After hanging up the Den Den Mushi, Dragon's expression turned grave.
That bastard Finn had just dangled an enormous prize in front of him. He had to admit, even knowing how absurd it all sounded, he was genuinely tempted.
The frustrating part was that Finn hadn't committed to anything concrete. He hadn't even said when this Fisher Tiger character would make his move.
Without a clear timeline, Dragon couldn't afford to wait around.
This left him with two options.
He could abandon the whole thing entirely, pretend this conversation never happened, and continue with the Revolutionary Army's original plans. Whether Fisher Tiger succeeded or failed would have nothing to do with them.
Or...
Dragon leaned back in his chair, fingers drumming against the armrest.
What Finn had thought of, Dragon could naturally think of as well. What if this was real? What if Tiger could actually make such explosive news?
An incident like that would never happen again in Mary Geoise. The Holy Land would never be so easily breached a second time.
In other words, if they missed this opportunity, the Revolutionary Army could forget about using Mary Geoise to establish their reputation, let alone obtaining resources or funding from the Holy Land.
The more Dragon thought about it carefully, the more he realized that while this plan sounded ridiculous, precisely because it was ridiculous, it held tremendous potential.
At this stage, Mary Geoise was very likely a paper tiger.
Could they really afford to miss this opportunity?
After thinking for a long while, Dragon made his decision.
He was going to attack Mary Geoise.
He was a bold man. When necessary, Dragon was someone who dared to go completely crazy.
Otherwise, why would he have thrown away his comfortable life at Marine Headquarters? He'd had a heroic father above him, Marine leadership who'd watched him grow up, no worries about food or shelter, and extraordinary talent. Before Finn arrived, even Sakazuki and the others couldn't compete with him. He'd been the leader of the younger Marine generation at that time.
Under those circumstances, Dragon had dared to burn his bridges. He'd simply stopped playing the Marine game, established the Revolutionary Army, and began building his own cause. He'd transformed from a potential Fleet Admiral into the world's most wanted criminal.
Would he be afraid of this?
Could he be someone who, when faced with an opportunity, chose to play it safe and avoid risks?
Those who achieved great things didn't necessarily need to be brilliant, but they absolutely required courage.
And Dragon was a man of both wisdom and courage.
Even though he knew Finn's proposal was outrageous, after Finn had opened his mind to the possibilities, he'd already made his decision.
"You really have me figured out, Finn," Dragon muttered with a rueful chuckle.
He understood now that bastard Finn had played him perfectly. Just as Dragon understood Finn, Finn understood him. That guy must have calculated it all out. As long as he revealed this information, Dragon would never be able to let it go.
Because of this dynamic, Finn could reap the benefits without paying almost anything.
Even reconsidering the whole situation, even if Dragon had refused to agree to anything, Finn wouldn't have suffered any loss. He'd just wasted some time talking nonsense.
But if it succeeded, Finn would profit enormously for free.
This was insane...
Dragon was still a bit unhappy about it, but he couldn't really abandon the partnership or steal all the profits for himself. After all, they were allies, and Bartholomew Kuma was essentially being held hostage by the Marines.
More importantly, it would be genuinely foolish to turn against Finn just for these immediate benefits.
After thinking it through, Dragon couldn't identify any flaws in Finn's move. The only weakness that could be considered a weakness was that by discussing these matters with him, Finn had barely given him leverage. But what use was that?
As long as Finn didn't intend to openly betray the World Government, that leverage was meaningless. Moreover, as time passed and Finn grew more powerful, as the Marines grew stronger, that leverage would become less and less useful. When Finn no longer cared about the World Government's opinion, the leverage would evaporate entirely.
"If I had brought him with me back then, perhaps the Revolutionary Army would be even stronger now," Dragon murmured softly.
For a long time, Dragon had never taken Sakazuki, Kuzan, or Borsalino seriously. Perhaps in terms of raw strength, those three were qualified to be his opponents, but in terms of vision and strategic thinking, their flaws were too obvious.
Dragon could even say arrogantly that they weren't worthy of being his rivals.
Sakazuki was hot-tempered and too inflexible. Being overly rigid could easily lead to catastrophic mistakes. That was his weakness.
Kuzan was too idealistic, somewhat indecisive, and extremely lazy. He wasn't a concern.
As for Borsalino, he was definitely clever and very powerful. Before Finn appeared, Dragon had always valued Borsalino the most among the three.
But that man had a fundamental problem with his mindset. He lacked ambition and showed no strong desire for power. He seemed content with the status quo. Dragon felt that Borsalino always left himself escape routes in everything he did. He was called shrewd, like a rabbit with many burrows, but in truth, Borsalino simply lacked courage.
Finn, on the other hand...
When Finn first arrived at Headquarters, he'd been cautious, never overstepping his bounds. He hadn't gone on field missions for years, maintaining a low profile like a transparent person. At the same time, he'd seemed exceptionally skilled at winning people over. Except for that fool Chaton, it appeared that all the major figures at Marine Headquarters were his friends.
