Under the blazing sun, Will was practicing his swordsmanship on the mountain behind the dojo.
Bare-chested, he swung his two swords through the air, each slash giving off a sharp, hair-raising sensation.
At thirteen, Will was nowhere near as tall as the famous figures of the One Piece world.
He was only around 1.4 meters tall, and there was a chance he might never grow to the towering two- or three-meter heights common among some of the world’s notable figures.
His bare upper body looked rather slender, but beneath his skin were smooth, well-defined lines of muscle.
He wasn’t muscular in the conventional sense, but his physique nevertheless radiated strength.
Will was in the middle of an exhilarating training session when he heard someone calling his name from a distance.
He looked up.
It was his Senior Brother Roy, standing near the back entrance of the dojo.
Will sheathed his swords at his waist, picked up his clothes, and walked toward Roy.
Roy didn’t say much.
“There’s a mission.
Let’s discuss it in the secret room.”
When Will arrived at the secret room, his master and Senior Sister An were already there.
“The target this time is a merchant in the East Blue named Steve Louis.”
Long Ounce took a sip of tea after speaking.
“Because of a business dispute, the client has hired us to kill Steve Louis and his entire family.”
“The price is twenty million Beli.”
He finished speaking and waited for them to ask questions.
“Master, if we kill one of Joker’s dogs, won’t he come looking for us in the East Blue?”
Will was the first to speak.
“He has the title of Warlord of the Sea.
Doesn’t that mean he can legally cross the Red Line through the Government-controlled routes?”
Will certainly didn’t want to face Donquixote Doflamingo before he had grown strong enough.
That would be suicide.
He wasn’t Luffy.
Hearing Will’s question, Long Ounce looked at him with some surprise.
He felt that this disciple of his was far from ordinary.
His knowledge of intelligence was astonishingly detailed.
Long Ounce didn’t ask how Will knew these things.
Will had previously claimed that his mother was an information broker, but Long Ounce had never believed that explanation.
Still, having someone with access to so much information nearby was an excellent thing.
Especially when that person was his own disciple.
“As for Joker, we don’t need to worry about him.”
“The client has already bought Joker’s cooperation.”
“More precisely, because of Steve Louis’s greed, Joker has been dissatisfied with him for a long time.
Now that he’s found a suitable replacement, Steve Louis no longer has any reason to exist.”
“Killing him is simply punishment for all those years of greed.”
Long Ounce paused.
“Oh, and don’t focus solely on killing people.
See if there are any valuables while you’re there.”
“If your target refuses to talk, leave him to your Second Senior Sister.”
“You three will depart tomorrow.”
“Since this is Will’s first mission, let him carry it out.
The two of you will observe.”
“If anything unexpected happens, intervene immediately.”
With that, Long Ounce led the three disciples out of the secret room.
Back in his room, Will was still somewhat excited.
After all, in his previous life, he had been an ordinary person.
Being told to become an assassin was something he’d never even imagined, let alone experienced.
Then another problem occurred to him.
He didn’t know anything about infiltration.
What was he supposed to do when the time came?
Will got up and went to Roy’s room to ask about the details.
Not long afterward, Will returned with an utterly speechless expression.
Roy had told him that infiltration wasn’t necessary at all.
Whenever they needed to kill someone, they generally just charged straight in.
A strong person’s five senses were extremely sharp, and with the various mysterious abilities possessed by Devil Fruit users, spending time practicing assassination techniques was less reliable than simply becoming stronger. Get faster updates on novelping(.)com.
After hearing Roy’s explanation, Will felt that it actually made a lot of sense.
He lay down on his bed and began studying the Thunder Core to pass the time, waiting for tomorrow when they would board a ship and head for the island where their target was located.
Three days later, at the docks of Mita Island in the East Blue, Will finally arrived at the island where the target lived.
Will couldn’t help feeling how inconvenient it was to work as an assassin in the One Piece world.
Even killing someone required three days of travel by ship.
And this was considered close.
If he got a distant target in the future, spending ten days or more at sea wouldn’t be unusual.
After going ashore, the three of them found an inn and settled in.
They would investigate the target’s residence during the day and carry out the operation at night when it would be more convenient.
After obtaining the address, Will wandered through the lively streets alone.
He stopped a random passerby and asked about the local specialties and where he could find the best food.
The passerby had initially been quite annoyed at being stopped.
But after Will paid him ten thousand Beli, the man became extremely cooperative.
He even drew Will a map on the spot, marking down the various districts and the best places to eat in each one.
Holding the map, Will first headed to a street filled with food stalls.
He sampled a little of everything.
Then he went to a famous local restaurant.
The restaurant specialized in Sea King dishes caught in the nearby waters.
