Smoker's face—stiff from Rain's shamelessness—finally loosened a little. He snorted, taking it as acceptance of the "deal."
"But before that," Rain brushed dust off his clothes and looked around at the plaza, now "purified" to an almost excessive cleanliness, "we should collect some travel expenses. No point coming here for nothing."
"Travel expenses?" Smoker blinked, then rolled his eyes. He knew it—this guy would always pluck feathers as he passed.
Rain ignored him and walked straight through the charred streets. The surviving civilians peeked out from hiding places, watching him with fearful, godlike awe.
Rain paid them no mind and headed for Big Axe Mills' largest tavern.
He could sense Mills' stash was under it.
Rain went to what had been the tavern's back kitchen, calmly raised his right hand, pressed two fingers together, and aimed at the floorboards.
"ZZZRT—!"
A piercing screech—then a condensed bolt of lightning, nearly pure white, shot from his fingertips like a scalpel and instantly melted through the foundation.
A smooth, smoking hole appeared in front of them.
Smoker stood to the side, eyelid twitching at the sight.
Rain hopped down lightly.
The vault was piled with treasure—crates of Berries, jewels, and even some swords—stacked high.
Under Smoker's wordless stare, Rain casually stuffed crate after crate of cash and jewelry into his [Storage Ring]—he couldn't be bothered to keep up the act in front of Smoker anymore.
After filling most of it, Rain glanced at Smoker and tossed him a bag of Berries. "Take some too."
Smoker reflexively caught it—then immediately threw it back with a dark face. "I don't need stolen money."
"Oh?" Rain raised an eyebrow.
"I'm confiscating criminal proceeds to fund future operations," Rain replied calmly, then dug out a neatly packaged box of cigars from the corner and tossed it to Smoker. "You'll need this, at least."
Smoker caught it and snorted, neither agreeing nor refusing.
After looting nearly thirty million Berries, the two headed for the port.
The docks were packed with pirate ships of all sizes. Rain's "Ten Thousand Thunderbolts" had purged pirates—not destroyed these vital means of transport.
Since they were only two people, Rain scanned the harbor and settled on a single-mast sailboat tucked in a corner.
"That one."
They jumped aboard. Smoker, surprisingly energetic, checked the rudder and lines. Rain searched around the boat for a bit, then told him, "Wait here."
Then his body flashed into lightning and vanished back into town.
Less than ten minutes later, Rain returned—his ring now stuffed with supplies purchased from local shops.
…
Grand Line, late night.
A thin mist lay over the sea, moonlight diffused into a cold blur through the haze.
The small sailboat glided steadily on the wind. The world was dead quiet except for the soft wash-wash of the bow cutting waves.
Smoker was asleep in the cabin, snoring hard.
Falling from ten thousand meters and witnessing that godlike rain of lightning had hammered his nerves. He was exhausted to the bone.
Rain stood alone at the bow beneath the moon.
He wasn't sleepy at all.
The thrill from testing his power in Mock Town—and the anticipation of growing stronger again—made his mind sharper than ever.
He opened the system panel.
[Sin Points: 1,257,210]
Ohara's CP9 and Spandine, plus Mock Town's cleansing—finally pushed him past the million mark.
Rain's eyes landed on the two one-million options in the shop:
[Skill · Top-Tier Swordsmanship → Peak Swordsmanship]
[Haki · Top-Tier Armament Haki → Peak Armament Haki]
He hesitated briefly.
"Swordsmanship is technique. Haki is power."
"Peak swordsmanship would make me stronger, but it's a single-track boost. Armament… is the foundation of everything."
Whether coating a blade to make cuts unstoppable, coating a fist for a more domineering punch, or coating bullets—
Against true monsters on the sea, Haki strength decided everything. This upgrade was far more comprehensive than swordsmanship alone.
Rain stopped hesitating.
He spent one million Sin Points and upgraded Armament Haki to [Peak].
There was no expected heat wave, no shock.
At the instant the points vanished, Rain felt his body click—as if an invisible shackle had been unlocked.
A completely different kind of power surged through him.
If [Top-Tier] Armament was like wearing an indestructible "armor" over the skin—
Then [Peak] Armament was armor fused into the self.
Rain slowly raised his right hand. With a thought, pitch-black Armament coated it.
"Vmmm—"
Under moonlight, the arm looked like night itself—so deep it reflected no light, carrying a terrifying density.
Feeling it, Rain had an urge.
He casually threw a punch at empty air.
No wind, no sonic boom.
"BOOM—!!!"
A heavy blast—air in front of his fist compressed instantly into a visible white shockwave that shot out like a cannonball.
It crossed nearly a hundred meters of sea and smashed a small reef into a spray of fragments.
A swelling thrill rose in him.
Rain stared at his fist, thinking.
"With this hardness and raw destructive power… which is tougher? This, or Garp's unreasonable 'Fist of Love'… or Instructor Zephyr's battle-hardened 'Black Arm'?"
After finishing the important part, Rain remembered the nearly forgotten [Dimensional Curiosities] tab.
Since it could pull from countless worlds, the chance of rolling something affordable and useful was low—he sometimes forgot it existed.
He clicked it.
This month's item sat on a gorgeous golden pedestal with a countdown beneath: "Refresh in: 21 days 08:15…"
Rain squinted. It was a weird-looking… silver collar?
[This Month's Curio: Animal Companion Translator (Cats Only · Beta)]
Description: Put it on your cat companion's neck, and you'll understand its noble meows.
(Note: Ineffective on sea cats. May cause translation errors for large felines. Development team assumes no responsibility.)
Price: 80,000 Sin Points
Rain stared at the description in silence.
A full ten seconds.
"Eighty thousand points… just to… understand meowing?!"
Then he immediately suppressed the urge to complain and thought about it differently.
He already had Voice of All Things—that meant he saved 80k.
Instant profit.
Feeling oddly satisfied, he closed the curio page, pulled up his personal panel, and reviewed his current total power.
Name: Corvo Rain
Age: 18
Rank: Sergeant
[Physique Tier]: Top-Tier
[Devil Fruit]: Rumble-Rumble Fruit (Unawakened)
[Talents]: Voice of All Things, Life Return, Whirlpool Sense
[Skills]: Swordsmanship (Top-Tier), Marksmanship (Top-Tier), Stealth (Advanced), Combat Techniques (Advanced), Cooking (Advanced), Navigation (Advanced), Fishing (Intermediate), Medicine (Advanced), Ancient Script Mastery
[Haki]: Observation (Transcendent), Armament (Peak)
[Sin Points]: 257,210
[Equipment]: Good-Grade Blade x1, Fine Firearm x1, Storage Ring, Mini Weather Kettle, Clark's Glasses
Rain glanced at the upgrade option behind [Peak Armament] and frowned slightly.
[Haki · Peak Armament → ??? Armament]: (Locked)
"Still three question marks…"
He found it odd.
When Observation Haki broke past Peak, the system had clearly displayed the next tier as Transcendent. So why did Armament still show "???"?
Did different Haki evolve along different paths?
He couldn't figure it out.
Rain shook his head and set it aside, exhaling slowly.
"Whew…"
Top-Tier physique, Peak Armament, Transcendent Observation, plus the Rumble-Rumble Fruit—
With this loadout, anywhere on the sea, he was unquestionably a power in his own right.
~~~
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