The sky was ablaze with a splendid evening glow, and fiery clouds unfurled wantonly.
The speedboat cut through the sea, silver-white waves sweeping over the gunwales, creating ripples that converged at the stern. In the twilight, it looked like a shimmering ribbon of water.
Nao lay on the rattan chair, legs crossed, his gaze fixed idly on the sunset.
He appeared to be daydreaming.
In reality, he was staring blankly at his attribute panel.
[Mirai Cirno: Initial conquest complete. Flirtatious relationship established]
[Gugaras: Initial conquest complete. Flirtatious relationship established]
[Alvida: Initial conquest complete. Flirtatious relationship established]
[Makino: Initial conquest complete. Flirtatious relationship established]
…
Information like this continuously surfaced in the message log, so fast it was like a barrage of comments flooding a screen.
Occasionally, a few familiar names popped up, but before Nao could get a good look, the messages were already pushed to the top, impossible to find even if he scrolled back. He had no choice but to give up on that idea.
This was clearly the effect of the newspaper.
Although the photo wasn't clear, there was no doubt that a man like him was like a firefly in the dark night; even in the dimmest light, he would shine brightly.
Most of the girls who were "conquests" provided rather meager points, some dozens, some only a dozen. However, there were so many of them that it accumulated like grains of sand forming a tower.
A massive influx of points came rolling in.
[Current remaining points: 323,900]
Nao glanced at his point balance and fell into thought. He remembered before he took down William, he only had about eighty or ninety thousand points left.
This sudden surge, directly over two hundred thousand? Truly astonishing…
If the system popped up another "One-Thousand Hearts" mission, he probably wouldn't even need to bother; he'd just complete it on the spot, right?
"Looks like I can allocate points again."
This week's item shop didn't have anything worthwhile. Scratching his head, Nao decided to spend 200,000 points to boost both his Strength and Agility by one level each.
At 100,000 points per stat upgrade, it was ridiculously expensive. That was why he'd held off for so long. But now, he could afford to go big.
After all, physical stats were the cornerstone of real power—like the foundation of a nine-story pagoda. If he'd had this many points for upgrades two days ago, that fight with William might not have been such a struggle.
Speaking of which.
William's raw strength was actually still higher than his.
The fact that he could defeat the opponent after battling for over a dozen hours was not only thanks to his deep and lasting stamina, but also the damage reduction passive skills and the damage amplification effect of Azakana Sword "Demon's Fear" played a huge role.
If William hadn't been a Devil Fruit user and was also proficient in swordsmanship, Nao likely wouldn't have won that battle.
"Got a bit stronger again…"
After upgrading, Nao clenched his fists and held them up, feeling the roughly 20% increase in power. He smiled with satisfaction "Now, in terms of strength, I can definitely handle a Vice Admiral position at Headquarters, right?"
He was one step closer to his dream of having the little rabbit confess publicly!
He was happily thinking to himself, not noticing Spandam staring at him from the side. After enduring for a long time, Spandam finally spoke in a low voice: "Hey, brat!"
"What?"
Nao turned his head, looking at the CP9 Commander in confusion.
"Stop playing dumb! That rattan chair is my seat!" Spandam gritted his teeth. "You've been hogging it ever since you got on the ship, forcing me to squat on the deck! It's about time you got off!"
"Relax, relax. I'm not gonna steal it. Given how cooperative I've been, what's wrong with lending it to me for a few days?" Nao yawned, saying lazily, "Once we reach Enies Lobby, it'll still be yours anyway."
"Is it about lending or not lending?!"
Spandam was stunned, roaring, "I'm a Commander of the CP department! You're just a prisoner! Why are you lying down while I'm squatting, you bastard!"
"So noisy. You're just like your son, so annoying…"
Nao mumbled, turned his body over, rested his arm under his head, and closed his eyes—a few seconds later, snores echoed. He had actually fallen asleep just like that.
"…"
Spandam watched, dumbfounded.
No, just how carefree is this guy? He can even fall asleep like this?
"Belinda, Shakka, go!"
He suddenly turned around and ordered the two female agents in suits under him, "Wake him up! If he dares to pretend to be asleep, just drag him down and dunk his head in the sea to sober him up! Daring to occupy my chair, it's simply outrageous!"
"N-not a good idea… Commander."
The female agent on the left had flushed cheeks, unable to tear her eyes away from Nao's face, stealing glances. "He just fought for a long time; he must be very tired. Just let him get some good sleep…"
"Yeah, Boss."
The female agent on the right nodded in agreement. "He's a Marine, and we're agents. We're half-colleagues, at least. Don't be so heartless."
What kind of nonsense is this? "Bullshit! Colleagues, my ass! This brat's gonna be in jail for the rest of his life—" Spandam roared, then suddenly realized, looking suspiciously at the two female agents, then turning to glance at the kid's profile.
Hmm, even he had to admit, this kid was indeed absurdly handsome…
But that's no reason for his subordinates to openly betray him and prioritize the other party's comfort! "You two useless pieces of garbage."
Spandam gritted his teeth, then gestured to the other three accompanying male agents, angrily saying, "You two, go! Drag him awake and teach him a good lesson."
If the female subordinates couldn't do it, surely the males would have no problem, right?
But the three burly men in suits exchanged glances, hesitated for a long time, and then also shook their heads reluctantly.
"It's not appropriate, Boss."
The leading man in sunglasses said in a low voice, "It's just a rattan chair. It's fine to let him lie there for a few days. You can just humble yourself and sit on the deck for a while."
"There's also a small stool in the cabin. If worst comes to worst, you can use that…" another man in sunglasses chimed in.
A small stool, my foot! Spandam almost wanted to punch each of these bastards. However, he estimated that with his strength, even if he did beat up his subordinates, they wouldn't be harmed, but he'd probably end up with sore wrists and fractures.
He simply gave up on the idea. Fuming, he went to the rattan chair, wrapped his hands around Nao's bent arms, braced his feet against the deck on both sides, gritted his teeth, let out a furious roar, and suddenly pulled—
Nothing happened. Nao remained undisturbed, sleeping there. A snot bubble slowly grew larger under Spandam's gaze. After it popped with a "pop," another one began to form…
"Mr. Nao's snot bubbles are even beautiful…" The few agents behind him watched in fascination, unable to help but swallow.
I don't believe this!
Dragging him was useless. Spandam was both mortified and angry. His eyes darted around, then he simply stepped back a few paces, got a running start, and then suddenly extended both hands, pushing Nao outwards.
Just then, Nao turned in his sleep, shifting his weight and lowering his legs.
Spandam tripped over his foot mid-charge.
With a loud splash, he tumbled into the sea.
PS: Read Advance Chapters at https://www.patreon.com/c/ReadJin