"Fufufufufu."
Before long, a familiar evil laugh echoed at the entrance of the Royal Palace.
Doflamingo, still in his familiar pink feather coat, with his hands in his pockets and a swagger in his step, walked into the Royal Palace.
"Long time no see, Sage. I thought you might have forgotten me after gaining your territory, fufufufu!"
"Hohohoho, do you think I'm that fragile?"
Sage laughed heartily and waved his hand, saying, "Prepare the banquet!"
As he spoke, he glanced at Doflamingo, "You came alone?"
"Fufufufu, I brought some of my sailing crew, but it doesn't matter, my Kingdom is quite busy as well."
Doflamingo said, looking around the grand hall.
After Hawkins' redesign, the originally dark hall now gleamed according to Sage's preferences. The palace doors were crafted with a mix of gold and silver, engraved with intricate patterns.
Inside, the spacious, lofty grand hall featured a luxurious carpet leading straight from the entrance to the throne, and the walls were covered entirely in gold leaf with tapestries depicting various scenes, colored vibrantly.
Below the tapestries were sculptures made of gold and gemstones, some even holding weapons.
A casual glance from Doflamingo revealed that these weapons seemed quite good, including one that resembled a sword with a whip-like blade.
"These weapons were confiscated. I thought the finished products looked too good to just discard, so I decided to display them."
Sage chuckled, standing up from the golden velvet throne that had been moved from the captain's quarters. He said to Lily beside him, "Make sure Dof's men are well taken care of. My place here won't disappoint compared to Dressrosa."
"Fufufufu, I didn't come here for a tour. Didn't you have something to discuss with me?" Doflamingo laughed.
"We'll talk over a meal. Let me show you my territory!"
Sage laughed heartily and led Doflamingo to the banquet hall.
The original dining room had been redesigned as well, with massive doors occupying one wall, opening to reveal a massive courtyard with a grand fountain surrounded by exotic flowers and plants. At the center of the flower beds were mosaic patterns made of gemstones.
From here, one could even overlook the vast city below through the courtyard.
This was all prepared for a grand banquet.
In the banquet hall, a lavish chandelier adorned with gemstones hung from the center, with crystal bead curtains shimmering brightly, illuminating the entire hall.
Beneath the chandelier was a gigantic gold-edged carved table set with gold-rimmed enamel bone china.
Bella had been waiting there, and as the two arrived, she poured a drink for Sage and then for Doflamingo.
"Napa..."
Doflamingo lifted the glass, took a sniff, and then a sip, smiling, "It's over twenty years old. Normally 700,000 Belly a bottle, ten years over two million, and anything over twenty is virtually extinct at sea. If auctioned, it should fetch over ten million Belly."
Sage grinned, "A pirate happened to seize a batch. My black market merchant bought it, twelve bottles in total, for just over ten million Belly, so I secured them."
"Buy? Fufufufu, you're quite peculiar, Sage. But it's your territory; you can do as you please. Pirates are such creatures."
Doflamingo laughed, "But is this really how you spend your money?"
The 20 billion Belly he had left with Doflamingo had come through Umit's channels two months ago, plus a year's interest of 40%, totaling 28 billion Belly.
Of course, it wasn't all cash, as Sage requested a large amount of gold and jewels, which were brought over as equivalent value.
"Money is meant to be exchanged for equivalent goods. Don't you find it pleasing to the eye? This is my territory, so of course, I have to spend to adorn it well."
Sage spread his arms wide, "Holding onto it without spending would just be piles of useless paper."
Designing the palace was a massive expense, and the gold acquired through plundering wasn't nearly enough, so he had to acquire through other channels.
The gold seized by the pirates who came here also needed to be purchased by Sage. As he himself said, it was an opportunity for people to earn money.
By having it pass through black market merchants, Sage could buy it at a fair price, allowing everyone to profit, while he collected taxes in the process.
Additionally, the necessary materials for rebuilding the city also required expenditures, as it was his territory, he naturally had to fund it.
Developing the territory might lead to initial losses, but in exchange for a prosperous domain, the resulting tax revenue would recoup the investment in no time.
Ultimately, no matter how you spin it, it's all within his own pocket, all belonging to him.
Along with the taxes generated in the process, although it's just moving from one hand to another, this circulation would make the place more prosperous.
Before long, Marika brought the chef along, pushing a cart to serve dishes one by one onto the table.
