“But when did someone this ruthless show up on Barbarian Island?”
“He doesn’t really look like a pirate…”
“Could he be a bounty hunter?”
The orange-haired girl muttered to herself while rubbing her slightly rounded, dust-covered chin with one grimy hand.
Judging by her appearance, she wasn’t very old.
Fourteen or fifteen at most.
Her bright, cunning orange eyes looked warily toward the young man standing at the intersection below.
“Good thing I ran fast earlier and know this area well. If he’d caught me, there’s no way I’d have gotten away easily.”
“Ugh… should I give his wallet back?”
“This thing suddenly feels kind of dangerous to keep.”
Nami stared blankly at the flashy pink wallet in her hand.
Then she shuddered.
“Forget it.”
“The best thing to do with someone that vicious is never see him again.”
“I really don’t want to get stabbed by him.”
“I should leave this island as soon as possible and lay low somewhere else.”
“There are only a little over two weeks left before the deadline. I’ll have to go back to Cocoyasi Village again…”
“And then I’ll have to start drawing sea charts.”
At that point, the brightness in her eyes suddenly dimmed.
“I’m still sixty million Berries short.”
“I have to buy Cocoyasi Village back as soon as possible.”
“I have to make Arlong and the others leave.”
“Pirates from the Grand Line should keep their word, right?”
“No.”
“They definitely will.”
“Arlong promised me.”
“I have to work harder.”
Nami suddenly remembered something.
“Oh, right. A pirate crew arrived at the harbor today.”
“The brutal Norton Pirates.”
“I heard they’re recruiting new members…”
“Could I find a way aboard and steal their treasure?”
As she spoke, Nami suddenly frowned.
“What is that guy doing?”
She noticed that Rook hadn’t returned the way he’d come.
Instead, he was still wandering around the alleys below, seemingly searching for something.
A moment later, Nami shuddered.
“Oh no.”
“Don’t tell me that guy is still looking for me.”
“Does he really hold grudges that badly?”
“What kind of man does that?”
She immediately changed locations.
The cunning little Cat Burglar had absolutely no idea that the wallet she had stolen contained nearly all the Berries its owner had left.
Meanwhile, down in the alley—
Rook closed the system panel.
Having learned from his mistake, he threw the wallet away and divided the Berries into several stacks, stuffing them into four separate pockets.
“I heard there are a lot of gangs around here.”
Rook walked through the alleys, thinking.
He had spent nearly an entire day exhausting himself just to accumulate ten points of proficiency.
Yet only a few minutes of actual fighting had given him nine.
Should he deliberately bait criminals into attacking him?
With that thought in mind, Rook continued wandering aimlessly through the dark district.
Partly because he hoped to run into that thief again.
And partly because he wanted more opportunities to gain proficiency.
Another hour passed.
Having gained absolutely nothing, Rook calmly left the area.
Farther away, on a street lined with inns, he found a decent hotel and checked in.
After washing up, he finally slept in a warm, comfortable room free of foul odors and filled with clean air.
His entire body seemed to loosen in relief.
The night passed without incident.
Early the next morning—
Rook woke feeling refreshed.
After washing up, he entered the sitting room and settled onto a soft sofa.
A trace of surprise appeared in his eyes.
“Even though Self-Recovery hasn’t officially reached beginner level yet, it’s already helping my stamina recover noticeably faster.”
Rook raised both hands.
The damaged skin and blisters on his palms had already healed.
Even the faint stinging pain was gone.
Rook smiled.
“I’m getting more and more excited about this.”
…
Barbarian Island was fairly large.
Beyond the coastal port town lay a vast, lush, and shadowy forest.
Many wild beasts inhabited the mountains.
The afternoon after tomorrow was the deadline for the Norton Pirates to regroup.
Originally, Rook had planned to simply disappear without anyone noticing.
But after easily taking down nine opponents last night, his thinking changed.
He wanted to stand in front of Norton openly—
And declare that he was leaving the Norton Pirates.
A man should have his own bottom line.
Sneaking away like a thief would make Rook feel humiliated.
Rook knew that this world possessed a power called Haki.
And that power was connected to a person’s spirit, will, and presence.
In Rook’s opinion, he should begin consciously developing those qualities now.
But there was one prerequisite.
He needed enough strength to protect himself.
Hotheaded idiots didn’t survive long.
Developing one’s courage and presence did not mean recklessly throwing one’s life away.
As for Norton—
Rook had already confirmed that the gap between their physical abilities wasn’t overwhelming.
Norton wasn’t some monster whose strength Rook had no hope of reaching in the short term.
Therefore—
And if he wanted enough strength to fight Norton head-on—
Then he needed combat.
He needed kills.
He needed proficiency.
He needed his skills to advance.
That made the wild beasts living in the mountains the best shortcut currently available.
As for the island’s gangs—
Rook knew his limits.
With his current strength, he wasn’t yet powerful enough to start challenging organized criminal groups.
After all, humans carrying weapons were far more troublesome than wild animals.
After breakfast, Rook bought a few tools and some meat pies.
Then, with firm steps, he entered the deep mountain forest.
The air was incomparably fresh.
Branches and leaves formed dense canopies overhead.
…
“So it really doesn’t work?”
Rook stood in a bare patch of forest.
A nest of unknown ants, each about the size of a thumb, had just been crushed beneath his feet.
Compared to them, a human being was practically a giant.
Yet on the system panel—
His Hand-to-Hand Combat proficiency hadn’t moved at all.
“The half-meter-long rabbit from earlier didn’t work either.”
“Neither did that snake as thick as an egg.”
“None of them increased my proficiency.”
Rook rubbed his chin.
“Does the opponent at least need to be somewhat comparable to me in size?”
“That should be it.”
“Something that poses absolutely no threat to me can’t really be considered meaningful combat training.”
