When Allen opened his eyes again, the sun had already sunk halfway down the mountain, and the slanting rays of the setting sun spilled across the floor of the hall.
As his blurry vision gradually cleared, the first thing Allen saw was Sanji sitting on the opposite sofa with his legs crossed.
Sanji had a cigarette dangling from his lips and was intently reading a newly purchased recipe book. He had also swapped his suit for casual clothes printed with a panda pattern.
Allen swept his gaze around the hall and saw Nami sitting cross-legged on a nearby sofa, her legs tucked in as she looked through a furniture catalog.
Gin stood leaning against the wall by the door, his arms crossed over his chest and his head bowed as he rested with his eyes closed.
Not far away, the Nyaban Brothers were picking out T-shirts from a clothing rack. Out on the street, a large crowd of pirates sat or stood, completely blocking the entrance to the store.
Coincidentally, everyone was wearing casual clothes printed with the same panda pattern, and they were all trying their best to stay quiet.
"What the hell are you guys doing? Are you planning to empty out this entire store?"
Allen ran his fingers through his hair, sat up, and picked up the glass of juice that had been sitting on the table for a while to take a sip.
"Perfect timing. You're lucky you won't miss dinner."
Sanji said softly as he put down the recipe book in his hands and stood up.
Gin slowly opened his eyes and lifted his head.
The Nyaban Brothers nearby also turned their heads and shouted excitedly,
"You're awake, Boss!"
"Boss! We found a great ship! Look at this!"
The two of them ran over excitedly and slammed a few brochures onto the table in front of Allen.
Allen picked up the blueprints with a hint of skepticism, while Nami curiously leaned her head in from the side to get a look.
"They said this is a batch of ships from the Grand Line, built by the world's number one shipyard, the Galley-La Company. Among them, there's a medium-sized ship and a medium-large ship that meet our requirements."
"The price is a bit steep, but it's within our budget. We went aboard to take a look, and those two ships are absolutely fantastic!"
"Word is that only one shipyard company in Loguetown can get their hands on ships like these in the entire East Blue."
Buchi and Sham spoke in a tone that seemed to be begging for praise.
"Galley-La? I didn't expect their business to reach all the way to the East Blue."
Allen couldn't help but feel a little surprised.
Nami looked at him curiously. "Do you know this company?"
"It would be weirder if I didn't. Galley-La is the world's top shipyard company, the official shipbuilders for the World Government."
Allen gave a brief explanation before placing the brochures back on the table and spreading them out.
Hearing this, the others in the hall couldn't help but gather around to take a look together.
The medium-sized ship could accommodate five hundred people, while the large ship could hold a thousand. The prices for the two ships were seven hundred million Berries and 1.1 billion Berries, respectively.
It was pretty close to Allen's estimate. He had previously calculated it by multiplying the cost of a Marine warship by two, which roughly matched the market price for pirate ships.
After reviewing the brochures, Allen concluded that these were undoubtedly standard-issue ships built by the Galley-La Company. Many of the designs and technologies matched the warships he was familiar with.
"Tonight, we'll go check out the medium-sized ship. Contact them to arrange a test run on the water, and have our shipwrights inspect it. If there are no issues, we can prepare for the transaction."
Allen instructed the Nyaban Brothers.
The blueprints were already very detailed. The quality of a ship produced by Galley-La went without saying, and there was no need to worry about the design philosophy or sailing comfort.
Unless they spent time waiting for a custom build, this was already the best ship they could buy right now.
If he wanted a custom ship, he could just go directly to Water 7. Allen had no intention of wasting time waiting here.
"Understood, Boss! We'll go tell them right away!"
The Nyaban Brothers were thrilled. Upon receiving their orders, they ran out with expressions of sheer impatience.
Immediately after, Gin also pulled out an arms catalog and handed it over.
"Captain, take a look at this. It should have what you're looking for."
Allen took it and flipped it open. Every page was filled with various types of firearms he found somewhat familiar, ranging from flintlocks to heavy machine guns, and even rocket launchers.
Gin explained from the side,
"I got this from the local mafia. They have long-term partnerships with many arms dealers. Most of the weapons in the catalog can be acquired in stock within a short time."
"Although the quantities are limited, it's enough to arm our current crew," Gin added.
"Bartolomeo?"
Hearing about the local mafia, Allen frowned slightly, involuntarily thinking of that green rooster head.
Waving the figure out of his mind, Allen looked back at the arms catalog and finally selected a few items.
Revolvers were 200,000 Berries each.
Shotguns were 400,000 Berries each.
Thompson submachine guns were 1,000,000 Berries each.
Gatling guns were 8,000,000 Berries each.
RPG rocket launchers were 400,000 Berries, which was very cheap, but the ammunition was expensive. Various types of rockets ranged from 40,000 to 100,000 Berries per round.
"Buy according to these categories. I'll give you five hundred million Berries from the development fund. Try to spend it all."
Allen handed the catalog back to Gin.
This amount of money was more than enough to arm the entire crew to the teeth. The rest could be stored in the armory, so they wouldn't have to worry about weapon shortages when expanding the crew in the future.
"I'll go take care of it right now."
Gin acknowledged the order and turned to leave.
Allen stopped him again and chuckled softly.
"You have to go back to the ship to get the money anyway. Just go after dinner."
"...Understood."
Gin paused for a moment, then nodded in agreement.
"Thanks for your hard work, everyone. Let's head back."
Allen stood up, smiled as he patted Gin on the shoulder, and strode toward the door.
