Far away in Nanohana, neither Ren nor Robin knew anything about what was unfolding on that distant land.
Crocodile was a man of deep scheming and ruthless caution—he had never trusted anyone.
In his eyes, Nico Robin was merely a pawn, a woman whose weakness he could exploit and control at will.
When it came to matters as vital as the kingdom's "drought," he never discussed anything with her.
And what was happening here now… was never part of Ren's calculations either.
Among all the intelligence Ren possessed, Crocodile's true strength remained the most uncertain.
What could not be confirmed could never be considered reliable intel.
Ren could only prepare for the worst—that was why he had struck a deal with the Revolutionary Army.
But misfortune brought by luck was another matter entirely.
Bad luck was never polite enough to appear only after you'd made all the right preparations!
Ren kept busy—busy with a thousand things.
First,he extracted the Resurrection Essence and infused it into a Blank Crystal before transferring it to Nojiko.
That directly led to Nojiko becoming active in Nanohana, targeting and harassing local criminals.
Next—naturally, came the lottery!
Pell brought back 100 million Beli in cash, while the returning Robin transferred some funds of her own.
Ren's betting chips began to flicker.
{Chip Balance: 300 million}
Let's see just how good the Golden Jackpot really is!
Rubbing his palms together, Ren performed another Sea Offering—this time using a Mana Crystal.
[Sea Offering Roll... Critical Success!]
[A fascinating power from an unexpected system.]
[Fulfillment Triggered!]
Something useful to me, Ren thought as he made his wish and slipped on his Lucky Charm: Mazu Temple.
Then he took out his Lucky Lighter and lit a cigarette.
Fortune Goddess's Blessing—Activated!
The Dimensional Roulette began to spin, dazzling light bursting forth.
{Draw Result — Synthesis Scroll}
{Draw Result — Armament Haki Aptitude}
{Draw Result — Broken Dragon Soul · Thunder}
When the light faded, a deep violet orb appeared in Ren's hand—within it, a small dragon-shaped shadow faintly swam.
What's this?
Ren was surprised, but his attention soon shifted to the second prize—
Armament Haki Aptitude!
[Armament Haki Aptitude]
Origin: One Piece Dimension
Type: Talent
Effect: Upon fusion, grants the user aptitude for Armament Haki. If the user already possesses Armament Haki aptitude, this fusion strengthens and evolves it further.
Armament Haki is a mysterious force born from the body's hidden potential, enhancing one's defense like invisible armor.
It can also be converted into offense—coating one's fists, blades, or even slashes with power strong enough to rival a Devil Fruit user.
It is a fundamental pillar of martial arts and swordsmanship—even capable of striking the physical body of Logia-type users who would otherwise become intangible.
Armament Haki can be learned and trained, and its strength grows through use.
Its intensity and quantity vary between individuals.The more Haki one has, the stronger and broader the coverage of Armament Haki.
It consumes stamina and spirit depending on intensity and usage, but can be recovered through rest.
Though it allows one to harm Logia users, they can still avoid attacks through timely transformations.
At sufficient strength, Armament Haki can even defend against Devil Fruit abilities—provided one's Haki surpasses the opponent's. However, it must be consciously activated—otherwise, the user remains vulnerable.
Haki!
And not just any kind—Armament Haki, one of the most vital forms!
More importantly, its appearance meant Ren might one day obtain the other, even rarer Haki—
Conqueror's Haki!
"Haki reigns above all!"—Kaido's words before his defeat.
Though he ultimately lost to the Sun God Nika, it didn't change the truth:Haki was an overwhelming, undeniable force.
Conqueror's Haki, and the advanced Conqueror's Coating technique, were hallmarks of the strongest of the strong.
Even setting Conqueror's Haki aside, Armament Haki alone was indispensable.
In the world of One Piece, ordinary humans couldn't even withstand gunfire—but with Armament Haki, one could survive heavy cannon bombardments.
Some masters could even cleave mountains or seas with a single strike.
Of course, that required advanced Armament Haki—Ren's newly acquired aptitude was only a starting point.
It wasn't the Haki itself, merely the potential for it.
Pity… but still acceptable, Ren mused, setting it aside.
Then he turned to the deep violet orb and the scroll beside it.
The scroll looked familiar—its design similar to that of the One-Time Skin: Mechanical Style.
