On the shallow beach, splintered wood lay scattered everywhere, mingled with piles of glittering treasure.
All of this had once been hoarded by the giant bird in its nest. But after the devastating clash, the nest—built of broken wood and filled with treasure—was blasted apart, scattering its contents across the island.
Now, those treasures had completely captured the pirates' attention.
With a roar of excitement, the pirates on the ship leapt down one after another, scrambling across the shore with gleaming eyes to snatch up what they could.
In their frenzy, they seemed to have forgotten about the island itself, which was still wreathed in fire.
The giant bird no longer struggled. Flames gushed from its body, and everything around it had already been consumed by the blaze.
This was the power of a Logia user!
Even though Don had only just eaten the fruit, the fire he commanded was already enough to bring down such a monstrous beast.
The giant bird's body might have been powerful, but it had no resistance against flames surging from within.
At the charred stump of its head, orange flames converged. Then, a hand suddenly thrust out from the bird's massive beak, gripping the edge.
A moment later, Don dragged himself free.
Flames cloaked his body like a mantle. His black hair, touched by the firelight, shimmered orange, drifting weightlessly in the heat.
[Ding! Elite-level enemy slain. Datafication initializing…]
Still reeling from the chaos of battle, Don froze at the sudden voice in his mind.
Datafication?
"A system?" he muttered.
The concept wasn't unfamiliar. In a world where transmigration was already real, having a system wasn't exactly surprising.
Elite enemy?
Was it referring to the giant bird?
Don turned, glancing at the still-burning corpse of the beast, and realization flickered across his face.
[Datafication complete. Would you like to open the status panel?]
"Yes."
At once, another chime rang out. Without hesitation, Don confirmed.
A panel—not too complicated—unfolded before his eyes.
[Body Datafication: Your body's vital points are nullified. Damage from attacks is converted into HP loss. Status attributes fluctuate with your strength. You will not die until HP reaches zero.]
[Current Physical Age: Fourteen]
[Constitution: 1.7 (rapidly evolving due to external factors)]
[Current HP: 91% (recovering; eating accelerates recovery)]
[Innate Talent — Indomitable: When HP reaches zero, enter a temporary empowered state. All physical attributes increase tenfold. HP loss halts. Negative statuses are cleansed. Duration: 10 minutes. Cooldown: 24 hours.]
[Abilities]
[Mera Mera no Mi (Initial Mastery): A powerful Logia-type Devil Fruit. Grants the ability to become and manipulate fire. Continuously enhances the body. Fruit drawbacks eliminated (no drowning weakness or lingering spirit). Current Development: Weak.]
"Hah… this is like drawing a legendary sword," Don muttered, rubbing his chin as his eyes narrowed on his new talent.
The Indomitable ability was absurd. A ten-minute invincible state triggered at the brink of death, with all attributes multiplied tenfold?
That was practically a guarantee of clutch comebacks.
And the removal of vital points—this meshed perfectly with his Logia powers. Normally, a Logia body was intangible, but against opponents with Haki or counters, there was always risk. Now, that flaw was patched over.
No matter how he looked at it, the evaluation could be summed up in three words:
Too strong!
An undying state, ten minutes of overwhelming power, no damage taken… The stronger he grew, the more monstrous this talent would become.
And it wasn't just that. Losing vital points meant conventional weak spots like the heart no longer mattered. Attacks would simply drain HP instead. And HP itself regenerated automatically, faster if he ate.
In fact, in just a short while, his HP had climbed from 91% to 96%, already close to full.
Of course, there were surely more changes he had yet to discover. Those would need time to explore. But what he saw now had already exceeded his expectations.
If, before obtaining the Mera Mera no Mi, Don's only goal was to survive safely in this world, then now—now he had the confidence to stand toe-to-toe with the sea's strongest.
Ambition always evolves with power.
But for the moment, the pressing matter was to understand where he was… and how to keep getting stronger.
Gazing at the flames still burning around him, breathing in the charred meat and smoke, Don stepped forward.
The world of One Piece… here I come!
Moments later, emerging from the fire's reach, Don found himself staring into the eyes of pirates who had come chasing after scattered treasure.
His body remained in elemental form, flames flickering like a flowing orange-red cloak draped over him.
The pirates froze. One swallowed hard.
"A demon… a demon from the sea!"
Some of the lower-ranking pirates had never even heard of Devil Fruits. To see a man wreathed in fire—it shattered their understanding of the world.
"Idiot! That's no demon—it's someone who got their hands on treasure!"
From the front strode a scruffy pirate clutching a gleaming cutlass, flanked by a dozen lackeys. His gaze locked greedily on Don.
Don studied them calmly, then shifted his eyes toward the ship moored at the shore.
Ah, the true specialty of the One Piece world—pirates everywhere, taking to the seas for every reason imaginable.
He hadn't noticed their ship earlier from the bird's nest above. Perhaps the blaze had drawn them in.
Unexpectedly, though, he could understand their speech. Was that a perk of datafication—or just part of transmigration?
He didn't dwell on it. A cutlass was already pressed against his neck.
"Brat, hand over whatever treasure you found! Great Lord Dorry will spare your life and even let you join his crew!"
"Oh? So, Great Lord Dorry…" Don's tone was mild, his gaze steady. "Do you have a bounty?"
"Of course! I'm a pirate worth two and a half million Berries! In the East Blue, I'm already the strongest!"
Two and a half million…?
Don smiled faintly.
Starting capital—just what I needed.