Aeridar's expression remained calm, unfazed by Tesoro's words. He simply asked, "What makes you so confident you can control over ten percent of the world's Berries? Besides, even if Gran Tesoro becomes a success, you'll be the one reaping the benefits. What do I get out of it?"
"My confidence, of course, comes from my ability!"
Crackling~
Tesoro flashed a sinister grin, pressing his right hand onto the coffee table. Sparks of electricity flickered from his hand, and then a golden glow erupted, rapidly enveloping the entire table, transforming the rosewood into gleaming, golden splendor.
"Is this... gold?!"
Aeridar's and Oliver's pupils contracted sharply.
Aeridar even reached out to touch the golden table, feeling its texture. The wooden rosewood table had astonishingly turned into solid gold, its hardness and feel distinctly different.
"You... you actually 'Awakened'!"
Aeridar looked at Tesoro in surprise. "Awakened the Gold-Gold Fruit? You truly are a surprising fellow."
It was worth noting that Aeridar's own Impact-Impact Fruit ability hadn't even Awakened.
During the battle to conquer the Clifford Kingdom three years ago, Enrod, Otto, and Rock had beaten Tesoro until he fled in terror. If not for the gold mine near Micity Port, Enrod and his companions would have likely taken Tesoro's head to Doflamingo for the bounty.
Yet, in just three years, Tesoro had developed the Gold-Gold Fruit to the point of Awakening.
What's more, Tesoro ate the Gold-Gold Fruit at 29 years old, after stealing it from Doflamingo. He was only 35 now. Just a few years? Truly astonishing!
The Awakening of Zoan and Paramecia Devil Fruits is different.
Zoan Awakening primarily grants increased durability, health, and rapid recovery, with a less obvious increase in combat power.
Paramecia Awakening, however, allows the user to affect external objects. For instance, the Gold-Gold Fruit's Awakening enables the user to turn everything around them into gold, which would undoubtedly lead to a skyrocketing increase in combat power.
"Heh heh~" Tesoro chuckled softly, but said nothing more.
Seeing this, Aeridar understood.
What is gold?
Gold is a precious metal, a global hard currency.
Why could the Berries issued by the World Government become the universal currency?
Besides the World Government's immense power, it was also due to its vast reserves of gold and other precious metals.
Now, Tesoro could effortlessly transform other objects into gold, essentially performing alchemy. As long as he didn't deactivate his ability, no one could distinguish between real gold and gold created by his power. If he were to frantically transmute objects into gold and sell it worldwide, then suddenly deactivate his ability...
Needless to say, the entire world would go mad, plunging into widespread chaos.
Even the World Government would suffer immense losses.
At that point, no one would want gold anymore, as they wouldn't know if the gold in their hands would turn into rocks, wood, or other worthless junk.
However, this was also Tesoro's advantage. If managed properly, with his ability to mass-produce gold, he could certainly dominate the commercial seas in the future and control over ten percent of the world's Berries, perhaps even fifteen or twenty percent of the Berry circulation wouldn't be impossible.
"Heh heh, truly a shrewd calculation." Aeridar finally understood, letting out a light chuckle. He turned to Doflamingo and said, "Doffy, it seems you knew about this all along. No wonder, no wonder."
"Fufufufu~ Aeridar, given our relationship, I would naturally never leave you out of a money-making venture," Doflamingo leisurely sipped his juice, his head swaying as he laughed.
Although Doflamingo had no intention of jointly controlling the flow of gold and Berries with Tesoro, he didn't mind providing his connections and taking a cut. After all, he already held the reins of the New World's monsters.
If he were to also seize control of the World Government's vital arteries, the World Government likely wouldn't tolerate it.
"Tesoro, I'll first provide you with a batch of real gold, about ten tons. If you don't meet expectations, I'll kill you. Don't think that just because your Devil Fruit ability has Awakened, you're my opponent." Aeridar smiled at Tesoro, but his words were filled with murderous intent.
"Uh~ Heh heh, while I do want to test the strength of someone called a monster like yourself, I will definitely achieve my goal." Tesoro's face stiffened slightly, forcing a strained smile. He didn't want to lose face.
"Of course, if the initial momentum is strong, I'll continue to provide more gold," Aeridar said with an indifferent smile. This carrot-and-stick approach was one Aeridar had frequently used over the past three years, with many of the kingdom's former nobles falling under his sway this way.
Moreover, in terms of strength, Aeridar was confident that even against the fully-powered Syrons or Demon Mask Gutte, who was besieged and killed years ago, he would feel no fear.
He wouldn't necessarily claim an easy victory, but he wouldn't be weaker in the slightest.
A mere Tesoro, whose Devil Fruit ability had just Awakened, might barely reach the so-called Vice Admiral-level, but he relied solely on his Devil Fruit. His mastery of the two types of Haki, practical combat experience, and other aspects were still far behind.
For powerhouses like Aeridar and Doflamingo, he simply wasn't a match.
"Ten tons of gold right off the bat, and more to come... truly enviable wealth, fufufufu~" Doflamingo's eyes openly displayed envy.
Doflamingo wasn't without money; on the contrary, he was incredibly wealthy. His businesses spanned the entire world, but because of this, his operations were too widespread, costing a great deal.
Coupled with the maintenance of various relationships and the construction of the Dressrosa Kingdom, his daily expenses were astronomical.
Aeridar, however, was different.
He obtained a ship full of gold from Skypiea, enough to buy a small country. Additionally, the inheritance of the Gamas Kingdom from the underground palace on Alvis Island, a small mountain of gold, silver, and jewels, had made him absurdly rich.
After conquering the Clifford Kingdom, he completely took over the entire nation. It's important to remember that the Clifford Kingdom was a wealthy nation, unlike the impoverished Dressrosa Kingdom.
The Clifford Kingdom's national treasury and royal palace vault held a terrifying amount of money: countless gold and silver treasures, antique scrolls, and various rare artworks.
It's clear just how wealthy Aeridar was. A mere ten tons of gold was a trifling amount. After all, most of the City of Gold on Skypiea was still untouched. Aeridar lacked nothing when it came to gold.
"Just a mere ten tons of gold," Aeridar said, feigning indifference, completely showing off. "To me, money is just a number. What matters is achieving the objective."
This truly was invisible showing off, the most lethal kind.
Aeridar's single sentence made Doflamingo utterly envious, and Tesoro's eyes even turned red.
For Doflamingo, money wasn't everything, but he couldn't do anything without it; naturally, the more money, the better.
For Tesoro, money was everything; it could buy anything. Without money, it was worse than death itself.
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