That reminded him of something—
A formula.
[Broken Dragon Soul · Thunder]
Origin: Fairy Tail Dimension
Type: High-Energy Soul
Effect: The remnant soul of an unfortunate thunder dragon who, near the end of the dragon civil war,encountered Acnologia—the Dragon Slayer who turned his magic against his own kind.
Its mighty body was completely destroyed by Dragon Slayer magic, leaving only a fragmentary soul to drift through time until it nearly faded away. Now, only its primal instincts remain.
Fairy Tail?
Ren blinked as memories from long ago resurfaced.
If there was any hot-blooded series that had left an impression on him, Fairy Tail was certainly one of them.
The dragons—beings of unmatched power, both in body and magic.
They once reigned supreme—until a civil war among themselves birthed the Dragon Slayers, and ultimately, Acnologia.
The result: dragons nearly wiped from existence.
And now, Ren was holding the broken soul of one such dragon—a pitiful survivor, yet brimming with terrifying energy.
The other scroll intrigued him just as much.
[Synthesis Scroll]
Origin: Game Dimension
Type: Rule Code
Effect: Contains a crafting rule composed of six blank slots. Insert five materials into the first five slots, then place the core item in the sixth slot following logical crafting direction to initiate fusion—producing a perfectly integrated final product.
Consumption: None.
Interesting wording.
It reminded Ren of League of Legends' item crafting menus—same logic.
The scroll didn't specify any restrictions—offering a huge degree of freedom.
And "perfect fusion"… now that was the most enticing part.
It could merge equipment, combining their best traits into one.
The question is… what should I fuse?
He pondered. Two ideas surfaced—one for Nojiko's fire system, the other for his own lightning system.
The fire path didn't seem worth it; the Sunny Doll and Flame Crown combo was already near perfection.
So that left only one clear choice.
The Gáe Bolg, huh?
Ren flipped his palm, and a crimson spear materialized in his grasp.
He had tested the Gáe Bolg in battle—against two Devil Fruit users, Mr. 5 and Ms. Valentine (Gem and Mikita).
Together, their combined bounty barely reached 10 million Beli.
Yet victory had relied on constant attacks and a stroke of luck—the paralyzing arc of thunder that ended Gem's life.
Against Mikita, who was weaker, the fight had still dragged on.
Proof of the weapon's limitations.
Of course, Ren had always treated Gáe Bolg as a crowd-clearing tool, never a main weapon.
Still, if he could improve it—why not gain another long-range attack method?
Let's go with this. The Broken Dragon Soul might just be the key to evolution.
He began selecting ingredients, like a chef preparing his course.
Appetizer: a triple-enchanted Trident—for its enchantments.
First Course: the Statikk Shiv—its energy discharge and chain lightning perfectly aligned with thunder.
Main Course: the Broken Dragon Soul · Thunder—its soul power the core of the transformation.
Side Dish: the Broken Rat Talisman Fragment—its resurrection property ideal for reinforcing vitality.
As for Tifa… Ren decided against using her.
In the end, she was merely a silicone doll—granting her life wouldn't change much.
A more efficient use could wait for the future.
Then came dessert—Ren hesitated.
Two options presented themselves.
He could throw in a Seastone Handcuff, hoping to create a weapon capable of restraining Devil Fruit users—imbuing the final product with Seastone's nullifying effect.
But then again, his Ambition Rifle and the nearly infinite Seastone Bullets already covered that need.
He had tested them: the bullets could exploit a bug, essentially granting him endless ammo.
Their only drawback lay in fire rate and accuracy.
The Song of Rum technique required buildup and a critical state—usable only once per battle.
And without guaranteed accuracy, the bullets weren't reliable against high-level foes.
After all, anyone proficient in Observation Haki could easily evade them.
That was likely why Seastone ammunition had never seen mass use—too scarce to be decisive in high-level combat.
The flaw was clear.
Which left his other choice—
Ender Pearl Teleportation.
Instant movement—universally valuable. The only question was how it would manifest.
Ren couldn't decide just yet.
And as for Tifa joining the team… that too would wait.
After all, the Rat Talisman had more fragments to find—and he still hadn't figured out Tifa's real role. Bringing her to life just to serve as a prop(for sex)? No, not yet.
(End of Chapter)