'So much percentage added all at once…' Lucian Thorn thought gleefully.
'All thanks to those clueless Marines!'
'Truly, what generous benefactors!'
Meanwhile…
Everyone else stood frozen in place, as if under a petrification spell.
Time lost its meaning in that instant.
The sea ahead could no longer be called a sea.
It was hell.
Five elite Marine battleships, along with that two Headquarters Vice Admiral, were left in ruins. Massive wooden planks, snapped masts, and torn white sails floated like garbage on a sea dyed red with blood.
And the one responsible for all this destruction, Lucian Thorn, stood quietly at the bow of the ship.
He slowly lowered his seemingly ordinary right hand.
Through the entire process, he hadn't even taken a single step.
He had simply raised his hand.
And then, space itself shattered.
An invisible, terrifying force burst from his fist as its center. Like an unseen hammer, it smashed forward across hundreds of meters, and with a single punch—just one punch—obliterated the lead battleship and the very space surrounding it!
Then came a second punch. A third punch…
No flashy techniques.
Only the cracking sound of space splitting apart—"kacha."
And the desperate expressions of Marines, unable even to scream, in the final moments of their lives.
Someone swallowed hard.
That sound echoed harshly across the deathly silent deck.
"W-what was that just now?" an old sailor stammered, rubbing his eyes, unable to believe what he had seen.
"That… that was the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit…" another voice trembled in disbelief. "I saw it… the same power as Pops!"
"Don't be ridiculous! That's Pops' Tremor-Tremor Fruit!"
"But did you see it?! The space—it shattered!"
The murmurs spread like wildfire, exploding among the crew.
Every gaze locked firmly onto the boy who slowly turned to face them.
No longer was he seen as a "monster rookie."
Now, they were looking at a true "monster."
Marco, Jozu, and Vista, the three division commanders, had been speechless since the beginning.
Their bodies were stiff.
Their minds, blank.
As the highest-ranking officers of the Whitebeard Pirates, they knew better than anyone the nature of the power that had just been displayed.
It was the power of quakes.
The very power that shook the world—exclusive to Edward Newgate, the "Strongest Man in the World"!
Why?
Why did this power appear in a rookie who had been on their ship for less than a month?!
Lucian Thorn met their stares with calm eyes.
He could feel the quake-force he'd redeemed from the Whitebeard pool through the system fading rapidly.
But the cost was immense.
Just throwing those few punches had left every bone and muscle in his body feeling as if they'd been torn apart.
Still, he had to do it.
It was the only way he could both end the battle quickly and provoke Whitebeard enough to gain the greatest surge of Analysis!
[Ding!]
[Target "Edward Newgate" has undergone intense emotional fluctuation!]
[Energy dissipation strength has reached its peak!]
[Analysis progress +5%!]
[Analysis progress +5%!]
[...]
[Current Analysis progress: 61.35%!]
The numbers flashing wildly in his mind nearly made Lucian laugh out loud.
Worth it.
All of it was worth it!
"Lucian."
Marco's voice cut through the air, heavy with an unfamiliar gravity.
He stepped forward with Jozu and Vista at his side, their combined aura locking firmly onto him.
"The power you just used…" Marco took a deep breath and asked word by word, "what exactly was it?"
The question hung heavy—echoing what everyone present was wondering.
The tension thickened once again.
Lucian looked into Marco's sharp eyes and gave a look that was both "bewildered" and faintly "delighted."
"Brother Marco, I… I'm not really sure myself."
He scratched his head, as if trying to find the right words.
"A while back, I think… I accidentally ate a really strange Devil Fruit, I'm not sure.
I didn't even know what it could do."
"But…"
His expression shifted, his eyes lighting up.
"Ever since I boarded Pops' ship—especially that day when Pops clashed with Red-Haired Shanks—I felt like my fruit awakened!"
"It's like… it can absorb those overwhelmingly powerful energies and then… turn them into my own power!"
"The power I just used—it felt… it felt exactly like Pops' power that day!"
This half-truth, half-lie explanation left Marco and the others stunned.
Absorbing energy and converting it?
Could such an outrageous Devil Fruit really exist?
If not, how else could they explain this impossible scene?
A rookie, in such a short time, awakening both types of Haki, and now even displaying the power of the Tremor-Tremor Fruit.
Other than the absurdity of Devil Fruits, there was no other explanation.
Seeing Marco and the others lost in thought, Lucian exhaled quietly in relief.
The excuse was nonsense, but for now, it was the only reasonable explanation.
At that moment, a voice like a mountain rumbled behind them all.
