Chapter 45: Please keep reading! The World Government's Annual Report!

Within a month, Imu was reviewing the annual report just delivered by the Five Elders, titled "World Government Sea Calendar Year 1497 Annual Work Report."

To be honest, his predecessor would never have looked at such a thing, because to him, both the World Government and the Celestial Dragons were merely tools for controlling the entire planet.

He firmly believed that his own strength and the "national treasures" in his hands were sufficient to suppress the entire ocean.

However, this new Imu was different. As a transmigrator, he understood the importance of tools very well. Personal strength was important, but making one's tools more efficient did not conflict with the former, did it?

Therefore, the purpose of this report was to first understand the specific status of the tools in his hands.

The report was extensive; Imu counted no fewer than fifty or sixty pages. Even so, he had to patiently read through it page by page.

The entire process took over three hours because he needed to read while thinking, occasionally stopping to re-read sections several times.

Truthfully, it was quite tedious, but given his work experience in his previous life, it wasn't overly difficult. Furthermore, he constantly reminded himself that these were his own forces and industries, which provided him with plenty of motivation.

"Whew—"

Finally, Imu finished the last page of the report, placing it on the coffee table while letting out a long sigh.

It wasn't that his body was exhausted—given his strength, this workload was negligible—it was simply that the volume of information was immense.

As mentioned before, his predecessor never looked at these things, so the contents of the report were essentially unfamiliar information to him. Moreover, the scale of the World Government was far beyond anything a small company from his previous life could compare to.

In general, he had gained clarity on the areas he cared about most, giving him a more concrete understanding of the World Government.

First was the financial aspect. Last year's total revenue was 784.3 billion Berries, primarily sourced from the Heavenly Tribute paid by member nations, along with secondary channels totaling approximately 300 billion Berries.

Currently, there are 170 member nations under the World Government. According to regulations, each nation must pay 3 billion Berries.

In other words, including the secondary channels, the annual revenue should be 810 billion Berries!

Yet, only 784.3 billion Berries had been collected.

This indicated that some countries had either failed to pay the Heavenly Tribute or had paid only a portion, resulting in a deficit of nearly 26 billion Berries.

Following past practice, the World Government would reprimand those who underpaid and demand they make up the deficit the following year, while countries that failed to pay at all would be given a one-year grace period.

If the Heavenly Tribute was still not paid the following year, the Army would be deployed to transport all citizens of that country—including royalty and nobility—to "Techirawolf" in the East Blue, the so-called "Nation of Labor" or "Nation of the Bridge," to build a massive bridge for the rest of their lives.

As for the countries that underpaid, if they failed to make up the deficit in the second year, the royalty would be replaced!

"This won't do. It can't continue like this."

Imu leaned back against the soft sofa, pondering. In his view, this issue was vital, and its importance was not much less than that of the slave trade.

Three billion Berries per year was nothing to great powers and wealthy nations like Alabasta, Fish-Man Island, Dressrosa, or the Kingdom of Got, and even the Drum Kingdom could pay in full due to its reputation as a medical powerhouse. However, for small, poor nations like the Sorbe Kingdom, the pressure was immense—even fatal.

What does 3 billion Berries represent?

The construction cost of a medium-sized Marine battleship of Headquarters grade is 300 million Berries, and a future Pacifista costs 100 million Berries.

That means a single member nation must hand over wealth equivalent to ten medium-sized Headquarters battleships or thirty Pacifistas every year!

Then there were the expenditures.

Last year, the Marine military budget was nearly 100 billion Berries, covering everything from the salaries, benefits, and food for all Marines to firearms, artillery, battleships, and even bounty payments.

However, this was not a fixed amount; it fluctuated based on the situation at sea.

The Army also required a steady 70 billion Berries every year.

In addition, CIPHER POL, which was responsible for intelligence work across all seas, all member nations, and even non-member nations, required 100 billion Berries, illustrating its massive scale.

Then there were the wages, food, and maintenance costs for Impel Down, totaling nearly 80 billion Berries.

Finally, the clerks of the World Government and the personnel on Justice Island combined for less than 50 billion Berries.

It was evident how much the previous Imu and the Five Elders had neglected administrative and judicial personnel.

These actual necessary expenditures totaled only about 600 billion Berries. Where did the remaining 180-plus billion Berries worth of treasure go?

It was all placed in the vaults of Mary Geoise to be squandered by the Celestial Dragons!

"The collected Heavenly Tribute far exceeds actual needs..." Imu muttered to himself.

If the goal was merely to maintain the quality of life for the Celestial Dragons, why was so much wealth required? Twenty billion Berries a year should be enough to enjoy the highest standards of luxury.

"Reductions. The amount of the Heavenly Tribute must be reduced. Ideally, it should be charged flexibly based on the circumstances of each nation!"

But he knew this matter could not be rushed. The World Conference was approaching this year; if he brought this up all at once, it would undoubtedly cause chaos.

"First, have CIPHER POL investigate which member nations are suffering due to excessive Heavenly Tribute, and determine whether it is truly a national crisis or if the local royalty is simply offloading the burden onto their citizens!"

"For those nations truly struggling to survive, we can follow the example of Kuma's Sorbe Kingdom and appropriately reduce their Heavenly Tribute to ensure their basic survival first."

Imu had already decided on the agenda for the next World Conference.

Next, he picked up another report, which primarily contained data on the three branches of the military: the Marines, the Army, and the Holy Land Defense Force.

The Army was responsible for guarding the World Government's important facilities and the entire Red Line. Since current World Government law prohibited civilians from ascending without permission, the Army was needed to clear out those who attempted to do so.

The Holy Land Defense Force, as the name implied, was mainly responsible for the security of Mary Geoise. If a Celestial Dragon wished to "descend" for leisure, personnel had to be dispatched to accompany them.

Imu was not currently concerned with these two forces; perhaps there would be major movements regarding them in the future.

The Marines.

According to the report, the total Marine strength was currently about 500,000. The Marine Headquarters in the Grand Line and all G-branches combined totaled about 50,000, while the remaining 450,000 were distributed across the four Blues. However, this was not an even distribution; for instance, the East Blue, being the most peaceful, had relatively fewer.

In reality, member nations had their own militaries, so the Marines only needed to be responsible for order at sea, meaning there was no excessive requirement for manpower.

Their primary need was battleships!

To date, the Marines possessed 70 "War Beast" class large battleships used for Buster Calls, 1,000 medium-sized Headquarters-grade battleships—50 of which were stationed at Marine Headquarters, with the remaining 950 distributed among various G-branches and sub-branches—and over 4,000 small warships stationed across two hundred sub-bases in the four Blues.

Again, it was not an even distribution. Relatively speaking, the G-branch bases in the "New World" certainly required more warships, as they faced the most ferocious and powerful pirate forces.

"No wonder the Five Elders have always suppressed the development of the Marines. Whether in terms of military power or authority, they have indeed become a bit too large..." Imu murmured thoughtfully.

"I certainly cannot move against the Marines at this stage, but in the future, I will indeed need to find a way to balance them."