The birth of the four emperors marked the arrival of a new structure on the seas, driving pirates into further madness.
If the King of the Pirates and the final island, Laugh Tale, were a distant dream, then the Emperor of the sea was a tangible goal one could see and reach.
So the challenges brought by this new structure began from that moment.
Of course, none of this had much to do with Ian, far away in West Blue.
The Sibia River Archipelago remained peaceful, untouched by the underworld chaos.
He continued spending time with his wife and training every day. Rain or snow, nothing stopped him.
As winter passed and spring arrived, when the snow finally melted, the peace of the Sibia River Archipelago was broken, and the winery resumed operations.
As for the raw materials, Grado had already begun sending them over endlessly before the winery restarted.
However, the quality of the green grapes purchased from outside was poor, inferior to the locally grown grapes from the Sibia River Archipelago.
Everyone was worried that using such grapes would produce cheap wine that would hurt their reputation.
Gini, responsible for the external procurement, expressed a headache over the matter.
Green grapes on par with those from the Sibia River Archipelago were extremely rare. If they wanted better grapes, they would need to go to more distant seas.
That would not only increase transportation costs but also risk the green grapes arriving less fresh.
After the discussion, Ian made the final decision.
Use both the good and bad ones.
Wine made from premium grapes would be labeled as craft, traditional technique, decades-old legacy, stomped by maidens, or whatever.
It would be shaped into a high-end brand.
Wine made from the inferior grapes would be sold as a commoner's brand, so the entire sea could drink wine from the Sibia River Archipelago.
It was only the beginning. The archipelago's current output couldn't supply the whole sea yet.
The potential of wine in this world was enormous. If they really managed to spread their wine across the entire sea... The result would be obvious.
Hearing Ian's decision, everyone's eyes lit up, and they agreed immediately.
This did mean expanding production, which required purchasing more equipment.
Ian didn't need to worry about that.
Gini could take care of it.
Not to mention that Grado had inherited most of the Capone Mafia Family's assets. Even before that, such equipment was never a problem for them.
With the winery settled, the next issue was construction on the archipelago.
Last year, the five village chiefs decided to gather all villagers in one location for living.
They would also redivide the planting areas, making work, life, and farming easier for everyone.
However, if the winery needed expansion, the originally chosen area would have to be changed.
The winery would require a lot of reserved space for future growth.
Ian also thought there was no need to build the living district so close to the winery.
What, were they planning to merge living and labor zones into one?
Spending an entire lifetime eating, drinking, sleeping, being born, and dying inside the winery?
In the end, after rescreening, they chose a slightly more remote and open area that hadn't been developed yet as the residential zone.
That's right, Sibia Village was going to be relocated.
Or rather, all the villagers on the entire Sibia River Archipelago were going to be relocated.
Such an important project was decided just like that.
As for whether anyone dared to oppose it, the five village chiefs patted their chests and said that if anyone dared to object, they would personally visit their homes to talk.
It was only because the Sibia River Archipelago covered a vast area with a sparse population that construction would be convenient.
Otherwise, if those five old fellows dared to act so tyrannically by forcing relocations, the villagers would probably have buried them in the sea by now.
After everything was decided, Ian didn't bother with them anymore. How to build and what to build was for them to figure out for themselves.
Even when Village Chief Martin excitedly declared he would head to a big city to hire top architects, Ian still told them to discuss it on their own.
Once matters in the Sibia River Archipelago were settled, Ian turned to Gini, who had yet to leave.
"Boss, this is the assets obtained from the Capone Mafia Family."
Gini handed over a piece of paper with excitement. "As expected of one of the Five Major Families of the West Blue, the Capone Mafia Family really had so many industries."
His tone carried regret. "Unfortunately, it was all too rushed. We couldn't swallow everything."
"If you swallowed everything, those guys really wouldn't have been able to resist striking at you."
Ian casually commented while reading. "Being able to take this much is already impressive."
Most of the industries listed were casinos and taverns, plus many dubious trades.
Ian skipped past those entirely until his gaze stopped on a line.
Reading the words, Capone Mafia Family weapons factory, he paused.
"What's the scale of this weapons factory?"
"It's quite large, producing both cold weapons and firearms."
Gini froze a little at Ian's unexpected interest but quickly continued: "It used to sell very well and even cooperated with the forces in New World, but after we took over, all the original orders and sales channels were cut off."
With a wry smile, he added, "I investigated. It's not that they don't need weapons; they just don't want to work with Grado. They probably want to hinder our expansion."
He hesitated a moment, then asked: "Boss, should we cut it off?"
"Why cut it off when it's fine?"
"Aren't we supposed to be running a legitimate business? This kind of dark industry is strictly banned by the World Government. Without permission, private production is illegal."
"How is this not a legitimate business? We aren't selling outside. We're just producing weapons for our own security department. It isn't a weapons factory, just a private workshop. A workshop that's a bit larger, that's all."
Ian said as if it were only natural. "The seas are so chaotic. How can we go without weapons?"
"So, boss, what do you mean is..."
"Continue production. Also, check if you can replicate the Marines' current weapons."