Vergo went out to contact Doflamingo, clearly embarrassed.
Finn had nothing pressing to do, so he turned to look at Hina, who was watering the plants. "I heard the Fleet Admiral gave you all my bonus?"
"Yeah, I left it with Sister Gion." Hina said while tending to the flowers.
After a brief pause, Hina complained, "The plants are all dying while we were gone. Shouldn't we find someone to help water them when we're away?"
Finn looked somewhat surprised. "Why did you give my bonus to Gion?"
"Is there a problem?" Hina asked, confused.
"Ah, well..." Finn wanted to say something, but in the end he shook his head and put on a smile. "Nothing."
Fortunately, I have enough private savings.
While chatting with Hina, he waited for news from Doflamingo.
A moment later, Vergo knocked on the door again. Finn answered, and Vergo walked in holding a Den Den Mushi. He said softly, "Admiral, my Young Master wants to explain things to you personally."
"Yeah." Finn responded. Vergo placed the Den Den Mushi on the desk.
"Hello?" Finn asked.
"Fufufufu, Admiral Finn, congratulations." Doflamingo's distinctive laugh came through the transponder snail.
Finn also laughed. "Congratulations for what?"
"Of course, congratulations on leading the Marines to a glorious victory in the New World, and congratulations on winning the title of strongest." Doflamingo's tone was smooth.
"Thank you very much," Finn said.
"Regarding the Dark-Dark Fruit, I apologize, there's no relevant news yet. However, I'm increasing my efforts to search..." Doflamingo explained.
"Yes, I understand." Finn responded calmly.
He paused briefly before asking, "What did you mean by those cryptic words you had Vergo say to me just now? What do you mean by wanting to be a Warlord? Did he miscommunicate? You meant to say 'I don't want to be a Warlord,' right? How about I arrange for you to retire?"
Are you going to retire me now?
Are you deliberately trying to make trouble for me?
After I became one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, the war broke out in the New World. You kept preventing me from acting, and now as soon as the war ends, I'm going to be retired?
So what was I doing all this time?
Even though Doflamingo knew Finn was teasing him, he still explained helplessly, "No, no, no, I have absolutely no intention of quitting the Warlords. Speaking of which, Admiral, I've been studying the Warlord organization lately and discovered many interesting things..."
"What's there to study..." Finn said softly.
His gaze had changed slightly. Vergo noticed this as well. He looked somewhat surprised. Could it be there really was something called "true" or "false" among the Seven Warlords?
"Fufufufu, after all, I am one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea. Naturally, I need to know what my predecessors did so I can learn from them." Doflamingo's laugh was tinged with something darker.
"If you keep spouting this nonsense, Doflamingo, I'll lose my patience." Finn said softly, a smile on his face.
But his tone was cold.
After hearing Finn's words, Doflamingo's eyes lit up, as if he'd confirmed something. He said softly, "It's like this, Admiral Finn. The situation in the New World should have stabilized now, right? So, as one of the Warlords, can I take action?"
Finn was somewhat surprised by Doflamingo's shift in topic, but he continued, "What are you planning to do?"
"It's like this. My Donquixote family once ruled all of Dressrosa. Have you heard of Dressrosa? It's a kingdom in the New World..." Doflamingo said.
"Of course, the Land of Passion, right? I've heard the people there are very enthusiastic. I used to look forward to having a perfect encounter in Dressrosa. After all, it seems the beauties in Dressrosa are... cough, cough, cough..." Finn was speaking when he noticed Hina starting to take notes in a small notebook. He quickly changed subjects. Maybe this woman had already betrayed him and become a spy!
"Fufufufufu, yes, the people of Dressrosa are indeed very enthusiastic." Doflamingo laughed on the other end.
Finn didn't respond, so Doflamingo continued. "Dressrosa is currently ruled by the Riku royal family. As a king, he's perhaps too kind and idealistic. Under the Riku family's leadership, Dressrosa's economy has been declining. For the past decade, it's been in dire straits. I believe this is a dereliction of duty, so I plan to reclaim the throne of Dressrosa in the name of the Donquixote family. What do you think?"
A hint of surprise flickered in Finn's eyes. He certainly wasn't surprised by Doflamingo's plan. In fact, he'd guessed Doflamingo would have such intentions.
Finn was surprised that Doflamingo was actually telling him about it!
"Interesting! Since when do the Seven Warlords of the Sea have to report their actions to me?" Finn smiled with clear amusement.
"I don't know about the other Warlords, but from today on, I, as a Warlord, am very happy to serve you, Admiral, and very happy to participate in your plans and follow your arrangements and instructions. Just like I said before, I hope to become a 'true' Warlord." Doflamingo's voice was serious.
