Chapter 33: The Broke King
The second day after leaving Little Garden, the sky was overcast and gray, a drizzling rain gradually intensifying into a torrential downpour.
"Get upstairs quickly, Vivi! Reiner, retract the sails a bit!"
"Ah, got it."
At the stern of the Going Merry, Reiner stood shirtless, unfazed by the rain, continuing his squats with a barbell shouldered.
He simply dispatched several undead to coordinate pulling the ropes and reefing the sails.
"3045, 3046..."
"Your progress is a bit ridiculous, Reiner."
Zoro, swinging weighted iron rods in his hands, glanced sideways and sighed. "Your 1200kg load suddenly jumped to 1600kg? It's only been a few days, right?"
"Ah, it's mainly thanks to the gains from Little Garden."
Reiner explained simply. Since the first day he ate the Devil Fruit, this was the fastest his strength had increased.
Moreover, in the last few days, he had faintly felt a strange power stirring violently within him.
"What's your current maximum weight load?"
"Tried it last night. Almost four thousand kilograms," Reiner said, standing up from a squat. Blocks of lean muscle rippled aesthetically as rainwater streamed down their smooth lines.
Zoro held an iron rod in each hand, several huge iron plates hanging from the ends. He hacked, slashed, thrusted, and pierced, wielding them as if they were swords.
"Mine is five thousand kilograms. You're catching up fast. You're seriously ridiculous."
"It's not as exaggerated as you think."
Reiner chuckled softly, letting the raindrops hit his face and drip down his chin. "After this boost, I probably won't get much improvement from the Devil Fruit for a long time."
The giants' physical talents provided an overwhelming advantage. Unless he reached the New World, he likely wouldn't encounter stronger physical templates in the first half of the Grand Line.
Don't know if Crocodile is in his 'major' or 'minor' state right now... hope I don't get backstabbed later.
Dark clouds shrouded the sky, casting a gray pall over the sea. Raindrops pattered against the Going Merry.
"3999, 4000!"
Clang!
Putting down the barbell, Reiner pulled the towel from around his neck and went to sit under the nearby awning on a deck chair to shelter from the rain.
Sqqquueeeze—
The towel was twisted forcefully like a fried dough twist, instantly wringing out the water. After drying himself, Reiner leaned back in the deck chair.
He checked the Log Pose on the table for a moment to confirm their course. Just as he lit a cigarette, preparing to relax for a bit, he noticed something standing on the sea surface through the distant curtain of rain.
"Zoro, am I seeing things?"
Reiner wiped his glasses lenses and looked again. "That's a person, right?"
"Seems like it?"
Zoro also put down his iron rods, walked a few steps forward to lean on the railing, squinting as if trying to see further.
SPLAAAAASH—!
Just as he spoke, it seemed as though a behemoth rose from beneath the figure.
A giant hemisphere slowly ascended, seawater cascading down its spherical surface like a waterfall.
Only then did the two clearly see the 'beast'. "A ship appearing from the sea!?"
"No, it's a submarine, I think."
Reiner countered, his expression turning serious. "That person must have been standing on the submarine. But this thing is huge, isn't it?"
Before he finished speaking, the previously hemispherical submarine began to bloom like an opening flower bud. In moments, it transformed into a ship with an extremely exaggerated castle-like design.
"It transforms too!?"
"Too bad Luffy didn't get to see this, haha."
Reiner laughed. Seeing the vessel slowly approaching, he discreetly began summoning his undead one by one. Fish-Man undead slipped quietly into the water, while the Katana and Chainsaw Devils stood ready.
Sanji was tidying up the kitchen in the second-floor living area. Hearing the commotion behind him, he couldn't help but step out to look.
"What's going on?"
"Oh, Sanji. Looks like we have guests," Reiner glanced towards the approaching ship.
Once the giant ship drew near, dozens of figures emerged onto its upper deck. Leading them was a pot-bellied middle-aged man, flanked by two guard-like figures. Behind them was a troop of soldiers in matching uniforms, carrying rifles on their backs.
One guard had an afro, and the other, bizarrely, wore cute blue pajamas but had a vacant expression, creating a strangely discordant image.