“Reality isn’t like a game from my previous life.”
“I can’t just kill a rabbit or a chicken and automatically gain skill proficiency.”
“So I can’t exploit that kind of bug.”
“If that’s the case…”
“As I become stronger in the future, some beasts that work for gaining proficiency now may eventually become useless.”
While thinking, Rook left the area and headed deeper into the mountains.
Some time later—
Near a stream deep within the forest, Rook hid behind a large tree.
In the grass not far away was a herd of grazing elk.
Their faces resembled horses, their antlers resembled deer, their necks resembled camels, and their tails resembled donkeys.
They looked like some bizarre mixture of several different animals.
Rook tightened his grip on the sword.
He adjusted his breathing.
Then—
He suddenly turned.
His feet slammed against the ground.
And he exploded forward.
The herd immediately panicked at the sight of him charging.
Sharp cries rang out as dozens of elk turned and fled.
They were fast.
But so was Rook.
His physical attributes were several times greater than those of an ordinary person.
And through training Swordsmanship and Hand-to-Hand Combat, his coordination and explosive power had become far stronger as well.
Seconds later —
Rook caught up with the rear of the herd.
He reached the side of one elk.
His sword flashed.
The blade slid cleanly across the side of its neck.
Blood sprayed outward.
Rook didn’t stop.
He kicked off the ground and launched himself into the air.
He landed above another elk.
Both feet struck its shoulders.
Gripping his sword with both hands, Rook thrust downward.
Puchi!
The blade sank into the back of its neck.
The elk screamed.
Rook immediately pulled the sword free and leaped away.
The instant his feet touched the ground, he charged forward again.
His shoulder slammed into the neck of a third elk.
The animal staggered violently.
Rook swung horizontally.
A deep, savage wound opened across its neck.
He finally stopped.
By the time Rook had brought down three elk, the rest of the herd had already escaped into the distance.
He slowly exhaled.
Then he turned toward the three animals lying on the ground, crying and struggling.
Rook walked over.
Three sword strikes later—
Their suffering ended.
At that moment—
Faint currents of warmth began rising from deep within his body.
The translucent system panel appeared.
Swordsmanship Proficiency +3
Excitement surged through Rook.
Exactly as he’d suspected.
At his current level, only large animals like these were enough to contribute to his growth.
He looked around.
The forest was quiet.
Birds were already scattering from the treetops overhead.
“I asked around this morning.”
“There are tigers, wolves, and bears in these mountains.”
“Leopards and wild boars too.”
Rook walked toward one of the dead elk.
His sword hung beside him.
He slowly adjusted his breathing.
He gathered strength. This story is hosted at g.com.
Two seconds later—
The sword flashed sideways.
Puchi!
The elk’s head separated cleanly from its neck.
Warm blood sprayed outward.
Rook repeated the process.
In less than a minute—
The three carcasses had been butchered and scattered across the grass.
A thick smell of blood spread through the clearing.
Mixed with it was the sour stench of exposed intestines.
A breeze passed through.
Carrying the bloody scent deeper into the forest.
Rook smiled faintly.
Bait had been placed.
Now he only had to wait for something willing to bite.
Rook carried several bloodstained elk hides toward the nearby stream.
He washed away as much blood as possible.
Then he took out the strong cord he’d purchased earlier at a general store.
He folded the hides several times and tightly tied them around his arms, legs, and waist.
A crude set of protective gear was formed.
Rook moved around, adjusting the position of each piece.
He made sure none of them restricted his mobility.
It looked ugly.
But compared to staying alive—
Appearance didn’t matter.
Not long afterward—
The harsh cries of crows rang through the forest.
Half an hour passed.
Rustling sounds suddenly came from the bushes in the distance.
Low growls followed.
One after another, more than twenty gray-brown forest wolves cautiously emerged from the undergrowth.
Under an ancient tree nearby—
Rook had been resting with his eyes closed.
His eyelids slowly opened.
Rook smiled.
He stood.
Sword in hand.
Then walked forward.
Rook stopped among the chunks of meat.
In an instant—
He was surrounded by wolves.
Their bodies lowered toward the ground.
Low growls rumbled from their throats.
Their noses wrinkled.
Sharp fangs were exposed.
Green eyes gleamed with savage light.
Growls rose and fell around him.
It was almost as though they were warning Rook to leave.
The standoff lasted half a minute.
Then hunger finally overwhelmed caution.
The alpha wolf howled.
The pack attacked.
Rook held his sword steady and waited.
Suddenly—
Rapid footsteps came from behind.
A wolf lunged at him from his blind side.
Rook shifted aside.
The instant the animal landed, he stepped forward.
His sword swept upward.
Puchi!
The blade struck directly into the wolf’s waist.
A wolf’s head was hard.
Its tail was tough.
But its waist was weak.
That was where its true vulnerability lay.
With Rook’s fully powered slash—
The wolf died instantly.
Seeing one of their own fall only drove the pack into greater fury.
In an instant—
The wolves swarmed him.
Rook’s expression became serious.
A wolf attacked from the side.
Rook’s eyes flashed.
He deliberately thrust out his left arm.
The jaws snapped shut.
Pain surged through him.
But the teeth failed to penetrate the four layers of elk hide wrapped around his arm.
Rook grabbed the wolf and swung it violently.
Its body smashed into another wolf lunging toward him.
The second animal staggered.
Rook stepped in.
His sword stabbed directly through its neck.
Then he kicked it away.
His left hand clamped around the throat of the wolf still biting his arm.
Under the pressure and pain, the animal released its jaws and struggled wildly.
The rest of the pack surged forward one after another.
Rook held the captured wolf in one hand like a living shield.
With the other—
He swung his sword again and again.
Slashing.
Chopping.
Thrusting.