Nate had absolutely no idea that he’d somehow turned into the high-jumping Emiya Shirou, unintentionally stirring a young girl’s heart just by training seriously.
If he’d known, he would’ve had to say something like, ‘Admiration is the emotion furthest from understanding,’ preferably in the deepest, most dramatic voice he could manage.
But Nate knew none of that.
He simply continued punching with complete focus, putting his full sincerity into every strike.
He couldn’t expose the true abilities of the Dream-Dream Fruit.
As a Marine, his main combat methods had to remain physical techniques and Haki.
There could be no slacking off.
Nate kept punching until his arm was nearly too weak to lift and both fists were dripping with blood.
Only then did he finally stop.
Next came strength training.
This part, at least, allowed him to cheat a little.
Nate slipped into the Dream World and remotely controlled his real body, letting it continue training on its own.
While there, he casually checked on Weevil and his mother.
The two should still have been aboard the prison ship, but both were currently inside their dreams.
Buckingham was surrounded by servants while enjoying romantic evenings with Whitebeard, completely lost in her dream life and showing no desire to leave.
Weevil, meanwhile, was happily stuffing himself at a table piled high with food.
Being rather simple-minded, his desires were much less complicated than his mother’s and far easier to satisfy.
After watching them for a moment, Nate stopped paying attention.
It was time for him to have some fun too.
…
Against the endless darkness of space, an unprecedented war erupted.
A mechanical empire commanding an enormous interstellar fleet had collided with an army of immortal cultivators capable of crossing the universe with their physical bodies.
The moment the two forces met, a devastating exchange began.
Beam cannons collided with brilliant immortal techniques, and every impact bloomed like a magnificent firework against the dark universe.
Massive stars seemed no larger than dust.
Even vast galaxies shattered upon contact.
Nate sat cross-legged atop a colossal star, waving both hands like the conductor of an orchestra.
With every different gesture, the enormous fleet in the distant starfield responded.
Warships weaved through the black sea of stars, sometimes concentrating their fire into a single devastating barrage and sometimes scattering in every direction.
‘I’m basically playing real-life StarCraft.’ Unfortunately, Nate couldn’t create genuinely intelligent life.
That meant the army serving as his opponent had intelligence comparable to bosses from the games of his previous life.
At their core, they simply repeated attack patterns.
Fortunately, Nate had given them plenty of patterns.
He still had a great time.
He kept playing until his body in the real world was completely exhausted.
Only then did Nate return his consciousness to it.
A crushing wave of fatigue struck him instantly.
His legs gave out, and his body was about to collapse onto the floor.
Yet at that very moment, it forcibly straightened again.
“Haa…” Nate slowly breathed out.
Life Return really was amazing.
His body had reached its limit, but his willpower was still fully charged.
“What a ridiculously unfair ability.” A breathless voice came from nearby.
“Hm?” Nate turned his head in surprise.
Ain was sprawled on the ground nearby, soaked in sweat as if she’d just been dragged out of the ocean.
“You’re still here?” Ain’s mouth twitched.
That was exactly the problem with Nate.
Everything about him was fine except for his mouth.
Every time she started seeing him in a better light, he opened it.
“Am I not allowed to be?” Her voice turned cold.
“How arrogant, Ain.” Nate stretched lazily.
“Whatever.
Do what you want.
I’m going to dinner.
Later.” After training all afternoon, he was starving.
He turned around and walked away.
Ain gritted her teeth, forced herself back to her feet, then limped after him with determined steps.
‘If you’re eating, then I’m eating too!’ Nate didn’t care.
It wasn’t as though he could stop her from going to the cafeteria.
Although the recruits had been given the day off, not everyone had gone into town, so the cafeteria remained open as usual.
The moment Nate strode inside, the staff member serving food visibly went pale.
He spun toward the kitchen.
“Nate’s here!” Several cooks who had been slacking off in the back immediately jumped to their feet.
“He didn’t go into town?!” “Quick!
Bring out all the ingredients we prepared!” “It’s another war!” Hearing the shouting from the kitchen, Ain’s mouth twitched again.
Nate’s appetite had clearly caused the cafeteria staff more than a little trauma.
Before long, huge quantities of food were piled in front of him.
One worker even apologized and explained that more dishes were still being prepared.
Nate wasn’t picky.
He immediately began devouring everything in sight.
Compared with him, Ain ate with extraordinary grace.
She took small bites and chewed slowly, occasionally brushing loose blue hair behind her ear and revealing a beautiful pale neck that remained elegant despite being damp with sweat.
Nate, naturally, noticed none of this.
His attention was entirely focused on the food.
Clatter.
A tray piled with food was suddenly set down across from him.
“Hm?” Nate looked up in surprise.
Because of how much he ate, he usually took an entire table for himself.
This time, however, Zephyr had sat down opposite him.
“Instructor Zephyr!” Ain quickly greeted him.
Zephyr nodded for her to continue eating, then tore off a piece of bread and dipped it into his mushroom soup.
He looked over Nate’s sweat-soaked and rather miserable appearance.
“Taking some time to rest once in a while isn’t a bad thing.” “Can’t help it, Instructor.” Nate answered around a mouthful of food.
“I’m frustrated.” “Frustrated?” Zephyr blinked.
“About what?” Among all the students Zephyr had ever trained, Nate already ranked among the very best.
Even Sakazuki and the others hadn’t necessarily been this impressive when they graduated.
“There are still so many people in this world stronger than me.” Nate swallowed.
“So I need to hurry up and teach them who’s actually the more impressive one.” “You brat!” Zephyr couldn’t stop the corner of his mouth from rising.
Beside them, Ain nearly spat out her food.
This man’s narcissism truly had no limits.
“I heard from Binz that you want to go to the New World.” Zephyr finally moved to the real subject.
