Sea Circle Calendar, 1517.
The Grand Line.
Two Marine warships were docked side-by-side on the shimmering sea. High above their masts, the seagulls on the flags fluttered proudly in the wind, clutching the scales of justice.
One of the ships bore the standard 'MARINE' markings on its hull—a regular battleship of the line.
The other, however, was painted with the designation 'DT-31'.
This code belonged to a special logistics division within the Navy: the Custody Unit, responsible for transporting defeated criminals to prison.
"Bounty: 47 million Berries. 'Gladiator' Antoliya. Custody transfer complete. Catching unit: Ship T-14551, under the command of Major Gushil from HQ."
On the deck of the DT-31, Roy Amos spoke into a recording Den Den Mushi while watching a burly man being shoved aboard his ship.
Once the log was finished, Roy turned to the officer on the opposite ship. "Thank you for your hard work, Major Gushil."
"It's all for Justice," Major Gushil replied with a grin, before leaning over the railing. "But I have to warn you, Captain Roy—this guy is a piece of work. Make sure you don't take those Seastone handcuffs off for the entire trip."
Gushil laughed heartily. "I wouldn't mind catching him a second time, but I'd hate to hear that your ship got sunk by a prisoner on the way back! Hahahaha!"
Behind Roy, the Marines of the Custody Unit darkened their expressions at the slight.
Roy, however, didn't seem bothered by the teasing. He simply smiled and nodded. "Thanks for the reminder."
With that, he turned and leaped lightly back onto the deck of his own ship. "Set sail. We're returning to Marineford."
"Yes, Captain Roy!"
His subordinates saluted in unison and immediately scrambled to get the ship moving.
However, once they were out of earshot, the grumbling started.
"Seriously, what is that guy so smug about?" A Marine officer muttered to his partner as they escorted the prisoner into the ship's holding cells. "Val, tell me, aren't we all Marines? He just got lucky catching a guy worth forty million. Last time, Admiral Kuzan caught a pirate worth three hundred million and didn't brag half as much!"
"Keep it down, Hans," the Marine named Val shook his head helplessly. "It can't be helped. We're the Custody Unit, after all."
It wasn't the first time they had been treated this way.
The reason was simple: their unit was unique. They were responsible for transporting criminals already captured by others. Generally, they didn't participate in frontline combat, yet they received a share of the merit for every successful delivery.
In the eyes of many combat Marines, the Custody Unit were "slackers"—cowards who avoided battle but rushed in to steal credit.
"So what if we're the Custody Unit?" Hans, the complaining Marine, wasn't letting it go. "It's not like we don't face danger during transport. And the credit we get is tiny anyway."
He mimicked Major Gushil's voice mockingly. "'I wouldn't mind catching him a second time, but be careful...' What a load of crap!"
"Sergeant Hans!"
A low voice cut through his rant.
"Yes, Captain Roy!"
Hans snapped his spine straight, instinctively saluting as he spun around.
Behind him, the black-haired, blue-eyed Captain was standing there like a ghost. Roy looked at his subordinate with a faint, unreadable smile.
"What have I told you before?"
"Less complaining... more doing..." Hans mumbled, guilty.
"Too quiet! I can't hear you!"
"LESS COMPLAINING, MORE DOING! SIR!"
"Good! Very spirited!" Roy waved his hand dismissively. "Now get your ass to the helm. Standard procedure: I'll take the first watch over the prisoner tonight."
"Yes, sir!"
Relieved to be let off the hook, Hans shot a glance at Val. The two of them jogged out of the temporary brig, but Hans paused at the door. "Captain, dinner will be ready soon. Should I bring something in for you?"
"Pizza and Coke, thanks," Roy said, holding up a finger. "Make sure the Coke is ice-cold."
"Understood!"
The Marines left the cabin, the heavy iron door clanging shut behind them.
Now, only Roy and the prisoner remained.
'Gladiator' Antoliya, a massive man restrained by Seastone handcuffs, leaned against the bars of his cell, staring at Roy.
"Sounds like you and your boys aren't very popular within the Navy, huh?" Antoliya sneered.
"Something like that."
Roy sat down on a sofa across from the cell. He reached into his coat, pulled out an hourglass, and placed it on the table.
As the sand began to trickle down, Roy glanced casually at the prisoner.
"Though I hear Fleet Admiral Sengoku is considering raising the status of the Custody Unit... well, anyway. Did you have something to say?"
