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In the blink of an eye, two weeks passed.
The Sky Base was complete.
Jin left Niji, one of the Vinsmoke brothers, and 200 Germa soldiers to manage the base. He also left behind ten of the new, synthesized [Tiger]-class fighter jets from the Munch-Munch Factory and ordered them to recruit and train pilots from among the sky people.
"Lord Jin, are you leaving?"
Jin summoned the old chieftain and Gan Fall. He instructed them to manage the affairs of the sky people together.
"Don't worry," he said with a smile. "I'm going to grant Wyper a certain power. From now on, he'll be able to return to Skypiea whenever he wishes."
Grant him power?
The idea was strange, but Wyper followed the "god" onto the ship nonetheless.
It was nothing like he had imagined.
He stepped through the hatch and found himself not in a ship's cabin, but in a space of pure darkness.
The god's voice echoed around him.
"Wyper. Do not resist."
"I won't," Wyper replied, his resolve firm. He knew that if this god wanted him dead, he wouldn't need to resort to such elaborate theatrics.
Jin opened the ship's interface.
A lot has changed. Let's see the latest status report.
——————
[Primary Authority: Captain Jin]
[Hull Data: Length 85m | Width 25.2m | Height 14.6m | Weight 2750 Tons]
[Internal Space: 25.8 x 15.2 x 1.4 km³]
[Abilities: Munch-Munch | Mushroom-Mushroom | Candy-Candy | Hell's Red Serpent | Calm-Calm | Tricera-Tricera | Bomb-Bomb | Spring-Spring | Kraken-Kraken | Castle-Castle | Kilo-Kilo | Barrier-Barrier | Scream-Scream | Chain-Chain | Steel-Steel | Slow-Slow | Rumble-Rumble]
[Armaments: Main Cannons (56) | Heavy Cannons (325) | Firearms (12,068) | Blades (11,564)]
[Crew: Bartholomew Kuma (Chef) | Sir Crocodile (Boatswain) | Trafalgar Law (Doctor) | Nico Robin (Intelligence Officer) | Maya (Secretary) | Vinsmoke Reiju (Executioner) | Portgas D. Ace (Vice-Executioner) | Uta (Musician)]
[Next Evolution Requirements: Soul Crystals (6,167/10,000) | Refined Steel (0.1/10,000 tons) | Gold (4,420/100 tons) | Silver (86/500 tons) | Rare Earth Metals (68/2,000 tons) | Biological Matter (5/30)!]
——————
After devouring Elegia, the ship's internal space had expanded dramatically. With the power of the Castle-Castle Fruit, it was now divided into four levels.
The upper level, primarily composed of the former Germa 66 fleet, had been converted into the carrier's primary research and technology center.
The second level housed the mycology labs and cultivation bases.
The third level was now the former kingdom of Elegia itself—a massive recreational center.
And the bottom level contained the boilers, engines, and workshops—the core of the demonic carrier.
As for personnel, Uta had been officially appointed as the ship's Musician.
In terms of materials, the battle against Tot Musica had consumed over a thousand soul crystals. The production of the new rifles and fighter jets, along with routine maintenance, had also taken its toll. The refined steel, used for the base at Cocoyasi Village and the construction of the concert hall and arena in Hannabal, was completely depleted.
But that was a problem for another day. He could get more steel from Sandy Island.
Gold, however, was a different story. It was a rare commodity. But here on Skypiea, after scouring the ruins, he had hit the jackpot, unearthing over four thousand tons of it.
To put that in perspective, the gold reserves of his entire home country had been just over two thousand tons. If he were to return now, he would be richer than entire nations.
Shandora truly was the City of Gold.
And it was all-natural gold, not the artificial kind created by the Gold-Gold Fruit. It made sense. Shandora was a city built by the Lunarians a thousand years ago. They had likely gathered gold from all over the world—or perhaps even brought it with them from another planet.
The Golden Bell alone weighed fifty tons.
But given its historical significance, Jin had mercifully decided to spare it. He'd had it moved to the shrine, to be rung every year on the day of the festival.