Even Sakazuki, that perpetually stern bastard, had a good relationship with Finn.
When Finn's power began to rise and he reached a high position, he'd changed completely from his previous cautious demeanor. He acted with extreme boldness, half-coercing and half-persuading the Marine leadership. Somehow, inexplicably, the will of the Marine's upper echelon had gradually separated from the World Government.
But Finn had also proven the feasibility of his ideas through concrete actions. Now, the Marines were becoming increasingly powerful and autonomous. This proved that Finn wasn't just good at talking; he was extremely efficient at executing his plans. Finally, he was also an excellent combatant and strategically brilliant.
And he possessed tremendous courage.
Dragon had never expected that as a Marine Admiral, after learning that Mary Geoise might be in danger, Finn wouldn't demonstrate loyalty to the World Government or even try to earn merit. Instead, he'd contacted Dragon, the traitor, in one breath and proposed attacking the World Government together.
Was this something a normal person would do?
Though abnormal, it demonstrated that Finn truly possessed exceptional courage and dared to do things ordinary people wouldn't consider.
However, due to his shamelessness, flexible morality, and adaptable personality, Dragon had yet to identify any obvious weaknesses or flaws in Finn's character.
That was why Dragon had always placed great importance on maintaining a good relationship with Finn. Making an enemy of someone like him would obviously be extremely troublesome. It was better to be friends bound by mutual interests. That benefited everyone.
This was how Dragon viewed Finn.
Finn's opinion of Dragon was similar. Dragon had single-handedly built the Revolutionary Army and hadn't been wiped out by the World Government for over twenty years. Instead, he'd grown stronger with each setback. It would be nonsense to claim he was incompetent.
Therefore, in Finn's view, although he often manipulated Dragon, there was no doubt it was based on his own meta-knowledge advantage. Dragon was obviously intelligent, courageous, and powerful.
When facing such a person, when there was no absolute hostility between them, why would you create unnecessary conflict and make him your enemy?
So from the time Dragon left the Marines until now, Finn had maintained a relatively friendly relationship with him, secretly forming an alliance and establishing what could be called a "community of interests."
The benefits were naturally numerous. For example, if Dragon succeeded with Mary Geoise this time, wouldn't Finn profit handsomely?
Just as Dragon was pondering these thoughts, Koshiro walked in from the courtyard, wiping sweat from his forehead. He smiled. "It's quite hot today. Dragon, what are you thinking about?"
As Dragon's close friend, he could see that something was weighing on his mind.
Dragon glanced at Koshiro, then grinned. "I'm thinking about how to say goodbye to you."
Koshiro smiled. "Didn't you just arrive? You're leaving already?"
"Yes. I have urgent business to attend to." Dragon nodded.
If he wanted to cause chaos in Mary Geoise, he had to move faster than Fisher Tiger. Otherwise, after that man made his move, the opportunity would be gone.
There was no way to predict when Tiger would act, so for Dragon, the faster he prepared, the better his chances. How could he afford to sit here eating and drinking tea with Koshiro?
"I see." Koshiro nodded calmly, unsurprised. As a friend, he offered a word of caution. "Dragon, you're a man pursuing great achievements, so I don't have much to say. But as your friend, I hope you'll be careful and stay safe."
"Thank you very much." Dragon nodded gently, then stood. "In that case, I'll take my leave now, Koshiro. I'll come visit again when I have time..."
After a brief pause, he smiled. "Read the newspapers more carefully these days. You might see some major news."
Koshiro smiled in return. "Really? Then I'll pay close attention to see what great things you're about to accomplish."
"It's a really big deal. Hahahaha! Goodbye." Dragon laughed and walked toward the door.
Just as Dragon was about to leave, Koshiro spoke again. "I agree to the food issue."
Dragon paused slightly, though he didn't turn around. "I thought you understood why I came?"
"After all, we're friends. If you want to do great things, I can't help you with much. I can only try my best to ease some of your burdens." Koshiro's voice was gentle.
That's right. The main reason Dragon had come to see Koshiro this time was to discuss whether Koshiro could help the Revolutionary Army purchase food supplies. As a major landowner in Shimotsuki Village, it was possible for Koshiro to secretly assist Dragon with such matters.
Dragon had mentioned this to Koshiro before, more or less, but Koshiro had never given a clear answer. This time, Dragon had wanted to get a definitive response, but before he could even bring it up, Finn had thrown this Mary Geoise opportunity at him.
So he'd been forced to postpone the discussion and deal with Mary Geoise first. Perhaps he could solve the logistics problem directly by plundering the Holy Land, and then he wouldn't need to ask his friend for help.
However, Koshiro didn't know what Dragon was planning to do. Seeing that Dragon was serious about accomplishing something major, as a friend, he could only help in whatever way possible.
Dragon's friend was truly considerate, like a genuine gentleman. Completely different from that scoundrel Finn.
"Thank you," Dragon said, waving without turning back.
Then, the moment he stepped out of the courtyard, his figure vanished like a breeze, disappearing from Koshiro's smiling gaze.