Tsuru said suspiciously, "That Celestial Dragon survived such a brutal battlefield?"
The reporting soldier hesitated, then stomped his foot in salute, "Yes, Vice Admiral. We've verified his identity. It is indeed Saint Rolwiff!"
Tsuru nodded, "Bring him here. I want to see for myself."
The soldier went off to carry out the order. Garp said dismissively, "What's the point of seeing a Celestial Dragon? He probably just got lucky."
Tsuru ignored his crude remark and stared sharply at the Celestial Dragon being brought over.
Noyer's heart was panicking. The imitation was convincing, but this old lady was one of the sharpest minds in the Marines. He hoped she wouldn't notice any flaws.
Tsuru observed Noyer calmly. He quickly displayed the fear and arrogance of a Celestial Dragon, cursing, "What are you Marines good for? I was almost killed by thugs!"
This terrible attitude was actually fine.
Tsuru paid no attention to the verbal abuse, "Saint Rolwiff, this was clearly a premeditated large-scale operation. We didn't anticipate it either."
Noyer said arrogantly, "Is this the attitude of all Marine officers?"
Being berated like this, Garp's short temper couldn't hold back. He rushed forward, raised his iron fist, and knocked Noyer down with a blow to the head.
The Lieutenant nearly died of fright and quickly grabbed Garp, "Vice Admiral Garp, don't attack! This is a Celestial Dragon."
Garp fearlessly raised his head and snorted coldly, "So what?!"
Although he served in the Marines and worked for the World Government, he was extremely disdainful of the Celestial Dragons. If they didn't provoke him, fine. But if they angered him, he'd beat them up all the same.
Noyer took the opportunity to grab Garp's arm. His face showed pain and anger, but inside he was laughing with joy.
He had quickly checked the old man's talents and used a talent duplication card.
﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃
" Monkey D. Garp "
" Talents:〔 Indomitable War Bones [Gold] 〕|〔 Hero's Lament [Gold] 〕|〔 Fist of Love [Red] 〕|〔 Message Retracted [Red] 〕 "
﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃
〔 Indomitable War Bones 〕
〔 Rank: Gold 〕
〔 Description: A monstrous talent for Armament Haki. Haki is nourished from the bones, passively granting the body some characteristics of Armament Haki. When Armament Haki covers the fist and strikes an enemy, it triggers the "Fist Bone" characteristic — inevitably damaging the enemy's bones and internal organs. The severity depends on the Haki's quality. This characteristic extends to abilities developed through other body parts or methods. 〕
﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃
〔 Hero's Lament 〕
〔 Rank: Gold 〕
〔 Description: Having defeated legendary pirates and earned the title of hero, this talent provides different effects based on the target enemy:
When fighting a pirate, Stamina and Recovery Speed increase by 50%, and intimidation power doubles.
When fighting a Marine, the enemy's Will drops significantly, Stamina and Recovery Speed decrease by 50%, and intimidation power doubles.
When fighting someone defined as 'family', Will decreases by 20%, Attack and Speed both decrease by 30%, and intimidation power is halved. 〕
﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃
〔 Fist of Love 〕
〔 Rank: Red 〕
〔 Description: A nurturing talent born from Garp's habit of using his fists to educate children. When striking someone defined as 'family' with loving intent, the target's learning ability, willpower, stamina, and recovery speed all double for a certain period. However, intelligence permanently or temporarily decreases depending on the severity of the strike. 〕
﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃﹃
〔 Message Retracted 〕
〔 Rank: Red 〕
〔 Description: Garp's outspoken nature often gets him in trouble, frequently revealing important information. He regularly asks listeners to forget what he said. When he retracts a statement, the probability that others forget it, dismiss it, or keep it secret increases. 〕
﹄﹄﹄﹄﹄﹄﹄﹄﹄﹄﹄﹄﹄﹄﹄
Noyer sat on the ground in a daze, staring at the talents displayed by the system.
Two golds and two reds — fitting for Garp's strength. But a few strange things seemed to have snuck in.
So Luffy's stupidity and combat talent were beaten into him by Garp's 〔Fist of Love〕.
And then there's this 〔Message Retracted〕 talent… Is the system serious?
He kind of wanted it!
Joking aside, Noyer got to work. He immediately copied 〔Indomitable War Bones〕.
As for which talent to replace, Noyer originally wanted to swap out Shanks's 〔Haki Swordsmanship〕. Although it was only Purple Rank, its Haki cultivation bonus was especially useful, so he'd kept it. He was reluctant to give it up.
With the Black Gold 〔Supreme Swordmaster〕 talent, this one would eventually be replaced. But there was no rush.
