Chapter 2: First Life Simulation

Back when he used to watch One Piece, all Wood saw as a bystander were the passionate battles and touching bonds of friendship.

But only after experiencing it himself did Wood truly understand how vicious the so-called "pirates" really were.

Pirates like Luffy and his crew were incredibly rare on this vast sea.

In fact, it wouldn't even be wrong to say that the "Straw Hats" were more like adventurers than pirates.

It was undeniable that among pirates there were exceptions like Whitebeard and Shanks—people who protected others and held territories peacefully.

But the majority of pirates sailed for profit and fame. They certainly weren't saints; otherwise, why would they bear the title "pirate" to begin with?

Since the dawn of the "Great Pirate Era," the population of Maple Leaf Island had already dropped by more than a quarter.

Some had been killed by pirates, while others simply couldn't endure the constant raids and chose to leave the island altogether.

However, Wood knew well that now that the Great Pirate Era had begun, there was truly no place left in this world that could be called "safe."

Even if someone left Maple Leaf Island, who could guarantee they wouldn't run into pirates elsewhere on the sea?

The vast ocean was full of hope—but it was also filled with danger. For those with no experience, going to sea was almost a guaranteed death sentence.

Aside from the threat of pirates, there were too many unpredictable dangers—tsunamis, Sea Kings, and more.

To live in this world and find real safety, the only reliable path was to grow stronger.

Wood was now fifteen years old and already stood at 180 cm tall. Judging from his build, he might even keep growing for another couple of years.

At first, he had felt pretty smug—after all, that height combined with his above-average looks made him feel like he had maxed out his reincarnation stats. Who wouldn't be happy being reborn as a tall, handsome guy?

But once Wood realized that he was actually in the world of One Piece, his self-satisfaction vanished. In this world, 180 cm didn't even qualify as "tall."

In the world of pirates, the average height was absurd. Many were comically overdeveloped, and that was without even counting giant races.

Even among regular humans, the three Marine Admirals all stood around three meters tall. And take the fan-favorite Pirate Empress, Boa Hancock—she was 191 cm.

By comparison, Wood at 180 cm was… well, not exactly a dwarf, but definitely not tall.

But back to the main point. What mattered now was everything Wood had been through on the island. His top priority was to become stronger.

After completing the previous task, Wood had earned his first chance to use the Life Simulator. He didn't need the system to explain how it worked—he'd played plenty of those in his past life.

So after putting down his axe, Wood slumped to the ground and activated the Life Simulator for the first time.

『Age 15: After repeated pirate attacks on Maple Leaf Island, your anger and frustration pushed you to begin intense physical training, determined to grow stronger.Age 16: The Marines realized Maple Leaf Island held strategic value and sent a warship—but by then, you had just left the island and missed them entirely.Age 17: With two years of sailing experience, you gained basic navigational skills and even wiped out a small pirate crew.Age 18: Hot-blooded and impulsive, you pursued a notorious pirate group and accidentally entered the Calm Belt.Age 19: Trapped in the Calm Belt, you managed to hold out for a while, but with no food and no way to escape, you and your ship were swallowed by the sea…You have died. Simulation ended.』

Compared to the simulations he used to play—where a single run could reach hundreds of years and even end in ascension—Wood was speechless at how short this one had been.

What could he say? Unexpected, yet completely reasonable.

This sea was filled with dangers, and unlike Monkey D. Luffy, he didn't have family connections across the world or a protagonist's plot armor.

The moment he decided to set sail, he had already embraced a high risk of death.

Honestly, for someone like him—a complete newbie—to go to sea alone, survive for years, and even take down some pirates was already more than he expected.

『Simulation ended. You may choose one of the following rewards:

The results of your physical training before leaving Maple Leaf Island.

Several years of navigational knowledge from your time at sea.

The valuables stored on the ship you died on.

A randomly selected combat skill acquired during pirate battles.』

Looking at the four options that popped up, Wood hesitated briefly before selecting the fourth.

The first reward looked good on paper, but with a bit of hard work, he could achieve similar physical results within a year.

As for the second and third options—navigational knowledge and treasure—those were useful, but not urgent. Based on how the simulation ended, Wood had already decided he wouldn't set sail again until he had the strength to back it up. Going to sea too early was simply suicide.

The fourth option was a gamble. If he picked the first reward, he could immediately skip a year of physical training. But the fourth one? There was no way to predict what kind of skill he'd get—it might be amazing, or it might be trash.

Still, after weighing the pros and cons, Wood ultimately chose the fourth reward.

His reasoning was simple: he could always train physically later, but real combat experience and skills were far more valuable.

As the saying goes, no amount of book learning could compare to the lessons learned on the battlefield.

In the simulation, the 18-year-old Wood had already taken down an unnamed small pirate crew. That meant he had reached a certain level of strength.

Even if all he got was one of the combat techniques from back then, it would still be more valuable than blindly training alone on the island.

『Ding. Congratulations, you have obtained: Swordsmanship Insight (Basic).』

As the reward flashed across the system interface, Wood had just begun to smile—only for a torrent of memories to flood directly into his brain.

Until now, Wood had been completely clueless about swordsmanship. But suddenly, if you put a blade in his hand, he felt like he could wield it as naturally as his own limbs.

The version of Wood from the simulation, before his death at sea, had already mastered "Iron-Cutting" level swordsmanship based on the breath of all things—and now, all of that had become his.

"Iron-Cutting" and "Air Slash" were the two hallmarks of a true swordsman. While the simulated Wood hadn't quite reached the level of launching slashes through the air, it was clear that he had already stepped onto the path of becoming a "swordmaster."