Chapter 64: I Thought of Something Happy
Oris Port.
Located directly in front of Oris Plaza, this was the largest port at Marineford and the main harbor for Marine Headquarters.
When Roy, Hans, and Fal arrived at the designated berth, they saw a ship docked there.
Flying the flag of a cross within a circle, it was a World Government vessel.
"Captain, are you sure you won't eat a fruit?"
Hans asked nervously from behind Roy, with Fal close beside him.
"Of course."
Roy's expression didn't change. "I have no interest in Devil Fruits."
Hearing this, Hans and Fal looked at him with reverence, clearly admiring his 'strong mindset.'
But at the same time, they were visibly excited.
Knowing that two Devil Fruits were coming to the unit, they had already held an internal competition to decide who would get them.
And it had to be said—while Fal and Hans were usually the comic relief duo who slacked off, their strength within the Detention Unit was actually quite decent.
So in the end, the right to consume these two fruits fell to them.
"When you see the government officials, look sharp. Don't embarrass us. And let me see the fruits first. They're rare items."
Roy glanced at them and gave this simple instruction.
He had no intention of breaking his 'non-ability user' persona, and he did intend to give the fruits to them—after all, he could acquire the abilities whether he ate them or not.
The problem was... for ordinary people, eating a Devil Fruit was like opening a blind box.
While most fruits had some use, there were definitely trash abilities out there.
But Roy wasn't 'ordinary people.'
With the 'Fruit Encyclopedia,' he could know exactly what the fruits did.
Hans and Fal were his subordinates, so he felt responsible for them.
If the abilities were truly weak, he would find an excuse to stop them from eating.
"Yes, sir!" (x2)
Hans and Fal agreed immediately.
Soon, they arrived in front of the World Government ship.
After identifying themselves, a soldier on board nodded. "Major Roy, your cargo is here. I'll go confirm with the two officers in charge of the escort..."
He was very enthusiastic, looking at Roy with admiration.
Roy knew without asking—this was definitely the result of the recent World Government propaganda.
"No need! We're right here!"
Before the soldier could finish, a voice interrupted him.
Two men walked out of the ship's cabin.
Both wore black suits. One had a pigeon on his shoulder; the other wore a square-nosed Tengu mask (though it was just his face).
"I didn't expect to see the favorite for the Tri-Force Demonstration as soon as we arrived at Marineford."
The square-nosed man laughed.
"I recognize Major Roy, of course. Please take the cargo. We were just escorting it on the way. No need for complicated procedures."
With that, he greeted the man with the pigeon, and the two walked off the ship together.
"Captain... those two look like CP9."
Fal whispered, judging by their attire.
Roy: "..."
You think?
He recognized them instantly.
The pigeon and the 'old man' speech pattern (referring to oneself as 'washi') were dead giveaways.
These two CP9 agents were the ones previously undercover in Water 7: Rob Lucci and Kaku.
"I remember these two were summoned to participate in the Tri-Force Demonstration?"
As Roy pondered this, he noticed something else and his expression grew subtle.
But before he could ask, the soldier handed him two boxes. "Major, these are the two Devil Fruits provided by 'Lizard King' Hanafuda."
As he spoke, the voice of the Fruit Encyclopedia rang in Roy's ear.
[Unclaimed Devil Fruits Discovered]
[Confirmed Devil Fruits: 'Paramecia · Fresh-Fresh Fruit' and 'Paramecia · Munch-Munch Fruit' (Wait, no, check text)]
(Correction: The raw text says 'Fresh-Fresh' and 'Full-Full' (Sat-Sat?))
[Confirmed Devil Fruits: 'Paramecia · Fresh-Fresh Fruit' and 'Paramecia · Full-Full Fruit'. Can be analyzed and saved to 'Fruit Encyclopedia']
[Please touch the fruits to complete analysis.]
Hearing the voice, Roy naturally didn't touch the fruits directly. If they disappeared in front of everyone, he'd never be able to explain it.
Instead, he looked at the detailed descriptions.
[Paramecia · Fresh-Fresh Fruit]
[Fruit Ability: Can store items inside the body and freeze their state, keeping them permanently fresh.]
[LV3: Can store meat, water, vegetables, and items inside the body, maintaining their state from the moment of entry. Storage capacity up to 30x body weight. Requires 500 Million Berries for Permanent Unlock.]
[LV4: Fruit Deep-Dive Development. Can store non-hostile living beings inside the body. Requires 1.5 Billion Berries for Permanent Unlock.]
[LV5: Fruit Awakening · Fresh Domain. Can revert nearby aged or rotting meat, water, vegetables, and biological corpses to a fresh state. Requires 8 Billion Berries for Permanent Unlock.]
This was the first fruit.
And the second...
[Paramecia · Full-Full Fruit]
[Fruit Ability: Can gain immense strength and vitality by eating.]
[LV3: Eating grants powerful strength and heals injuries. Strength and healing speed depend on the level of fullness. Requires 500 Million Berries for Permanent Unlock.]
[LV4: Fruit Deep-Dive Development. Can consume a massive amount of food in a short time to temporarily gain strength beyond limits. Requires 1.5 Billion Berries for Permanent Unlock.]
[LV5: Fruit Awakening · Gluttonous Human. Ability affects the surrounding environment, devouring all edible items and even microorganisms nearby. As long as there is food nearby, the user will not be injured or tired.]
"Both of these are pretty good," Roy was surprised.
Yes—the effects were unexpectedly solid.