"Wahaha~"
The leading man let out a strange laugh. Along with his two guards, the trio leaped onto the Going Merry's stern railing, their immense weight making the wooden railing creak ominously.
"I am King Wapol."
The man, his face fleshy and fierce, spoke with a grin. Behind him, the soldiers on his ship raised their rifles, aiming at the crew. "We need to return to Drum Island! Do you have a Log Pose or an Eternal Pose?"
"Doesn't look like a friendly visit," Zoro remarked, his hands resting on his sword hilts, eyes cold and ready to cut someone down at any moment.
Before the man even finished speaking, Reiner recognized him. This was the former king of Drum Island, who hadn't done a single decent thing during his reign.
Whirr— Whirr—!
The Chainsaw Devil revved its engines, the sharp, grating sound irritating/setting teeth on edge everyone present.
"Hey! Are you trying to—"
WHAM!
Before the afro-haired guard could finish, a pitch-black kick slammed into his face, the impact sinking deep into skin and flesh.
Schlick! Schlick!
Before the other could react, two deep gashes appeared out of nowhere on the pajama-clad man's body, blood spraying wildly.
The moment the chainsaw sound started, Sanji and Zoro had instantly attacked. Since the opponents had raised their guns upon arrival, there was no need for questions.
Fight first!
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Dozens of gunshots erupted. The Katana Devil charged forward without dodging, directly tanking the hail of bullets as it leaped onto the enemy ship, its three swords unleashing a blinding flurry of cuts.
"Fire! Keep firing!"
"No good! Guns don't work on him!"
"It's a monster! A monster!"
Wapol's face turned grim. Hearing the wails and screams from behind him, he didn't dare make a rash move.
Because three menacing chainsaws were already closing in on him. Opening his massive mouth, he bit down on an incoming chainsaw.
Miraculously, his teeth actually shattered the chainsaw blade.
"What the hell!?"
Sanji was dumbfounded, watching Wapol continuously chew and then swallow the metal. "Been a chef for years, never seen anyone eat like that."
"Hahaha! I ate the Munch-Munch Fruit! I'm a Munch-Munch Human! I can eat anything!" Wapol grinned ferociously, patting his belly and opening his mouth wide again, seemingly wanting more.
BANG—!
A gunshot rang out.
Blood spurted from his mouth. Wapol looked utterly shocked, feeling the intense pain inside his mouth, his gaze involuntarily falling on Reiner.
"Wh-why? Things inside my mouth... shouldn't be able to hurt me."
"Seems like you can't eat Seastone," Reiner said, gently blowing away the wisp of blue smoke from his gun muzzle. "How did my bullet taste?"
"You... you..." Wapol's expression was full of unwillingness, but under the wave of weakness washing over him, he could only slump down powerlessly.
RUMBLE!!!
As Wapol lost consciousness, his ship began to disintegrate. It turned out the vessel was assembled from parts created by his ability.
"Didn't even get a chance to loot it."
Reiner sat back down on the deck chair under the awning, recalling the Katana and Chainsaw Devils. He sighed, watching the giant ship gradually sink. "Guess we'll just see how much the Fish-Men can salvage."
This brief disturbance was over in mere moments. Sanji, seeing the farce concluded, turned back to prepare food.
Just as he opened the back door of the cabin, he bumped right into Nami coming out.
"Did something happen?"
Nami asked, puzzled. She had heard quite a commotion earlier and came out to check. As she spoke, she saw a massive ship disintegrating.
Nami was instantly stunned. "What the heck! In the blink of an eye! It looks like you guys did something incredible again!"
"Ah, it was nothing. Just some uninvited guests."
Reiner's cigarette had just burned out. Unconsciously, their strength had grown to the point where they could annihilate a pirate crew in the blink of an eye.
The rain gradually lessened, and the undead returned to the ship one by one after finishing their salvage work.
"Just this much?"
Reiner looked at the meager treasures brought back. Then he thought about Wapol being just a disgraced king now and understood.
Reiner couldn't even be bothered to look closely. "Just give it to Nami, I guess."
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