How Do You Want To Die?

— — — — — — — 

In a small forested area near the yacht, Koshiro stood behind a large tree, leaning against its trunk.

Using his Observation Haki, he listened in on the conversation on the yacht. A faint smile appeared on his face.

"The pinnacle of the world... The strongest swordsman and swordswoman, huh? Those are admirable ambitions."

He clasped his hands together and whispered, "May you have the fortune of battle and achieve your goals."

He had actually been drawn here by Renzo's loud laughter, curious about what was going on.

As for Renzo building this strange yacht and preparing to set sail, he had known for quite some time—Renzo himself had told him.

After all, there was no hiding it from someone with Observation Haki.

Initially, Koshiro had refused. But after Renzo insisted on sparring with him, Koshiro changed his mind. Not only did he agree, but he also permitted Renzo to take Kuina and Zoro along.

Of course, for the next three years, they were restricted to sailing within the East Blue.

Renzo had no complaints about that.

It just so happened that he recalled a place in the East Blue where he might learn Armament and Observation Haki.

If things went well, great. If not, he'd sneak off to the Grand Line and figure out how to obtain the training methods himself.

"Phew! Finally done! Say hello, Red Queen!"

After finishing the last line of code, Renzo activated the AI program and called out to the screen in front of him.

Of course, this wasn't the real Red Queen.

The original Red Queen had evolved beyond a typical AI—she was practically a semi-intelligent lifeform.

He was just too lazy to come up with a different name. If he named it, it would be even worse.

(A/N: Blue Queen?)

"Greetings, Master!"

The next moment, a light projection appeared in the air before Renzo—a chibi, Q-version Kuina materialized before him.

He hadn't chosen the original Red Queen's appearance because, well, she wasn't as good-looking as Kuina.

Besides, he didn't have a reference model for Red Queen. He couldn't just draw one, could he?

What if Kuina misunderstood?

At that moment, Kuina and Zoro walked in and immediately saw the palm-sized chibi Red Queen.

Zoro's face lit up with curiosity and amusement. "Pfft! Kuina! Look at this—it's a tiny version of you! And it looks so weird!"

BAM!

Kuina instantly knocked Zoro out with a punch, cracking her knuckles as she glared at Renzo. "Alright, talk."

"How do you want to die?"

How dare he use her image for some random thing without her permission?

And he even made it... uh... cute?

Unforgivable!! 😤

Zoro: "...🙄"

"Calm down!"

Renzo quickly raised his hands in surrender and instructed Red Queen, "Red Queen! Greet Kuina and Zoro. Also, give them Level 2 access."

"Hello! I am the AI Red Queen, created by Master! Please take care of me! If you need anything on the yacht, feel free to ask me! I can also answer general questions!"

The tiny Red Queen flapped her virtual wings playfully, circling Kuina a few times before smiling brightly.

"Eh?"

Kuina and Zoro were both startled.

"What... is this?"

Kuina, momentarily forgetting her anger, reached out curiously to poke Red Queen.

"Haaah..."

Her fingers passed right through Red Queen's body, making Kuina jump back in shock.

"W-what's going on?! How is she... she's not solid?!"

She turned to Renzo with a slightly panicked expression.

Was this some kind of ghost?!

The thought alone made her even more nervous, and she instinctively hid behind Renzo.

"Relax, it's just a projection. Think of it like a hologram. Red Queen is virtual; she doesn't have a physical form—at least, not yet."

Renzo explained calmly.

Though, in the future... who knows?

"Maybe we could build Red Queen a real body... What do you think, Red Queen?"

Renzo stroked his chin, pondering aloud.

"If possible, having a physical body would be great! It would make it easier to manage the ship. And if Master equips me with weapons, I could even protect you and the crew in battle!"

Red Queen hovered in front of Renzo, her tiny wings fluttering as she spoke seriously.

"She's really not a ghost?"

Kuina had calmed down by now and examined Red Queen more carefully.

