The warship cut across the inland sea of the Kingdom of Yacoslan, leaving the coastline behind.
Najenda stood at the railing, watching the kingdom fade into the distance. She turned to Lu Yu, her brow slightly furrowed.
"Captain… are we really doing the right thing here?" she asked, voice unsure. "Handing over a whole country to pirates? I mean, yeah, we're pirates too, but this just doesn't sit right with me."
Despite her absolute loyalty to Lu Yu, she still had a mind of her own—and on a human instinct level, this felt wrong. Still, she didn't oppose him. Just... questioned it.
Lu Yu glanced at her and replied calmly, "People live within whatever limits they're given. Pirates are no different."
He paused, watching the sea ahead. "Right now, they're the acting agents of the Kingdom of Yacoslan. A chess piece I left in the East Blue."
He turned back to her, his voice steady. "Justice and evil... they're just perspectives based on where you stand."
Najenda thought it over and nodded. "That's true... every country's got its own version of justice."
She understood now. For the sake of the Dragon Hunter Pirates' future, this was a strategic move.
"Roelki," Lu Yu called, turning his attention. "Head to Loguetown. Once we're outside its waters, stock up on supplies. After that, we set sail for the Grand Line."
"Aye, Captain!" Roelki replied quickly, but then hesitated. "Oh, and one more thing—I almost forgot!"
He jogged over, pulling something from his bag. "I found this earlier when I was sorting through the fruit baskets."
He held up a devil fruit.
Everyone on deck instantly turned toward him, wide-eyed.
"You're kidding... A devil fruit?" Najenda asked, eyes gleaming.
"This thing could be useful for research," Lu Yu said, intrigued. "But we don't really have any genius scientists onboard."
"Let me cook it!" Akame chimed in, grinning.
"You can't cook a devil fruit," Najenda groaned, rolling her eyes.
Lu Yu chuckled. "If I'm right, this is the Paramecia-type Devil Fruit that belonged to Valen—the guy Akame just killed. The Diamond Fruit."
He looked at the fruit thoughtfully.
"There's a legend... Devil Fruits don't disappear when the user dies. They reincarnate into the nearest fruit around. Looks like that legend's true."
Najenda raised an eyebrow. "That's wild. It's like these things are alive."
"Yeah, it's not like an imperial weapon at all... this thing feels organic," Akame muttered.
Lu Yu turned to Roelki and held out the fruit. "It's yours."
Roelki froze. "W-What!?"
He stumbled back a step, eyes wide.
"N-No way, Captain! This is a devil fruit we're talking about! Even if it's Paramecia, it could create powerful fighters! It's got potential—it should go to someone more deserving!"
He was clearly panicking now, waving his arms as he rambled on. "I mean, I just joined! How can I eat a devil fruit when the senior members don't even have one yet?!"
He looked up—and saw everyone staring at him with soft smiles.
Wait... did he just say something dumb?
Lu Yu walked forward and rested a hand on his shoulder. "We're partners, aren't we?"
"If you think being a partner means always standing behind us... not fighting alongside us... then yeah, you can refuse it."
Roelki eyes welled up.
He dropped to his knees. "Captain... I get it."
He looked at the fruit, took a deep breath, and bit into it.
"Bleghh... tastes like crap," he coughed. "What the hell is this taste?!"
Everyone laughed, but soon, a strange energy began to flow through Roelki's body.
He raised his hand. The sword he was holding started to shift and change—its edges warping and reshaping until it became a discus.
"I can manipulate metal?" he muttered, shocked.
"Seems like it," Lu Yu observed. "But there's probably a range or condition tied to it. Still, this ability's dangerous—almost like the Rust-Rust Fruit. It can completely neutralize swordsmen unless they've reached the level of a great swordmaster."
"Or unless they use Armament Haki," Najenda added.
Lu Yu nodded. "Roelki, you've got potential. Start developing your ability. Someone else can handle navigation."
With that, he walked off to the ship's helm, his coat billowing in the wind.
---
Status:
Host: Lu Yu (21 years old)
Abilities: Advanced Swordsmanship, Advanced Assassination, Intermediate Armament Haki, Basic Observation Haki
Items: Ame-no-Habakiri, Extreme Battleship (God-tier Pirate Group Halo Equipment), Destroying-the-Kingdom Gift Pack
Reputation: 28,500
Crew:
First Team: Akamei (from "Akame ga Kill")
Special Crew: Kuina, Roelki
Title: Captain of the Dragon Hunter Pirates
[Night Raid group recruitment conditions: active]
Lu Yu opened his system panel and let out a deep breath.
Sure enough, after eating the Devil Fruit, Roelki strength had jumped to an A-rank evaluation from the system.
Though his potential score was also A, it was enough to officially make him a core crew member.
Lu Yu could feel a surge of power resonate with him—the bond strengthening.
Every time a new core member joined, or an existing one grew stronger, he could feel it. As captain, he received the greatest feedback.
The stronger his crew, the closer he was to his ultimate goal.
"System," Lu Yu said, his eyes sharp. "Open the 'Destroying the Kingdom' Gift Pack."
Ding!
Congratulations, Host: +10,000 Reputation Points. Basic Attributes +50.
A wave of power rushed through his body.
The higher one's basic attributes, the more potential there was for growth—and once you hit a certain threshold, every point became a huge leap in power.
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