Time to grant Wyper some power...
Jin entered "Calgara Wyper" into the sub-boatswain position on the crew roster and focused his will.
"Woooooooooom..."
A long, low hum echoed through the Empress.
In the darkness, Wyper felt a soft substance pressing in on him, releasing a strange, viscous liquid. It was cool, then warm, a pleasant sensation, like soaking in a hot spring. A current of heat began to gather in his chest, growing hotter and hotter.
Wyper's information appeared in the sub-boatswain field.
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[Position: Sub-Boatswain]
[Name: Calgara Wyper]
[Authority Level: 4]
[Height: 183cm]
[Abilities: None]
[Haki: Armament]
[Composite Doriki: 2590 - 4215]
[Evaluation: A fierce and skilled warrior with an indomitable will. A true warrior who will rise again and again, no matter how grievous his wounds, for the sake of his beliefs.]
——————
Jin nodded. With a basic grasp of Haki, Wyper's combat power had already increased. And he was only nineteen. He still had plenty of room to grow.
In the original story, he had taken numerous fatal blows from Enel, fired his Reject Dial three times, and had still managed to get back up.
Give him a purpose, put him through the crucible of battle, and he would become a monster on par with Zoro.
Jin had high hopes for him.
For now, he would remain on Skypiea, an anchor point for future teleportation.
—————————
With everything settled, Jin and Robin departed.
The Gate of Heaven was a magnificent sight, a waterfall of clouds that seemed to fall from the Milky Way itself.
The old woman at the gate waved them off warmly.
Robin's gaze shifted from the river of clouds to Jin. This enigmatic king... what was he thinking? Though she had been by his side for some time now, he was still a complete mystery to her.
Young, powerful, knowledgeable... and completely unpredictable.
A light breeze stirred, parting the thin layer of mist.
"Aren't you going to ask me about the Poneglyph?" Robin asked, her voice hesitant.
Jin, pulled from his thoughts, glanced at her. Without a touch of makeup, Robin was already beautiful. But with a hint of red on her lips, she was utterly captivating.
"If you want to tell me, tell me," he said with a slight smile. "If you don't, I won't force you."
"And if it contains information about the Ancient Weapons?" she pressed. "You're really not interested?"
Jin shrugged. He already knew what was on it. "Even if I knew, what then? Take the Ancient Weapons, become a Yonko in the New World, or the Pirate King? Overthrow the World Government? Okay, let's say I overthrow the World Government. Then what? Who rules? The slaves, the commoners, or the nobles? Can a new ruler really govern the world? What about the more than 170 member nations? A tyrant's dictatorship, or another council of five elders? If you don't think it through, you're just swapping one set of rulers for another. Or maybe you don't even have to swap them. The kings are still kings, the nobles are still nobles, the slaves are still slaves..."
"A single weapon can't change the world," he continued, his voice taking on a distant quality. "And what's even harder to change... is human nature."
Robin listened, her expression thoughtful.
Jin laced his hands behind his head. "Thinking about all that is exhausting. I much prefer fast cars and beautiful women. You know why I keep you around, don't you?"
"Why?" she asked, surprised.
Jin turned and looked her over, a slow grin spreading across his face. "What do you think?"
His gaze was predatory.
Robin felt a flush of heat rise to her cheeks. She rolled her eyes. "I always thought it was my talent you were interested in. Turns out it was just my looks."
"Can't it be both?" Jin said. "You're beautiful and talented. Doesn't that just make you all the more captivating?"
"Save it," she said, though the corner of her mouth twitched. "Your sweet talk won't work on me."
"Oh?" Jin chuckled. "The books say women love that kind of thing. The whole 'princess falls for the knight' trope... or the 'brooding king falls for the common girl' thing."
Robin said nothing. She simply produced a piece of paper. "This is the translation."
Jin took it.
Robin turned and walked away.
Jin glanced at the paper—it was more or less what he expected. A spark of electricity shot from his fingertip, and the paper ignited, turning to ash and scattering in the wind.
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