Chapter 3: Set a Small Goal First
"My Lord… your foot, please lift your foot…"
The maid knelt on the ground with her head lowered, not daring to look up. Her face was flushed red, as if steam might rise from it. This was understandable, because in her position, even glancing upward would…
Ren found it somewhat amusing, but he had no intention of bullying her. He simply lifted his foot in silence, allowing her to dress him more quickly.
It was already difficult enough to pull the pant leg on, and now she had to draw it upward. At this point, she could no longer avoid looking up.
The maid's face burned as she leaned back slightly, terrified of accidentally touching him. Instinctively, she turned her head to the side.
But… something felt strange. She could not help but look again.
"So scary…"
The thought flashed through her mind. Flustered, she fumbled for a long time before finally managing to put his trousers on.
"Phew—"
Only then did she let out a breath of relief. After fastening Ren's belt and tidying the remaining details, she silently retreated to the side and knelt down again.
She did not dare look in Ren's direction at all, as if afraid he might suddenly open his mouth and swallow her whole.
"Even if I'm not eaten, if… that would also be terrifying…"
She prostrated herself on the ground, and an image of a jar involuntarily appeared in her mind.
Could a person really be stuffed into such a small jar?
"No matter how I think about it, it wouldn't fit!"
Unless the space inside the jar could expand.
As these thoughts ran wild in her head, a sudden cold sensation brushed against her face. She instinctively looked up, only to see a snake head staring directly at her.
Startled, she screamed, scrambled up from the ground, and crawled toward the door in sheer panic.
The snake head before her was real.
After Ren finished dressing, the sleeves of his kimono and the pouches at his waist had transformed into snake upper bodies as a result of his ability. This was a manifestation of his Devil Fruit awakening, since he had directly absorbed the entire fruit.
Once a Devil Fruit was successfully absorbed in this manner, its power would immediately develop to the awakened level.
And precisely because the python before her was real, it was even more terrifying.
She had long since mentally prepared herself for certain things.
After all, a woman of her status, bought into another person's household, would face such situations sooner or later.
She did not know why the ugly man whose face was larger than a millstone had never touched her, but she had already prepared herself mentally.
If she were truly taken by him, she would not resist too fiercely.
But the problem now was that this snake was real. Its ferocious fangs and constantly flicking tongue filled her with terror.
"Help! I'm going to be eaten by a monster—!"
(;´༎ຶД༎ຶ`)
Ren: …
Semimaru, who stood outside the door, clearly heard the commotion but did not intervene. Instead, he extended his withered, branch-like hands and firmly shut the shoji door, blocking the maid's escape.
Whether Ren was a monster or a Devil Fruit given life did not matter to him. In his view, even if Ren truly intended to eat the woman, it would be her honor.
"If you don't want to be eaten, be quiet," Ren said coldly.
The maid immediately stopped screaming, clamped both hands over her mouth, and shrank into a corner, sobbing.
"Stop crying. Get out. I won't eat you."
Seeing her pitiful state, Ren's voice softened slightly. However, the snakes manifested from his clothes still gaped with blood-red mouths, making his words thoroughly unconvincing.
Nevertheless, upon hearing him speak, Semimaru finally released the door. The maid hurriedly rose to her feet and exited with her back bowed.
In truth, she wished she could crawl out using all her limbs, but she feared that appearing too flustered would displease Ren and provoke him into eating her. She could only force herself to walk calmly, even though her entire body trembled as if she had been thrown naked into a snowdrift.
"My Lord, I am deeply sorry. My subordinate is truly foolish. If you wish to eat her, I will instruct the chef to prepare her."
After the maid left, Semimaru entered and knelt, but his first words left Ren speechless.
"These people… every single one of them really treats me like a monster."
"I am not a man-eating monster. More importantly, what year is it now?"
Hearing that Ren did not eat people, Semimaru was secretly relieved. They were not well-off, and the maid was their only servant.
They had originally assumed Orochi bought her out of lust, but to their surprise, Orochi had shown no such intentions after purchasing her.
Moreover, the current Orochi was completely uninterested in women, devoting all his time to training. Although only 1 year had passed, his strength had improved greatly, and even the Kozuki Clan regarded him with some importance.
Hearing Ren's question, Semimaru dared not delay and answered immediately. However, Wano Country used a calendar system different from that of the outside world, so even if he stated the year, Ren would not understand it clearly.
In truth, even if Ren did know the year, it would mean little to him. He could not even remember the historical dates for his college entrance exam, let alone the timeline of an anime.
So instead, Ren asked Semimaru to recount the recent events in Wano Country.
"Yes."
Semimaru nodded quickly and proceeded to report everything that had happened recently, including the situations of Orochi and Muzemi.
When Ren heard that the 3 of them planned to seize control of Wano Country and elevate him as the god of this land, he was slightly surprised. On second thought, however, it did not seem like a bad idea.
He had nothing to do for the time being anyway, and ruling this country could help pass the time.
"So, Kozuki Oden hasn't become the Daimyo of Kuri yet, has he?"
Although puzzled by Ren's abrupt question, Semimaru still answered honestly.
"No. According to the letters sent periodically by our informants, Kozuki Oden is currently traveling throughout the country and shows no intention of going to Kuri yet."
Ren nodded.
In the original story, Kozuki Oden would pacify the chaotic region of Kuri and eventually be appointed its Daimyo. Since Kozuki Oden had not yet arrived, Ren would unceremoniously claim Kuri for himself.
But before that, certain preparations were still necessary.
Although Ren's Devil Fruit ability had already awakened, his physical strength was still lacking, and he had no Haki at all. He was currently in a state of full absorption, and his strength was roughly comparable to Doflamingo's.
Once the absorption was released, his strength would likely fall to around the level of Luffy when he first set sail.