Ch. 9
It had been hectic. The sight of a ship in front of the port without flag or sails to speak of had attracted the curiosity of the inhabitants and the wariness of the Marines.
The ship had been sighted in the morning by a young man, who had then rushed into the Marine quarters.
They had quickly gone towards the port and confirmed the presence of the unmoving ship. In normal circumstances, they would have started to evacuate the civilians, but they could see that the sails had been burned, and that ship was most likely a naufrage. Per Marine code, it meant that they would have to take prisoners.
So, they had sent a ship. A marine ship had approached the pirate ship and boarded it in one fell swoop.
Only to find civilians crying tears of joy. They had quickly interrogated them and found out about the pirate attack. They heard about what the pirates were planning, and they heard about the absolute giant of a man who had been silently watching how their men operated while searching the ship and consoling the villagers, all the while nodding approvingly.
The appearance of such a powerhouse, calling himself a merchant, was surprising, and as much as the marines wanted to get every single piece of information out of him, they were aware that it'd be best to tread carefully.
So, a single Marine with a notepad was sent, reminded to try to be as respectful as possible. Another powerhouse had shown up on the island not long ago, a blind man going by Fujitora, and they were working towards getting a favorable relationship with him in order to perhaps interest him in joining the marines. Despite his blindness, the man had shown potential to become a rear admiral or perhaps even a vice admiral, and he could become an important asset to the Marines with his powerful devil fruit, even more so in such tumultuous times. The man in question, however, had not shown much interest in anything other than gambling.
But getting another such addition would still be nice, although this so-called merchant was not likely to be able to measure up to the likes of Fujitora; he had shown enough promise to take care of a 20 million bounty ship in the West Blue by himself. It might have been worthless compared to the powerhouses of the Grand Line, but the seas outside the Grand Line and the New World required protection as well.
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Ainz had not been very impressed by how the Marines had worked. They had sent a single ship with a few armed men to check on what was essentially a pirate ship. He understood that the bad shape of the ship had led them to think that they weren't in any shape to fight, but did they not know about playing dead? Pirates could have easily taken over the marine ship, especially given the fact that the [status] of these men did not show them to be anything special. He knew some starting classes in Yggdrasil that would have wiped the floor with those men.
Nevertheless, they worked professionally, behaving tactfully around the villagers while digging for information. They had searched the ship for hiding pirates, showing that they weren't completely relaxed, and had shown great surprise when they had been told about their mysterious savior, being himself.
And he had an idea! The devil fruits were apparently rather abstract. Given the lack of knowledge the people seemed to have about them, he could simply say anything and most likely get away with it as long as it remained within simple boundaries. He could say fire or ice or anything like that, but these things seemed too simple for his power. So his idea was more abstract. He was not sure if it would be accepted as an answer, but it would be perfect for his image as a merchant.
Mise no Mi
Store fruit.
He had made it up on the spot and could claim that he had simply dropped a bomb with his DF ability. To damage the bow of the ship. About his travel method, he could simply create a boat and claim that he had stored it with his DF.
He could also claim to be able to catch fireballs and even fragments of the wind and to store them until he'd release them back to his enemies. It was what he considered a nearly perfect cover.
He did not know if the abilities were unique for everyone or if someone else already had something like he mentioned, but he was sure he'd be able to get away with it nevertheless.
He had a few other ideas, which he could use if his claim did not work. He'd simply use [control amnesia] to change his statement to something more believable, depending on the memories of whoever his interrogator would be.
'Truly, my genius knows no bounds.'
His sarcastic comment was accompanied by a chuckle.
He also had another idea. A fruit capable of amplification and attenuation. Basically the power of buffs and debuffs.
Frankly, he had many options. He could also just go for teleportation or elemental powers.
There were many ideas he was entertaining, although he'd most likely stick with the first option, given its sheer versatility.
'Haah, someone is coming my way. I'll have to decide now.'
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The decision was not his to make.
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Behind the curtains, there were the eyes.
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Eyes, filled with anticipation and greed.
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Eyes filled with knowledge and ignorance alike.
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Information and fragmented precognition.
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Eyes that would intervene yet again, selfishly changing the world as it pleased them, for the sake of their own entertainment.
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Short chapter; after that comes the character sheet.