Aether moved quickly and slipped into a nearby restaurant.
Getting entangled with that Marine woman would only create unnecessary trouble. Even though he had a decent impression of her from the original story, right now she was clearly hunting him.
The mont he entered the restaurant, soone noticed him.
"Good morning, Mr. Aether."
The greeting ca from a calm voice.
Aether looked over and saw Trafalgar Law sitting at one of the tables with his crew.
Law wore his usual spotted fur hat, his expression composed as always.
Aether gave a small nod.
"Good morning, Captain Law."
The two of them had t the previous day. Aether had casually shared so small secrets about the Grand Line, which had successfully opened the door to conversation.
Compared to the other Supernovas, Law's personality made him far easier to deal with. He was cautious, intelligent, and not soone who acted recklessly.
Aether sat down nearby.
"Haven't set sail yet?" Aether asked casually. "This island is practically next door to Marineford. Aren't you worried an Admiral might suddenly show up out of boredom to hunt a few pirates?"
Law paused slightly.
The possibility was extrely low. Encountering a Marine Admiral wandering around the Sabaody Archipelago was rarer than winning the lottery.
Still, he answered honestly.
"Mr. Aether, our luck should not be that bad. Besides, the ship coating process is not finished yet."
The pirate ship needed a special resin coating before it could travel to Fish Man Island beneath the sea.
Aether smiled faintly.
"That might not be entirely true."
He did not continue the topic.
Instead he raised a hand toward the elderly restaurant owner.
"I would like to order so food."
The owner was a man in his seventies with experienced eyes. He had operated this restaurant on the Sabaody Archipelago for decades.
Pirates with bounties over one hundred million Berries had walked through his doors countless tis.
Most of them were surprisingly generous with money, unless they were infamous for brutality.
"Alright, please wait a mont," the old man replied calmly.
Just as the owner turned away, the system suddenly issued a notification.
[B rank character generated positive emotions toward the Host. Level: Elentary Friendly. Experience 20]
Aether raised an eyebrow in surprise.
The restaurant owner was a B rank figure?
That ant he might be a retired expert or soone who had once held considerable influence.
The system categorized people based on both strength and influence.
D rank characters were ordinary civilians.
C rank figures were sowhat famous individuals or pirates and Marines with bounties under ten million Berries.
B rank figures usually included governnt officials, pirates with tens of millions in bounty, or Marine officers such as Lieutenant Commanders.
Above that were A rank, S rank, SS rank, and SSS rank figures.
A person did not need to be extrely powerful to reach A rank. Influence alone could sotis elevate soone to that level.
In the few days since arriving in this world, the highest ranked individual who had generated emotions toward Aether was sitting directly in front of him.
Trafalgar Law.
The brief conversation yesterday had already granted him one hundred experience points.
At this ti in history, Law was still considered a Supernova level pirate, which matched the A rank classification.
Two years later, however, he would rise far beyond that.
He would beco one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, and during the battle of Onigashima he would awaken the Ope Ope no Mi, allowing him to temporarily contend with so of the strongest fighters in the world.
Soon the restaurant owner returned.
Ten enormous plates were placed on the table, each nearly half a ter wide.
Seeing the mountain of food, Aether's eyes lit up.
A man should never waste good food.
He imdiately began eating.
Despite his calm appearance, the food vanished at an astonishing speed.
While eating, he continued chatting with Law as if nothing unusual was happening.
"Law, I recently heard sothing interesting," Aether said between bites. "The Second Division Commander of the Whitebeard Pirates, Fire Fist Ace, was captured by Blackbeard and handed over to the Marines for public execution."
Law froze.
His expression quickly beca serious.
"Mr. Aether, I have not heard such news."
"If it is true, the Whitebeard Pirates will definitely go to war with the Marines."
Aether continued eating calmly, finishing the enormous al like a whirlwind.
Although his physical attributes were still weak, Roger's body possessed an incredible digestive ability.
Warm energy spread through his body as the nutrients were rapidly absorbed.
He could feel his strength increasing slightly.
After wiping his hands, Aether leaned back in his chair.
"It will not just be a clash."
His voice remained calm.
"With Whitebeard's personality, it will beco a war that shakes the entire world."
He paused briefly.
"The Marines likely want this outco. By forcing the conflict now, they can settle everything with Whitebeard once and for all. After all, the man once known as the World's Strongest is already old."
