Feeling the gazes from all around him, Maha, a member of CP0, showed not the slightest trace of stage fright.
Seeing the anger on Sengoku’s face, he pulled out another document and gave an awkward laugh.
"Heh heh. Fleet Admiral Sengoku, now that you mention it, I almost forgot. I still have a second document with me."
"Before I came here, the Five Lords repeatedly instructed me not to forget to show this to you. It contains a more reasonable proposal, as well as the location of the second battlefield. Take a look."
"You..."
Sengoku was rendered speechless with anger.
He had never expected the Five Elders to have truly come prepared. This was clearly more than just empty words.
Nevertheless, matters had reached this point.
As Fleet Admiral, Sengoku accepted the document with a dark expression.
The instant he opened it, his expression changed once again.
"Use Impel Down as the second battlefield, with Warden Magellan participating in the battle?"
"The Science Division will provide fifty Pacifistas as reinforcements. As long as we select one of the less experienced Admirals at Marine Headquarters and have him lead additional Marine officers, we can establish a defensive line for the second battlefield?"
Sengoku shot to his feet in anger, tightly gripping the document.
"Maha! Have the Five Elders gone insane? They’re actually proposing Impel Down as the second battlefield?"
"Magellan’s strength may indeed rival that of an Admiral, but no matter how many troops we add, facing Kaidō of the Beasts would leave the second battlefield as fragile as paper. It would collapse at the slightest impact."
"And now you want me to send Lucas there to lead the defense?"
"That’s not merely sending him to his death. You’re also giving someone an opportunity to exploit the situation and break into Impel Down!"
"Don’t forget what kind of people are imprisoned inside Impel Down. If they take advantage of this opportunity to escape, the entire sea will descend into chaos!"
"Could this really be what the World Government wants to see?"
The Marine officers present also read the contents of the document.
As for the "less experienced Admiral," they could figure out with their toes whom the Five Elders intended to send to his death.
They might as well have written his name directly on the document.
Yet what they never expected was that although Lucas’s conduct was admittedly somewhat unconventional—he had even sent Celestial Dragons flying one after another—the Five Elders would target him so blatantly.
"Heh heh. Fleet Admiral Sengoku, the Five Lords naturally understand all of this."
"Otherwise, they wouldn’t have exposed the Science Division’s latest research ahead of schedule, nor directly dispatched fifty Pacifistas."
"Those technological weapons cost a billion Berries each to develop."
Maha gave another dry laugh, completely unfazed by Sengoku’s anger.
"That is the sincerity of the Five Lords."
"Of course, Fleet Admiral Sengoku, you don’t have to agree with their proposal. You can refuse to establish the second battlefield."
"But if you insist on rejecting this strategy, the Five Lords certainly won’t allow the Pacifistas to be wasted by Marine Headquarters for nothing."
"Besides, I’m sure that even if you don’t trust Magellan, the warden of Impel Down, you must trust the new Marine Admiral whom you personally promoted to hold out until Marine Headquarters achieves victory."
"Once reinforcements arrive, you can wipe out Kaidō of the Beasts in one fell swoop!"
His drawn-out words echoed through the conference hall.
Everyone’s expressions instantly turned grim.
According to intelligence provided by Tsuru, the forces Kaidō of the Beasts had assembled this time were no weaker than Whitebeard’s.
If anything, they were likely even greater.
Now they were asking a newly appointed Marine Admiral to join forces with Impel Down’s Warden Magellan against Kaidō.
Even if Magellan truly possessed strength comparable to an Admiral, the situation on that battlefield was still far too precarious.
Sengoku’s expression became exceptionally grim.
Seeing this, Maha immediately continued:
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku, what’s wrong? Are you planning to reject the Five Lords’ goodwill?"
"If that’s the case, I’ll go back and report it."
With that, Maha turned around and prepared to leave.
But the instant he moved, an unexpected voice sounded beside him.
"Heh heh. There’s no reason to refuse something that’s being given to us for free."
"We’ll take the fifty Pacifistas."
"And I’ll take the second battlefield."
The lazy voice instantly stirred up a tremendous commotion.
Everyone gathered inside the conference hall tightened their nerves and quickly turned toward the source of the voice.
Even Maha was no exception.
Their gazes landed on the doorway.
A familiar figure, absent for some time, was slowly walking inside while carrying a sake gourd.
That lazy, carefree aura that seemed carved into his very bones had not changed in the slightest despite everything that had just happened.
Seeing this unexpected visitor, Maha’s expression immediately turned cold.
The atmosphere he had carefully manipulated was now broken, which was anything but good for him.
Nevertheless, he could only brace himself and speak.
"Heh heh. I didn’t expect to encounter the legendary Admiral Lucas so soon."
"I originally thought we’d have to wait until the war began before Admiral Lucas finally arrived fashionably late."
"However, I don’t think you heard what we were discussing just now. That’s why you’ve made such a reckless decision."
"But don’t worry, Admiral Lucas. I’ll give you a second chance."
"Take some time to understand the situation before you speak."
As he spoke, Maha turned around and attempted to hand the document to Lucas.
Lucas simply smiled, took a swig of his drink, and shook his head.
"Reading it wouldn’t change anything."
"Besides, Fleet Admiral Sengoku, I managed to secure fifty Pacifistas for you."
"That’s worth at least a twenty-million bonus, right?"
"A twenty-million bonus?"
The muscles in Sengoku’s stiff face twitched uncontrollably.
Remembering Lucas’s familiar way of doing things, Sengoku knew that whenever this man opened his mouth, he would somehow end up talking about money.
Yet faced with this familiar behavior, the anger that had filled Sengoku’s heart actually dissipated considerably.
Even the oppressive atmosphere in the conference hall eased somewhat.
Several Marine officers who had worked alongside Lucas before had their eyes light up.
Nearby, Vice Admiral Hina looked toward the visibly excited Momonga and raised an eyebrow.
"Momonga, weren’t you extremely worried just now?"
"Now that Admiral Lucas has agreed to establish the second battlefield the moment he opened his mouth, why do you look even more excited?"
The nearby Marine officers also noticed the same thing.
Faced with a situation that even Fleet Admiral Sengoku could barely handle, Lucas had just casually agreed to take responsibility for the second battlefield.
They genuinely could not understand why Momonga could still smile.
Momonga rolled his eyes.
He also realized that he had lost his composure, but after noticing the gazes around him—especially the uneasiness on the faces of the younger officers—he hurriedly lowered his voice.
"You don’t understand."
"Whenever Admiral Lucas asks for more money, things are bound to work out!"
"Anyone can have a problem with money, but Admiral Lucas absolutely never will."
"That’s the damn sense of security you get when there’s extra pay involved!"
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT
◇ 1 bonus Chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus Chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 70+ Chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/Sagamaster789