The sound of gunfire slowly faded, replaced by the cries of the wounded.
Hiding in the shadows, Ender felt that the time was right. Toby's group of strong men had already driven back the enemy scavengers.
The scavengers had fought with no plan at all—after firing wildly, they began chasing aimlessly.
Ender climbed out of a broken house and landed quietly, then immediately crouched low.
Before him stretched endless mountains of garbage, thin smoke rising from them. A foul stench hit his nose.
Ignoring it, Ender focused his eyes on a gun lying in the distance—a short-barreled flintlock. It looked old, but it was still a deadly weapon.
The owner of the flintlock was dead, half his throat torn apart by a stray bullet, his death gruesome.
Because the body had fallen in a hidden spot, Toby's men hadn't noticed the weapon. Otherwise, in this Scrap Terminal where weapons were so rare, they would never have left such a gun behind.
Keeping his body low, Ender began moving toward it.
But just then, a thin scavenger rushed ahead, reaching for the flintlock with his dirty hand.
Ender frowned—not because the man got there first, but because his movements might draw attention from the two warring groups.
He quickly picked up a fist-sized stone and threw it with full strength.
The stone shot forward with great force and smashed into the scavenger's arm.
Bang!
The scavenger stumbled back with a scream.
Ender rushed forward, turned his body slightly, and drove his knee hard into the man's spine.
The scavenger's body bent forward, bile spraying from his mouth. But even after such a heavy blow, he didn't fall—only staggered a few steps.
Ender's eyes narrowed. Just how strong were people in this pirate world? This man was just a weak scavenger.
There was no time to think. The scavenger's eyes turned wild, like a cornered beast. His yellow teeth clenched, and the muscles in his jaw bulged.
Anyone else would have instinctively stepped back, but Ender was different—he had battle experience. He knew that if he turned to flee, his exposed back would be riddled with bullets.
Clenching his fist, Ender struck the man's jaw before he could recover.
The jaw holds many blood vessels. A sudden heavy blow can cut off blood flow to the brain, causing a brief loss of consciousness.
Crack! A few yellow, blood-stained teeth flew out.
Hit with Ender's full power, the scavenger fell backward like a chopped log.
An ordinary person would stay unconscious for half a minute after such a hit, but people in this pirate world had strangely strong bodies. So Ender flipped the man over and punched him again at the back of the neck.
A dull thud sounded—the scavenger's life or death unknown.
Ender grabbed the short-barreled flintlock from the ground. A line of text immediately appeared before his eyes.
Before he could read it, a large group of people appeared in the distance—Toby's men, retreating from their failed pursuit.
Ender's heart tightened. If they saw him now, they wouldn't stop to talk—he'd be shot full of holes. They were all blinded by rage.
He quickly looked around. His face darkened. He was surrounded on all sides by towering piles of trash, forming a ring that blocked every way out.
He didn't dare climb them. The unstable heaps could collapse at any moment, hiding who-knows-what inside. If he was unlucky and got pierced by something sharp, in this filthy place he wouldn't die from blood loss—but from infection.
Ender slipped back into the broken house. Inside, the girl named Mia looked at him with fear in her eyes.
This time, Ender didn't need to say anything. Mia quickly spoke first.
"I won't talk."
Realizing she had already spoken, she covered her mouth with both hands, her gaze darting toward the short-barreled flintlock in Ender's hand.
Moments after Ender entered the house, noise came from outside.
After a round of angry shouting, things quieted down again. It seemed the men had returned to search for supplies, but judging by their furious voices, they didn't find much.
Ender exhaled softly and checked the message that had appeared earlier.
[You obtained: Worn Flintlock (White)]
Worn Flintlock (White)
Origin: One Piece – Leopold Workshop
Durability: 6/30
Ammo Capacity: 4/6 (Multi-shot flintlock—unique to the One Piece world)
Attack Power: 2–13 (depends on distance)
Requirements: Strength 1 to use; Strength 3 for proficient handling.
Rating: 3 (Note: White-tier equipment is rated 1–10. A score of 10 means "Rare," granting special properties.)
Description: A poorly maintained flintlock. Its original 9-point quality has fallen to 3. Use it carefully—its next shot could be its last… and maybe yours too.
Value: 150 Paradise Coins (Item cannot be taken out of the One Piece world.)
[First Equipment Acquired – Starting Equipment Grade Tutorial]
Equipment is divided into: White, Green, Blue... (Further details locked due to low rank. Find out through experience.)
[First Paradise Coins Obtained – Starting Currency Tutorial]
Paradise Coins can be used for trading with Reincarnation Paradise or other Contractors. They are the only universal currency.
Warning: Use every coin wisely—they are your key to survival and growth.
Ender nodded thoughtfully. Reincarnation Paradise clearly had a strict and organized system—complete weapon stats and a proper currency economy.
He knew danger awaited him, yet he felt a spark of excitement. This Reincarnation Paradise might truly help him grow stronger.
He didn't yet know how to gain power, but he was sure that method existed here—otherwise, there would be no way to survive the harder missions ahead.
After carefully inspecting the [Worn Flintlock], a faint smile appeared on Ender's face.
At last, he had a weapon. Without one, he couldn't rest easy in such a dangerous world.
But guns weren't his preference. He liked blades more—narrow, razor-sharp longswords. (TL/N: That why u ded, lol)
If his sword were with him now, his fighting strength would increase by at least half.
He now understood the basics. The next step was to focus on his mission—its time limit was only seventy-two hours.
He didn't dare imagine what failure meant, so he had no choice but to devote himself completely to success.
But assassinating a king was no simple task. He needed a plan, a way to get close to the target.
Secretly sneaking into the royal palace was out of the question—this was the One Piece world, where people could use Observation Haki.
From what he remembered, this king was linked to the Celestial Dragons, and it was likely that Haki users guarded him.
Otherwise, a mission to kill a king would never be ranked at LV.3.
If Ender could carry out his revenge plan in a real world full of surveillance, then in this low-tech pirate world, success was even more possible.
But that was a problem for later. For now, he had to figure out where he was. Reincarnation Paradise didn't offer maps—he had to learn everything on his own.
His eyes shifted toward the girl curled up in the corner. She lived in this Scrap Terminal, so she must know the area well.
Feeling his gaze, Mia shrank back.
"What do you want?"
Her voice trembled, almost breaking into tears. She had always hidden her gender—being a girl in the Scrap Terminal was dangerous.
"Are you hungry?"
Ender crouched in front of her, smiling gently—but his eyes were cold.
He was not a kind man. Hatred had long erased any kindness left in his heart.
(End of Chapter)