Inside the giant cherry blossom tree, a spiraling staircase had been built, along with a huge elevator capable of carrying over a hundred people at once and a separate elevator reserved only for high-ranking officers.
That's right. The World Government already had elevator technology. It just wasn't widely used because the Celestial Dragons of Mary Geoise preferred the more unique bubble elevators.
Since this place didn't have the conditions needed for bubble elevators, regular elevators were built instead.
Outside the giant tree, a massive staircase had also been constructed. It stretched all the way up to the Seireitei, with tens of thousands of wide stone steps.
Originally, Spandine had planned to take the elevator inside. But for some reason, Master Tom insisted on using the grand outer staircase because it looked more impressive. With no other choice, Spandine could only tag along.
They had barely climbed a third of the way before Spandine was already gasping for breath.
Bracing his hands on his knees, he turned to the burly underling beside him and said, "Come on, carry me up. I can't keep going…"
"No problem, Commander!" The underling immediately stepped forward and carried Spandine on his back.
Master Tom, being a Fish-Man, was inherently strong, robust, and a shipwright used to wielding a heavy sledgehammer. Naturally, his stamina was boundless and he faced zero issues. As he scaled the staircase, he remarked with deep emotion, "Even the most ordinary steps here are built from incredibly expensive stone blocks. One can only imagine how much capital was lavished on this palace..."
"Stone is the cheapest resource on Frost Island," Lincoln smiled and replied, "There were already huge reserves here. We barely spent any time or money gathering it and simply put it to use. Most of the Seireitei palace complex was built using various special stones from Wano. That saved a lot of time and money. Young Master really knows how to avoid waste."
To be fair, Wano had always been rich in stone resources.
Although those materials were rarely sold outside the country, generations of prisoners had been forced to mine them for centuries, leaving behind enormous stockpiles.
There was enough stone left to build another palace complex if needed.
Even the massive outer walls had been built from these materials.
The quality of the stone was excellent as well, making it one of the best building materials available. Because of that, Valthior didn't bother looking elsewhere and simply used local resources.
That was one of the main reasons the Seireitei had been completed in such a short time.
On one hand, huge amounts of money had been spent transporting valuable materials from outside. Lincoln had already predicted that his young master would eventually begin a massive construction project, so he had started stockpiling resources long before Valthior arrived.
On the other hand, they made heavy use of local materials and spared no labor. Work continued day and night, allowing such a grand palace to be completed within only a few months.
Valthior had never asked for the exact numbers, but he estimated that at least ten thousand laborers had died during the construction.
In a way, the entire place had been built upon the blood and bones of the former citizens of Wano.
From a certain point of view, Valthior had committed all the sins here that he never had the chance to commit in Mary Geoise.
Back in Mary Geoise, there were plenty of people with status equal to his or close to it. Combined with some remaining sense of restraint, he behaved himself to a certain degree.
But in Wano, he truly acted like a Celestial Dragon.
There was no guilt, no hesitation, and no one to stop him.
It was like playing a single-player game with no connection to the outside world. Everything here existed solely for his enjoyment.
He could shape it however he wanted and do whatever he pleased.
After spending a considerable amount of time, they finally arrived at the grand entrance of the Seireitei. Despite his exhaustion, Lincoln immediately led them inside to pay audience.
Because Master Tom had insisted on taking the stairs, they were already far behind schedule. He was terrified that his young master would lose patience, and that a furious outburst—and punishment—might follow.
However, upon entering the hall, they saw Valthior in the middle of a meeting with Spencer and the others. No one dared to interrupt.
So Lincoln quietly led Tom and the others to wait by the entrance.
"The island is too closed off," Spencer said, cigarette clenched between his teeth, heavy dark circles under his eyes. "We need a proper platform that allows information to move in and out quickly. That will improve our intelligence network. Otherwise, costs will keep rising while efficiency stays the same. We need more ports, and we should set aside a special area as a marketplace for the Underworld. That way, different forces will be attracted to settle here."
In the past, he had only been a pirate.
Now he was helping build a major organization from nothing.
The amount of work involved was enormous.
Even though intelligence gathering was his specialty, he had barely slept during this period.
