From that day on, Riddle's life became a living hell. But to the surprise of all three of them, he actually kept up. Little by little, he managed to match the brutal training pace of the other two.
"Looks like my crewman isn't completely useless after all." Shirakawa felt genuinely relieved watching Riddle push through. At the very least, it proved the guy had willpower far beyond the average person.
Strong willpower meant greater potential for growth. As long as Riddle kept at it, Shirakawa believed he could eventually hold his own against a typical Marine Vice Admiral. After all, he had a Devil Fruit that enhanced his strength and speed.
From then on, Jora and Yuristin stopped treating Riddle's training as a cruel joke or mere torment. They recognized his drive. That hunger to improve came entirely from within, not from anyone forcing him.
Ten days had passed since Yuristin joined the crew. At last, land appeared on the horizon.
"That island should be Lagar Island. It's part of the second route through Paradise. Looks like we've drifted our way over to the second route."
Yuristin, the one with actual navigational knowledge, explained the situation to Shirakawa.
Ordinary pirate crews, once they chose a route after entering the Grand Line, were locked in. That was due to the Log Pose. A Log Pose could only record the magnetic field of the next island along a specific path.
But Shirakawa's crew was different. They weren't in a rush to reach the Sabaody Archipelago. They weren't in a hurry to enter the New World. Their main goal right now was gathering more comrades and strengthening the crew they already had.
If they charged into the New World with Shirakawa as the sole top-tier fighter, that would be a nightmare scenario.
Jora and Yuristin weren't weak by any means, but in the New World, fighters of their caliber were as common as carp in a river. You could practically trip over someone capable of giving them a good fight.
"Let's get ready to land. I'm about to lose my mind stuck on this ship."
Not in a gross way. Just plain bored after too long at sea.
"I need to buy a proper sword on the island." Jora's current blade was a mass-produced piece of junk from some average blacksmith. It wasn't even ranked as a Skillful Grade sword. His weapon no longer matched his skill level.
Shirakawa was in the same boat. As a newly minted Great Swordsman, a Skillful Grade blade wasn't enough anymore. He needed at least a Great Grade sword. But he seriously doubted an island like this would have anything of that caliber.
"Once I find a good sword, I'll pass my current one down to you."
There were only fifty Skillful Grade blades in the entire world. They were treasures you stumbled upon, not something you could just order from a catalog. If Jora could inherit Shirakawa's blade, it would be a fine upgrade.
"Heh. Who knows? Maybe I'll find a sword that suits me even better before you do."
"Then I'll hold onto this blade as a reward for a worthy crewmate down the line."
"Hold on." Yuristin cut in, eyeing the two of them. "You keep talking about buying swords, buying swords. Do you even have money to buy swords?" They hadn't raided a single pirate ship or merchant vessel on this entire trip. Where exactly was their funding supposed to come from?
"You don't know?" Shirakawa raised an eyebrow. "I thought I told you. Riddle used to be a vicious, high-bounty pirate. This was his ship. And this ship has a dedicated treasure room stuffed with gold and jewels."
"What the hell! Why didn't you tell me sooner?"
Yuristin practically shrieked. A fortune in treasure was sitting right under his nose this whole time and he hadn't known about it. What a sin. What a colossal waste.
He didn't even bother asking where the treasure room was. He just activated his Observation Haki.
An instant later, he bolted toward a specific part of the ship.
"I want to see too. I haven't gotten a good look at what kind of loot Riddle's been hoarding all this time."
Jora followed after him.
"Fine. Might as well check it out myself." Shirakawa hadn't seen it either.
"Aren't you coming to inspect your own treasure hoard?" Shirakawa asked Riddle.
"Guess I'll tag along." Riddle knew his inventory by heart, but he could at least play tour guide. Not that it mattered now. It sounded like they'd already found the storeroom.
When Yuristin reached the securely locked door, he chose the direct approach: brute force. He could practically smell the money on the other side.
"Whoa! I didn't realize you'd plundered this much. You're definitely the richest guy on this ship."
"Heh heh. Even if I am, all this money belongs to you now, Captain."
"True enough."
The moment the door swung open, a wave of glittering gold filled their vision. Coins made of pure gold were piled up into a small mountain.
Among the riches, two swords rested against the wall. Jora stepped forward and picked one up. He gave it a single glance, then tossed it aside with a look of pure disgust. Garbage blade. Probably just for decoration.
"Yeah, I shouldn't have expected anything from him."
Jora shot Riddle, still standing in the doorway, a look of profound disappointment.
"Hey! What's with that look? Just because you're picky doesn't mean my stuff is bad!"
"Hmph. I never said your stuff was bad. You said that yourself."
Unlike Jora, Yuristin was in absolute paradise. He was practically swimming in the pile of coins.
"Seems like you don't have much here besides money and jewelry."
Shirakawa was a little let down. Typical. Most pirates only cared about gold and gems.
"Who said I don't have anything good? Captain, I've got something worth a hundred million berries right here."
"Oh? Let's see it."
"You got it."
Riddle stepped deeper into the storeroom. Hidden in one of the walls was a small secret panel. He opened it and pulled out a modest box, cradling it carefully as he presented it to Shirakawa.
"Captain, the item worth a hundred million berries is inside."
Riddle looked like a kid showing off his favorite toy. Shirakawa had a pretty good guess what was in the box.
Yuristin's eyes were locked onto that little container. Because frankly, all the gold and jewels scattered around in plain sight didn't add up to anywhere near a hundred million.
Riddle pried the box open with exaggerated care. Shirakawa glanced inside and nodded, his suspicions confirmed.
"A Devil Fruit, just as I thought." He was still a bit surprised, though. He hadn't expected Riddle to have a spare Devil Fruit after eating one himself.
Yuristin stared at the fruit, eyes gleaming like a wolf's. Not because he wanted to eat it. He was just calculating exactly how much he could sell it for.
Jora took one look and lost all interest. For a pure swordsman, Devil Fruits were unnecessary crutches. If you got unlucky and ate some useless ability, it was worse than having nothing at all.
"Captain, you knew?" Riddle was stunned. He'd kept this fruit hidden perfectly. Not even his old crew had any idea he possessed one.
"Just a guess. Something that small worth a hundred million berries? Only thing I could think of was a Devil Fruit."
"The Captain's wisdom knows no bounds."
/-\
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