Please don't use your brain too much when reading. This story was written long before the recent chapters of One Piece.
---
"The Goro Goro no Mi/Rumble-Rumble Fruit…"
"For me?"
Ace stared blankly at the electrifying Devil Fruit in front of him.
It was the Goro Goro no Mi—the most powerful among the Logia-type fruits in terms of offensive capabilities.
Saying he didn't want it would've been a lie.
But… he was just being given it like that?
"Of course it's for you," said Luo Lan, rolling his eyes. "Because of my physique, I can't eat the Rumble-Rumble Fruit. Ian already has the Flame-Flame Fruit, Hina and Smoker are both Devil Fruit users, and Zoro is obsessed with the way of the sword… Who else would I give it to?"
"Consider yourself lucky. What, don't want it? Should I give it to someone else then?"
Before Luo Lan could say another word, Ace snatched the fruit from his hand and took a huge bite.
"Can't let this go to waste!"
"I'm eating it!"
"Blegh—what the hell?!"
"Luo Lan, this thing tastes worse than crap!"
Worse than crap?
Wait a minute—
Had Ace actually tasted crap before?
Luo Lan stared at him, stunned.
Yet Ace, grimacing and all, kept chewing. He took a second bite, then a third…
In the end, he devoured the whole fruit—skin and all.
This guy… is really out of his mind.
Luo Lan's mouth twitched.
"Luo Lan, I swear—I'd rather stay powerless for life than ever eat another Devil Fruit!"
Little did Ace know…
In just over a month, he'd end up eating the Rumble-Rumble Fruit again.
Just goes to show—never tempt fate with a bold declaration!
"Then why did you eat the whole thing with such determination?" Luo Lan asked.
"Well, I'd already bitten into it… couldn't exactly stop halfway, right?"
"…Wait. Don't tell me you didn't know…"
"You only need one bite of a Devil Fruit. Even a tiny one. That's enough to gain the power."
"WHAT?!"
Ace's eyes bulged, filled with disbelief and regret.
He turned toward Luo Lan with a deeply betrayed expression.
"Come on," Luo Lan waved him off with an annoyed look. "It's just one Devil Fruit. Not like you ate poison."
"Now get over to Kairo and finish building that ship within three days!"
Ordinarily, three days wouldn't be enough to complete the Ark Maxim.
But Luo Lan didn't need the entire thing—just the propulsion system to get it airborne.
All the extra bells and whistles from Enel's original blueprints could wait.
---
With that task handed off, Luo Lan turned to the system.
"System, can I construct a sub-city?"
While having troops stationed here didn't require using the system's buildings, it would make things more convenient—and allow for a stronger base setup.
So he figured it was worth asking.
[Ding! You cannot build a sub-city.]
As expected. He didn't have high hopes anyway.
But then—
[Ding! While the host cannot build a sub-city, the construction crew's activity range is not restricted.]
Wait… what?
So he couldn't build a formal sub-city, but the construction teams could still operate outside his main city?
[Ding! The host's understanding is correct.]
[However, buildings constructed outside your own territory will incur a 20% increase in both point cost and material consumption.]
Alright, now he got it.
In other words, Rhodes Island was his official territory.
But Upper Yard was not.
So if he built system-structured buildings on Upper Yard, it would cost 20% more.
"Got it."
No need to go overboard on Upper Yard for now.
Just a dormitory or two would be sufficient.
As for building something more complex—like an airfield—he'd wait to see how Seras and Xisovil progressed.
After all, so far only Seras had managed to build a prototype fighter jet, and it wasn't anywhere close to being viable in actual battles of this world.
Even if they planned to mass-produce them, they'd need far more scientific breakthroughs first.
---
Once all that was taken care of, Luo Lan headed to the center of the island.
With a few Moonwalk steps, he reached the top of the giant vine.
There he saw Robin, seated in front of the Poneglyph, jotting down notes in her little notebook.
"Robin, you done yet?"
"Almost. Just a moment!"
Luo Lan had come to pick her up as promised.
Given the vine's height, and the fact that Robin hadn't yet learned Moonwalk, she couldn't easily get down on her own.
"By the way, Luo Lan," Robin said without looking up, "I found something written near the Golden Bell. A message from Roger. It says…"
"I came to this place, to guide this script toward the Final Island."
Luo Lan interrupted her.
Robin blinked in surprise.
"Wait… you can read the ancient language?"
"Nope."
"…Then how do you—?"
"I told you. I know a lot of things. For example—this Poneglyph talks about the Ancient Weapon Poseidon. And I also know that the current Poseidon is Princess Shirahoshi, the Mermaid Princess."
Robin was completely speechless.
She had just finished translating the Poneglyph.
And everything he said was exactly right.
This man…
He was even more mysterious than the Void Century itself.
She turned to look at him again, deep in thought.
Then, her gaze fell once more on Roger's message.
"Luo Lan… what do you think Roger's goal really was?"
"I have my theories," Luo Lan said, his voice growing cold, "but I'm still not certain."
He paused for a moment.
"Whatever it was, it doesn't change the fact that opening the Great Pirate Era led to twenty years of chaos. Countless civilians have died. Even more were forced from their homes."
"In my eyes, the damage done during these twenty years outweighs even what the Celestial Dragons have inflicted."
"And the bloodshed continues."
He wasn't wrong.
The Great Pirate Era had multiplied the number of pirates tenfold.
And let's be real—
Ninety-nine out of a hundred pirate crews existed only to pillage and plunder.
The innocent people robbed and murdered by them…
Could anyone count the tragedies anymore?
If you traced the origin of this madness, it all led back to Roger.
Yes, the Celestial Dragons were a plague.
But Roger—he was the worst kind of plague.
Still, Luo Lan would end all of it soon.
His right hand clenched tightly.
"Robin, I live by one principle."
"What is it?"
"If you can change something, don't hesitate—just do it. But if you can't, then don't mess around. Don't make things worse."
He turned away, his voice calm but firm.
In his view, Roger had been someone who couldn't bear the weight of what he'd set in motion—yet did it anyway.
In the end, he'd doomed countless innocents.
Even his own wife and son had suffered tragic fates.
Roger…
He was nothing more than a selfish man.
---
This story is now COMPLETED in Ko-Fi shop.
https:// ko-fi.com/sami27