"We've already found several good natural harbors," Valthior nodded. "Large ships can enter safely without running aground. I've reviewed the reports and approved them. Construction on five new ports will begin soon. We won't rely only on Frost Harbor anymore."
At the beginning of the month, Valthior had contacted Morgans and arranged for a notice to be published in the World Economy News paper.
The announcement declared that the former Wano Country, now Frost Island, was fully open to the outside world.
The island would no longer be isolated and welcomed visitors from across the seas.
The paper also advertised many local products, including swords, weapons, and Seastone.
The goal was simple—to attract people and break down the invisible wall that had separated the island from the world for centuries.
Unfortunately, not much had changed yet.
Maybe not enough time had passed.
Or maybe the giant waterfall surrounding the island scared away too many people.
Either way, while a few outsiders had arrived, their numbers remained small.
Lincoln's immigration efforts, however, had made good progress. More and more people had started settling on the island.
Still, most of them were ordinary civilians and couldn't provide much valuable information.
Because of the island's isolation, Spencer still couldn't establish a reliable intelligence network connecting Frost Island to the outside world.
"Besides the main island, there's another island in the inland sea," Spencer continued. "The locals call it Onigashima. It's not huge, but it's large enough to count as a small island. Right now it's completely undeveloped. It used to be the Kozuki Family's private hunting ground. Since the Kozuki are gone, why don't we develop it and open it as a 'Lawless Zone' with no restrictions?"
"Exactly, Captain," Sphinx chimed in as she bit down on a lollipop. "The Underworld may have a bad reputation, but it's actually an important part of the world. Rengar and I have spent years working in it. We can honestly say that without the Underworld, the seas would be even more chaotic. A lot of things simply wouldn't get done."
"The Underworld is important," Rengar agreed with a nod.
The world wasn't simply black and white.
There was always a gray area in between.
The Underworld existed within that gray area.
As they said, it was an essential part of life on the seas.
Even the World Government depended on it in many ways.
That was simply how the world worked.
"And don't forget taxes," Spencer added. "The Underworld pays taxes too. If we control an important Underworld hub, huge amounts of money will flow through here. We provide protection, and according to the rules, we can charge fees. If we turn Onigashima into a lawless zone for the Underworld, people and businesses will come on their own. After some time, it'll become a stable source of income."
Valthior had never been against letting the Underworld operate in his territory.
Now that everyone supported the idea and the benefits were obvious, he saw no reason to refuse.
After considering everyone's opinions, he nodded.
"Alright. We'll do it. Sphinx and Rengar, the two of you will draft a full proposal. You're the experts in this area. Once it's finished, let Spencer review it. If there are no problems, we'll move forward."
Valthior had almost no experience dealing with the Underworld himself.
There was no point pretending to be an expert.
It was better to leave the job to people who knew what they were doing.
As he looked around the spacious hall, Valthior once again felt the lack of capable people under his command.
People like Sunbell and Doringo were trustworthy, but they lacked the necessary skills.
They were great pirates and excellent at causing trouble out at sea.
But when it came to managing a territory, they were completely lost.
As for the talented people sent by his family, Valthior didn't dare place them in truly important positions.
After all, both he and the old man were players in the same game.
Who knew whether those people were loyal to him or loyal to his grandfather?
What if their plans clashed one day?
What if someone in a key position turned out to be a spy?
"Not enough talent..." Valthior muttered with a click of his tongue. "Don't any of you know someone capable? Someone trustworthy? I'll pay a high salary."
"I'm an orphan," Spencer replied immediately. "You guys are my only family and friends."
Sphinx and Rengar exchanged a glance.
"If we knew highly capable people," Sphinx said with a shrug, "we probably wouldn't be this uneducated ourselves."
Valthior felt a headache coming on after hearing that.
His gaze drifted toward the entrance, where Spandine and the others were still waiting.
For a brief moment, a thought crossed his mind.
Maybe I should just keep Spandine here and make him work for me.
To be fair, Spandine was extremely capable.
He knew how to handle people, and his ability to get things done was impressive.
But after some thought, Valthior gave up on the idea.
Having Spandine remain inside Cipher Pol as his eyes and ears was far more valuable.
So he quietly buried the thought and moved on.
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