Finn was silent for a moment after hearing this. He looked at Vergo. Vergo's expression showed confusion. It probably wasn't him who'd discovered information, but rather Doflamingo himself who'd deduced something.
What a sharp guy.
After thinking for a moment, Finn asked, "So, Doflamingo, tell me. Who do you think are the true Warlords?"
"Fufufu, I'd guess Smoker, Bartholomew Kuma, Jinbe, and Hancock are the real Seven Warlords of the Sea, right?" Doflamingo said with his characteristic laugh.
"Getting closer to the truth." Finn said with a smile.
From this answer, he'd also learned quite a bit. For example, Doflamingo at least didn't know the Warlords were also connected with Dragon. He was only suspicious of the Marines' involvement.
Doflamingo was somewhat surprised. During his research, he'd genuinely believed these four were all from the Marines, or were Finn's people.
First, Smoker. He'd basically confirmed this and needed no further explanation.
Second, Jinbe. He'd once been Finn's direct subordinate, but later had inexplicably defected because of Fisher Tiger. However, because of Fisher Tiger's situation, he'd later become one of the Seven Warlords again.
Third, Hancock. Since Vergo had been involved in some matters concerning the Calm Belt and G-7, Doflamingo, through various clues and traces, had roughly deduced that Hancock should be the same as Smoker. Even a large amount of the Amway Group's resource goods were produced in the Calm Belt region ruled by Hancock, so one had to suspect she was also Finn's person.
Fourth, Bartholomew Kuma. When this man was still king, it had been Finn who'd led forces to depose him from the throne. Later, he'd wandered the world and gradually become a pirate. Not long after the Seven Warlords plan was implemented, Bartholomew Kuma had become one of them. After that, he'd practically lived alongside the Marines and completely transformed into a friend of the Marines.
Moreover, if you looked closely at Bartholomew Kuma's history, you'd find that when he was a pirate, he'd only targeted fellow pirates and never robbed ordinary people. How could he not be a Marine?
Of these four, Doflamingo was most certain about Bartholomew Kuma being a Marine, because Kuma had been the first of the Warlords to interact with Finn, and his style was most like a Marine's.
Without proper intelligence, Doflamingo would never have guessed that Bartholomew Kuma was actually one of Dragon's people.
He'd basically determined these four were Finn's subordinates, but Finn said he was getting closer to the truth, which surprised Doflamingo.
"Could it be that Crocodile is really..." Doflamingo asked with surprise.
"Hahahaha! Is he worthy?" Finn laughed.
"Then Mihawk?" Doflamingo asked with renewed surprise.
"Wrong answer." Finn said. Before Doflamingo could speak, Finn continued, "Well, you don't need to worry about these details. Your talk about real and fake Warlords is completely meaningless. Doflamingo, just do what you should do. Like I said before, this time, you might still have a choice."
"I hope to leave this choice to you." Doflamingo said seriously.
"Dressrosa. Don't leave any embarrassing loose ends. If you want to take it, use elegant methods." Finn said.
"I understand. I'm quite confident about this." Doflamingo's voice was soft.
"Very good. I don't care what you plan to do in Dressrosa, but fifty percent of the net profit belongs to me. Is that a problem?" Finn asked.
Doflamingo's eyes lit up. His breathing became slightly heavier. Although Finn had demanded fifty percent of the profit, Doflamingo felt only joy.
What was Doflamingo truly seeking? Although he appeared to be a money-making underworld businessman, a middleman, he wasn't truly after wealth. He was after revenge. So without hesitation, he said, "Of course, no problem. I only need thirty percent to keep operations running."
"Just keep fifty percent." Finn said matter-of-factly. After a brief pause, he continued, "I'll have Smoker cooperate fully with you. If you think that's what being a 'true Warlord' means, then treat him as one. Hehehe, as long as you don't disappoint me and bring me enough value and benefits, I'll also consider you a true Warlord, Doflamingo."
Doflamingo was certain he'd finally received some form of promise. He relaxed slightly. "I won't disappoint you, Admiral."
"Finally, you came from Mary Geoise. Whether it's the Five Elders or someone else, their attitude toward you has already proven you're holding a sufficiently interesting secret, right?" Finn asked softly.
Doflamingo hesitated this time. After a silence of three to five seconds, he finally replied, "Yes."
"Don't be so nervous. I don't trust you, and you don't trust me either. This is perfectly normal. So make the most of this opportunity and see if you can build a bridge of true trust, Doflamingo. When I need you, when you feel it's appropriate, then calmly and happily hand over the secrets you're holding to me." Finn's voice was gentle but firm.
Doflamingo remained silent for a while before responding, "Thank you."