"Dressrosa has three specialties: Dressrosa Seafood Risotto, Rose Ink Squid Pasta, and Fairy Pumpkin Cold Soup. I also have some specialties here, Marika, please introduce them," Sage smiled.
Marika nodded with a smile, pointing at a dish of venison:
"Gares roasted venison steak, made with deer living in the mountain forests of Gares on the main island. Using locally unique forest pepper, along with scallions and ginger, marinated with aged wine before roasting, then seasoned to perfection. This method... is also good for the body."
"This thing boosts the kidneys!" Sage stated concisely.
"Honey mushroom stewed wild chicken."
Marika pointed to another dish and said, "This comes from Vice Island Timadon, where local wild chickens are as good as phoenixes, offering top quality meat along with fungi growing in the main island mountain forests, the dish made is truly delicious."
"This thing boosts physical weakness!" Sage added once more.
"Wakano Donuts are made from flour milled from local wheat, carrying a special aroma. Baking enhances the taste, and just a sprinkle of simple frosting makes it a delicacy."
"Fresh Flower Pearl Chestnut Soup, made with locally produced chestnuts that are as precious as pearls, are very nutritious, and simply using fresh flowers as seasoning imparts a petal fragrance."
"Coconut Milk Curry Beef, also made with local specialties, especially the coconut, which is considered a rare treasure. The curry spices are quite good as well."
Marika introduced a total of seven or eight dishes with a smile, and then stopped.
A total of one hundred and eighty-eight dishes were served, dazzling in variety, all made with precious ingredients, though only a select few were highlighted.
Doflamingo is a smart man, he understood the implication.
Halfway through the introductions, he already figured it out.
Sage, this fellow, was using food to declare how many territories he had acquired, while narrating how these territories were being utilized by him.
So many territories, supporting just one person...
"Fufufufufu, I'm envious, and these pearl chestnuts..."
Doflamingo looked at the bowl of chestnut soup in front of him and smiled, "This ingredient is very famous, I recall it's a local specialty of 'Stidtefear', have you discovered that island?"
Ingredients, of course, aren't anything special.
Doflamingo knows the reason for that island is because it has extremely rich iron deposits beneath it.
Doflamingo has a large arms trade, making him very sensitive to islands with iron mines, he knows the name but not the location, and importantly...
"That belongs to the World Government, Sage, have you seized it?"
The World Government's influence isn't only at the New World entrance; they have territories deep within, though compared to Paradise and the Four Seas, their power here seems scattered, almost as if it's non-existent.
"Just took it last month."
Sage said, "I'm planning to build ships and weapons, needing a large amount of iron. The iron brought by traders is far too expensive and insufficient in quantity. Conveniently, I received news that it's near Gares, so I had no reason not to take it."
Each ingredient introduced represents an island, a new territory.
Since Andre set the example, some nearby fellows have voluntarily reported their coordinates, and naturally, Sage has welcomed them under his banner.
The spice-rich ones are also abundant in good timber.
Some for meat also have plenty of stone.
Stone isn't inherently valuable because there are plenty of mountains locally, while the main island Gares has mountains but can be developed elsewhere, Sage doesn't wish to develop his core territory of Gares.
"Fufufufufu, your meaning is, you're ready?" Doflamingo grinned.
"Yes."
It wasn't Sage speaking but Lily, who had come over and pulled out a gemstone with rainbow-like colors, placing it on Doflamingo's table.
"Mainly here to show you this."
"Rainbow Gem? I kept hearing you mention it, didn't expect you'd actually create it."
Doflamingo didn't pick it up, just glanced at it before saying, "Is it just this?"
"Let's start with this."
Sage said, "Just on raw materials, each one has a cost of five thousand Belly, not to mention labor, when officially mass-produced... what's the quantity again?"
"At least five hundred people's factory, can produce two hundred pieces a month," Lily said.
"Right, set a price for this, after all, it's a gemstone. Selling to those idiotic nobles should fetch a good price. How much to price it, you should understand better than I do. I'll give you 20% of profit obviously. If you manage to make nobles endorse it, treating it like Belly, then I'll split it with you 50/50!"
Sage made a grand gesture.
Selling it off is one thing, but if by controlling these Rainbow Gems in his hands, he can make them circulate like Belly, then its value becomes massive!
Money, isn't it just for harvesting massive resources.