Roy seemed perfectly willing to chat with a criminal.
"No, that's not the reason!" Antoliya lowered his voice to a growl. "It's because you are weak. If you were strong, no one would dare look down on you."
"Status, money, power... you need strength to seize them all. Look at me!"
Antoliya struggled to sit upright, his chains rattling. "If not for these handcuffs..."
He looked toward a massive slab of iron resting in the corner of the room. It had a thick handle protruding from the top—his confiscated weapon.
"One swing of my 'Iron Smasher' would be enough to crush you to death and shatter this cage," Antoliya scoffed.
He waited for the Marine to get angry, but Roy didn't seem to care about the provocation.
"Ah, yes, yes. You're right." Roy nodded with a serious expression.
Then, his tone shifted.
"However..."
"Your full-strength strike can only shatter this small cage? You ate the Muscle-Muscle Fruit, becoming a muscle-man, and you're still that weak?"
"Huh...?"
Antoliya was stunned.
It took him a moment to process what he had just heard. When he did, rage flared in his eyes.
This Marine... this nobody named Roy... dared to humiliate him?
"What did you—"
The curse died in his throat. Antoliya's eyes bulged, nearly popping out of their sockets.
Roy had stood up and walked over to the 'Iron Smasher.'
That massive block of iron—heavy enough to crush a small house just by its weight—was currently being lifted by Roy with one hand.
He held it as if it were a balloon.
"Hmm... judging by the weight of your weapon, you can only reinforce your muscle density by about twenty times? Your development of the Fruit's ability is pretty sub-par," Roy critiqued smoothly.
"You... you... you..."
Antoliya couldn't speak. The scene before him felt like a hallucination.
"Wait..." He finally snapped out of his daze. "How do you know I ate the Muscle-Muscle Fruit?"
"Ah, about that."
Roy casually set the massive iron block back down and returned to his seat.
"I know a little bit about Devil Fruits."
He glanced at the hourglass on the table. The sand had run down by a third. Roy nodded with satisfaction.
"Mm. Perfect timing."
"Timing? What timing?" Antoliya was completely lost.
Roy simply extended a hand toward him.
"Nothing. Get some rest."
The moment the words left his mouth, Antoliya felt a massive, invisible shockwave slam into his consciousness.
His vision went black.
Thud.
His gigantic body collapsed onto the floor, unconscious.
Roy didn't even look at him. His gaze was fixed on the empty air in front of him.
In his vision, a translucent blue interface had appeared.
[Devil Fruit User detected: 'Antoliya']
[Confirmed Fruit: Paramecia · Muscle-Muscle Fruit (Strong-Strong Fruit). Analyzing and storing to 'Fruit Encyclopedia'...]
[Fruit Ability: Can strengthen and control own muscle density and fibers.]
[Level Effects]
[LV1: Minimal Fruit Effect. Muscle strength reinforced 2~5 times.]
[LV2: Partial Fruit Effect. Significant muscle strength reinforcement, 5~10 times. Unlock Cost: 60M Berries (Permanent) / 20M Berries (Temporary).]
[LV3: Full Fruit Effect. Massive muscle strength reinforcement, 20~40 times. Unlock Cost: 300M Berries (Permanent) / 100M Berries (Temporary).]
[LV4: Deep Development. Freely manipulate muscles to form shields and blades; control specific muscle groups for hardening and high-speed regeneration. Max reinforcement up to 100 times. Unlock Cost: 1B Berries (Permanent) / 300M Berries (Temporary).]
[LV5: Awakening · Muscle Dominion. Absorb the life force of biological entities within range to strengthen own muscles; control muscle tissue of all beings within the domain. Unlock Cost: 6B Berries (Permanent) / 2B Berries (Temporary).]
[Analysis Progress: 33%. Upon completion, User will obtain LV1 ability of this Fruit.]
Watching the screen, Roy's expression remained calm.
'Gladiator' Antoliya was, in his eyes, just an ordinary, mediocre ability user.
However, there was one thing Roy agreed with him on.
"Strength is everything. On this chaotic sea, without strength, you aren't safe anywhere."
He looked at the unconscious prisoner.
"The difference between you and me, Antoliya, is perspective."
"I know how vast the sea is, so I choose to stay in the Custody Unit."
"You know nothing, which is why you spouted that ignorant nonsense earlier. Go to Impel Down and further your education. The people there are talented, and they have such a way with words. You'll love it there."