Jasmine wore a pained expression as she handed a financial report to Grayza with trembling fingers. Grayza took one look and gasped.
"After two consecutive attacks, most of our funds were spent on disaster relief and port reconstruction," she said grimly.
"At this rate, even the shipyard project might be delayed."
"That can't happen," Grayza declared, frowning.
"The shipyard is essential to Mr. Gawain's plan to enter the Grand Line. There can't be any mistakes."
"Hasn't the debt with the Kingdom of Goa been settled yet?"
At the mention of the Kingdom of Goa, both Grayza's and Jasmine's faces darkened.
"There's been too much chaos at the port these past months," Jasmine said bitterly.
"We haven't had the time to handle the Goa issue."
"And before that, every envoy we sent was driven out. A few workers were even arbitrarily imprisoned."
"It took a great deal of effort just to get them released."
She gritted her teeth.
"Expect them to pay us back? In our dreams."
Grayza let out a weary sigh.
"Let's send someone to try again."
Jasmine's face fell, but seeing the exhaustion in Grayza's expression, she forced a smile and said:
"Forget it. I'll handle it."
Grayza nodded, though she didn't hold out much hope. She knew exactly what kind of people the Goa royal family were.
They hadn't inherited the throne legitimately.
After the old king's death, the rightful princes had all mysteriously perished—leaving the throne to Stelly, a man with no blood relation to the royal line.
It didn't take a genius to see the corruption involved.
Still, the royal family were affiliated with the World Government, and that made the situation... sensitive. Even Grayza had to tread carefully.
After mulling it over, Grayza had no better solution. She waved for Jasmine to rest, then stared down at the financial report for the rest of the night.
It wasn't until dawn that an idea struck her.
"The Martial Arts Tournament!"
"Didn't Captain Gawain want to organize a fair competition within the pirate crew?"
"If we can normalize it—and even open it to public challengers—it could attract tourists from across the seas to Raven Harbor!"
"Ticket sales are secondary. The real benefit would be the boost to every surrounding business!"
The more she thought about it, the more hopeful Grayza became.
Ignoring her fatigue, she jumped to her feet, flung open the door, and headed straight to Gawain's residence.
A few minutes later...
At the edge of Raven Harbor, Gawain, Kuro, and Gin sat in a corner booth at a tavern, listening to Grayza explain her plan and the potential benefits.
A classic case of painting big dreams.
Grayza was getting worked up, describing the vision in grand terms, when Kuro cut in sharply:
"A project that ambitious is going to need massive upfront investment, isn't it?"
Grayza's face turned red. Looking anxiously to Gawain for support, she pleaded:
"Captain, if this is executed properly, it's guaranteed to be a money-making venture. If Raven Harbor thrives, our income will only keep growing."
"It could even become the face of the East Blue!"
Gawain gave her a long look.
"Raven Harbor's short on funds, isn't it?"
Grayza froze—she hadn't expected Gawain to see through her predicament so easily. She sighed and nodded.
"Those two attacks drained all our cash reserves. And the debt to the Kingdom of Goa is still unpaid."
"We're barely scraping by. If this keeps up, not only will port operations falter—your shipbuilding plans will be in jeopardy too."
At those words, Gawain sat upright, frowning slightly.
"I'll be blunt," he said.
"Your plan takes too long. By the time it generates profits, your capital chain will already be broken."
"If the shortfall isn't too large, we can help fill the gap temporarily."
Kuro sighed.
"We still need to reserve funds for shipbuilding. And let's not forget—you, Captain, already spent a fortune helping settle your crew members."
"There's not much left in the treasury. And we'll be bleeding more money soon."
He paused for a moment—then a spark flashed in his eyes.
"Unless we can recover a large sum of money in a short period of time…"
Gawain raised an eyebrow.
"Thinking of opening external betting?"
But Kuro shook his head and smiled mysteriously.
"Captain, we're the undisputed overlords of the East Blue now. No pirate group can compare with you… and none can match me or Gin, either."
"And besides—how much do you really think you can squeeze out of broke gamblers?"
"No, no. Think bigger."
"If we're going to make money—we'll make serious money. Rich people's money."
Gawain tapped his fingers on the table, a rhythmic tok tok tok as he considered Kuro's words. Within seconds, he caught on.
"You're targeting the nobles of the East Blue?"
"Targeting? No, no. This is legitimate business," Kuro replied smoothly, pushing up his glasses.
"Hosting an event of this scale—what's wrong with charging sponsorship fees?"
"Letting them pay for premium seats, special access—it's only fair, isn't it?"
"Hiss—" Gawain sucked in a cold breath.
This wasn't sponsorship. Kuro was planning to use the tournament as a massive shakedown, bleeding the nobles dry under the guise of commerce.
But then again, this was Kuro.
He'd infiltrated Kaya's estate for three years and was handpicked by gOda as the world's second smartest man.
This guy never intended to play fair in the first place.
"Isn't this a bit too evil?" Gawain murmured, rubbing his hands with a guilty grin.
Kuro shot him a look.
"Having second thoughts, Captain?"
"Not really," Gawain chuckled.
"I'm just worried we'll only get one harvest from these noble 'crops'."
"Then we go easy the first time."
The two exchanged smiles.
Everything had already been said—without saying a word.
"Hehehe~"
"Hehehe~"
In the world of pirates, everyone knew what kind of people the nobles were. Gawain felt zero guilt about bleeding them dry.
Grayza, meanwhile, was still trying to understand what had just happened. But she knew one thing for sure—Gawain had agreed to help.
Still, a question lingered in her mind.
"Will they even give us sponsorships if we ask?"
"Of course," Gawain said with a calm smile.
"Because I plan to send Gin and Kuro with the ship to collect it. If they refuse…"
"We'll just hoist a different pirate flag and ask again."
"They'll get the message."
At that moment, Grayza finally understood—and a spark of vicious satisfaction crossed her face.
"Captain… can we start with the Kingdom of Goa?"
"No problem."