That was naturally Golden Lion Shiki. While training Lius daily, the old man constantly nagged him. He insisted that anyone aiming to rule the world first needed a reliable navigator.
Annoyed beyond belief, Lius finally told him about the genius navigator Nami.
The result?
Shiki went straight to East Blue. He kidnapped the young thief Nami and dumped her right in front of Lius.
In the old man's words, Lius needed to properly build a relationship with Nami. This would make it easier for them to share joys and sorrows once they set sail.
Nami was fifteen that year. Lius was fourteen.
And so, that led to the scene from earlier.
After all, Nami could not find a single normal person to talk to in this place other than Lius.
Two years passed.
Spending day and night together naturally brought the two of them closer.
After finishing the bandages, Nami sat down. She naturally leaned against his shoulder and wrapped her arms around his. Her large eyes stared blankly out at the magnificent sea of clouds.
"Lius, you won just now, right? Does that mean we can finally set sail?"
"Yeah, I guess you could say I won!"
Lius grinned, enjoying her soft warmth pressed against him. "I earn the right to set sail as long as I manage to injure the old man. That was our agreement."
"Mhm!"
Nami nodded obediently. Anticipation filled her youthful face.
"The old man will probably come over once he catches his breath!" Lius said with a faint smile.
Lius had undergone systematic and grueling training after becoming Shiki's disciple.
His swordsmanship in particular had reached a level comparable to the current Shiki in just two short years.
And that did not even include the explosive growth brought by his check-in system.
[Ding! Congratulations Host. You have received one daily check-in opportunity!]
[Do you wish to check in?]
The system notification suddenly rang out in his mind.
Another daily check-in? Lius curled his lips in mild disdain.
The check-in system!
This was the system Lius awakened upon transmigrating to this world.
The name was self-explanatory. The system provided one check-in opportunity every day.
The check-ins were divided into several tiers: daily, special, extraordinary, and king.
The vast majority of check-ins fell into the daily tier. He would occasionally trigger a special check-in.
He had only experienced an extraordinary check-in three times over the past two years.
Each of those instances brought an explosive surge in his strength.
As for the king tier check-in, he had never seen it again after his very first check-in.
He sometimes suspected that king tier check-ins required a specific scenario to trigger.
That was just a guess of course. He would have to set sail to find out the truth.
But one thing was certain. The check-in tier was absolutely tied to his own luck.
Check in, Lius muttered in his mind.
[Ding! Congratulations Host. Check-in successful!]
[Ding! Congratulations Host. You have received Body Tempering Pill x3!]
[Ding! Congratulations Host. You have received Attribute Point x1!]
...
...
Oh? I actually got an attribute point today. Looks like my luck is pretty good!
Lius shifted his gaze slightly as he heard the system voice.
It was only a single point. However, adding it to any of his abilities would save him a considerable amount of time spent on grueling training.
Add the attribute point to swordsmanship!
Extract one Body Tempering Pill and consume the rest!
Lius made his decision after a moment of thought.
[Ding! Congratulations Host. Check-in rewards successfully applied!]
A warm current immediately surged through his nearly exhausted body as the system panel faded.
Fresh insights regarding swordsmanship melted right into his flesh and blood.
He checked his personal attribute panel again.
...
[Host: Lius]
[Physique: A+]
[Haki: conqueror's haki (Max Level), armament haki (B-), observation haki (B)]
[Skills: Swordsmanship (S-)]
Other: None currently.
...
This was the digitized data of his strength.
Two years.
He went from a total rookie who only knew conqueror's haki to attaining enough strength to protect himself. He achieved this through a combination of his own grueling training and the check-in rewards.
The Body Tempering Pill had the effect of altering one's physique. It simultaneously strengthened the body and increased units of power.
It was the most common check-in reward, but it was incredibly practical.
After all, a strong body was the foundation of everything!
Every single top-tier powerhouse in this world possessed monster-like physical potential.
An A+ physique equated to over four thousand units of power. That was close to Rob Lucci, the pigeon guy from CP9 back in Enies Lobby in the anime.
That was nothing in the Grand Line.
However, building upon that foundation, his swordsmanship had reached the S-rank thanks to Shiki's teachings.
An S-rank in swordsmanship was considered extremely powerful even in the waters of the New World.
One had to remember the current state of Shiki. He was physically disabled with amputated legs and had a steering wheel lodged into his skull. It was not hard to imagine just how far his strength had plummeted.
Yet even so, the crippled lion managed to teach Lius enough to reach S-rank in swordsmanship. One could only imagine how terrifying he must have been in his prime!
No wonder Roger had to rely on pure luck to escape when they clashed.
Inheriting Shiki's swordsmanship meant Lius still had massive room for growth in the future.
He would eventually stand at the absolute pinnacle of the world as long as he kept at it.
[Hum!]
Lius felt a light vibration in his palm right then. A dark and glossy pill appeared out of thin air.
This was the Body Tempering Pill!
As the most basic check-in reward, he could consume the Body Tempering Pill himself or extract it to give to others.
"Open your mouth!"
Lius fed it to Nami beside him without a second thought.
He had always been generous to his own people. He was more than happy to share any good things he acquired.
"Mhm!" Nami mumbled from his shoulder. She parted her red lips and swallowed it down.
The pill melted the moment it entered her mouth. It formed a warm current that washed through her entire body and immediately nourished her flesh and cells.
"So hot!" Nami whispered.
She rubbed her cheek against his arm. Her pale skin flushed a scorching red. Her entire body burned as hot as a furnace.
Her reaction was completely different compared to when Lius used it.
That was the nature of the Body Tempering Pill! The weaker the physique, the stronger the effect!
The tempering process lasted for a full ten minutes. Nami collapsed weakly against his chest.
"That was five minutes faster than last time!"
Lius looked down at the girl's flushed cheeks. He gently stroked her hair and smiled. "The gains aren't bad though. You should have a few hundred units of power by now."
"Mhm!"
Nami gave a lazy reply. She acted as docile as a kitten as she burrowed deeper into his embrace. She kept her eyes shut tight to enjoy the newfound surge of strength brought by the pill.
Right at that moment.
A gentle breeze blew past. A massive shadow cast down from the sky and blotted out the sun.
"He's here!"
Lius looked up and grinned.
The girl in his arms immediately sat up straight upon hearing his words. She looked over with wide eyes as excitement colored her beautiful face.