Chapter 1043 Crocodile's Ambition
The new king, who is being cared about by Hua Yu, is currently holding an internal closed-door meeting to discuss what role the Baroque Studio will play in the grand auction.
Baroque Studios is part of the bounty hunter system, which is similar to a contract-based company.
Provide contracted bounty hunters with information about pirates at sea, and after defeating the pirates, the bounty hunters will hand it over to the navy.
Regarding the bounty of the pirates, the bounty hunters and Baroque Studio split it in half, with a commission of up to 50%.
Although the commission rate is very high, bounty hunters who accept bounty missions can succeed in most cases, and the information provided by Baroque Studio is very accurate.
Let this group of old foxes bully the new pirates who have just entered the Grand Line and teach the fledgling little guys a hard lesson.
The dark side of Baroque Studio belongs to pirates. Now that the Seven Warlords of the Sea have been disbanded, neither the World Government nor the Navy needs the power of pirates.
No one will give a pirate special rights to rob despite the pressure from public opinion. Pirates have always been thieves in the eyes of the righteous, and the image of pirates as evil has never been washed away.
Fortunately, Crocodile was quite knowledgeable about the ways of the world. As soon as he completed the theft of the country, he took the initiative to contact the Celestial Dragons' upper echelons to offer large-scale bribes in order to prevent the navy from retaliating against Baroque Studios later.
This move of Crocodile is extremely effective. The world government, which is in the process of shrinking its power, naturally does not care who replaces the king as long as the member states are willing to pay money.
The World Government even sent a special envoy to participate in Crocodile's coronation ceremony. The official recognized him as the new king of the desert country. From then on, Crocodile got rid of the stigma of a pirate.
The old name of the country, Alabasta, was abandoned with the ascension of the new king. Crocodile wanted the people under his rule to forget the name and deeds of the former king's family.
The country's name was changed to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, and it became a member of the member states again, and in theory it was protected by the World Government and the Navy.
"Blackbeard Teach's men are becoming more and more arrogant. They even dare to arrest people in the city. They simply don't take us seriously."
The third brother was indignant at the meeting about the offense of the Blackbeard Pirates. If he hadn't been able to expand his domain, he would never have swallowed his anger like he did today.
The Blackbeard Pirates are really going too far. Even though their spheres of influence have been clearly divided, it is always Teach's crew that cross the line, causing unnecessary friction.
The first time was accidental, the second time was inattention, the third time was forgetfulness, so if you make other excuses the fourth time, the fifth time, and the sixth time, will the crocodile believe it?
Crocodile believed that the foundation of his rule was unstable, so he made peace with the demon. He wanted to use the power of the demon to block the invasion of the outside world and allow the Baroque Studio to gain a foothold in the Kingdom of Sand.
After the founding of the country, the rule of the Baroque studio became increasingly solid, and the residents living in the city suffered several times the oppression.
They even call themselves a human mine, but as long as they can have food to eat and fill the stomachs of their wives and children, these people will not rebel.
The people who have complaints against the new king can only hold their noses and suffer bad luck, because the previous king was so weak in military power that he failed in the battle for supremacy and lost everything.
If ordinary people want to survive, they can only go with the flow under the rule of the strong. Live one day at a time. Leaving their homeland may lead to death faster.
The voices opposing the new king in the country became smaller and smaller, Crocodile no longer intervened, and the natural environment and precipitation of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia began to return to normal.
The mentality of being a king is different from that of being a pirate. The former has a base, while the latter has no fixed place to live and relies on robbery for a living.
Crocodile can support Baroque Studio just by collecting taxes, without having to become a pirate and rob merchant ships passing by.
These businessmen will pay taxes to the new king. The better the country is built and the larger the population is, the faster the trade develops, the more taxes will be collected. It is a positive cycle.
Although Crocodile has lost his strong heart and was traumatized by Whitebeard, he is unwilling to be inferior to others.
To possess the status of an emperor on the sea, one must rely first on strength and second on territory. Without territory, mere fame is doomed to be short-lived.
The four imperial groups now all have their own sphere of influence, dividing the second half of the Grand Line. You take a piece and I take a piece, and even the navy cannot intervene.
The existing population of the Saudi Kingdom, if utilized well, is enough to support a large royal group. The ambition of the Saudi Crocodile who sits on the throne of king is growing, and he wants to continue to move to the next position.
"That guy Teach is extremely ambitious. Sooner or later he will have a falling out with Naraku. This time I am bringing him to the auction as a surprise for Whitebeard."
Crocodile knew that the Baroque Studio was weak and could not engage in a head-on conflict with the demons, so he could only hope for their internal division.
The demons may fight each other for their ambitions and desires, and humans may take advantage of the situation.
The Baroque Studio has formed an alliance with the Joker Pirates. The Demon Group knows this news, so they only dare to provoke them and are not brave enough to kill Crocodile head-on.
Although it is not pleasant to survive in the gap between two big forces, the Sand Crocodile itself is not strong enough and the weak are not worthy of being at the table.
Crocodile did not waste his days as king. He spent a lot of money to hire a teacher to learn Haki. With his talent, he has already mastered Armament Haki and Observation Haki.
It’s just that the strength of the domineering aura is somewhat worrying. After all, quick success will have limited impact on strength. Domineering aura requires long-term practice.
The other members of the Baroque Studio have been learning Haki from their boss one after another. Some of them are very talented and can learn it in one go, while others are dull and cannot yet master Haki.
For some unknown reason, Gardino could never comprehend the domineering power, but Sand Shark didn't take it to heart.
The third brother of Baroque Studio will shine in the future application field. Maybe it is because the domineering teacher he hired is not good enough, which hinders Gardino's own talent.
There are as many excuses as you want. Now that the third brother is the most important liaison between the two forces, it is understandable that he does not have much time to practice.
"Lord Buggy is not interested in the Grand Auction. What the Joker Pirates care about is Impel Down." The Undersea Prison has what the clown Buggy needs, and he doesn't like the items at the Grand Auction.
Not wanting to waste more energy and get involved in meaningless traps, the Joker Pirates are waiting for the outbreak of the Battle of Marineford.
When the navy's attention is mostly occupied by the two pirate groups, that is when the defense of the Impel Down Castle is the weakest, and Gardino will also participate in the prison break.
The Baroque Studio is weak now, so all it needs to do now is to do its own thing well. Watching other big forces fighting on the sea and focusing on development is the best strategy.
As for the treasures to be displayed at the grand auction, Crocodile was very interested. After all, being a king made him richer than being a pirate.
If we can buy a lot and train a master among our own people, the strength of the Baroque Studio will be enhanced and it will not be controlled by others like it is today.
Crocodile doesn't want to participate in the war, but he doesn't mind watching the Whitebeard Pirates being wiped out by the navy in the nearby Sabaody Archipelago.