Chapter 13: A Man as Outstanding as You…

[Subsequent Task: Defeat or Assist in Defeating the Giant Blade Pirate Crew Captain (Completed)]

[New Task: Rescue All Captured Civilians on the Island (Current Stage: Third)]

"Officer Vivian!"

Before long, a group of navy soldiers, sweating profusely, ran over and looked at Vivian, who was carrying Kuto on his shoulder. "Is Officer Kuto alright?"

"Nothing serious, just lost a lot of blood and is about to die," Vivian replied calmly.

Navy soldiers: (っ°Д°;)っ

"Quick, call the medic!"

The soldiers hurriedly took Kuto from Vivian's hands.

Meanwhile, the late-arriving Papanov, out of breath, asked Vivian, "Where… where is Ashburn?"

"Back there," Vivian pointed to Ashburn, who was collapsed under a tree.

Papanov followed his direction and was immediately shocked.

"You… you did this?"

"No." Vivian shook his head, his expression unchanged. "Kuto did it alone."

"Kuto?" Papanov's eyes flashed with surprise again.

That kid who had just been assigned to the Loguetown base, could he really be that strong?

Could that lightning strike earlier have been his doing?

But as soon as this thought emerged, he shook his head to dismiss it.

Such destructive power couldn't be human-made.

Even if it were, it couldn't possibly be done by a mere Petty Officer in the East Blue.

If he had that kind of power, he would have been promoted to a high-ranking officer at headquarters long ago, not stuck in the East Blue.

Unlike him, who was already old and just waiting for retirement.

While he was lost in thought, Vivian continued, "Before Ashburn collapsed, he mentioned they had captured many civilians on this island. I think we should send a team to look for them."

"Alright, I'll send twenty men to go with you," Papanov nodded.

Pirates occasionally acted as human traffickers, capturing civilians to sell at auction houses, so Papanov didn't say much more.

Ten minutes later, leaving over a hundred men to clean up the battlefield, treat the wounded, escort the pirates, and transport the bodies, Vivian led twenty first-class soldiers into the forest to search for the civilians.

…

That night, as darkness fell.

After finding more than a dozen women and children in a cave, a prompt appeared in Vivian's mind again.

[Subsequent Task: Rescue All Captured Civilians on the Island (Completed)]

[New Task: Personally Escort the Rescued Civilians Back to Their Hometowns (Current Stage: Fourth)]

Vivian: "…"

Is this task never going to end?

Vivian couldn't help but sigh.

But thinking about the reward of an infinite battery phone loaded with all the movies and TV shows from his previous life, his tired heart was filled with motivation again.

So, after locking up all the pirates in the warship's brig, Vivian proposed to Papanov the idea of escorting the civilians back home. He then took a small lifeboat and left the team alone.

…

One month later.

Loguetown.

Vivian arrived at the dock on a lifeboat. Two navy soldiers standing above saluted him upon recognizing his uniform.

"Hey, good morning! On duty again?" Vivian waved at them with a smile, then docked the boat, hands in his pockets, and cheerfully jogged into Loguetown.

He was naturally overjoyed.

After spending so much time in the pirate world, his daily activities were limited to reading the newspaper and occasionally lying on the beach to enjoy the sea breeze. There wasn't much entertainment.

If he were in the Sabaody Archipelago, he could visit amusement parks occasionally, but in Loguetown… apart from a few restaurants and taverns, the rest were mostly weapon shops, clothing stores, and tobacco shops, with hardly any entertainment facilities.

For a modern person, not going crazy in such a place was already quite an achievement.

He took out his 6.5-inch phone from his pocket, wiped the screen, and was about to use its reflection as a mirror when suddenly, someone appeared behind him and slapped him hard on the back.

Smack!

The phone flew far away and fell into a puddle by the street.

Vivian exploded on the spot.

That was the reward he got after a month of running tasks!

Killing intent surged within him.

He quickly rushed forward to retrieve the phone from the puddle, carefully checked it, and seeing it still worked, he finally breathed a sigh of relief and turned to look at the person who had slapped him.

"Lieutenant Papanov?"

"Gulp!"

Papanov instinctively swallowed, his hand frozen in mid-air, cold sweat almost dripping from his forehead.

Was it an illusion?

Why did he suddenly feel like he could die at any moment?

"Chief Petty Officer Vivian, you're back from escorting the civilians?"

Scratching his head, Papanov asked somewhat awkwardly.

"Yeah, just got back and ran into you." Vivian replied.

But then he paused and looked at Papanov, asking, "Wait, what did you just call me?"

"Chief Petty Officer Vivian."

Papanov smiled and patted Vivian's shoulder, "Didn't you know? Because we wiped out the Giant Blade Pirate Crew, I got promoted to Lieutenant Commander, and you got promoted to Officer."

"But… why did I get promoted?" Vivian was puzzled.

"Of course, it's because of Kuto. He said capturing Ashburn was all thanks to your incredible marksmanship."

Papanov nudged Vivian's shoulder with his elbow, his smile becoming more ingratiating, "I never expected you to have such a hidden talent. We'll need your help more in future missions, Officer Vivian."

Help your sister!

Vivian couldn't help but roll his eyes.

That damn Kuto, I saved his life, and he repaid me with this?

No way, I need an explanation from him.

"Where's Kuto now?"

"I just saw him go to Captain Smoker's office."

Papanov said, just about to ask Vivian if he wanted to join him for lunch, but Vivian had already dashed off towards the base.

…

Five minutes later.

Second floor of Loguetown base, Smoker's office.

"I need an explanation for why the credit for capturing Ashburn was given to me."

Vivian slammed his hand on the desk, questioning the bewildered Smoker.

Beside him, Kuto, wrapped in bandages, stepped forward, adjusted his glasses, and with a serious expression, looked at Vivian and said:

"Chief Petty Officer Vivian! I hope you understand one thing."

"What thing?"

"A man as outstanding as you can't be hidden."

Vivian: ???