Chapter 30 Keiko
Within the consciousness space, the battle resumed without warning.
"No-Guard Ice Fangs!"
A chilling power erupted from the white wolf's mouth in the darkness, like a polar blizzard mixed with countless hard ice shards, surging forward as a raging ice storm.
Caught off guard, Ren could only hastily conjure an ice wall in front of himself to block it.
However, not all ice was the same.
The ice wall was pierced through in an instant, fragments scattering as they struck his face.
In the next moment, the ferocious white wolf lunged forward, its sharp claws tearing toward his body.
Ren forcibly withdrew from the consciousness space, his eyes snapping open as his body broke out in a cold sweat.
Today, Keiko was on duty as well, and she gently wiped the sweat from his brow with a handkerchief.
"Lord Ren, you're awake?"
"Mm." Ren reached out and took her wrist. Since entering the Daimyo's Mansion, Keiko's once slightly rough hands had become noticeably softer. "No need to wipe. Have the servants prepare bathwater. I want to bathe."
"Yes." Keiko slowly stood up and left the room.
Watching her figure sway like a willow branch, Ren let out a slow breath.
"Failed again. This kind of thing really can't be rushed."
Since obtaining the 2 Mythical Zoan Devil Fruits and the Paramecia-type Ripe-Ripe Fruit, daily battles with their consciousness had become his mandatory training.
Only by defeating the fruit's will within the consciousness space could the reception be considered truly complete.
Within that space, however, he could not use any other Devil Fruit abilities, nor could he rely on Haki.
All he possessed was the fruit's own innate power, and even that manifested in a severely weakened state.
He could only repeatedly clash with the fruit's consciousness, tempering himself through constant defeat, until he surpassed it and completed the reception.
This process was no easier than awakening a Devil Fruit.
Ren no longer remembered how many years it had taken him to fully receive the Yamata no Orochi Fruit.
Still, the long process brought benefits, allowing him to gain a far deeper understanding of each fruit's abilities.
For example, the Mythical Zoan Human-Human Fruit, Great Monk Form.
In the original story, when wielded by that fox, it showed little value, appearing to be nothing more than an enlarged version of Chopper's Human-Human Fruit.
Yet in reality, the Great Monk Fruit possessed unique powers of its own.
One ability allowed the user to freely alter their body size. If desired, growing to a height surpassing mountains was not difficult.
Another ability involved sound waves, though Ren judged that the vibrations and destructive force they produced could not rival the Tremor-Tremor Fruit.
If properly developed, this Devil Fruit could unquestionably reach an extremely high level.
Unfortunately, in the original work it had been eaten by a fox. Despite being a Mythical Zoan, its transformations were even fewer than those of Chopper's Human-Human Fruit.
On the other hand, when it came to developing Zoan-type Devil Fruits, Chopper was undoubtedly among the strongest in the pirate world.
Chopper's starting point had been extremely low.
He was not a powerful beast to begin with. Even in the Grand Line, where rare creatures were everywhere, he was merely an ordinary reindeer.
After eating the most basic Human-Human Fruit, he still managed to develop countless creative applications for its abilities.
Ren sat quietly for a while, allowing his breathing to settle.
At that moment, Keiko returned, her cheeks faintly flushed.
"Lord Ren, the water is ready."
"Mm." Ren stood and headed toward the bath, while Keiko quickly stepped forward to support him, treating him as though he were a patient.
Deep within the Daimyo's Mansion was a natural hot spring, a place ordinary people could never enter.
However, it was far away, and Ren's mind was always exhausted after training, so he had no desire to go there.
Instead, he had water heated and bathed in the high tower.
The bath was only a few rooms away, and they arrived quickly.
"My lord, I will help you undress," Keiko said softly, her face red.
Despite her shyness, her movements were steady and practiced. She had done this many times already.
At times, when Ren looked at Keiko, it felt as though he were seeing Yukiko from the past.
In truth, their personalities were still quite different.
Yukiko, due to her position, now carried a natural sense of authority that Keiko lacked. Even in the past, Yukiko had been far livelier than Keiko.
Within the Daimyo's Mansion, Keiko studied knowledge and practical skills rather than martial arts, and thus did not possess that sharp, overbearing presence.
Soon, she finished arranging his clothes.
Ren slowly stepped into the warm water, closed his eyes, and sat down to rest.
After a while, he felt something soft press against his back.
Steam rose from the water, carrying a faint fragrance.
"My lord, I'll help you."
Keiko's voice was so soft that Ren almost wondered if he had imagined it.
Yet her delicate hands, applying a barely perceptible force, began to move.
She might have been using all her strength, but to Ren it felt less like scrubbing and more like teasing.
And so, Keiko paid the price.
Several hours later, Ren emerged carrying Keiko, whose legs were so weak she could not even stand.
Outside the door, the maids who had been listening for hours, their faces flushed, felt their own legs go soft as well.
Even so, they hurried in to help wipe their bodies.
Keiko was so embarrassed she wished she could crawl into a crack in the ground and disappear.
Being attended by the maids now only made it worse. She felt that the sounds she had made earlier must have reached Ringo on the other side of Wano Country.
In reality, it was not that exaggerated.
Still, Keiko had indeed been quite absorbed. While her voice had not spread throughout the entire Daimyo's Mansion, at least the 7 walls of the 9-story high tower had failed to block it.
Even Ren could not understand why Keiko, who was usually so soft-spoken, had cried out like that.
Fortunately, there were no outsiders in the high tower.
Although the bottom 3 floors occasionally received guests, outsiders rarely entered the Daimyo's Mansion at all.
Even someone like Shutenmaru would usually wait in the council hall of the outer estate rather than come up.
As a result, even the guards stationed in the high tower were members of Yukiko's harem.
Everyone had long grown accustomed to such scenes.
Only Keiko herself remained painfully self-conscious about it.