Sanji and the others followed suit. As they walked out the door, the pirates on the street also began to leave one after another, following closely behind.
It wasn't until the store was completely empty that a few clerks, trembling in the corner, peeked their heads out from behind the wall.
"Are... are they all gone...?"
"B-Boss, I don't think they paid the bill."
Suddenly, a pirate wearing a white bandana turned back, scaring the clerks into shrinking their heads back into hiding.
"Big Bro Sanji said this is the money for the clothes. Catch!"
A stack of Berries was tossed inside. The store manager slowly poked his head out, only to see the pirate leaving once again.
...
That evening.
After dinner, Gin took the deposit and a dozen subordinates to find the arms dealer recommended by the mafia.
Some of the pirates left again to hit the town and enjoy the nightlife, leaving only a small number of crew members on duty and the shipwrights of the Fifth Division on board.
After leading the cleanup in the kitchen, Sanji walked out the door and onto the deck, only to see the silhouette of a massive dark shadow slowly approaching across the night-shrouded sea.
Squinting his eyes, he saw a sailing ship several times larger than theirs slowly making its way along the coastline.
The ship was loaded with a large number of armed men. The Nyaban Brothers were impressively among them, standing at the bow and waving excitedly in their direction.
"Hey, Allen! Sham and the others are back."
Sanji called out toward the upper deck, then turned back to look at the approaching ship with great interest.
Following the sound, Allen walked out of the captain's cabin and immediately noticed the brand-new large ship.
Because it was a standard-issue ship, its overall appearance was quite plain. It didn't have a uniquely shaped figurehead, but instead left plenty of room for modification and decoration.
However, its steady and heavy texture silently attested to the sturdy quality of this warship.
"Whoa, is this the ship we're buying, Allen? It looks bigger than I imagined."
Nami, who had just finished taking a shower in the bathroom, also walked out of her room. The moment she laid eyes on the ship, her face lit up with joy.
"Hehehe, now I can finally have my own private room and bathroom."
"What, is using the captain's bathroom too much of an inconvenience for you?" Allen shot her a sidelong glance.
"Who wants to share a bathroom with a stinky man anyway? Blegh!"
Nami pulled down her eyelid and stuck out her tongue, making a funny face before eagerly walking over to the edge of the ship.
"Let's go check out the ship! I want to pick a room with good sunlight for myself."
"Then I'll pick the room right next to Nami-san's!"
Sanji's eyes turned into hearts, and his legs spun like wheels of fire as he floated after her.
Soon, the ship docked. Allen led his crew aboard, where the person in charge enthusiastically came over to greet them. He then directed his subordinates to operate the ship and demonstrate a test run for them.
He passionately introduced the ship while giving Allen and the others a tour of its various spaces.
Allen also learned from the man that the owner of their shipyard not only had connections with various Marine branches in the East Blue but was also secretly under the protection of the largest local mafia syndicate.
It was a subtle warning to remind Allen not to get any funny ideas.
Allen paid it no mind, focusing all his attention entirely on the ship itself.
There were two levels below the deck. The relatively narrow bottom level was used as a warehouse to store various supplies, weapons, and ammunition. Its weight could also be utilized to stabilize and balance the hull.
The first basement level was much more spacious. The circular space wrapping around the hull served as the artillery room, while the center combined living areas like public baths with functional areas like the water pumping system.
After taking a rough look, Allen returned to the open deck in satisfaction and followed the person in charge to the bow.
The bow had two levels dedicated to the crew's quarters. There were fifty rooms in total across the upper and lower floors, with each room capable of comfortably accommodating eight beds, or up to a maximum of twelve.
For the current size of the Demon Lion Pirates, they could even be used as four-person dormitories, which left the crew absolutely delighted.
Allen walked out of the crew's quarters, crossed the central deck, and arrived in front of the towering four-story main cabin structure.
The Nyaban Brothers, who had already seen the ship, eagerly rushed up to Allen. They stood on either side of the entrance, striking a welcoming pose.
"Please come in, Boss!"
"Seeing how excited you two are, I'm actually quite curious about how it's decorated inside."
Allen stepped forward, leading the crew into the first floor.
Bright lights flooded the entire space. The first thing that caught their eyes was a magnificent square stage right in the middle.
Surrounding the stage were rows of gambling tables, and at the very back was a long bar counter that stretched across the entire space.
In the corners on both sides, there were billiard tables, dartboards, and all sorts of other entertainment facilities.
Seeing this sight, the crew instantly went wild with excitement.
Allen, however, looked completely speechless. He turned back to look at the Nyaban Brothers.
"What is this, a casino? Don't tell me the reason you highly recommended this ship is just because of these setups."
"Uh... well... it's not entirely because of this..."
"If you don't like it, Boss, we can just change it all..."
The Nyaban Brothers scratched their heads awkwardly, shrinking their necks as they looked at him in fear.
Allen rolled his eyes at them in exasperation. It wasn't that he opposed the crew having entertainment activities; after all, sailing on the sea could get very boring.
He just thought there would be some kind of surprise design, but it turned out to be this stuff.
"Set up a schedule later. Entertainment activities cannot interfere with the crew's rest. Let's go upstairs and take a look."
Allen walked toward the stairs on the side, and only then did the Nyaban Brothers finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Power Stones, reviews, and comments— really helps a lot
Want to read ahead? Get access to 50+ extra chapters on my Patreon:
👉 patreon.com/Aragai_Sama