First, the Fresh-Fresh Fruit. Its preservation ability was invaluable for long voyages.
And at higher levels, it even had spatial storage properties, allowing living beings to be stored. It was a top-tier support fruit with significant strategic value.
The second, the Full-Full Fruit (or Sat-Sat Fruit), was a combat buff fruit.
Eating to gain strength and vitality—considering a certain Nika who hadn't set sail yet had similar traits...
"Maybe I should call this the 'Human-Human Fruit, Model: Big Nika'?"
Roy muttered internally.
But clearly, this fruit was practical. And...
"These two fruits make a perfect combo."
One stores food perfectly, the other eats food for power. It was a great match.
The only problem was...
"You two... do you both want combat-enhancing fruits?"
Roy asked Fal and Hans tentatively.
"Of course!" (x2)
"But I know that support fruits can actually be quite good..."
"No!" (x2)
"Are you sure you want to eat..."
"We want to eat!" (x2)
Seeing their determination, Roy put on a show-watching expression.
He let them choose a box each and handed them over.
"Alright. Go to the side, eat them, and compare your abilities."
Hans and Fal nodded, walked aside, opened the boxes, and swallowed the fruits without hesitation.
And then...
"My ability is... Impossible! Absolutely impossible! Why is it like this!?"
First came Fal's wail of despair.
"Oh? Looks like your ability isn't very strong, Brother Fal? Come—let Sergeant Major Hans teach you what a true powerhouse is!"
Then came Hans's triumphant laughter.
But not long after...
"What did you say? Your ability is keeping food fresh... Brother Fal—NO! Godfather! I was wrong just now! Can we make peace?"
"Now? Are you joking?"
Listening to the noise behind him, Roy smiled and turned back to the World Government ship.
"Brother, what's your name?"
He looked at the enthusiastic soldier from earlier.
"Major Roy! I... I'm Arnold, Seaman Apprentice of the World Government Cargo Escort Guard!" the soldier saluted excitedly.
"At ease," Roy returned the salute, then asked curiously.
"I wanted to ask—I noticed a lot of ships in the port, and those two CP9 agents..."
He pointed around.
As he said, Roy had noticed since arriving that Oris Port was much busier than usual.
And looking closely, many weren't Marine ships.
"You don't know, Major? Oh, I understand—you must have been busy training..." Arnold realized.
"As you can see, these ships and those two officers are here for the Tri-Force Demonstration."
"Although there's still some time before it starts, since the participants are from various government branches, everyone except the Marines is arriving early to train..."
He explained concisely.
"I see..."
Roy nodded, realizing the World Government really was taking this seriously.
Arnold continued to introduce the ships enthusiastically.
"Look, Major—that ship belongs to the National Guard, carrying elites from member nations."
"That one is the Sky Guard ship, from the High West."
As a basic guard, he had seen a lot.
Roy nodded along, but his attention was drawn to a few other ships.
"Those are..."
Even among the many ships, these stood out.
One was shaped like an albatross, carrying a massive Transponder Snail.
Another looked like a freighter, piled high with crates of all sizes.
"Oh, the one with the giant snail is the 'World Economic News Paper' live broadcast ship."
"The other is a transport ship from the 'Giberson Ocean Shipping Company'—it's carrying supplies for the demonstration, provided by the 'Du Feld Corporation'."
Arnold said casually.
"I thought so."
Roy narrowed his eyes.
World Economic News Paper—owned by 'Big News' Morgans, Emperor of the Underworld.
Giberson Ocean Shipping—owned by 'Concealment Master' Giberson, Emperor of the Underworld.
Du Feld Corporation—owned by 'Loan Shark King' Du Feld, Emperor of the Underworld.
"This is the 'World' for you," Roy whispered in his heart.
The Six Emperors of the Underworld, each monopolizing an illegal industry with immense power.
Media manipulation, smuggling, usury... their wealth came from sin.
But clearly, the World Government didn't care.
Just like how they knew 'Joker' was Warlord Doflamingo but let him be.
As long as it ensured their rule, sin wasn't sin.
And if it threatened their rule, justice wasn't justice.
Just like now—the Tri-Force Demonstration, symbolizing the World Government and the Marines... was being funded and prepared by these people.
How ridiculous.
"Then I guess that ship belongs to the 'Drug Peclo Company'?"
Roy looked at another ship.
Its prow was shaped like a scythe.
Arnold nodded. "You guessed right. Peclo Company has medicines from all over the world. They volunteered to provide medical supplies for the demonstration."
He lowered his voice. "And you know, they also handle funerals—the demonstration is dangerous, after all..."
His answer confirmed Roy's guess.
Drug Peclo Company—owned by 'Major Undertaker' Drug Peclo, Emperor of the Underworld.
This Dark Emperor monopolized fields related to 'death': funerals, drugs, and... Assassination!
He was rumored to be the King of Assassins, the 'Shadow King.'
Almost all known assassins in the world were under his protection, but also bound by his rules.
"The King of Assassins, huh..."
But right now, a smile appeared on Roy's face.
"Major?"
Seeing Roy's expression, Arnold was confused. "Is something wrong?"
For some reason, Roy's smile felt a little... evil.
"Ah, no, nothing."
Hearing Arnold's question, Roy coughed twice.
"I just... thought of something happy."
☆☆☆
-> 30 Advanced chapters Now Available on Patreon!!
-> https://www.pat-reon.co-m/c/Hollowborn
(Just remove the hyphen (-) to access patreon normally)
If you like this novel please consider leaving a review that's help the story a lot Thank you