Noyer was more eager to swap out one of his Devil Fruit abilities. Having obtained the complete Kage Kage no Mi, he needed to focus on developing it. The other fruit abilities would become support. Thinking about it this way, reducing one slot to train Haki wasn't a loss.
Whatever. Let's shelve Crocodile for now. The Suna Suna no Mi really isn't that great on the ocean. Besides, once it's in the collection, he could take it out again whenever he wanted…
Noyer replaced 〔Devil's Dwelling · Suna-Suna〕 with 〔Indomitable War Bones〕. His whole body felt like a hidden force was flowing through it, as if his bones had been completely replaced.
Feeling refreshed, he instinctively clenched his fists. Sure enough, an exceptionally violent Haki flowed within.
A gold talent specializing in Armament Haki felt great!
Once he integrated this talent's characteristics into his swordsmanship, wouldn't that be… Sword Bones?
Tsuru and Garp saw Noyer crouching on the ground, grinning mischievously one moment and looking melancholy the next. They were completely baffled.
Garp scratched his head, "Did I knock this kid stupid?"
Tsuru shot him a glance, took something from the marine beside her, and walked toward Noyer.
Noyer snapped back to his senses and found her placing handcuffs on his wrist.
Was he done for? Had she discovered he was an impostor?
But Tsuru looked at his expression and released the handcuffs, "My apologies, Saint Rolwiff. These are Kairōseki handcuffs — just a small test."
Noyer was stunned for a moment, then understood.
The Kairōseki was meant to expose him. If someone with Devil Fruit powers was impersonating Saint Rolwiff, her action would have revealed them.
Unfortunately for her, Noyer wasn't susceptible to that trick! He only copied fruit abilities, not the sea's curse. Seawater and Kairōseki were useless against him!
Seeing that Tsuru believed his identity, Noyer quickly continued playing the Celestial Dragon. He pretended to be angry, "How dare you doubt the noble me! And you, you rude man! You dared to lay hands on me. I'll have you stripped of your position!"
In truth, Garp had held back. To Noyer, it was at most a flick on the head. But pampered Celestial Dragons couldn't handle it, so he had to put on an Oscar-worthy performance.
Listening to his vengeful rhetoric, Garp said dismissively, "I'm so sorry. I forgot you were a Celestial Dragon. Can you pretend I never hit you? I'll treat you to some rice crackers!"
Even though it was an act, Noyer was annoyed. He cursed: "How can we pretend this never happened! You… uh… what did you do again? Oh right, you laid hands on a Celestial Dragon. That's a grave offense!"
Noyer and Garp, like two immature brats, wildly hurled insults at each other.
Tsuru looked speechlessly at the two grown men. Sure enough, only fools could communicate with each other.
The Lieutenant looked at Noyer and hesitated. Then he said quietly, "Vice Admiral, why do I feel that this Celestial Dragon's personality is somewhat… mild?"
Tsuru nodded and ordered, "Send him back to Mary Geoise, and have the people on the government side keep a close eye on him."
The fleet led by Garp and Tsuru pursued for a long time but found no trace of Ace and the others.
Tsuru rubbed her temples and said worriedly, "It must be the Revolutionary Army…"
Garp and the Lieutenant looked at her in confusion, "But weren't the ones who attacked the Heavenly Tribute pirates? Devil Man Noyer and Fire Fist Ace!"
Tsuru sneered, "Mere pirates couldn't pull off something on this scale."
Garp breathed a sigh of relief, "As long as it wasn't planned by Ace, that's good."
Then he silently worried: But this was Dragon's doing, which doesn't seem much better either…
With no success in pursuing the attackers, Garp and Tsuru had no choice but to return. They treated Noyer as a Celestial Dragon and sent him back to Mary Geoise.
◇◆◈◆◇
The Holy Land Mary Geoise — home to the World Nobles, the Celestial Dragons — was a heavily guarded place with excellent geographical advantages. Located atop the towering Red Line, it was extremely difficult for anyone to attack.
But there were always exceptions.
The fishman Fisher Tiger was truly formidable. He climbed the Holy Land with his bare hands, single-handedly freed thousands of slaves, set fire to Mary Geoise, and escaped to found the Sun Pirates.
He was the first man to openly declare war on the World Government — even Dragon had to take a back seat to him. It was a pity that while his life followed the script of a cheat-enabled protagonist, his story still ended at sea.
Now Noyer didn't need to climb the Red Line with his bare hands. He boarded the official passage to Mary Geoise directly.
This was another route from Paradise to the New World, besides Fishman Island.
