teach would have been far worse off back then.

These high-bounty pirates considered the issue, but no matter how they think it over, they still plunder; if they don’t, others will. One step back for them is one step forward for others, and even if some attempt to create rules among pirates, nobody adheres to them, so they must remain ahead. They know it’s bad, but they can’t change it.

Among them, ’Commander’ Sphinx felt it the most. His territory was vast, and feeding his subordinates was exhausting. Unlike Teach’s loose Pirate Alliance, whose members are free, Sphinx couldn’t afford to offer meals and lodging, and paying wages was another matter. His men depended on him, but as the plundering increased, so did poverty—an endless cycle he couldn’t escape.

As for the untouched countries... they have all been pillaged; if they remain unscathed, it’s not something a single pirate crew can resolve.

But with the ships that can cross the Calm Belt, they can reach the prosperous West and North Seas.

The pirates there can’t even compare to the wealthy kingdoms, and with their current scale, going there isn’t plundering money—it’s picking it up!

"Really giving them to us?" a pirate’s eyes lit up, "How much?"

No one thinks this will be free; the price will certainly be high, but no matter how high, if it involves greater benefits...

They’ll take loans if necessary!

"Straightforward, I like that. It’s good that you guessed its use. But there’s an agreement involved, and whether you follow it or not isn’t important, because besides me, no one else will accept those rich spoils..."

Sage said, "Anything you obtain, like iron, wood, or medicine, anything plunderable, can be sold here. How much you earn depends on your plundering speed. The only risk is the bad luck of being targeted by a Sea King while crossing the Calm Belt, but you’re already used to this risk. So..."

"I’m late!"

Sage was about to curl his finger when a loud voice boomed from the entrance, a burly pirate stepping forward, "Everyone’s here, huh? Count me in for the meeting!"

Sage frowned slightly. Lily, beside him, said, "Punctuality isn’t Aspe’s thing, with a bounty of one billion one hundred million Belly."

"Hey! Disaster! This is your Royal Palace? It’s luxurious! Incredible, could you give me some so I can decorate my captain’s cabin!" Aspe grinned.

"You bastard..."

Sage laughed angrily, "You had a time on your invitation, didn’t you? Not only are you late, but you dare ask for something?"

"I couldn’t help it; the ship was slow and got caught in a storm on the way."

"Delayed by a storm? Where in the New World isn’t there a storm? What ship are you sailing?"

"Just a regular ship, a converted merchant vessel we plundered."

"Really? Everyone sails O’hara, and you’re on a merchant ship. Who else would be late but you? A converted merchant ship? A guy this poor, what makes you eligible for this meeting? Get out." Sage pointed his finger.

"Hey! I’m showing you respect by coming, and you dare to..."

Swish!

Aspe’s face turned livid, just as he was about to retort, a cold gleam appeared before his eyes.

The cold light made his vision tilt, the world spinning, as Sage’s stature seemed to grow, then he saw a headless corpse falling...

Lily flicked her rapier, sending the blood splattering on the floor before she sheathed it and waved her hand, "Drag him out."

So fast...

All the pirates felt a chill run down their necks, each clutching their throats and staying silent, heads bowed.

A twenty-two billion Belly Sword Princess, so powerful that resistance seems futile...

That was a ten billion Belly Great Pirate, unable even to react...

"One billion Belly per ship!"

Sage extended a single finger, "Technical add-on fees not included. Calm Belt crossing technology requires additional payment: five billion Belly for one year, eight billion for two, ten billion for three, capped at three years, with discounts for bulk purchases! Of course, if you’re attached to your own ship, just pay twenty-five billion Belly in one go to receive three years of technical service for your ship!"

Prices so high, you’d want to jump into the sea!

Ships are indeed expensive, whether they’re O’hara or not. Even purchasing the most standard small ships from a shipyard costs tens of millions of Belly, and repair costs reach millions or tens of millions.

Three to five billion is normal.

But starting at tens of billions...

Their bounties aren’t even that high!

"And..."

Sage suddenly opened his five fingers, smiling at them, "An additional five billion will grant you a trade certificate from me, which allows free trade of the spoils from the two seas in my O’hara territory. Without it, any trade is prohibited."

Letter of Marque!

This is what Sage devised as a way to ruthlessly exploit pirates while using them to acquire resources from the two seas!

As for whether they can earn that much...

"Loans are available," Sage said with a gleaming smile.