As the meeting enced, Cudius began outlining the details of the operation, including the pn to colborate with Marshall D. Tea capturing one of Whitebeard's division anders.

  At the same time, Cudius made it crystal clear that he had no true alliah Teach.

  "Let me emphasize this once again, Marshall D. Teach is not my subordinate.

  "I am merely using him."

  "At the same time, I strongly advise caution when dealing with him."

  "This man is an ambitious schemer. He will never submit to our authority."

  "We make use of him, but we must never let ourselves be used by him.

  He rapped his knuckles against the table for emphasis.

  Despite Cudius' serious tone, Sengoku quickly noticed that her Nusjuris seemed to care all that much.

  After all, at the end of the day, Teach was just a small-time figure.

  Did the Wover really o itself with someone like him?

  Throughout history, every pirate who had risen to prominence had done so only after decades of struggle.

  The so-called "Weion" didn't eve yet.

  As far as Nusjuro and the others were ed, even if Teach did bee a threat, it wouldn't be for aen or twenty years.

  But Cudius knew better.

  If Teach pyed his cards right, he could rise to power ht.

  Still, he had done his part. He had warhem.

  If they ignored his words ated it ter, that was their problem.

  ---

  Kong leaned forward, his expression thoughtful.

  "The preliminary preparations seem sound.

  But if we want to guarantee success, this won't be easy.

  We're not the only ones watg the pirate world, those pirates and the criminal underworld are also watg us.

  If we trate too much of our forces, our enemies will take notice.

  And ohey do, they'll bee wary of our movements."

  The others nodded in agreement.

  The Seven Warlords of the Sea were ohing—after all, they were just a colle of pirates, so their mobilization wouldn't attract much attention.

  But Marine Headquarters?

  The Marines were the undisputed rulers of the sea.

  Every single one of their as was monitored by the world.

  If the Marines suddenly began massing their elite forces, people would take notice.

  Even those uninvolved would grow suspicious and begin preparing defenses, something they wao avoid.

  Kong's s were valid, but the question remained, how could they disguise Marine mobilization?

  After a brief silenusjuro turo Gis.

  "Gis, your CP agencies assist in c our movements?"

  Gis' expression darkened slightly.

  "Is he joking?"

  The CP agencies were powerful, but they weren't that powerful.

  C up the movements of a few hundred Marines? Possible.

  But tens of thousands? Possibly a huhousand?

  That was insane.

  How was he supposed to hide that?

  "At best… we minimize the exposure," Gis finally said, choosing his words carefully.

  Nusjuro nodded slightly, he uood the limitations.

  The room fell into silence as everyone pohe issue.

  Then, Cudius cleared his throat.

  The moment he did, Nusjuro's eyes brightened, and the others turheir attention toward him.

  "You have an idea?" Nusjuro asked.

  Cudius smiled.

  "Perhaps.

  It's not a perfect solution, but I think it's worth sidering."

  "Let's hear it," Nusjuro said.

  Cudius took a slow sip of tea before speaking.

  " year, we're hosting the Reverie, the World Summit.

  Every time the Reverie is held, the Marines make major deployments.

  Their presence is required for security, esc the various royal families, and maintaining order."

  The moment Cudius mentiohe Reverie, Nusjuro's eyes fshed with uanding.

  Across the table, Sengoku and Kong also began to smile slightly.

  Cudius tinued.

  "That alone serves as an excellent cover.

  During the Reverie, it's normal for Marine forces to mobilize.

  If we slightly exaggerate that mobilization, no one will bat an eye."

  Sengoku stroked his beard.

  "You're suggesting we mask our true movements uhe pretense of escort duty?"

  Cudius nodded.

  "Exactly.

  At the very least, it'll make things far more ve for us."

  Kong sidered the idea for a moment before nodding.

  "The strategy is solid… but it still might not be enough."

  Cudius grinned.

  "Then why not expand the Reverie?"

  Silence filled the room.

  Unlike before, this wasn't something Marine Headquarters or CP could decide.

  Only the Five Elders had the authority to make such a decision.

  And now, all eyes were on Nusjuro.

  Nusjuro, for his part, remained deep in thought.

  Expanding the Reverie would serve as an excellent cover.

  With so many royal families gathered, the world's attention would be focused entirely on Mariejois.

  The Wover could secretly deploy troops uhe guise of "ensuring global security."

  But at the same time, expanding the Reverie was no simple matter.

  The more kings and queens gathered, the greater the risk of Revolutionary Army infiltration.

  Even so, the idea was tempting.

  And Cudius wasn't do.

  "If we expand the Reverie, then Marine mobilization begin immediately.

  We'll have at least six months to prepare.

  And before the Reverie even begins, we'll have already wiped out the Whitebeard Pirates in one swift strike.

  Then, at the Reverie itself, we announce our victory before the entire world."

  Nusjuro's gaze flickered.

  The past several Reveries had been b.

  There were no major developments, just the same old debates about the Revolutionary Army.

  And even that was frustrating.

  Despite the CP agencies' efforts, the Revolutionary Army had only grown stronger.

  If they could elimihe Whitebeard Pirates before the Reverie…

  It would be the perfect political move.

  For years, the world had believed that this era beloo Whitebeard.

  If they killed Whitebeard, then in a symbolise…

  The Great Pirate Era itself could be decred over.

  Even if piracy wasn't pletely eradicated, the message would be clear.

  "The Wover has tamed the stro beast of the sea."

  The alliaions would finally see results.

  They would see that the Wover wasn't just sitting idly by, it was actively shaping the future.

  Cudius leaned back, his smirk widening.

  "Whitebeard is the turning point of this era.

  If we eliminate him, we end the Golden Age of Piracy itself."

  Silence filled the room.

  Then, slowly, Nusjuro's lips curled into a smile.

  The others had already made up their minds.

  It was decided.

  They would crush Whitebeard's legacy before the Reverie began.

  And by the time the wathered in Mariejois…

  The Wover would stand before them, triumphant.

  ***

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