Will enjoyed himself immensely.
As Will grew stronger, perhaps because of the effects of the Lightning Thorn Method, his appetite had also begun increasing.
At first, the difference hadn’t been noticeable.
Now, however, he could eat a truly astonishing amount.
A single meal for him was enough to satisfy roughly ten ordinary people.
Will then made his way to the local commercial district and bought several varieties of locally produced tea as gifts for his master.
He carried the gifts in a large bag as he finally arrived at the target’s residence.
More precisely, it was a small estate.
The estate was extremely luxurious and had guards stationed at the entrance.
Aside from forcing his way inside, Will couldn’t think of any other practical way to enter.
Seeing that there didn’t seem to be an opportunity, Will turned around and prepared to leave.
He had only walked a few steps when he saw a beautiful young woman of around seventeen or eighteen approaching him.
She had long pink hair and wore an extravagant white dress that gave her a delicate, almost fragile appearance.
Several bodyguards accompanied her.
“Sir, you’ve come to my house.
Are you looking for my father, or is there something else I can help you with?”
The young woman spoke first.
Because the target’s home was located on the edge of the city, with no other buildings nearby, Will’s intentions were particularly easy to notice.
“No.
I’m just a passerby who got lost and happened to wander over here.”
Will looked at the estate.
“Is this your house?
Your family certainly has a lot of money.”
Will had already seen a photograph of his target.
Steve Louis couldn’t exactly be called ugly, but his appearance was decidedly ordinary, and he was even somewhat overweight.
Will hadn’t expected him to have such a beautiful daughter.
“Oh, so you’re lost?”
The girl looked genuinely concerned.
“Where are you trying to go?
I can have my bodyguards take you there.
Getting lost in a big city can be quite troublesome.”
She seemed genuinely kind and innocent.
“Thank you for the offer, miss.
I’ll be fine wandering around on my own.”
Will smiled.
“What a shame, though.”
Before the girl could respond, he turned around and headed back toward the inn.
“What a strange person.”
“He’s so young, yet he’s wandering around the city all by himself.”
She quickly stopped thinking about it.
“Never mind.
I should go home.”
She looked happily at the gift she had bought for her mother.
“Mother will definitely love this necklace.”
With that, she headed back toward the estate, humming one of her favorite songs like a carefree little butterfly.
After wandering around the town several times, Will made absolutely sure that no one was following him before returning to the inn.
“Well?
How did it go, Junior Brother?”
The moment Will entered the room, Senior Brother Roy asked him about the investigation.
“Pretty good.
Very good, actually.”
Will answered naturally.
Roy was completely confused.
He had no idea what his Junior Brother meant.
Had Will discovered a powerful opponent?
Or did he mean that the mission would go smoothly?
“What exactly was so good?”
Roy finally asked.
“Obviously the food on this island.”
Will looked innocent.
“What else did you think I meant?”
He glanced at Roy.
“Don’t tell me you’re interested in the beauties here, Senior Brother.
Doesn’t Senior Sister mind?”
Will had known perfectly well that Roy was asking about the estate.
But with Senior Sister An present, Roy—who was somewhat afraid of his wife—usually didn’t dare joke around too much.
Roy looked as though he’d just been struck by lightning.
Even An, who normally didn’t say much, looked completely speechless.
“Hahahaha, I’m just messing with you, Senior Brother.”
Will finally stopped teasing him.
“I went to check it out.
The estate is heavily guarded, so I couldn’t find a way inside to investigate.”
“The sea is directly behind the estate.
I didn’t see any large ships nearby, but we can’t rule out the possibility that the target might try to escape by small boat if his life is threatened.”
“So someone needs to guard the rear of the estate.”
“Then we’ll act tonight.”
Roy nodded.
“Let’s finish this quickly so nothing unexpected happens.”
“An, you’ll guard the rear.”
“I’ll take the front entrance and provide support for Junior Brother.”
After saying that, Roy began polishing his sword while waiting for nightfall.
Will looked at his Senior Brother’s sword.
It was a good blade, but it probably wasn’t a Meito.
Senior Sister An’s sword, however, might very well be one.
An noticed the look in Will’s eyes.
“Skillful Grade Sword, Fifty Crafts—Blood Scorpion.”
She tossed the sword to Will.
“I took it during a mission.”
“Anyone cut by this blade experiences intense pain, as though they’d been stung by a scorpion.”
Will drew Blood Scorpion.
Like most Skillful Grade swords, its proportions were fairly standard.
However, the blade itself wasn’t smooth.
Raised vein-like ridges ran along its surface, giving it a rough, uneven appearance.
Only the cutting edge was perfectly smooth.
Will handed the sword back to An.
He then returned to his room to rest and wait for nightfall.