Chapter 21 : One Piece (11)

“Gurararara! Interesting newcomers, it seems.”

Whitebeard, Edward Newgate, the undisputed strongest pirate after the death of the Pirate King, laughed heartily as he examined the new bounty posters in the newspaper.

“Something the matter, Pops?” Marco the Phoenix, the Whitebeard Pirates’ first division commander and doctor, approached.

“Gurarara! Look at this.” Whitebeard handed him the newspaper.

Marco scanned the headlines, his eyes falling on the new bounties. “White Wings, Shine? Never heard of him. 700 million berries? That’s a hefty sum.”

The Radiant Pirates. White Wings, Shine, 700 million berries. Demon princess, Yamato, 255 million berries. And two other crew members with smaller bounties, 400,000 and 200,000 respectively, still too insignificant to warrant epithets.

“That’s the one who raided Kaido. The thief he’s been searching for.”

“What?! He’s the one who raided Kaido’s base?”

“Gurarara! Kaido’s been tearing up the sea looking for the one who stole his treasure and his daughter! He wouldn’t reveal their identity, but with that Demon princess girl… she looks just like Kaido’s daughter!”

Marco was stunned. Kaido, a former member of the infamous Rocks Pirates and a current powerhouse, had his base raided and his daughter taken? A 700 million berry bounty was hardly surprising.

“I’d like to meet him,” Whitebeard mused, intrigued by the Radiant Pirates. They seemed remarkably young, barely ten years old, yet their actions were audacious.

Whitebeard wasn’t the only one interested in the rising Radiant Pirates.

“Urororo!”

Kaido, currently on an expedition, slammed his kanabo into a pirate captain’s skull, laughing as he examined the wanted posters of the thief, his daughter, and their crew.

“Kaido-san, are you going after the thief and the princess again?” King, his strongest subordinate, approached, having just finished off another pirate.

“Urororo. Let it go. They seem to be doing fine.”

“Indeed. They appear to be thriving.” King smiled, looking at Yamato’s cheerful face on the wanted poster. “I’ve never seen the princess smile so brightly.”

“Hmph. Guess that brat prefers the company of the thief who kidnapped her over her own father.” Kaido tossed the newspaper aside. He’d assumed Yamato, who insisted on calling herself Oden, had been kidnapped and sold into slavery. Seeing her happy and thriving eased his concerns.

“Let’s go. There are others to deal with.” He tightened his grip on his kanabo and charged towards the remaining pirates.

Elsewhere—

“Captain, take a look at this.”

“Hmm? What is it, Benn?”

“Looks like we have a remarkable rookie.”

“What are you talking about?” Benn Beckman, the Red Hair Pirates’ first mate, handed Shanks a newspaper.

Shanks snatched the paper, his eyes scanning the headlines. He couldn’t help but laugh.

“Bwahahaha! A 700 million berry bounty on their first poster! Guess I need to step up my game!”

“Heh. Indeed, Captain. A measly 500 million berry bounty can’t compare to a 700 million rookie.”

“Shut up, Benn.”

And finally—

“Mamamama! How intriguing!” Charlotte Linlin, driven by her insatiable appetite and greed, took note of the Radiant Pirates.

Meanwhile, the crew attracting all this attention was currently engaged in a very different activity.

“Yamato, come here!”

“Yamato-nee! You can’t run!”

“Sh-Shine, help!”

“Just accept your fate.” I was thoroughly enjoying petting Yamato, who had transformed into an adorable, fluffy fox using her Devil Fruit power.

Seven months had passed since Law and Lami joined the crew, and nearly a year since I entered the One Piece world. We had been wreaking havoc, targeting both pirates and Marines to gain strength and notoriety, spreading our infamy far and wide. As a result, we all grew stronger.

Yamato had mastered the three basic types of Haki, though she hadn’t yet learned advanced techniques like future sight or imbuing her attacks with Haki. However, her Devil Fruit abilities had improved dramatically. She could now transform into a full-sized wolf and even utilize the ice powers of the Inu Inu no Mi, Model: Okuchi no Makami.

Law and Lami had also made significant progress. Law mastered both Armament and Observation Haki, becoming proficient in her Devil Fruit abilities as well. Lami focused on one type of Haki, surpassing even Yamato in proficiency. And to my surprise, she had awakened Conqueror’s Haki, the rare Haki possessed by only one in several million people. While initially shocked, I quickly realized this was a boon. With Lami, Yamato, and myself wielding Conqueror’s Haki, our crew’s potential was immense.

As for me, I had acquired two new skills and evolved several existing ones.

Name: Lee Yoohyun

Age: 22

Traits: Leisure Life (EX), Radiant and Adaptive Angel (E, Growth-type), Holy Lightning (S)

Skills: Plunder (S, 61%), Growth Acceleration (B, 77%), Divine Haki (B, 34%), Divine Proclamation (C, 47%), Elemental Efficiency (C, 64%), Archery (C, 58%), Spear Throwing (D, 65%), Regeneration (D, 31%), Mid-Grade Radiant Swordsmanship (C, 32%), Mid-Low-Grade Radiant Magic (D, 65), Mid-Low-Grade Mana Regeneration (D, 61), Mid-Low-Grade Mana Manipulation (D, 67%), Wolf’s Footwork (D, 53%), Swimming (F, 77%), Marksmanship (F, 71%)

Strength: 100

Agility: 100

Stamina: 100

Radiant Mana: 100

Leisure Points: 9

<Skill: Regeneration (D)>

<Skill: Wolf’s Footwork (D)>

<Skill: Swimming (F)>

<Skill: Marksmanship (F)>

“The Class Limit is holding me back.” My skills were developing nicely, but my stats were stuck at the B-rank limit of 100.

‘I need to move on.’ I had spent nearly a year in this world, accumulating Leisure Points.

‘I can’t face a true B-rank, let alone a Yonko, at my current level.’ To increase my Class, I needed to defeat opponents significantly stronger than myself, at least low to mid B-rank. My goal was to gather enough Leisure Points, strengthen my skills and Traits, and then challenge stronger opponents to break through the Class Limit.

“Shine, look!” Yamato pointed towards a nearby island.

“Hmm?” I looked.

“Gahahaha! Kill them all!”

“No! Please!”

The island was being raided by pirates.

“What should we do?” Yamato asked, picking up her kanabo.

“Why even ask? You already know what we’re going to do.”

“Haha! You’re right! I’m going, Captain!”

Yamato leaped towards the island, a distance too far to cover without flight. But she didn’t hesitate, trusting in my magic. I cast Levitation on her. Having used it countless times before, she expertly navigated through the air.

“Law, Lami.”

“Yes, Shine-san?”

“Shall we go too?”

“Yeah, go wild.” I cast Levitation on them as well.

“Yamato, wait for me!”

“No way! I’m gonna beat up all the pirates!”

“You hogged them all last time! Leave some for me!” Law, despite her formal tone with me, spoke casually to Yamato. They bickered as they flew towards the island.

“Those two… always fighting,” Lami sighed, shaking her head as she followed them.

I stored the Maxim and took to the sky, unaware of who I was about to encounter on that island.