And so, guided enthusiastically by Vice Admiral Lacroix, the Giant, the three of them quickly arrived at a strategic conference room on the third floor of the G-1 Branch fortress.
But just as Lacroix was about to open the door and enter the conference room, the nearly twenty-meter-tall wooden door suddenly swung open, and a man wearing frog-shaped glasses with his long chin beard braided into a pigtail walked out.
This man had an explosive black afro, wore a black suit over a white shirt, a dark blue tie, and a Justice coat with golden shoulder pads.
"Sengoku-san!" Cross was stunned, exclaiming in surprise, "You actually came out personally to greet me? I'm so honored!"
"Uh..." Sengoku paused slightly, his facial muscles twitching involuntarily. He said somewhat unnaturally, "Ah, Cross, you're here. Go on in first, I'm going back to my office to make a call!"
After Sengoku finished speaking, Cross suddenly realized, unconsciously opening his mouth, "Oh, oh~ You go ahead and take care of your business!"
'Damn it! I guess I was overthinking it!'
How could Sengoku, the esteemed Marine Admiral, personally come out to greet a mere Marine Captain like him? Unless he had killed Whitebeard or Big Mom, it would be impossible!
"Cough, cough~ Then you all go in first, I'll be there shortly!" Sengoku lightly coughed, patted Cross's shoulder, and then quickly left.
Cross turned to look at Sengoku's departing back, wearing an expression of utter defeat.
The atmosphere in the room also grew peculiar, as if an indescribable feeling lingered in the air.
At this moment, Cross felt his embarrassment flare up, wishing he could dig a three-bedroom apartment out of the floor with his toes.
Gion and Lacroix had strange expressions, occasionally glancing at Cross, then at each other, barely stifling their laughter.
Cross's eyes were vacant, his expression blank. He said in a dull tone, "Go ahead and laugh if you want!"
"Cough, cough~ I've undergone professional training. No matter how funny it is, we won't laugh!" Gion lightly coughed, speaking solemnly. However, if her pretty face hadn't been flushed from trying to hold back her laughter, Cross would have believed she was serious.
"Cough, cough, Captain Cross, I'll take you in first!" At this moment, Lacroix turned his face, also struggling to suppress his laughter.
Cross's face darkened, looking even more resigned. Then, like an idiot, he was pushed by Gion into the strategic conference room.
'My lifelong reputation! This is true social death!!!'
"Long time no see, Vice Admiral Prodi!"
"Doberman, let's have a drink after this is over!"
"I didn't expect you to be here too, what a surprise!"
"..."
The three of them walked into the noisy strategic conference room, immediately drawing the attention of many. Or rather, it was Cross alone who attracted the most attention.
Immediately, Cross felt all sorts of gazes upon him: curious, friendly, suspicious, jealous... and so on.
At just 17 years old, having formally joined the Marine ranks for less than two years, he had already risen to the rank of Marine Captain. Such a brilliant achievement made it impossible for others not to notice him.
Cross's expression firmed. He quickly shed his look of resignation, his gaze stern as he scanned the Marine officers present.
The huge strategic conference room was packed with over a hundred Marine officers. Including the newly arrived Vice Admiral Lacroix, all five Vice Admirals, including Sakazuki, were present. Two of them were unfamiliar faces to him.
Among the ten Rear Admirals, he only recognized a few, like Doberman, Onigumo, and Kadar; he didn't know at least half of them.
However, while factional struggles within the Marines weren't intense, Sakazuki was the chief commander of this subjugation fleet, so most of the participating officers belonged to the hawkish faction.
Due to Sengoku, there were also some dovish officers, but neutral ones like himself were few and far between.
"Yo~ Cross, wanna sit behind me?" Suddenly, Gobert, sitting in the front row, stood up and waved at Cross with a smile.
Cross waved back in response, then walked forward with Gion and Lacroix to find their respective seats. Soon, Cross walked behind Gobert, pulled out a chair, and sat down, smiling, "Rear Admiral Gobert, I didn't expect you to be here too!"
"For justice!" Gobert winked at Cross, then picked up the white porcelain cup on the small table to his left, leisurely savoring the aromatic black coffee with a relaxed expression.
During the encirclement of the Blood Pirates in the Sabaody Archipelago, Gobert, due to a moment of oversight, was severely wounded in battle. Not only was he hospitalized, but he also almost lost his position as the Marine base commander in the Sabaody Archipelago.
Fortunately, Jonathan, who was tasked with taking over, lacked the rank and seniority, so he only served as an interim base commander. After Gobert recovered from his injuries, he resumed his position as base commander.
However, the special nature of this mission led to Gobert being selected for the subjugation fleet, making him the only neutral member among the ten Rear Admirals.
While the two chatted, many eyes continued to observe Cross. Whether these gazes were benevolent or malicious, only he knew. However, the previously quiet strategic conference room once again became lively, as all the officers chatted among themselves.
A short while later, Sengoku returned to the strategic conference room with a serious expression, holding several thick brown file folders in his hands. He strode to the main seat of the conference room and sat down.
Upon Sengoku's arrival, the recently lively strategic conference room quickly fell silent again. Everyone's gaze converged on the Marine Admiral.
"Sakazuki, is everyone here?"
"Sengoku-san, everyone's here!"
"In that case, let the operational meeting begin!"
With that, Sengoku handed the file folders in his hand to the orderly standing beside him, instructing, "Hand these out, one for each person!"
"Yes, sir!" The young orderly opened the file folders and took out stacks of thick documents, quickly distributing them to those present.
"This is the latest intelligence on the Roberts Legion's forces. Everyone, please take a look," Sengoku said in a deep voice.
Cross, among the crowd, also received a document.
It was three pages long, densely filled with detailed information on the Roberts Legion's forces, including the names and bounties of hundreds of bounty criminals.
As for their overall strength, the Roberts Legion's numbers had reached 23,000, along with over thirty pirate ships of various sizes. Their weaponry was a mix of cold and hot weapons, though the hot weapons weren't particularly advanced, primarily consisting of flintlock guns and muzzle-loading cannons.
However, a formidable force of over 20,000 people made them a first-class presence among the many pirate crews in the New World.
"From the looks of it, completely annihilating the Roberts Legion is indeed a huge challenge!" Cross muttered softly, "Tsk tsk~ 23,000 people... I remember that over a decade later, the main force of the Beasts Pirates only consisted of about that many people!"
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