As soon as he landed in Mary Geoise, a group of vigilant, burly men appeared and surrounded him while he was looking at the scenery.
Now blocked from view, he said irritably, "What are you doing?"
The bodyguards in white suits quickly responded, "We heard that Saint Rolwiff was attacked. Your father ordered us to protect you and take you to see him."
Saint Rolwiff's father was looking for him?
Noyer recalled the map of Mary Geoise and quietly pondered. He probably wanted to take credit with this map or gain some benefits — which was why Saint Rolwiff's actions had been so secretive.
Poor fool didn't know that Noyer had already killed his fat pig of a son and obtained the map.
After feigning sympathy for a moment, Noyer said to the bodyguards, "Alright then, take me to see him."
Government personnel approached Tsuru, who had accompanied them, "Thank you, Vice Admiral. You may return now."
Tsuru glanced around and said in a low voice, "Saint Rolwiff's identity may be questionable. Be careful."
The government personnel agreed verbally but didn't take it seriously. They watched that idiot every day — what could be wrong? Could someone actually be impersonating him?
Having conveyed her concerns, Tsuru had done her duty and promptly left Mary Geoise. With the Heavenly Tribute stolen, there was still investigating and arresting to do. They were swamped, and a single Celestial Dragon was a waste of their time.
Seeing her leave, Noyer finally relaxed. That old lady was too sharp — if she kept watching him, who knew what flaws she might spot.
With his nerves settled, he began to appreciate the scenery.
Those Celestial Dragon brats really did live in luxury beyond what most of the world could imagine. Calling these places villas felt like downplaying their magnificence. Looking around, there wasn't a speck of dirt anywhere — except on the people.
As residents of the Holy Land, Noyer encountered quite a few Celestial Dragons as he walked.
The males were mostly fat and ugly. When going out, they either had slaves on dog leashes or rode on the backs of beautiful female slaves, strutting arrogantly down the main roads.
The females were somewhat better. Though there were some ugly ones among them, at least there were a few decent-looking ones. But they too led slaves around. Several female Celestial Dragons would gather together, enthusiastically discussing whose slaves were sturdier.
Anyway, from what Noyer overheard, it was all crude, shameless talk — like a gathering of sadists.
In this atmosphere, his expression grew increasingly grim. Although he'd become morally flexible in this world, his thoughts not entirely pure, he'd still come from a Christian upbringing in his previous life. Righteousness was in his bones. Seeing such oppression and injustice, he couldn't help but feel indignation.
Noyer tried not to look at the slaves whose spirits had been crushed, and under the bodyguards' escort, returned to "his" home.
Pushing through the door, a magnificently decorated room appeared before him. The finest diamonds and gold had become decorations, countless treasures displayed on the walls, row after row. The items were all valuable, but displayed this way, it looked like nouveau riche showing off wealth.
After safely escorting Noyer home, the government people withdrew. From deep within the palace-like entrance hall, a gorgeously dressed person walked over.
Although this person was dressed like an emperor, his appearance was still hideous. He grinned and said, "Son! Did you bring it back?"
Holy crap! My dear father!
Noyer almost electrocuted this old guy on the spot, but without understanding the situation, he could only take out the map and toss it to him, "Here you go!"
Saint Rolwiff's father, Saint Rolmotte, took the map and examined it. His ugly features squeezed together happily, "Well done!"
The map had already been completely memorized using Robin's super brain talent, so giving it away didn't matter.
Saint Rolmotte tucked the map into his chest.
"As for the rest, you don't need to worry about it! Oh, by the way, Saint Rosward and his daughter came looking for you. Go meet them." He thought of something and laughed excitedly, "I heard that Saint Rosward's son was killed by some idiot who could shoot electricity at the Sabaody Archipelago. That old fool cried for who knows how long!"
Noyer's expression froze. This matter and that name seemed strangely familiar…
Wasn't that the Celestial Dragon Enel killed?
He asked in confusion, "Why are they meeting me?"
Saint Rolmotte said proudly, "Without an heir, his status in the family has plummeted. He has no choice but to work something out with his daughter. I've already arranged everything for you. I'm having Saint Shalria become engaged to you! This way his problem is solved through me, and our family also gains their alliance. A marriage that kills two birds with one stone!"
A marriage alliance with a Celestial Dragon?
After being stunned for a moment, Noyer sneered inwardly. He found the idea of marrying a Celestial Dragon beneath his dignity. However… taking one as a servant girl was barely acceptable.
◈◈◈
T/N: Comment, give me Power Stones, like and favorite, it all supports me and makes me go foward with this. Appreciate my other stories as well, I guarantee the good work!
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