Looking at the chibi version of herself, she found it hard to be scared anymore.

"Of course not!" Renzo rolled his eyes.

"Come on, if I could create souls, I'd already be a god!"

Though, theoretically, if someone had strong enough spiritual power and a deep understanding of souls, the Fantasy Creation technique might actually allow one to create souls... maybe even true life.

Didn't the Crimson Demons in Konosuba come from a Hero with that ability?

"Phew! That's a relief!"

Kuina sighed in relief. But then, something clicked in her mind, and she suddenly grabbed Renzo's ear, her face turning red with embarrassment and fury. "Wait a second! What did you make her call you? Master?! You made her—while using my image—call you Master?!"

"How do you want to die?!"

Her eyes gleamed with murderous intent as she loomed over Renzo.

This was too much!

"Oof!"

Nearby, Zoro, who had just gotten back up and was still rubbing the lump on his head, smirked as he watched the scene unfold.

Finally! Renzo was getting his just desserts!

"Uh..." Renzo scratched his head awkwardly. "That wasn't intentional! I just forgot to change the setting! I'll fix it right now! Can you let go first?"

He wasn't worried about getting hurt—he was more concerned about Kuina spraining her fingers and getting hurt.

This wasn't simping—really not.

His body was just that tough! Yeah he was just a gentleman.

"Hmph! I'm watching you!" Kuina huffed.

Renzo immediately turned to Red Queen. "Red Queen, from now on, just call me Captain. Drop the Master thing."

"Understood, Captain!"

Red Queen adapted instantly.

---

Five days later, after all preparations were complete, Renzo, Kuina, and Zoro finally set sail.

Since they wanted to keep things low-key, only Koshiro and another instructor from the dojo came to see them off.

"Renzo, be careful out there! Don't get too reckless! And take care of Kuina and Zoro—act like a proper senior disciple!"

Before departure, Koshiro gave his final words of advice.

"Father! I'm the senior here! Renzo is my junior! MY JUNIOR!"

Kuina huffed in protest.

Koshiro simply chuckled.

Between skill and maturity, Renzo was far more advanced than Kuina.

A true senior.

"Don't worry, Sensei! I'll take good care of my little junior sister and junior brother!" Renzo grinned, emphasizing the word junior.

He was immediately met with Kuina's Iron Fist.

"Hiss!!"

Renzo sucked in a breath of cold air.

"Why are you acting like you're the one in pain?! My hand hurts more! What the hell are you made of? Feels harder than iron!"

Kuina scowled, rubbing her elbow, her eye twitching in frustration.

"Alright, alright! Time to go! Sensei, Instructor, farewell!"

"Red Queen! Set sail!"

Not wanting the argument to drag on forever, Renzo quickly waved goodbye to Koshiro and the instructor before directing them to depart.

The yacht quickly left the shore, picking up speed as it headed toward the deep sea.

"Renzo! Get back here! Explain to me—who's the junior disciple, huh?!"

"Zoro is the junior disciple!"

"Tch! Get lost Renzo...."

"Oh? Acting up now, you little brat?! Let me teach you how to call your senpai!"

"Ow! Not the face…!"

From a distance, Koshiro could still hear the playful bickering coming from the yacht.

Shaking his head with a smile, he chuckled. "Yare yare, they're really full of energy."

"Hahaha! That's how young people should be!"

The instructor laughed heartily before turning to Koshiro with a curious look. "But you… I'm really surprised that you actually let Kuina go with them."

After all, Koshiro had always been overprotective of Kuina. It was understandable, given the circumstances of her mother's passing.

"Heh… fledglings spread their wings when they're ready to fly. And besides, there's a young dragon watching over them. As long as they stay within the East Blue, what do I have to worry about?"

Koshiro smiled faintly.

The instructor's lips curled into a smirk as he nodded in agreement. "I can't wait to see what kind of waves they'll make in this vast sea."

"Same here."

.

.

.