"Tsk..."
"It's a Sea King, so why does it look like a sheep?"
"I wonder if it'll taste like mutton when we eat it?"
Sean couldn't help but complain as he watched the clawing, snapping Sea King lunging toward him.
The Sea King species were truly bizarre; it was as if every single single one of them belonged to a different species entirely. Based on their physical characteristics alone, it was impossible to view them as the sa kind of creature.
Slowly drawing Hekireki from his waist, Sean didn't even bother to use Shikai. With a casual flick of his wrist, several streaks of blue light slashed through the air.
In the next instant, the massive, charging body of the Sea King ca to a dead stop. The light of life quickly faded from its eyes. A few seconds later, the hundred-ter-tall section of its body that had been breaching the surface crashed back down, sending a wall of water dozens of ters into the air.
'He's gotten even stronger!'
That was Lucci's imdiate thought after witnessing the scene. While Lucci could also easily kill a Sea King of that size, he couldn't achieve that sa sense of effortless grace that Sean possessed.
"Lucci, tell the navigator to shut down the warship's auxiliary power rotors. At the sa ti, send a squad to reinstall the Seastone!"
"Move quickly. If more Sea Kings swarm us, things will get troubleso!"
Nodding, Lucci imdiately ordered the Marines to carry out the task. However, he was still sowhat confused.
"Commodore, even if more Sea Kings surround us, it shouldn't be a problem. I can—"
"You can handle them easily, right?"
Lucci nodded. Seeing Sean so urgent, he truly didn't understand. Even if a few more Sea Kings appeared, Lucci could dispose of them effortlessly, even without Sean's help. He wouldn't give them a chance to damage the ship or the Marines on board.
"Lucci, you can indeed handle them easily, but if you just kill them, we can't take the at with us..."
"Even with this one, we can only take a portion."
"Now, here is the interesting question: what happens to the parts we can't take?"
This was sothing Lucci had never considered. However, the answer wasn't hard to guess.
"They would likely be eaten by other Sea Kings?"
"Exactly. The number of Sea Kings isn't infinite. I plan to hunt them frequently in the future and bring the at back to the 16th Branch to improve the diet of all the Marines. After all, this at is highly nutritious. For those who train, it's an absolute tonic."
"Does the Commodore an we should avoid waste?"
"Precisely. Killing a few Sea Kings isn't hard, but if you kill them and can't take the at, you're just giving a free al to other Sea Kings. So, why bother killing them?"
When put that way, it actually made sense. Lucci nodded, beginning to understand Sean's logic.
anwhile, Sean shifted his attention back to the Sea King floating near the warship.
'System, start today's settlent. Target: the Sea King I just killed. For the multiplier project, I choose Quality. Begin!'
[Settlent project confird. Determining Random Multiplier...]
[Ding! The multiplier is 68. Multiplier Applied.]
'Hmm, while it's not a massive multiplier, it's certainly not low. It looks like the at from this Sea King will be quite effective!'
"Report! The Seastone at the bottom of the hull has been reinstalled!"
Just as Sean finished the settlent, a Captain ran up to the foredeck to report.
"Good. Have everyone co help butcher this Sea King. Take as much as we can carry—don't let any of it go to waste!"
"Yes, Commodore!" the Captain answered excitedly.
He was finally going to get to eat Sea King at. Once he returned to Headquarters, he'd have sothing to brag about to his colleagues for years.
That said, butchering a Sea King three hundred ters in length was a grueling physical task, even for people in the world of pirates. Over a hundred Marines jumped onto the creature's carcass, working tirelessly for three hours before they finally had to stop.
They didn't stop because they were finished, but because the warship was full. There were piles of at stacked all over the deck; it was absurd. If another ship were to pass by right now, they wouldn't think it was a warship—they'd think it was a cargo ship.
Looking at the vast amount of at they had to leave behind, Sean felt his heart bleed. He wondered which lucky Sea King would get to feast on the leftovers.
He didn't know it yet, but because he left that at behind, a hegemon-class Sea King would eventually erge in the Calm Belt...
Of course, that was a story for another ti.
Currently, the warship was filled with laughter and joy. Under Sean's orders, the two chefs had pushed themselves to the limit. Various types of sashimi were just the appetizers; they followed with "Eighteen Ways to Prepare Sea King," serving dish after dish.
While there was plenty of variety, the actual flavor was... rather ordinary. Fortunately, the at itself was so delicious that it masked the chefs' lack of skill.
'It looks like finding a proper chef needs to be moved up on my priority list...'
Regardless, everyone ate their fill. However, after the al, Lucci noticed sothing.
"Commodore, is there sothing wrong with this Sea King's at?"
"What do you an?"
"After this al, I feel as though my Doriki has increased by at least ten points."
"Are you sure?"
"Yes. I am very sensitive to my own Doriki!"
Sean hissed. He knew that with the quality increased 68-fold, the nutritional value would be off the charts, but this was exaggerated. Ten points of Doriki from a single al? Was this an immortal's elixir?
"Lucci, you know the Six Powers Art: Te-awase, right?"
"I'm not as proficient as so of my colleagues, since it's not a combat skill, but I do know it. Though compared to their precision, I might have a margin of error of plus or minus one point."
"Great. You few, co over here!" Sean nodded and called out to several Marines who were lying on the deck with round, full bellies.
"Yes, Commodore!"
"Tell , what was your last recorded Doriki before leaving Headquarters?"
"14!"
"18!"
"15!"
"49!"
"17!"
The five of them reported in quick succession. Sean nodded. Generally, the average Doriki for an ordinary Marine was around 10, while the elite Marines at Headquarters fell within the 10 to 20 range. As for the one with 49, he was one of the n Lucci had requested from Zephyr at the Elite Training Camp.
"Lucci, I'll leave the rest to you!"
"Understood!"
Lucci knew exactly what Sean wanted him to do.
"Six Powers Art: Te-awase!"
The Human Doriki Tester
Lucci imdiately took his stance, effectively becoming a human Doriki tester.
"Just treat Lucci as your testing equipnt," Sean commanded. "Take turns stepping up and check your current Doriki levels!"
"Uh..."
"Stop hesitating! Lucci is using a specialized technique from the Six Powers designed specifically for asuring Doriki. Back before the Marines had actual testing machines, this was how it was done!"
"Yes, Commodore!"
The five of them quickly stepped forward one after another. The final results left Sean thoroughly surprised. While their gains weren't as massive as Lucci's, every single one of them had seen an increase in their Doriki—so by two or three points, others by as many as five or six.
After just one al? This was absurd!
"Lucci, I have a very important mission for you!"
"What is it, sir?"
At the ntion of a "mission," Lucci imdiately straightened up, his expression turning solemn. He placed an extraordinary amount of importance on his orders.
"Once we arrive at the 16th Branch, I'll ask old man Sengoku for a proper Doriki testing machine. Until then, you are responsible for testing every marine and keeping a detailed record. Rember, you are to conduct a round of tests after every single al!"
Sean continued, "I need to determine if this is just a first-ti boost or if the effects are sustainable. Furthermore, we have enough at to feed the 16th Branch for two months, but due to storage limitations, most of it will have to be cured into jerky. Consequently, you'll also need to track whether the jerky provides the sa results as the fresh at. Is that clear?"
Lucci was quite surprised to find himself cast as both a human testing tool and a data clerk. But to him, a mission was a mission. Regardless of the nature of the work, he would execute it to perfection.
"Yes, Commodore!"
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