John immediately sneered when he heard Cullen’s proposal.
"And what if those sailors turn around and sideline me?"
"They all come from the same organization, while I’m an outsider."
"If I spend such an enormous amount of money buying the warship, only to discover that everyone aboard still belongs to your naval forces, wouldn’t I just be a commander in name only?"
"I’d basically be paying you to put on a show for me."
Cullen hurriedly explained,
"You misunderstand."
"I can arrange for all the sailors currently serving aboard the ship to be officially dismissed."
"That will include both ordinary crewmen and members of the management staff."
"You can then insert your own people into the vacant positions."
"Once your men occupy the key posts, the remaining sailors will naturally fall under your control."
"Besides, those sailors earn only one gold coin per month."
"With your wealth, you only need to raise their salaries slightly."
"Do you really think they would turn against you after that?"
"They have to work for someone either way."
"If they work for you, they earn more money."
"Surely they aren’t going to fight against gold itself?"
After hearing Cullen’s explanation, John finally dismissed some of his concerns.
What Cullen said did make sense.
More importantly, the man truly seemed capable of obtaining a T0-class warship for him.
And not just the ship.
He could even provide a full complement of elite naval personnel.
John asked directly,
"How much will all of this cost in total?"
A cunning gleam flashed through Cullen’s eyes.
"Only nine hundred thousand gold coins."
"I should explain something first."
"A Lothar-class battleship costs at least five hundred thousand gold coins to construct."
"On top of that, I am taking the risk of selling one of the Lothar Kingdom’s trump-card warships."
"There are also countless channels that need to be opened and people who must be paid off."
"In addition, compensation must be arranged for the naval forces when personnel are removed."
"And dismissing the management staff currently serving aboard the Lothar-class battleship will also require a significant amount of money."
"So nine hundred thousand gold coins really is not an excessive price."
John immediately bargained.
"Impossible."
"That is far too expensive."
"Five hundred thousand gold coins is the most I’ll pay."
Cullen refused to budge.
"That is much too low."
"How about eight hundred and fifty thousand?"
John considered it briefly.
"Five hundred and fifty thousand."
"With your position in the Lothar Kingdom, there is hardly any real risk involved."
"Transfers and personnel changes are practically yours to arrange however you please."
Cullen shook his head.
"You cannot put it that way."
"Why don’t we both compromise?"
"Eight hundred thousand gold coins."
"You should understand that I cannot directly interfere with the naval forces."
"I will need the help of several friends to make the arrangements."
"That alone will cost me a great deal."
John spoke indifferently.
"Six hundred thousand gold coins."
"With one hundred thousand gold coins available for expenses, every necessary channel can be opened."
"If you still cannot accomplish it with that, then forget it."
Seeing that John genuinely appeared ready to abandon the deal, Cullen hurriedly changed his tone.
"Fine, fine."
"Six hundred thousand it is."
"Of course, you will also need ammunition, navigation permits, and various other logistical supplies, won’t you?"
Cullen paused before adding,
"Since our cooperation has been so pleasant, I can give you a discount."
"For another fifty thousand gold coins, I will take care of everything."
John sneered.
He saw through Cullen’s little scheme immediately.
"I’ll give you five thousand."
Cullen did not become angry in the slightest.
Instead, he looked delighted.
"No problem."
"I can compromise."
"Deal."
John said,
"I expect everything to be fully prepared by the time you hand it over."
"I do not want to waste time worrying about any other details."
Cullen smiled more warmly than ever.
"Of course."
"My friends will make sure everything is handled for you."
Although the two men had only met for the first time tonight and had not even spoken for half an hour, they were already conversing as comfortably as old friends.
At that moment, Cullen’s attendant returned.
He was carrying a document pouch with a fish-skin cover.
The attendant respectfully handed it to Cullen.
Cullen accepted it and passed it to John.
"See?"
"I have always believed in getting things done once I receive payment."
"You are straightforward with me, so naturally I will be straightforward with you."
John took the document and opened it.
There was only a single sheet of paper inside.
However, it carried every necessary official seal.
The contents were simple.
It was a complete identity certificate and personal record.
The document clearly recorded one person’s entire history from childhood to adulthood.
Every detail was perfectly clean.
The most remarkable part was that the person listed on the document was also named John.
And the guarantor listed beneath his identity...
was Cullen himself.
With this document in hand, even the lord of the city would probably think twice before causing John trouble.
As for his death sentence?
What death sentence?
Had he committed any crime?
A pirate?
What pirate?
John was clearly a perfectly law-abiding citizen!
"My criminal identity has been completely erased."
"I no longer need to worry about what might happen three days from now."
"Nor do I need to worry about those two jailers returning and bringing people to arrest me."
"My biggest problem has been completely eliminated."
After receiving the document, John immediately handed Cullen 3,900 gold coins.
He also gave him another 7,000 gold coins as the deposit for the complete battleship-purchasing package.
After receiving the money, Cullen reluctantly bid John farewell before turning and leaving.
In truth, all that talk about complicated arrangements and enormous risks had been complete nonsense.
As the Deputy Speaker of the Upper House, Cullen possessed deep connections, enormous influence, and considerable authority.
At worst, he would need to spend a few hundred gold coins inviting some friends to a banquet.
That alone would be enough to have a Lothar-class battleship transferred over.
After greasing a few more palms, he might spend at most several tens of thousands of gold coins to ensure that the Lothar-class battleship was officially—
"retired."
Or perhaps—
"decommissioned."
Or even—
"missing."
There were countless ways to make it disappear from official records.
As for dismissing the sailors aboard the ship?
That was even easier.
Cullen would not need to spend a single extra coin.
After all...
the deputy commander of the Lothar Kingdom’s naval forces was his son-in-law!
Six hundred thousand gold coins.
Cullen would earn at least several tens of thousands of gold coins in pure profit from this single deal.
Several tens of thousands of gold coins!
That was more money than an ordinary person could earn across dozens of lifetimes.
John watched Cullen leave with an expressionless face.
"The identity problem has been solved."
"Next comes the warship."
"After that comes development."
"And development, in this world, means plunder."
"I’ll start by looting every pirate force within the Lothar Kingdom."
"Once the pirates have been stripped clean, I’ll begin conquering the cities of the Lothar Kingdom."
A cold gleam flashed through John’s eyes.
"Cloudspire Harbor is definitely going to be mine."
"As for Cullen..."
"Heh."
"I’ll let you hold onto that money for me for the time being."
The greatest advantage of a maritime civilization had never been slow, peaceful development.
If John relied on farming, trade, and gradual accumulation, he might wait forever without ever becoming truly powerful.
If that were his plan, he might as well have chosen a continental civilization instead.
The entire reason for selecting a maritime civilization was that he could plunder without restraint!
Plunder would allow his power to expand almost instantly.
Every successful raid would bring John enormous gains in both wealth and status.
His forces would continue expanding like a rolling snowball.
Of course, there was one prerequisite.
His fist had to be strong enough.
Once John obtained a Lothar-class battleship, combining a T0-class warship with the bonuses from God of Naval Warfare...
his military power would become the strongest force in the entire sea!