Chapter 177: The New Distribution
Dressrosa, King's Plateau.
A day later, Louis was once again sitting in the main hall. Unlike yesterday, there was now a wooden chest containing a Devil Fruit on the table, along with a newspaper.
This extra Devil Fruit was the Logia-type Snow-Snow Fruit, which Louis had found when he cleared out Doflamingo's warehouse. It was the fruit that was originally supposed to have been eaten by Monet, who had been executed by Daz Bonez. In the opinion of most people, it was considered a lesser version of the Logia-type Ice-Ice Fruit. Perhaps this fruit had just come into Doflamingo's possession and he hadn't had time to give it to Monet, or perhaps there was some other reason.
But in any case, this fruit had now become Louis's property and was placed on the table.
As for the Tontatta Kingdom's dwelling, Louis had also gone there. Although he had discovered the little people, he hadn't found a path suitable for him to enter their home, and he didn't want to just tear their home apart, so he had to give up for now.
Louis looked at the six wooden boxes in front of him and once again fell into thought. Before he knew it, the number of powerful Devil Fruits in his possession had already surpassed the number of non-ability-user executives under his command. This once again made him reflect that, as expected, extorting powerhouses was the fastest way to get money.
While Louis was pondering, the heavy doors were pushed open again. The several giants who had been summoned by Louis, after returning to their rooms to wash off their sweat, came one after another and sat down in front of him.
"Captain, did you call us over for some new arrangement?" As soon as she sat down, Gerd asked, a puzzled look on her face. Nearby, Goldberg and Road also cast inquisitive glances.
To this, Hajrudin subconsciously looked at the table and noticed the six wooden boxes placed casually upon it.
"Is this—" Hajrudin looked at Louis, having a faint guess as to why he had called them here. Soon, Louis's next words turned Hajrudin's guess into reality.
"Gerd, Road, Goldberg. Have you three ever thought about becoming ability users, about using the power of a Devil Fruit to make yourselves stronger?"
At these words, the three of them were stunned. They were not fools. The meaning behind Louis's words was self-evident. On their way here, they had discussed why Louis might have called them, and had many guesses. But this possibility was the one thing they had not considered.
After a moment, Gerd was the first to react. "Captain—you mean—" she asked tentatively, wanting to confirm.
To this, Louis pointed at the Devil Fruits on the table and replied with a smile, "It's exactly as you think. I'm distributing Devil Fruits to you."
The group followed his finger and saw the six wooden treasure chests on the table. Their expressions changed once again.
"What? None of you wish to rely on a Devil Fruit to become stronger?" Louis asked with a smile, taking in their expressions.
"That's not it—" the several of them shook their heads, and then spoke with heavy expressions, wanting to say something. "It's just—"
However, Louis interrupted them. "In that case, then each of you choose one! From left to right, we have one unknown fruit, the Logia-type Snow-Snow Fruit, the Carcharodontosaurus fruit, the Carnotaurus fruit, the Short-Faced Bear fruit, and the Cave Lion fruit."
"Alright, who's first?"
With that, Louis leaned back against the sofa and quietly waited for the three of them to choose.
Gerd and the others looked at each other. In the end, they accepted Louis's gift.
"Road, you choose first!" Gerd said, placing one hand on her hip, a faint smile on her beautiful, serene face.
Nearby, the slightly chubby Goldberg nodded in full agreement. "That's right. Road, you're the weakest among us. You should make up for it and improve your strength as soon as possible."
Although Gerd and Goldberg had their minor issues with Road on a normal day, believing that compared to Loki, Road was the real shame of Elbaf, at this moment, both of them gave the opportunity to choose a powerful fruit and become stronger to Road.
Hearing this, Road subconsciously looked at the two of them, and for a moment, didn't know what to say. But facing their serious expressions, he ultimately did not say any words of refusal.
Under the gaze of the others, he bent down, reached his hand toward the table, and with two fingers, pinched up the fruit representing the Carnotaurus.