“Yeah.” Nate leaned back lazily.
“Sending someone like me to deal with small-time pirates in Paradise or the Four Blues would be a waste, wouldn’t it?” “That’s true.” Zephyr nodded.
“With your current strength, the New World would suit you better.” Nate’s Devil Fruit didn’t appear particularly powerful, but his physical abilities were already exceptional, and he’d become proficient with both Armament and Observation Haki.
His combat strength was already comparable to an ordinary Marine Headquarters Vice Admiral.
After gaining a little more experience, he could probably even command a G-Series Base.
As long as he didn’t run into one of the top commanders serving the monsters who ruled the New World, he shouldn’t face much danger.
“Which base do you want?” Zephyr asked.
“If it’s reasonable, I can recommend you.” “G-5 Base.” Nate barely hesitated.
It sat near the entrance to the New World, where countless incoming pirate crews had to pass through the surrounding waters.
At the same time, it was far from the territories controlled by the real monsters.
‘Perfect place to farm achievements.’ Zephyr clearly understood the logic as well.
He nodded.
“Yes.
G-5 would suit you.” Nate might talk as though the sky itself were beneath him, but his actual decisions were always remarkably grounded.
“Instructor Zephyr.” Ain spoke seriously from the next table.
“I want to go to the New World too.” Zephyr looked at her and sighed.
“Binz said the same thing, and now you too?
Let me think about it.” Binz and Ain weren’t weak either.
Both were Devil Fruit users, and ordinary pirates were no match for them.
Not every pirate in the New World was some terrifying monster.
“Instructor.” Nate had already cleared every plate on his table.
He slumped lazily against his chair and grinned.
“I did make a pretty big contribution this time, right?” He tilted his head.
“How about talking to Fleet Admiral Sengoku and giving me some random flag officer rank?
Anything lower wouldn’t really suit me.” “A flag officer?” Zephyr glared at him.
“You really do dare to dream.
When I graduated from the Marine Academy, I was only a Seaman Recruit.” ‘That’s why promotions were ridiculously slow for your generation.’ Koby became a Captain at eighteen.
Hibari was already a Commander at sixteen.
Meanwhile, Zephyr had still only been a Chief Petty Officer at twenty-eight.
‘Absolutely terrible progression.’ “That said…” Zephyr continued.
“Your contribution is real.
Headquarters will probably take it into account when assigning your rank.” He smiled faintly.
“You should at least qualify to wear a coat of justice.” Nate curled his lips.
Commissioned officers at Marine Headquarters were already permitted to wear civilian clothes with a coat of justice.
“Enough, kid.” Zephyr continued eating.
“Every senior officer in the Marines climbed up from the bottom one step at a time.” He gave Nate a serious look.
“With your ability, there’s no reason to rush.” ‘You’re only saying that because you don’t know two civilians are going to become Admirals overnight in the future, Instructor Zephyr.’ “Anyway, Nate.” Zephyr’s expression became solemn.
“No matter what happens, never forget your justice.” “You’re saying obvious things again, Instructor.” Nate smiled.
“I’ve always followed my own justice.” Zephyr nodded with satisfaction.
…
After dinner, the recruits gradually returned in small groups.
The moment Binz saw Nate and realized he’d clearly spent the entire afternoon training again, he loudly accused him of being shamelessly unfair.
Nate ignored him completely and went to take a shower.
After evening assembly and roll call, he immediately returned to the dormitory, climbed into bed, and closed his eyes.
His body could finally rest.
His mind, however, was only getting started.
‘Weevil and his mother are already inside Impel Down.’ ‘And Kizaru is stationed at G-1 Base.
Nobody can reinforce them in time.’ Nate’s lips curled upward.
‘Tonight should be very lively.’ …
Calm Belt.
Impel Down.
Level Four beneath the surface of the sea—Blazing Hell.
This floor housed the Chief Warden’s office, the kitchen, and the prison’s food storage.
Pools of blood and seas of fire covered the level, filling it with terrifying heat.
Inside one of the cells, Buckingham lay panting on the floor in a prison uniform.
Her entire body was drenched in sweat, and her mind was becoming hazy.
“It hurts…
It’s so hot…” She struggled to breathe.
“You bastards…
I swear…
I won’t forgive you…” The moment she’d arrived at Impel Down, she’d been thrown into boiling water for sterilization.
That alone had nearly broken the elderly woman.
And now there was the horrifying heat of Blazing Hell.
She didn’t even dare enter the mental world.
She was afraid her unattended body would simply die from the heat.
‘What exactly does that mysterious ability user want from me?’ ‘Isn’t it about time he did something?’ ‘If this keeps up, I’m actually going to die in here!’ …
Far deeper underground lay Level Six.
Eternal Hell.
Most outsiders didn’t even know this floor existed.
Every prisoner locked here was an extraordinary criminal whose strength and reputation made them exceptionally dangerous.
Level Six was almost completely dark.
Only faint outlines of individual cells could be seen.
Inside one of them— “Mom!
Damn it!
Let me go!
I need to find Mom!!” Weevil struggled weakly against the Seastone restraints binding him tightly.
Several amused voices came from the surrounding darkness.
“He’s crying for his mommy!” “Hahahaha!
Kid, are you still breastfeeding?” “Come on, young man.
Tell us what you did to get thrown down here.” The prisoners had nothing better to do, so Weevil’s shouting was at least entertaining.
Then— Weevil suddenly fell silent.
In the darkness, the panic in his eyes vanished.
His expression became lazy.
Nate blinked.
He had kicked Weevil’s consciousness straight into the Dream World.
Then he remotely logged into Weevil’s body himself.
Nate slowly looked around the darkness.
‘Oh.’ ‘So this is Level Six of Impel Down.’ …