Port.
On a pirate ship flying a skull flag marked by two crossed axes, the crew of the Giant Axe Pirates drank heavily and laughed loudly as they passed bottles between them, the deck already smelling of alcohol and saltwater.
A newly joined pirate, still fresh to the crew and eager to prove himself, grinned as he spoke to those around him.
“Hehehehe, being a pirate is really the best!”
“We just plundered a village, made a fortune, and even captured a few slaves.
When we sell them to slave traders, we’ll get another big payout.
Then the Captain can take us somewhere to have fun again!”
Hearing this, a slightly older pirate beside him laughed and nudged him with his elbow.
“Kam, you almost got caught by the Marines last time if it wasn’t for the Captain saving your neck.”
“Of course, of course!
Thank you, Captain!”
The laughter on deck grew louder, rough and unrestrained, the kind of confidence born from repeated plunder and weak resistance.
However, before the noise could settle, several pirates suddenly rushed back toward the ship in panic, their faces pale and disordered.
“Captain Buck!
Captain Buck!”
The entire deck fell quiet as all eyes turned toward them.
“Bang!”
The cabin door was kicked open violently, and a massive figure stepped out.
He was a fat, two-meter-tall man with a fleshy face and a brutal aura, a double-bladed axe strapped across his back.
His expression twisted with irritation as he looked down at the deck.
“Damn it, what’s all this noise?
Who dares disturb my drinking time?
You all know I hate being interrupted!”
The crew immediately stiffened under his glare.
Noticing the returning pirates among them, Buck’s eyes narrowed.
One of the fleeing men swallowed hard and forced himself to speak.
“Captain Buck…
Captain Scar was killed in the tavern…
by a brat.”
The moment those words landed, the atmosphere changed.
Buck’s irritation deepened into pure rage.
“So your Captain got killed, and you useless trash still have the nerve to crawl back here alive?”
He clicked his tongue and waved his hand dismissively.
“Someone, kill these useless cowards and throw them into the sea.
Let the fish deal with them.”
“Mercy!
Captain!
We came back to report!”
But there was no hesitation.
Steel was drawn instantly.
The crew surrounded them, and in moments, the screams were cut short as the bodies were dragged and thrown into the sea without ceremony.
Buck turned away as if it were nothing, adjusting his axe with a grim expression.
“Find the guy who killed Scar.
I will let him understand the consequences of offending me, Giant Axe Buck.”
“Yes!”
At his command, the crew scattered across the port and town like predators released from a cage, moving in coordinated groups to hunt their target.
Meanwhile, at the inn.
Roy, who had returned after the banquet and was now resting in his room, remained unaware that killing a single pirate captain had triggered the full mobilization of an entire crew.
Even if he knew, it would not have changed his expression.
A pirate crew that barely registered in name alone was not something he would take seriously, and if they came, he would deal with them just as casually as before.
At this moment, Roy was reviewing intelligence he had purchased from Shakky.
He slowly flipped through the secret manual in his hands, absorbing information about routes, power structures, and notable figures in the seas ahead.
By the time he finished, a rough framework for everyone’s future growth had already formed in his mind.
He closed the book, turned off the light, and went to sleep.
The next morning, Roy woke naturally.
He checked his body first.
The remaining injuries had nearly healed, leaving only faint traces.
Opening the door, he saw Stella placing breakfast on the table.
“Good morning, Stella.”
Using Observation Haki instinctively, Roy scanned the room and noticed Tesoro was absent.
He raised a brow.
“Where did that guy go so early?”
“Oh, he went out to train already.
Let’s eat first.”
Seeing the food already prepared, Roy sat down without hesitation.
“Bang!”
The door suddenly swung open.
“I’m back, Stella!”
Tesoro walked in energetically, then froze slightly when he saw them already seated.
He quickly hurried over and sat down.
Roy glanced at him and immediately noticed the bruises still lingering on his face, faint but persistent.
It was obvious Tesoro had been pushing himself hard these past days.
After breakfast, Roy looked at the two of them.
“We’ll stay here a few more days.
My injuries should fully recover soon.
During this time, we prepare supplies for the next voyage, and more importantly, we get a ship of our own.”
He turned toward Tesoro.
“Tesoro, pause your training for now.”
“But Captain!
I want to get stronger faster.
I don’t want to be a burden anymore.
I don’t want to feel powerless like yesterday against those pirates.”
“Idiot, at least let me finish speaking.”
Roy sighed and reached into his luggage, pulling out a booklet he had obtained through Shakky and tossing it to him.
“This is a basic training method.
Your physical talent is decent, but your training is completely unstructured.
Follow this first.
Once your foundation improves, I’ll teach you something better.”
“Yes!
Captain!”
Tesoro accepted it like a treasure, gripping it tightly as if it were more valuable than gold.
Roy then pulled out a simple map of the first half of the Grand Line along with a Log Pose.
“Stella, this is the Log Pose for our next island.
We’ll need you to chart the sailing route.”
“Understood, Captain Roy.”
The following days passed in relative calm within the town.
Tesoro trained relentlessly, leaving the inn before dawn each day to push his body beyond its limits in the back mountains.
Stella handled supplies, food, and water, while also studying routes and weather patterns, gradually becoming more confident in her role as navigator after awakening her Bird-Bird Fruit ability.
Roy was not idle either.
Most of his time was spent in meditation, refining his control over his mental power and newly awakened Conqueror’s Haki.
He discovered that by subtly fusing mental awareness into Observation Haki, he could not only sense hostility and emotion, but also faintly predict the trajectory of incoming actions.
At the same time, he continued experimenting with the Nen-Nen Fruit, slowly expanding his understanding of its applications.
However, peace rarely lasted long at sea.
When Roy’s bounty poster finally spread through the island, the inn owner recognized them and secretly reported the information to the nearby Marine base.
On the afternoon of the third day, Roy’s injuries had fully healed, and Tesoro had just finished training.
The two of them went to the town’s only weapon shop to choose a proper sword for Roy.
Inside the shop, Roy was settling payment when his Observation Haki suddenly picked up multiple approaching presences.
Without hesitation, he placed the money on the counter, picked up the selected longsword, and walked out with Tesoro.
The moment they stepped outside, a group of pirates blocked the entrance.
At the front stood a towering man carrying a giant axe.
His presence was heavy and aggressive.
Giant Axe Buck, Captain of the Giant Axe Pirates.
Behind him stood more than a dozen armed pirates, all wearing hostile expressions.
“Captain!
It’s him!
I’ve confirmed it!
He’s the one who killed Scar!” Kam shouted, pointing directly at Roy.
Buck narrowed his eyes, studying Roy carefully.
He had not expected that the one who killed his subordinate Scar would be such a young man, dressed almost like some wandering noble, standing there without a trace of panic.