Chapter 28

— It's finally over... — sighed Karl, watching the flames consume the pirate ship.

Zephyr hadn't lost his students, hadn't lost his arm, and Weevil didn't get the chance to become one of the Seven Warlords of the Sea, so Zephyr ultimately wasn't destined to die at the hands of the marines!

As for the disappointment with the marine , Karl felt it was nothing. As long as he held no expectations for the marines, he wouldn't be disappointed.

He became like this from the very day he joined the marine corps. He also considered changing the status quo, but being a weak man, his words were never taken seriously. No matter how passionately he spoke, it was useless.

Now he still had an opportunity to change the status quo of the marine corps, but Karl believed that day wasn't far off. He was very young, only 24 years old.

In the nearby sea, several Navy warships slowly approached and transferred the people from the training ship onto the warships, officially marking the end of their internship.

Upon returning to the Marine Headquarters, they would officially assume their positions and serve the marine corps.

Two days later, at Marineford.

Zephyr sat in front of Sengoku with a calm expression and handed him the internship report.

— Here is the summary report for the internship period of the 24th recruit training camp. Please review it, Sengoku!

Sengoku took the report and opened it. He silently flipped through it. Zephyr also remained silent. The only sound in the office was the turning of pages by Sengoku.

He couldn't help but smile when he saw the entry about how Karl commanded the recruits to destroy Gunner's pirates and the Hunting Knives pirates, as well as how he assisted Zephyr in defeating Edward Weevil.

"Ha-ha-ha, Zephyr, you've trained another excellent student! This Karl is truly talented."

"Rich combat experience, clear command, and even outstanding strength. Wait, he also awakened Two-Colors of Haki in battle!"

Sengoku looked at Zephyr in disbelief. He really couldn't believe that a marine at the internship stage could awaken Two-Color Haki so quickly. You know, even Akainu and others only awakened Haki after countless subsequent battles and then soared to great heights.

But Karl actually awakened Two-Color Haki simultaneously in one battle. What kind of genius is this?

The only mystery is how such talent remained unknown.

Listening to Sengoku's praise of Karl, Zephyr smiled proudly.

"Actually, he already showed signs of awakening earlier, but he just lacked pressure. Weevil, incidentally, provided him with enough pressure, which is why he awakened. I think it's normal."

"If he can't awaken under the pressure of life and death, I don't know how he could awaken at all."

Sengoku nodded in relief. The new generation of marines finally had a genius, and Karl's abilities could also help enhance the combat power of the marine corps at the highest level. When he matures, the marine corps will become even stronger.

Such talents should enjoy a higher status and faster career advancement. After thinking for a moment, Sengoku made a decision.

"Zephyr , how about this? Let's initially grant Karl the rank of Major at Headquarters. After he spends some time under Kizaru's command and accumulates military merits and qualifications, I will allow him to lead a team independently and build his own authority.

"This way, Karl's subsequent promotion will be standard and won't attract criticism. What do you think?"

Zephyr nodded. What Dzhangoku said was very reasonable. Promotion in the Navy is based on strength, military merits, and qualifications. Only when these three criteria are met simultaneously can one advance further.

For Karl, the rank of Major at Headquarters is not a significant promotion and will not invite criticism. After all, he was a Captain before and has only been promoted by one level.

Even if Karl is strong, he must proceed step by step. It's impossible for someone to be promoted directly from Captain to Brigadier General, right?

Karl says: hey! You'll see it in the future, or maybe directly from civilian to Admiral.

"You are the Marshal, the final decision is yours. In any case, it's good that you're aware of what's happening. I'm leaving.

...

"Ding~ [Professional Mission — Storm Training Camp] officially completed, rewards being calculated..."

— The host has accumulated a total of 732 hours of idleness, exceeding the task, and receives random rewards... Congratulations on receiving the Devil Fruit — Zoan — Bird-Bird — Crow Form.

— [Professional Mission — King of Idlers] activated, mission requirements: accumulated idleness time reaches 500/1000/2000/3500/5000 hours.

— Reward: depending on the idleness time, you will receive phased rewards (enhanced/special attribute enhancement card + random rare reward).

— It has been detected that the host's current rank is Major at Headquarters. The daily mission reward has been increased to 3 designated attribute enhancement cards + random rewards * 3, and the probability of obtaining rare items in random rewards has been increased to 3%.

Karl, who was reading the newspaper, was stunned upon hearing the system's notification sound and involuntarily exclaimed, "Damn."

— 5000 hours, if I idle for 8 hours every day, 5000 hours is 625 days! Less than two years, very easy!

Karl quickly calculated and put it aside. This cannot be rushed; it has to be accumulated gradually. He pays more attention to improving the daily rewards, as that's the main focus.

— Oh, by the way, it seems I just received another Devil Fruit.

Karl looked at the system's space. It was a round purple-black Devil Fruit, but he lost interest when he saw it was just a regular animal system.

— Now I have ten enhanced attribute enhancement cards and 8 regular attribute enhancement cards. System, use them all to enhance my physique!

His physique was already at C+, this should be enough to raise his physique to level B. After completing the enhancement, Karl's attributes are as follows:

Host: Karl

Age: 24 years

Physique: B-

Perception: D

Will: C-

Heroism: Armed Haki LV1, Observational Haki LV1

Special abilities: [Quiet as a Maiden] [Move Like a Hare]

Sacred Light Fruits: 13.6% (awakening progress)

Active skill: Fragile (in use)

Now his physique far exceeds his other attributes, specifically surpassing perception, because willpower will automatically improve with the enhancement of his strength, and he doesn't need to invest in attribute enhancement cards.

Therefore, Karl's next strategy is to focus on perception, which affects his reaction and insight and provides a significant bonus to Observational Haki. In short, Karl's goal is to become a hexagonal warrior.

— Hey, Smoker, did you hear?

— Hear what?

— I'm now a Major at Headquarters! By the way, I think...

— Pfft!

Smoker decisively hung up. He knew Karl all too well. Wasn't he calling just to laugh at him? Wanting to feel superior to him? Impossible

In the evening, Smoker stood by the window. The room was filled with smoke, and he had three cigars in his mouth.

He thought about it all night and couldn't understand. When he finished his training, his rank was just junior lieutenant. How did that fool Karl end up at the same level as him?

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