Law fell silent.
Aether reached into his pocket and placed several bills on the table.
Before leaving, he spoke again.
"As a new friend, I will share so additional information with you."
"About the Flamingo."
Law's eyes narrowed instantly.
Shock and suspicion flashed through his gaze.
The man in front of him actually knew about his hatred toward Donquixote Doflamingo.
Augustus D. Aether.
The more Law observed him, the more mysterious he seed.
On the surface Aether did not appear strong, yet Law could faintly sense sothing terrifying hidden beneath that calm exterior.
"I wonder what kind of information you are referring to, Mr. Aether," Law said carefully.
"If it is valuable, I will owe you a great favor."
Aether simply smiled.
He shared several pieces of intelligence about Doflamingo that were not publicly known.
Law listened silently, but the shock in his eyes grew deeper.
These were secrets connected to his greatest enemy.
When the conversation ended, the system notification sounded again.
[A rank character generated positive emotions toward the Host. Level: dium Friendly. Experience 200]
[Level increased to Level 4. Current progress: 80/200]
Aether imdiately felt the change.
His physical abilities improved noticeably.
He was still slightly weaker than a Marine Petty Officer, but the improvent was real.
Building a good relationship with a top tier doctor was never a bad idea.
One day he might need that dical expertise.
Aether left the restaurant cautiously and walked toward the lawless region of the island.
Groves 1 through 29.
This was the territory of pirates, bounty hunters, and slave traders.
The streets here were far quieter than the tourist areas.
Most people moved in groups.
Others were clearly powerful enough to walk alone.
And occasionally, nobles passed by with heavily ard bodyguards.
Anyone unlucky enough to wander here without protection would quickly encounter trouble.
Just as Aether expanded his Observation Haki, he sensed sothing.
A group of slave traders had already set their sights on him.
In their eyes, a lone traveler like Aether was easy prey.
A gun fired.
A large fishing net shot through the air.
Thump.
The net wrapped tightly around Aether.
Inside the net, Aether rely watched calmly while pretending to struggle.
In truth, Observation Haki would have allowed him to dodge easily.
But letting them approach would save ti.
If they tried to run later, his current physical abilities might not be enough to catch all of them.
Soon several rough looking slave traders approached.
Seeing their target captured so easily, they burst into loud laughter.
"Haha, another idiot. Soone this weak dares to wander here alone."
"Boss, he might be weak but he looks handso. He should sell for a decent price."
"Five hundred thousand Berries at most. Human male slaves are not very valuable."
Aether felt slightly irritated.
Only five hundred thousand Berries?
That evaluation was a little insulting.
As the n approached to drag him away, a terrifying wave of Conqueror's Haki suddenly exploded outward.
The invisible pressure swept across the area instantly.
Slave traders collapsed one after another.
Their eyes rolled back as they crashed onto the ground.
Only the leader and two others managed to remain conscious for a brief mont.
"You..."
Their voices trembled before foam appeared at their mouths and they collapsed as well.
[C rank characters generated negative emotions toward the Host. Level: High Terror. Experience 12 x3]
Everyone else had been knocked unconscious instantly.
They had not even had ti to feel fear.
Aether cut open the net with a small knife.
Without hesitation he slit the throats of the slave traders one by one.
His expression remained calm.
Perhaps Roger's lingering soul had influenced him.
Killing for the first ti felt strangely ordinary.
In both his previous life and Roger's mories, slave traders were nothing more than despicable parasites.
[Greatly altered the fate of C rank characters. Reward: 12 Points x3]
[Greatly altered the fate of D rank characters. Reward: 3 Points x9]
The morning passed quickly.
Aether repeated the sa bait strategy several tis.
Eventually so slave traders began realizing that sothing was wrong.
But by that ti Aether had already achieved his goal.
[Level 11. Progress: 13/550]
While cleaning the battlefield, Aether suddenly sensed a powerful presence approaching through Observation Haki.
A familiar pink haired figure appeared in the distance.
Hina.
Her eyes were filled with anger as she stared directly at him.
Marines were already moving in from multiple directions.
Aether did not hesitate.
He dashed toward the only open path and shouted loudly as he ran.
"You stubborn woman! Stop chasing everywhere!"
"If I ever catch you, I will make you regret it!"
User Comments
0 comments from readers