"Gurararara!"
Whitebeard had risen without anyone noticing. Holding his supreme-grade naginata Murakumo Giri, he strode to Lucian's side.
He looked at Lucian—not with doubt, not with suspicion, but with an indescribable admiration… and satisfaction.
"This world is vast and full of wonders."
"A fruit that can absorb the power of the strong, huh? Interesting. Truly interesting!"
Whitebeard extended a massive, fan-sized hand. Instead of touching Lucian, he slammed it heavily onto the railing beside him.
Boom!
The reinforced deck shuddered, leaving a deep handprint where he struck.
"Marco."
"Yes, Pops."
"This boy is my son, Edward Newgate's son."
"Yes."
"My son's power—does he need to explain it to anyone?"
Whitebeard's voice wasn't loud, but the absolute authority in it reverberated across the Moby Dick.
Marco stiffened, then lowered his head with a relieved smile.
"No, Pops."
Yes.
Pops was right.
Who cared what kind of fruit he ate, or where his power came from?
As long as he was family, that was enough.
Whitebeard's decree spread like royal command, instantly erasing the last doubts in every heart.
Cheers erupted across the deck, louder than ever before!
"Ooohhh! Well said, Pops!"
"Lucian! You're incredible!"
"A monster! Another true monster joins our crew! Hahahaha!"
That night…
The banquet had reached its end. All across the deck, drunken crew members lay scattered.
Lucian sat alone at the ship's edge, the cool sea breeze brushing against him.
The exhaustion of battle and the searing pain in his body left him in no mood for celebration.
He simply stared at the glaring number on his system panel.
[SSR Character Pool: "Strongest Man in the World" — Edward Newgate (Peak)]
[Current Analysis progress: 61.35%!]
Over sixty percent.
He was one big step closer to a hundred.
Yet unlike before, his heart wasn't filled with pure joy.
"What are you thinking about, brat?"
A deep voice broke his thoughts.
Lucian turned to see Whitebeard sitting on his throne not far away, a giant gourd of liquor in hand.
"Pops."
He quickly stood up.
"Sit down." Whitebeard pointed to the empty space beside him. "Keep an old man company for a drink."
Lucian obeyed, sitting beside him.
Whitebeard didn't hand him a cup. Instead, he passed the massive gourd directly to him.
"Gurarara… Today, you did well."
Whitebeard asked nothing about the origin of his power, as though it had never happened.
He simply looked at the boy before him, his clouded eyes filled with many emotions—admiration, reassurance, and a deeply hidden… expectation.
Lucian remained silent, both hands lifting the heavy gourd. He tilted it back, taking a huge gulp.
The fiery liquor burned down his throat into his stomach, making him cough violently.
"Cough, cough—!"
"Gurararara!"
Watching Lucian's flustered coughing, Whitebeard let out his signature laugh.
When it faded, his massive hand came down lightly onto Lucian's shoulder.
Lucian's body stiffened instantly.
He could feel it—that hand, strong enough to crush steel, carried no force now. Only a weight like a mountain, yet gentle beyond words.
[Ding!]
[Deep emotional resonance with target achieved…]
[Analysis progress +1%!]
Lucian ignored the system prompt.
He raised his head, meeting Whitebeard's gaze.
"Boy."
Whitebeard's voice was low, powerful—every word striking deep into Lucian's soul.
"I don't care who you were, or where you came from, or what secrets you carry."
"From today, you are my son. You are family, recognized by Edward Newgate."
"Remember this."
Whitebeard's eyes sharpened, his Haki surging invisibly over Lucian.
"Whoever dares lay a hand on you—I will never forgive them!"
Boom!
Lucian's mind went blank.
Family…
That word, in this world, had always been so distant to him.
Because he was a transmigrator!
Since coming here, he had only seen the Whitebeard Pirates as a stepping stone, Whitebeard as a high-grade SSR card to exploit, and the word "family" as his perfect disguise.
But now…
This legendary man, the "Strongest in the World," had spoken to him with the utmost sincerity:
You are my family.
An unfamiliar warmth surged from his heart, flowing to every corner of his body.
He raised the gourd again, draining the rest of the fiery liquor.
This time, he did not cough.
Lowering it, his face slightly flushed with drink, his eyes shone with unprecedented clarity and resolve.
He looked at Whitebeard, grinned, and revealed a brilliant smile.
Whitebeard looked back at him—and smiled as well.
Under the moonlight, the laughter of the two figures, one large and one small, echoed above the Moby Dick, lingering for a long time.