Chapter Fifteen: My Name

The Warlords of the Sea are seven prominent, powerful pirates granted privateer status by the World Government.

Securing this position grants access to special privileges and conveniences provided by the government.

These perks include legalized plundering and immunity from pursuit by the Marines.

In other words, attaining the rank of Warlord eliminates harassment and threats from the Marines, granting greater freedom of action and lifting many burdens.

Conversely, Warlords must answer mandatory summonses from the World Government and surrender a portion of their plunder, including profits from privateering.

These obligations come in exchange for the acquired privileges.

Consequently, ordinary pirates widely regard the Warlords as lapdogs of the World Government.

In reality, however, becoming a Warlord is no simple feat; only those with immense renown or strength terrifying enough to awe ordinary pirates are qualified for selection.

Take Fire Fist Ace, who rose to fame in recent years—prior to joining the Whitebeard Pirates, he was once invited by the World Government to join the Seven Warlords of the Sea.

Furthermore, many of the Warlords' privileges could be utilized to maximize the efficiency of the Hunter's Notebook.

For instance, one could present the Marines with an offer they could refuse, then use the status of a Warlord to request entry into Impel Down to execute prisoners lacking Devil Fruit abilities.

The Marines might well agree, perhaps even throwing in intelligence regarding the inmates.

Most prisoners in Impel Down endure daily torture, and those who survive possess physical stamina that is far from weak, making them exceptionally suitable prey.

Alternatively, under the premise of hunting pirates, one could request intelligence support from the Marines, a proposal they would undoubtedly accept with pleasure.

After all, from the perspective of the Marines, nothing is more delightful than watching pirates slaughter one another.

These represent just a few of the potential benefits accompanying the position of a Warlord.

Before posing the question to Laffitte, Devon had already contemplated the seat of a Warlord.

Yet, Devon's desire to claim that rank was driven by the goal of using a Warlord's status to greet the great war looming two years later.

To him, that was an absolute opportunity that must not be missed!

Moreover, participating in that capacity would allow him to put up a mere facade of effort without bearing the direct pressure of the war, while reaping a frenzy of experience amidst the chaos.

Yet these were merely hypotheses.

Concepts forged purely through thought naturally appeared deceptively simple.

The true difficulty lay in the process of reaching the Warlord's throne.

"The Warlords..."

Devon looked at Laffitte and said calmly,

"Unless the World Government adds an extra seat, claiming the position of a Warlord requires not only fame and strength, but also dragging one of the existing Warlords down."

"Naturally."

A broad, excited smile spread across Laffitte's face.

Devon pushed the hilt of the Chidori upward with his thumb, then released it, letting the hilt drop back into place.

Amidst the clicking sound of the blade shifting, Devon remarked, "Every single Warlord recognized by the government is a formidable figure. Dragging even one of them down will be an immense challenge."

"Heh heh, precisely because of that, it is worth pursuing."

Laffitte's excitement grew increasingly palpable as he declared, "No matter how arduous, I shall do everything in my power to pave the road for you!"

"I trust in your abilities."

Devon nodded solemnly, then added, "However, there is no need to rush; we can plan slowly. For now, our primary objective is to strengthen our own power."

Without sufficient strength, any hypothesis would ultimately crumble into mere fantasy.

This was a stark, realistic problem.

"Indeed, yet renown is equally crucial."

A glint flashed in Laffitte's eyes. Suppressing his excitement as much as possible, he hinted significantly, "Until our foundation is solid, we must not miss any opportunity to increase our fame."

Hearing this, Devon glanced out the window and said calmly, "You are referring to wiping out the Arlong Pirates?"

Laffitte nodded. "Precisely. Although the bounty of the captain of the Arlong Pirates is only twenty million, he is nonetheless the pirate with the highest bounty in the East Blue. He barely qualifies as a stepping stone."

Devon fell silent at these words.

Yet Laffitte easily guessed the reason for Devon's hesitation.

"Devon, there is no need to worry unduly over this. The once-every-four-years Levely is approaching shortly. To ensure the safety of the monarchs from various member states attending the conference, Marine Headquarters will inevitably dispatch a massive force to fulfill security duties."

"Oh?"

Devon felt a slight surge of surprise. This piece of information had truly escaped his impression.

If things were as Laffitte described, this period would be the absolute prime time for pirates to act as they pleased.

At this thought, Devon looked at Laffitte, his eyes flashing as a grin spread across his face. "That means..."

"Indeed."

Laffitte understood instantly, nodding in tacit agreement.

With the Marines stretched thin at the moment, any endeavor would carry far fewer concerns than usual.

Even so, Devon still harbored mild worries that such actions might embroil Saul and the others living in peaceful retirement on Coco Island.

Yet, upon second thought, if Saul were present here, he would undoubtedly impart a single, undeniable philosophy.

Namely: Just do it.

Devon's mind was quickly put at ease.

Half an hour later.

Devon packed all the Berries into a large, sturdy cloth sack.

During the process, he made a rough estimation.

The cash contained within this bag amounted to somewhere between six hundred million and seven hundred million, a truly astronomical sum.

Once finished, Devon called Laffitte down from the surveying room, where the continuously munching Beli had been instructed to fetch him.

Throughout the past half-hour, Laffitte had remained in the room, browsing through nautical charts.

Since he could not take the maps with him, he had tried his best to memorize them against future contingencies.

With the money packed, there was no reason to linger further.

Devon walked toward the window and suddenly kicked out at the wall beside it.

"Boom!"

With a loud crash, the entire wall shattered apart, chunks of debris scattering onto the ground.

The sack of money was simply too large; attempting to leave through the door was out of the question, leaving the wall as the only viable exit.

The tremendous commotion of kicking down a wall instantly drew the attention of the villagers.

They had been waiting outside on the open ground for dozens of minutes, eager to express their gratitude to Devon.

Hearing the sudden blast, the villagers started in alarm and turned their gaze toward the tower-like structure in Arlong's territory, where a thick cloud of dust billowed from the source of the sound.

Soon, they spotted Devon and Laffitte leaping down from the dust.

A few seconds later, a series of heavy impacts echoed from within Arlong's domain.

Moments later, the towering structure collapsed into a heap of ruins, sending up a massive cloud of dust.

Witnessing this, the villagers finally realized that the frequent noises had been caused by Devon and Laffitte demolishing the building.

They watched the spreading dust with bated breath.

A short while later, two figures emerged from the haze.

Devon walked in the lead, with Beli squatting on his shoulder.

Laffitte shouldered a massive, bulging sack. Fortunately, his tall stature kept the heavy burden from dragging along the ground.

Glancing briefly at the silent villagers, Devon ignored them entirely and headed straight for the shoreline.

He intended to follow the coastline until he reached the spot where their small sailboat was anchored.

The villagers watched in utter silence as Devon and Laffitte made their way toward the shore.

The sheer demolition-crew aura radiating from them blocked the words of gratitude lingering at the tips of their tongues.

Beneath the fearful and silent gaze of the villagers, Devon reached the edge of the water.

He suddenly halted, then turned his head to look back at them.

"Oh, right. I am a pirate. My name is... Ghost Gun Devon."

"Should the Marines come to clean up the mess, feel free to drop my name."

With those parting words, Devon left without hesitation.

Led by Nami and the others, the villagers stared in blank shock at the two receding figures.

"Devon is... a pirate!?"