"How dare you! A mere Marine Rear Admiral dares to spout such nonsense here!"
"Guards! Drag this lowly commoner out and execute him!"
"Outrageous! Insolent! Unbelievable audacity!"
"Funding for the Marines for the next ten years? You truly have the nerve to even think of it!"
Amid the Celestial Dragons' volcanic fury, Ryokugyu momentarily panicked, nervously glancing at Orion for reassurance.
Just then, Morgans suddenly led a contingent of Marines filing into the hall, each soldier carrying stacks of pre-prepared Marine funding contracts.
Before the Celestial Dragons could react, the Marines placed the contracts on the long tables before them.
"What is this?"
As Morgans set down one of the contracts, a Celestial Dragon who had been fuming over Ryokugyu's words moments ago widened his eyes in outrage.
"Funding contracts? When did I ever agree to fund the Marines?!"
With that, the Celestial Dragon angrily tore the contract to shreds.
Seeing this, Morgans' eyes flashed coldly.
He handed the contract to a nearby soldier, then yanked the Celestial Dragon's bubble helmet off and delivered a sharp slap across his face.
SMACK!
The crisp sound of the slap rang out abruptly.
Before the other Celestial Dragons could react, Morgans wasted no time, raining a flurry of slaps on the insolent noble's face—left and right—leaving Ryokugyu, standing beside Orion, utterly stunned.
In that instant, he finally understood the sheer weight behind the title 'Fleet Admiral's Personal Guard'.
That was a Celestial Dragon!
A Descendant of gods!
And Morgans just slapped him over a dozen times without hesitation?
Just how ruthless could is he?!
After enduring over a dozen slaps, this Celestial Dragon finally regained his senses.
However, the moment he came to, he saw Morgans raising his hand again.
"St-stop hitting me!"
Before Morgans could land another slap, the Celestial Dragon, his face swollen and red, dropped to his knees with a thud.
Missing several teeth, his speech was slurred as he pleaded.
"It's not that I don't want to contribute! But the amount says three hundred billion Belly! I... I simply don't have that much!"
"Then go scrape it together!"
Morgans swung another slap before dragging the Celestial Dragon and hurling him three or four meters away.
Brutal!
Absolutely brutal!
Glancing at the unfortunate Celestial Dragon, Ryokugyu silently gave Morgans a thumbs-up.
Just when he thought the matter would end there, Morgans suddenly charged into the crowd of Celestial Dragons, yanking out the two who had been the loudest earlier and slamming them to the ground.
He then barked at the Marines behind him, "Beat them!"
"Beat them until they cough up the Belly!"
"You think you can still act high and mighty as Celestial Dragons in this day and age? Disgraceful!"
As Morgans' words fell, several Marines immediately rushed over, dragging the two Celestial Dragons to an open space in the hall.
Without hesitation, they began raining punches and kicks upon the two, who were still dazed and howling in pain.
"Fleet Admiral Orion!"
Seeing that none of the surrounding Celestial Dragons dared to intervene, Manmayer Ross turned to Orion and said gravely.
"Does this mean we won't be allowed to leave this hotel unless we pay today?"
"How dare you, Manmayer Ross!"
Before Orion could respond, Morgans suddenly roared, darting forward and lifting Ross like a ragdoll before delivering a swift punch to his gut.
With a resounding boom, Ross was sent flying like a cannonball, crashing into a group of Celestial Dragons who failed to dodge in time.
Before Ross could even catch his breath from the stars spinning in his vision, Morgans closed the distance in a few strides, hoisting him up again.
"You dare speak to the Fleet Admiral in that tone? Who do you think you are? The Manmayer family's contribution is now doubled!"
With that, Morgans raised Ross overhead and hurled him straight into the group of Celestial Dragons.
"AAAAAH—"
"Stop! Please stop!"
In the open hall, the two Celestial Dragons being pummeled by the Marines could endure no longer, wailing and begging between blows.
"I'll pay! Three hundred billion it is! I'll sell the jewelry, gold and a few Devil Fruits my family has collected over the years—that should cover it!"
"Sniff... I'll pay too!" the other Celestial Dragon spat out blood as he spoke. "But I need some time! Fleet Admiral, spare me!"
Despite their desperate pleas, the Marines didn't stop and continuing their assault.
Those who couldn't land a hit pulled their comrades aside to take their turn.
However, two Marines holding contracts now crouched before the beaten Celestial Dragons.
Trembling, the two signed their names while still enduring the beating.
The moment they finished signing, the violence ceased abruptly.
The two Marines immediately rushed to Orion with the signed contracts in hand.
The actions of the marine soldiers and Morgans once again left Ryokugyu dumbfounded, his entire body stiff as he stood beside Orion, wearing an expression that screamed, 'Who am I? Where am I?'
Similarly, Sharlia, Gladius, and Baby 5, who stood side by side with Doflamingo at the entrance, were also stunned.
After witnessing Morgans and the marine soldiers' antics, Gladius could no longer hold back and muttered in bewilderment.
"What kind of species are these Celestial Dragons? They actually cough up money after a beating! If we're short on cash in the future, can we just grab a few Celestial Dragons and beat them up too?"
Hearing this, Sharlia's lips twitched slightly.
She truly felt grateful for making the wisest decision back then—convincing her father to hand over all the Rosward family's assets in advance.
Otherwise, she might very well have been among the Celestial Dragons currently being beaten to a pulp.
Under the guidance of Zephyr, the newly appointed Elder, she had come to realize just how despicable her past self had been.
Without Zephyr's patient teachings, she would undoubtedly have been the loudest in protest and the one suffering the harshest beatings.
At that moment, Orion who had taken the contracts from two soldiers, casually handed them to Ryokugyu standing beside him without even glancing at them.
Smiling amiably, he said, "Morgans has already demonstrated for you. You shouldn't need me to teach you how to make them spit out their money now, right?"
"I understand what must be done, sir," Ryokugyu replied, discreetly wiping sweat from his brow as he respectfully accepted the contracts.
Orion nodded in satisfaction.
"Morgans will stay behind to assist you."
With that, Orion turned and strode away without hesitation.
"Hina."
"Yes, Fleet Admiral!"
Hina quickly followed, considerately draping Orion's coat over his shoulders.
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