Louis saw this and raised an eyebrow. He could understand Road not choosing the unknown fruit or the Snow-Snow Fruit, but he had even passed on the Carcharodontosaurus.
Under everyone's watch, Road, as if afraid he would regret it, pinched the fruit, lifted it, and threw it directly into his mouth. Perhaps because the difference in size between a giant and a Devil Fruit was so extreme, Road did not taste the rumored foul stench, which was comparable to excrement. The fruit seemed to melt in his mouth, and a new power began to brew within his body. Road closed his eyes and, with his will, activated this power.
The next moment, his body gradually expanded as if it were a balloon being inflated. His legs turned into digitigrade limbs, a pair of short horns sprouted from the top of his head, and a long, thick tail extended from his backside. Road's body gradually expanded until it was nearing the ceiling, blocking out the soft light. His skull rapidly deformed, protruding forward, and a dense set of fangs grew in.
Gerd and the others subconsciously looked up, but they couldn't even get a clear view of the giant dinosaur that looked as if it could easily swallow a giant whole.
"This is too big—"
A hint of amazement flashed in Louis's eyes. The Carnotaurus that Road had transformed into was far larger than a real one. Although it couldn't be compared to Kaido's dragon form, it was still a behemoth of the hundred-meter class.
Not far away, Hajrudin looked at the brown skin Road had transformed into, and his face soured as if he had eaten a lemon. His artificial Azure Dragon was fine in every way, except its scales were pink. For a giant of Elbaf, transforming into that was a bit of a social death.
Road's transformation caused quite a commotion, disturbing everyone scattered about and making them rush to the main hall to see what had happened. When they arrived and saw the scene before them, they were not only deeply shocked, but also realized what was happening.
Soon, Road suppressed the urge to test out his own abilities and transformed back. Then, with an excited face, he looked at his several partners and his captain and expressed his thanks.
Just then, Uta swam down from the second-floor railing, skillfully sat on Louis's shoulder, and reverted to her human form as she leaned against his head. "Giants—are already huge, and after transforming into a dinosaur that is also huge, it's just like a mountain—" At this moment, Uta's purple eyes flashed with a curious light, and she looked extremely interested.
Although her Siren fruit was a Mythical Zoan, her transformed body did not get any bigger, because the Siren itself was an existence of about the same size as a normal human. And Yelena's Wendigo fruit was more or less the same. In myths and legends, the Wendigo was not a very large mythical beast. Therefore, even when Yelena transformed into her largest beast form, she was less than ten meters tall, even seven or eight meters shorter than Gerd.
Uta's arrival did not interfere with the events that followed.
Soon, it was Gerd's turn to step forward. She reached out two fingers toward the table. However, to everyone's surprise, Gerd chose the Cave Lion fruit, which Louis had thought no one would choose.
Seeing this, Louis couldn't help but remind her, "Gerd, are you sure you don't want to reconsider the other fruits? Although the Cave Lion is an Ancient Zoan, it's still quite a bit weaker than the Carcharodontosaurus, the Snow-Snow Fruit, and that unknown fruit."
To this, Gerd smiled brightly. "No need, Captain. I'll choose the Cave Lion!"
With that, Gerd raised her fingers and tossed the fruit into her mouth.
Nearby, Goldberg saw this and also slowly stepped forward. He reached his two fingers directly for the Short-Faced Bear fruit. "Compared to a dinosaur, I'd rather have this Short-Faced Bear fruit. The largest bear of antiquity... it matches my 'Shield Mountain' epithet very well!"
With that, Goldberg also threw the fruit into his mouth and swallowed it in one gulp.
The next moment, Gerd and Goldberg, after confirming their surroundings, also began their first transformation in the main hall. Their forms rapidly changed. One by one, strands of fur, sharp claws, and fangs burst out from their mouths as their bodies gradually transformed into beast forms.
Soon, the figures of Gerd and Goldberg gradually disappeared, replaced by a giant cave lion and a massive, mountain-sized bear.
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