Chapter 19

On the training ship, Zephyr felt a wave of relief when he saw the many recruits. However, his eyebrows soon furrowed: "Karl, why aren't there any pirates here?"

Karl's heart fluttered, and he couldn't ignore his Master's confusion. After all, Zephyr was once known as "The General Who Doesn't Kill." It was clear that he disapproved of killing pirates, preferring instead to give them a chance to atone in the city of Push. Nonetheless, Zephyr's family had been cruelly murdered by pirates who harbored hatred toward him.

"Master Zephyr , there were 32 people on the 'Musket Pirates' ship. 20 were killed in battle, and 12 were captured. When we leave Chunyu, I plan to hand them over to the mayor of Chunyu for investigation," Karl replied.

"Now they should all be dead!" Zephyr barked, frowning even more deeply.

"Karl, you've been a marine for ten years. Don't you know that's a violation of protocol? All captured pirates should be handed over to Impel Down, not to civilians. Do you understand what will happen to the residents of Chunyu if this news reaches other pirates? They will become even more merciless in their killings!"

"They will become even more merciless in killing the residents," Karl agreed after a pause.

"Do you understand this? Then why are you doing it anyway?!"

This sudden outburst frightened the recruits. During their entire time at the training camp, it was the first time they'd seen Master Zephyr so fiercely angry.

"Master Zeffa, aren't pirates inherently madmen? In the past, the Marines followed the rules, but didn't pirates often destroy villages and towns? Hoping for anything else from them is absurd in itself."

Zephyr was silent. After a long pause, he said to Karl, "Come with me."

"Brother Karl!" "Karl…" the other recruits were worried for Karl.

Karl gave them a reassuring look and fearlessly followed Zephyr into the room.

Zephyr sat on a bench, silently finishing his cigar. When Karl entered, he asked in a tired voice, "Tell me, what do you think?"

Karl found himself a bench, sat down next to Zephyr , and, taking a cigar from his box, lit it.

"We are in a trial period. Bringing those pirates with us only wastes strength and resources. And waiting for a transport vessel from Impel Down to come to Chunyu is pointless."

"Our main enemies are the 'Hunter's Blade' pirates. The faster we catch them, the safer the residents will be. We cannot wait."

"The best solution is on the spot."

After finishing his arguments, Karl smirked and added with a certain feeling, "In essence, they are merely the first step in Impel Down. Instead of wasting the fleet's resources, it's better to return them to Earth to become fertilizer."

"Karl, I am very displeased with your actions. The Marines is the Fleet because it has discipline and rules. We are soldiers, not pirates!"

"Yes," Karl nodded, "but what about Admiral Akainu? I've heard that he killed residents to hunt pirates. Is that also provided for in the rules?"

Zeffa was silent, his face turning red.

"Hmph! You have such a sharp tongue that I cannot argue with you! But from now on, don't do such things. Kill those pirates who don't have a Devil Fruit, but don't touch those who have eaten one."

"Why?"

"Because anywhere on the Grand Line, whether it's the first or second half, if a pirate with a Devil Fruit dies, that fruit will be reborn in some corner of the world. If it's eaten by a man who wants to become a Marine, then it's okay. But if a pirate eats it, it means you killed in vain. Therefore, the fleet generally tries to capture pirates with Devil Fruits. They kill them only as a last resort."

"Don't worry, Master Zephyr !" I understand what's what. I won't bother you anymore!

"You stubborn boy... Ah..." Zephyr sighed and suddenly remembered his wife and son, who died at the hands of pirates. That tragedy had thrown him off balance for a long time, gradually changing his previous conviction that enemies shouldn't be killed.

The principle of "leave room to retreat" clearly wasn't suitable for dealing with pirates. So, he merely reprimanded Karl for his "foolishness," not out of anger but confusion.

"Alright, alright, arguing with you is a waste of time. You won the first battle, why aren't you celebrating?"

"Great!" exclaimed Karl.

...

"Karl, did Mr. Zephyr not let you through?"

"Hahaha, look at my expression, does it seem like it? It's just a breach of charter, no big deal!"

"Yeah, just killing pirates. Is killing pirates a bad thing?"

Soon, Karl was surrounded by excited recruits, and he found himself in the spotlight.

"Ding! Idle time accumulated: eight hours. Daily task completed. You receive 2 attribute enhancement cards, 1 card "Hidden Secret 'Rebirth' of the Six Styles," and 1 card "Hidden Secret 'Six Royal Spears' of the Six Styles."

"It has been detected that the host is in the final stage of camp training. From this point on, daily rewards will be doubled, and the likelihood of obtaining rare items in a random reward set will be increased. Keep up the good work!"

"Today's daily rewards have already been given. Receive 2 attribute enhancement cards, 1 card 'Hidden Secret "Rebirth" of the Six Styles', and 1 card 'Hidden Secret "Six Royal Spears" of the Six Styles.'"

Examining the four enhancement cards and four skill cards in the system space, Karl couldn't help but exclaim "Wow," bid farewell to the others, and headed to his room.

— Done! The trial period is 30 days. If it doesn't end sooner, I can get at least another 116 enhancement cards! Perhaps I can raise my physical strength to level 'B' without using improvement cards!

— And these secret techniques of the 'Six Styles' are simply magnificent!

These were skills he hadn't yet learned. Both "Rebirth" with its exceptional practicality, and "Six Royal Spears"— the most powerful move— all were wonderful combat skills.

Without further ado, Karl used the cards.

— System, use four attribute enhancement cards to increase perception. And use all the skill cards!

Now, in the system space, he was left with only 10 improvement cards, as well as a bunch of snacks and various trifles.

Host: Karl

Age: 24

Physical Strength: C

Perception: D

Willpower: D-

Special Abilities: [Calm as a Virgin] [Fast as a Rabbit]

Fruits of Holy Light: 9.6% (Awakening Progress)

Active Skill: Fragile (Can be used)

Except for the awakening progress of the Fruits of Holy Light, the other characteristics remained unchanged. As the attribute level increases, more enhancement cards are required.

Karl was very pleased that he was becoming stronger every day. Comparing himself to the worthless being he was when he first arrived at the fleet headquarters, he had now made incredible progress.

All that was left was to awaken the "Two-Colors of Haki," and then his camp training would be perfectly complete.