A dazzling light filled the room, then vanished in an instant.
White smoke, which had risen from nowhere, slowly dissipated.
Before Kane, a figure gradually came into focus.
“My Lord, it’s an honor to meet you.
Plegrim awaits your command.”
Under the dim light, a green-haired man stood against the shadows.
He was about 190 cm tall with a well-proportioned build.
His emerald green hair was short, messy yet stylish.
His crimson eyes held a hint of pink, and a lazy smile played at the corner of his lips.
He wore a fitted black suit, his white dress shirt unbuttoned at the collar, a silver necklace glinting coldly around his neck.
Beneath his languid demeanor lurked an edge of danger that was easy to miss.
“Hello there.
Um…
may I?” Kane extended his hand, testing the waters.
Asking for permission was a sign of respect — that was just who he was.
He didn’t like forcing his people, and that included the Ghost Gods he’d created — even if they saw him as their creator.
“Feel free.”
Plegrim smiled faintly, spreading his arms and letting Kane examine him.
Amazing.
The texture, the sensation — no different from a real human.
“How does it feel?”
“Great.
Absolutely great!” Kane nodded.
He couldn’t spot any flaws at all.
A complete success.
“I never would have guessed, my Lord.
You have such…
tastes.
Though it’s rude to say so, I must respectfully decline.”
“Huh?
What are you talking about?”
Kane was stunned, momentarily confused — until he caught the mischievous glint in Plegrim’s eyes.
“What the hell are you thinking?
Wrong — completely wrong!
I’m perfectly normal.
I only like women!”
“Understood, my Lord.
I’ll make a note of that.” Plegrim looked perfectly serious, but offered no apology, smoothly changing the subject.
Perhaps because Kane had never treated his Ghost Gods as mere tools — subconsciously offering them rare respect, without imposing excessive restrictions — they all possessed normal emotions.
The first two Ghost Gods had been the silent, reserved types.
But Plegrim was the first humanoid form, and Kane had high hopes for his ability to integrate into human society.
Under the influence of these factors, his emotions were more outwardly expressed.
Kane’s behavior and subconscious thoughts actually stemmed from all the sci-fi works he’d consumed in his previous life — robot uprisings, machine crises, post-apocalyptic futures, and so on.
The causes varied, but one lesson stood out to him: no matter how advanced artificial intelligence became, humans always treated them as tools — leading to a buildup of conflict.
What if they were treated like friends instead?
Perhaps conflict would still be inevitable, but at least there would be more possibilities.
Naive or not, Kane had once held that thought — and it shaped his attitude toward the Ghost Gods.
And that attitude, in turn, made them place him first in their hearts, regardless of their personalities or emotions.
There was one more thing — something even Kane himself didn’t realize.
His subconscious was also trying to prevent a “machine uprising.” That underlying concern brought him an unexpected benefit.
One Piece was a world where willpower and imagination held real power.
Devil Fruits were almost certainly born from human desire and longing.
The strength of ability development depended not only on talent but also on creativity.
And Haki was a power of the heart — the strength of one’s will directly influenced its power.
So when Kane created his Ghost Gods, his subconscious worries intervened.
The Devil Fruit ability responded, planting an unshakable core logic deep within the Ghost Gods’ beings — where they themselves couldn’t perceive it — giving Kane absolute control over them.
“Let’s go find someone to test it on.” Kane led Plegrim out through the back door without attracting any attention.
The moon had risen.
The streets were brightly lit.
Though the auction house had been thrown into chaos, Pilaf had stepped up quickly to stabilize the situation.
Not many people had fled in panic.
They soon found some pirates with bounties.
A flash of pinkish-red light.
The argument between two groups of pirates escalated instantly.
They drew their weapons, shoving and pushing each other as they left town.
The bystanders sensed nothing wrong — they assumed the two crews were heading somewhere quiet to settle things.
It was a common sight.
On an empty beach in the north of the island, the pirates stood silently, their eyes empty like zombies.
Plegrim approached from a distance.
Another flash of pinkish-red light — and the pirates regained their senses.
“What the hell?!
Where’d you bring us?”
“Weren’t we just on the street?”
“It was you two, wasn’t it?!”
After a brief moment of confusion, the two groups quickly turned on each other.
Just as they were about to clash, Plegrim charged in — attacking everyone indiscriminately. This story is hosted at novelping.com.
The fight erupted instantly.
Plegrim took on the entire group alone, overwhelming them with ease.
Kane watched from a nearby rock, nodding frequently.
Plegrim’s performance was excellent.
Mind control, “Elementalization,” attack prediction, and various buffs — all demonstrated smoothly in battle.
The two abilities had fused seamlessly, with no conflict or rejection whatsoever.
When the fight ended, Plegrim dragged two unconscious pirate captains by their collars and brought them over to Kane.
“Good.
Keep these two.
Find a way to cash in their bounties for startup funds.”
Exchanging bounties was easy.
Neither Kane nor Plegrim had bounties on their heads yet — they could simply walk into a Marine branch and claim the money.
Even for major pirates in the Grand Line, there were ways.
The Emperors all had front men who handled this kind of thing.
“Understood, my Lord.” Plegrim tossed the two bodies into a corner and waited for further instructions.
“Your next move — find a way to get under Pilaf’s wing.
With Lao G dead, he’s desperate for strong fighters to shore up his image.
You can work your way into his inner circle quickly.”
This was the result of Kane’s careful deliberation.
First: the opportunity was perfect — too good to miss.
Second: he had his eyes on the Shipping King’s business.
Shipping King Umit controlled the secret routes of the Deep Sea Currents — connecting all four seas to the Grand Line.
Only he could navigate and transport through them.
He essentially monopolized unofficial shipping.
Everyone depended on him.
His strategic value was immense.
If Kane could control those routes, they’d bring him enormous wealth — and provide crucial strategic mobility and logistical support for any future war.
“Work your way up over time.
Step by step, reach the highest management level.
Once you’ve mastered all the Deep Sea Current routes, you can take his place — eliminate Umit and become the new Shipping King.”
Having the Ghost Gods build their own organizations from scratch was thankless work.
Building something from zero to worldwide significance would take forever.
Better to infiltrate an established organization, climb the ranks, and then take the whole thing in one move.
“Understood, my Lord.” Plegrim agreed first, then offered a suggestion: “Instead of me trying to rise on my own, why not push Pilaf up instead?”
“He knows when to advance and when to retreat.
He understands boundaries.
He’s a familiar face in the organization.
With my help, climbing the ladder would be a lot smoother.”