Zephyr, who had just taken a bite of his bread, heard this and a flash of helplessness crossed his pale purple eyes behind his glasses.
*Why does this kid always say such weird things?*
However, having already accepted Elliot’s eccentricities, Zephyr spoke up, “There were no classes scheduled for today anyway.
I already told you, today is mainly about selecting the cadets who will participate in this field mission.
Since you’ve passed the evaluation, you essentially have the rest of the time off to rest.”
After saying that, Zephyr thought for a moment and added, “Because the others have a lot of material to be evaluated on, it will probably take them the entire day.”
Hearing this, Elliot looked up at Zephyr.
“Is this training institution really this relaxed?
I just got here and I’m already on break.”
Zephyr was momentarily at a loss for words, but he angrily snatched the bread from Elliot’s plate and said, “You just happened to arrive at this time!
The daily training is far stricter than you imagine!
Especially since you don’t know Rokushiki or Haki yet, I’m going to design a specialized curriculum just for you!”
With that, he ate the bread right then and there.
He was clearly furious, eating the whole thing himself and leaving absolutely nothing for Elliot!
But seeing Elliot pour him a glass of water, he couldn’t help but sigh.
“I just came here to chat with you.
Besides, I heard from Garp that you gave all your money to the Marines at the East Blue base who were injured because of your fight with that old geezer.”
At this point, Zephyr pulled an envelope from his coat.
“Even though you didn’t tell Ain, she’s my student.
How could she not notice that you’re completely broke?
Take this money and use it.”
Elliot looked down at the envelope.
It was rather thick.
But Elliot looked back up, pushed up his glasses, and said, “Is this overtime pay?
Because I refuse to work overtime.”
Zephyr raised an eyebrow.
“It’s a loan!”
Elliot immediately refused.
“I never borrow money, either.”
Zephyr raised a hand to his forehead again, then glared at Elliot.
“I can’t just watch my student struggle over money, so if I tell you to take it, take it!”
Elliot looked at Zephyr and replied, “I know this is out of the goodness of your heart, Mr.
Zephyr, but I’ve carefully calculated my remaining thousand-something Berries, and it’s enough for my living expenses.
Especially since you said we’d be going on a business trip in a few days, right?”
Pausing there, Elliot seemed to suddenly realize something and looked at Zephyr.
“Mr.
Zephyr, do the Marines offer a per diem for business trips?”
Zephyr stared at Elliot, his brows tightly furrowed, and said with a deadpan expression, “You are probably the most problematic student I have ever taught.”
Elliot looked slightly confused.
But Zephyr waved his hand dismissively.
“Forget it, take it or leave it.
But I’ll have you know, you aren’t the first student I’ve financially supported, nor will you be the last.
Even though you don’t need money at the academy, some students’ families do.
While I don’t know your situation, whenever you need this money, you can come find me anytime.”
With that, he put the envelope away and looked at Elliot, about to say something else.
But then he saw Elliot stand up.
“Do you want anything else to eat?
I can grab it for you.”
Zephyr froze for a moment, then shook his head.
He then watched as Elliot went to get more food.
*Such a personality…*
Zephyr clenched his fists, inexplicably thinking of himself, and even more inexplicably thinking of his deceased wife and child, as well as that entire ship of students.
*Although this kind of temperament is good, but…*
*I need to guide him down the right path, or change him completely!*
Cadets who had finished the first round of evaluations were gradually arriving at the cafeteria.
When they noticed Elliot, everyone jumped in fright.
Especially upon seeing Instructor Zephyr there as well, they were filled with profound respect.
Elliot, however, nonchalantly grabbed his food and returned to his seat.
Even though Zephyr hadn’t specified what he wanted to eat, Elliot still made sure to grab a bit extra.
Zephyr looked at the food placed in front of him and raised his eyes to Elliot.
“Even though Garp told me a lot about why you joined the Marines, I still want to ask you…
what do the Marines mean to you?”
Elliot was just about to eat.
Hearing this question, he answered bluntly and without the slightest hesitation, “A stable and very relaxed job.”
Hearing this, Zephyr snapped the chopsticks in his hand right in half.
He frowned at Elliot.
“You are an even bigger problem than I imagined!
Then…
let me ask you this.
If you were on a mission and needed to ensure the safety of an old man and a child at a port, and there were pirates right behind you, what would you do?”
Hearing this, Zephyr chuckled.
“Kill the pirates?
Then, what if it’s a pirate you cannot match?”
Elliot blinked, his face completely expressionless.
“I’m very strong, so there won’t be any pirates I can’t match.”
“…”
Hearing this, the cadets at the surrounding tables all turned to look at Elliot.
In fact, many instructors had asked them similar questions in class, and even the Vice Admirals who occasionally came to lecture would ask questions with roughly the same meaning.
But what kind of answer was that, Elliot?
Zephyr rubbed his temples and said, “What I mean is, if you encountered an opponent you couldn’t match, and you were in a situation where you could only save two people!”
Elliot took off his glasses, the lenses fogged up from the steam of his ramen.
His pitch-black eyes, framed by dark circles and as placid as a still lake, looked at Zephyr.
“Mr.
Zephyr, there won’t be anyone who can match me, so this question is invalid.
But if we must assume such a scenario, that old man and child would probably already be dead.
Because if a heinous villain that even I couldn’t defeat actually appeared, then this world would probably be doomed anyway.”
“…”
The surrounding cadets, who had pricked up their ears to listen, once again looked at each other, then back at Elliot.
What was he saying now?
Zephyr, meanwhile, stared blankly.
However, Elliot lowered his head to take a sip of his noodle soup before continuing, “But if it’s purely a hypothetical question, with the premise being that I cannot match those pirates…
please forgive me, but I cannot answer your question.”
Hearing this, the surrounding Marines all looked at Elliot, some of them furrowing their brows.
Zephyr’s expression remained unchanged.
“Why…?”
Elliot answered, “Because no matter what I answer, it would be wrong.
If I go to save them, I will die, and they will die too, because I simply can’t defeat those pirates.
If I don’t go to save them, it means I have to watch helplessly as they are killed by the pirates.
I might survive, but living like that would doom me to a lifetime of guilt.
But if you insist on an answer, my answer is that I don’t want to answer your question.
I just want to become stronger.
Once I become strong enough, I won’t be troubled by such questions.
Even if I actually encountered this kind of problem, I would solve it easily.”
At this point, Elliot raised a finger and pointed at himself.
“For example, I’m very strong right now, so a question like this is completely invalid to me.”