In the mountain forest!
A hidden valley.
A bonfire burned in a camp of wooden houses and tents, filled with the drifting sounds of noisy laughter.
Sig, holding a wine bottle, clapped Laino on the shoulder and grinned, "Laino, you did great today!"
His nose was red and his steps were unsteady; he had clearly drunk a lot.
"You're a qualified mountain bandit now. Men, let's have a drink for Laino!"
"Drink!"
The bandits all raised their cups.
Laino raised his cup along with them. He appeared to take a hearty swig, but didn't actually drink, letting the alcohol spill from the corner of his mouth.
Now that he had copied Shanks's Conqueror's Haki, there was little point in staying with Sig's bandit group. Besides, with the arrogance of this group, as long as they were active in the area, they would surely clash with the Red-Haired Pirates again. Would Shanks hold back then?
Therefore, he was preparing to escape.
For now, Laino remained composed and blended in with the celebration.
When the drinking was in full swing, the bandits started dancing around the bonfire. The roasted meat on the racks gave off a tempting aroma.
In Laino's peripheral vision, in the treetop watchtower, the officer on duty, Barry, was looking down at the party with extreme longing.
Laino glanced at Sig again. He and a dozen or so bandits were gathered around a long table outside the wooden house, gambling. These bandits were the core members of the bandit group who always got the most money from each raid.
If he was going to leave Sig's group, tonight was the perfect opportunity.
Laino opened the system interface.
[Host Name: Laino]
[Actual Age: 17]
[Existing Talents: Glib Tongue, Gluttony, Conqueror's Haki]
[Power Evaluation: Newbie, yet you possess a king's disposition. Bide your time, young man, the future is yours.]
Laino narrowed his eyes slightly. He could feel an indescribable power within him. He felt he could release it, but he couldn't control it.
Laino took a sip of wine. He carried the bottle and climbed up to the treetop watchtower.
"Laino, what are you doing?"
"Hey, Big Brother Barry, I'll take over your watch. In exchange, how about you teach me to play dice?"
"You brat, do you even know how to keep watch?"
"Who doesn't? Besides, who could find us here?"
"Alright then, keep a sharp lookout!"
"Don't worry!"
Laino had only been in the bandit group for five short days, but he had already memorized the people he needed to pay attention to. Barry's strength was in the top five, one of Sig's most trusted men. But he had obvious weaknesses: he loved to drink, gamble, and take small advantages.
He naturally wanted to join the festivities, but unfortunately, it was his turn for watch duty tonight. With someone offering to take his place, how could he not be happy? Although Laino was new, his performance over the past few days—killing and fighting—had won their trust. Besides, they were bandits; they had no discipline to begin with.
Barry excitedly climbed down the tree, grabbed a bottle of wine, and joined the gambling table.
From the tree, Laino saw Sig and the other officers at the table glance up at him a couple of times. Laino stood there, looking like he was diligently on duty.
"That guy is a natural-born bandit!" Barry commented, then pulled Sig back to placing bets.
Laino looked at the wooden house. Inside was the gold and jewelry the bandits had stolen but hadn't sold off yet, things that were easy to store. He had been inside once and estimated it was worth about one hundred million Beri.
Since he was leaving, how could he not take some travel money?
Laino waited for about half an hour, took a breath, and reached out to pull the large alarm bell.
"What's going on?"
The ringing of the bell stunned the bandits.
Laino shouted: "Enemy attack! I see the enemy! Aaargh..." He let out a scream, as if he had been attacked, and fell down.
"Laino?"
"There's an enemy?"
The lively camp instantly fell into chaos.
On the watchtower, Laino's eyes flared. In the next instant, an invisible wave of intimidation spread out with him at the center.
The world fell silent. The leaves, the sparks from the fire, all seemed to stop, completely suppressed by a mysterious power. In that instant, the bandits in the camp went blank, their ability to think stripped away, falling into a field of unconsciousness.
Thud!
A bandit fell. It seemed to trigger a chain reaction, as the bandits fell one after another.
"Hey..."
Sig watched his men fall one after another, feeling that inexplicable terror, a cold sweat pouring down his back. He propped himself up on the table and vaguely saw someone approaching. Before he could see who it was, he slid under the table.
"This thing is really useful!" Laino was amazed.
Conqueror's Haki! The disposition of a king.
Those who possess Conqueror's Haki can, without even fighting, intimidate, overwhelm, and even knock out enemies with their own 'spirit'. It can also make opponents much weaker than oneself faint. However, if not controlled well, it will affect everyone in the vicinity. Conversely, if the Haki reaches an advanced level, it can achieve a pressurizing effect or even cause physical destruction.
Laino hadn't trained it. But his Conqueror's Haki came from Shanks and was A-Rank in strength, definitely surpassing someone who had just awakened it. The current Shanks was not yet the future Emperor, and his strength had not reached its peak. In a few years, it would definitely be SSS-Rank!
The entire camp fell silent.
"Haki consumes energy. If stamina and spirit can't keep up, it becomes a burden instead."
Laino wiped his sweat, feeling a sense of exhaustion. He grabbed a piece of meat from the table and stuffed it into his mouth. The [Gluttony] talent activated. The food allowed his stamina and energy to recover faster.
He had to hurry before the bandits woke up.
Laino searched Sig, found the key, and unlocked the wooden house. The wooden house was dim. Laino lit a torch, went into the inner room, pulled out a treasure chest from a hidden compartment under the bed, and opened it to find a box of gold ornaments and jewels. He smiled and whistled.
He tore off a tablecloth, wrapped up the treasure chest, and was about to leave when he suddenly saw a larger chest in the corner.
"Sig, what a good guy!" Laino muttered. He opened the large chest; there were no gold or jewels inside, only some miscellaneous items.
Laino casually picked up a dusty book from the chest.
"Krog's Logbook?"
Curious, Laino opened it. Inside was the sailing diary of an adventurer named "Krog". An adventurer sent by the royal family of the Oykot Kingdom, who was heading for the Grand Line but encountered a storm and met with disaster along the way.
Laino also found a sea chart of the East Blue in the chest.
"Barry mentioned that they once killed a group of pirates and stole a lot of things. This was probably stolen then."
"If I'm going to sea, a sea chart and a logbook are both important. My luck is good."
Laino wrapped the two items, put them on his person, shouldered the treasure chest, held a torch in one hand, and a sword in the other.
Just as he got outside, a sense of danger arose. He almost instinctively raised his sword to block a sudden slash. The immense force knocked him back.
"You despicable bastard!"
Laino was surprised: "Sig, you're awake!?"