Chapter 1
Not an overpowered start—the protagonist grows slowly, has proper morals, intelligence, decisiveness in killing when needed, and does not join the Straw Hats. Full outline available, feel free to read with confidence.
Brain storage place…(Note: This seems to be a casual author comment, like "my idea dump" or "where I keep my brain." Kept as-is in spirit.)
Great Pirate Calendar Year 1520, Clear Weather.
The sky was cloudless for thousands of miles, on an uninhabited island somewhere in the East Blue.
A refreshing sea breeze gently blew, while waves rolled endlessly along the shore.
The waves slapped against Ron's cheeks, softly caressing and waking him.
Slowly opening his eyes, Ron propped up his weakened body and sat upright.
Looking around the unfamiliar island, he coughed out the seawater in his throat and tried hard to recall what had happened.
"Cough, cough… Where am I? How did I end up here?"
He shook his aching head; the motion seemed to tug at a nerve, causing sharp pain.
"Hiss—ah, my head hurts!"
Fragmented memories gradually surfaced in his mind.
He remembered his name was Ron, and he was a magician who had arrived in the One Piece world half a year ago.
When he first arrived, he had no one to rely on and could only make a living by performing magic tricks.
Over the past six months, he worked from dawn until dusk on the streets, carefully designing every performance.
Because he was too talented, he was often driven away by local competitors, and even his colleagues in theaters ostracized him.
As a result, he never had a fixed venue or steady audience, and his income was pitifully low.
Yet he still couldn't remember why he was here—he clearly should have been performing.
At that moment, he suddenly noticed rope marks on his wrists.
"So that's how it was… Now I remember!"
Ron suddenly recalled that he had spent all his savings on a ticket for a luxury cruise ship.
He wanted to perform magic on board to boost his popularity.
The first two days of performances went extremely well; everyone praised his magic endlessly.
After his fame exploded on the ship, it attracted the attention of a noble.
The noble invited him to perform privately in their room. After Ron delivered a magnificent show for the noble's entire family…
Not only did he receive no applause, but they locked him up and threw him into the sea—just so they could watch an "escape magic trick."
For the thrill of it, the noble family had shackled him with arm-thick chains and even tied heavy lead balls to his feet. Anyone else would have died long ago.
"Those damn nobles… I will never let them go."
Hatred surged through Ron's mind, filling in the final piece of memory.
When he arrived in the One Piece world, he had bound the [Prestige System].
He could collect prestige points from people's admiration and use those points to exchange for items in the system mall.
In the past half-year of street performances, with unstable crowds and venues, the prestige he earned was truly meager.
That was why he converted all his beri into a single cruise ticket—to accumulate more prestige.
After sorting through his memories, Ron opened the prestige mall.
[Host: Ron]
[Prestige: 9,527]
Scrolling through the system mall, Ron blinked in surprise.
Just three days of performances on the cruise had netted him 2,534 prestige points.
In comparison, half a year of hard work had only earned him 6,993.
Ron was momentarily delighted, but the next instant he gnashed his teeth in anger.
"Damn those nobles! If not for them, with my skill I could have earned even more!"
Unable to suppress his fury, Ron decided that the first thing he would do after leaving the island was exterminate that noble family.
With these extra 2,000+ points, he could finally exchange for the Devil Fruit he had dreamed of.
[Would you like to spend 9,000 prestige points to exchange for the Superhuman-type Magic Fruit?]
Without hesitation, he confirmed. All his performances over the past six months had been for this very moment.
Ron's comprehension ability was extraordinary.
He had started learning magic as a child, was hailed as a genius magician in his teens, won countless awards in his youth, and toured the world as an adult.
This Magic Fruit was practically tailor-made for him.
Once the reward was issued, the Magic Fruit floated in front of Ron.
He bit into it without pause—the rumors about how awful Devil Fruits tasted were true; now he had experienced it firsthand.
From his knowledge, eating the first bite grants the ability.
The remaining half of the fruit turned into flower petals in his hand and vanished.
"So that's it… I can use imagination to transform objects into other things."
In his own vision, the half-eaten fruit still looked normal.
But to outsiders, it had turned into petals drifting away in the wind.
Surveying his surroundings, Ron realized that despite the awful taste, the fruit had made him hungry.
He decided to explore the island for something to eat.
Walking slowly into the forest, he flipped his right hand quickly—a handkerchief appeared in his palm. He tossed it into the air.
Carried by the breeze, the handkerchief grew larger and larger until it became a curtain.
The curtain fell vertically, perfectly covering Ron as he continued walking.
Without stopping, the curtain transformed into doves that scattered in all directions—while Ron himself had changed into a clean, neat set of clothes.
"I can even materialize anything I imagine."
A magician's most valuable asset is imagination, and Ron's imagination was unquestionable. The only downside was that using the ability consumed a lot of stamina.
Not venturing too deep into the forest, Ron flicked a playing card from his hand, slicing a wild fruit from a nearby tree.
Though the movement was subtle, it still startled a bird resting in the tree behind him.
As the bird flapped its wings to flee, the same card—after cutting the fruit—struck its body.
The fruit fell and was caught by Ron as he passed.
The bird struggled to escape, but Ron grabbed it bare-handed.
Returning to the shore, he started a campfire and roasted the cleaned bird over the flames.
Even while exploring, he decided to fill his stomach first.
Chewing on the fruit, Ron pondered how exactly he would get revenge.
Over the past six months he had trained daily, but facing those nobles alone still offered little chance of success.
For now, he could only rely on his new fruit ability and the precise marksmanship he had honed over half a year.
Unfortunately, with only 527 prestige points left, he couldn't even afford a decent weapon. He would have to temporarily materialize a handgun for self-defense using his fruit power.
On the distant horizon, a small boat was rapidly approaching the island.
Nami rowed desperately, the gold and treasures on board slowing her down considerably.
Even so, she had no complaints.
She had come here to transfer her treasure to this remote island for safekeeping.
What she hadn't expected was to see thick smoke rising from her secret hiding spot while en route.
Worried that someone might steal her hoard—the very money she needed to buy back her village—she panicked.
"Damn it! Which bastard found this place?!"
Furious, Nami nearly snapped her oar in half. If anyone dared touch her treasure, she absolutely would not let them off.