After killing Kozuki Oden, Valthior stood there holding the two swords, suddenly feeling a hint of regret.
"If this guy's dead, doesn't that mean Momonosuke won't be born? Doesn't that basically let him off the hook? Damn it!" Valthior cursed under his breath, then turned and left.
By the time he returned to the charcoal grill stall, Roger's crew and the scholar team were still eating.
"No one's bringing out dishes anymore… is it because of what happened outside?" Roger asked as he heard Valthior's footsteps and turned around.
Valthior nodded. "Yeah. No idea where everyone ran off to."
"Seven and a half minutes," Gaban said, somehow already holding a watch as he checked the time. "That fast? Judging from the aura, I thought you'd need quite a bit of effort to take down that beast."
Walking up to the table, Valthior slammed the two famous blades onto it. "Just a brainless brute. All strength, no idea how to use it properly. I cut him down in a few moves—not worth mentioning. But the loot's pretty good. Look—these two swords were his. Now they're mine."
Roger and Rayleigh, both top-tier swordsmen, were instantly drawn to the blades. Each picked one up and examined it closely.
"What a blade! This one even tries to draw out my Haki… first time I've seen something like this. Interesting!" Roger said excitedly as he ran his fingers along Enma.
With his strength, there was naturally no risk of being harmed by Enma. Drawing it posed no difficulty at all.
Beside him, Rayleigh weighed Ame no Habakiri in his hand. "This one's just as extraordinary. Forged from fine steel, yet it feels as light as a feather. It reminds me of the blade recorded in the sword compendium—one of the 21 Great Grade swords… Ame no Habakiri. Said to be as light as a feather. Could this be it?"
As he spoke, he explained to Roger, "As for a blade that absorbs Haki and enhances slashes, that's very likely Enma, also one of the 21 Great Grade swords. As far as I know, both were forged by master craftsmen from Wano Country…"
Valthior picked up a cup of tea from the table and said with a grin, "Sharp eye. That's right—these are Enma and Ame no Habakiri!"
Much like a Devil Fruit encyclopedia, the sword compendium was compiled by enthusiasts who gathered information from all over, cataloging and ranking famous blades based on research and speculation.
Many renowned swords were listed within it, and it had gained recognition among numerous swordsmen, giving it a certain level of authority.
That said, while all blades recorded in the compendium were famous, not all famous blades were included in it.
Take Shiki's Oto and Kogarashi, for example—top-tier blades no weaker than Ace—yet for some reason, neither appeared in the compendium, lacking any title like "Great Grade."
At the same time, the rankings in the compendium could change over time and with experience.
For instance, the Supreme Grade swords—formally referred to in the compendium as the "Saijo O Wazamono"—while the 21 Great Grade swords were called "O Wazamono," and so on down to "Ryo Wazamono."
Because of this naming convention, many believed the compendium was compiled by swordsmiths from Wano Country, where such terminology was commonly used.
Roger's sword, Ace, had once been nothing more than an ordinary famous blade. But years ago, after he reached Lodestar Island and rose to fame across the seas as a pirate—recognized as one of the strongest—Ace was elevated into the ranks of the Supreme Grade swords.
The same went for Newgate's naginata, Murakumogiri. At first, it wasn't even considered a famous blade. But as he fought his way across the seas and rose to his current status, Murakumogiri was also classified as a Supreme Grade weapon.
In the future, the greatest swordsman, Dracule Mihawk, wielded the black blade Yoru. Though it was already one of the Twelve Supreme Grade swords, it wasn't initially called the "strongest." Only after Mihawk became the world's greatest swordsman did Yoru earn recognition as the "strongest blade," ranking first among the Twelve Supreme Grade swords.
A similar case would be Marine Admiral Fujitora's blade. It wasn't particularly famous at first, but after he rose from a civilian to the rank of Admiral—earning the title of one of the World Government's "greatest military powers"—his weapon was immediately recognized as one of the Twelve Supreme Grade swords.
On the other hand, the Shodai Kitetsu, perhaps due to its long history or because it had always been held by the Five Elders, had enjoyed its place among the Twelve Supreme Grade swords for centuries.
"The 21 Great Grade swords, huh? Pretty rare among famous blades. Still, compared to my Ace, they fall just a bit short!" Roger laughed proudly.
Ace was his trump card, after all!
"About the same level as Rayleigh's Higan, at least in terms of reputation," Valthior said casually.
Before joining the Roger Pirates, Valthior hadn't even known the name of Rayleigh's sword. Only after boarding the ship and chatting about such things did Rayleigh mention that his blade was called Higan.
It was currently one of the 21 Great Grade swords as well, though Valthior figured that once Roger became the Pirate King and Rayleigh his so-called "right-hand man," Higan would likely be promoted into the ranks of the Supreme Grade swords.
By comparison, weapons like Kaido's Hassaikai, Gaban's axe, and Valthior's own Merciless—though all top-tier—weren't swords, so no one bothered ranking them in any kind of "weapon list."
As a result, many people didn't even know their names, nor paid them much attention.
"Now that you've got two fine blades, how about switching careers and becoming a swordsman? Rayleigh and I could be your teachers," Roger suggested with a laugh.
Valthior brushed a hand over the Mercy hanging at his waist and shook his head. "No need. That'd just make my battle axe feel neglected."
"Exactly! Real men use heavy weapons!" Gaban chimed in immediately.
That remark made Valthior pause for a moment. Hah… real men use heavy weapons—and go to college, too.
"Then keep them as collectibles?" Rayleigh asked.
Clearly, neither he nor Roger had any intention of changing their own weapons. As good as Enma and Ame no Habakiri were, they weren't enough to tempt them.
"Bullet, interested in these?" Valthior asked, turning to him.
Bullet had just stuffed the last piece of meat into his mouth. Hearing that, he glanced at the two swords, chewed a couple times, then shook his head.
"No. I trust my fists more. The body is what matters—guns can jam, blades can break. Only one's own body is the sharpest weapon of all!"
"Well said! Even as a swordsman, I have to agree with that!" Roger praised without hesitation.
Valthior couldn't help but suspect Roger was using the opportunity to compliment his old friend Garp.
Thinking about it, Bullet really would've been a perfect disciple for Garp—far better than that idiot Koby.
In terms of effort, even after being thrown into Impel Down, Bullet kept training himself to exhaustion every single day for decades, constantly pushing his limits. Wasn't that far more real than some so-called "two hundred times effort"?
Too bad Garp didn't have that kind of luck and had to settle for Koby, his "filial" good disciple.
"Well, if you're not interested, I'll give them to Shanks and Buggy. Consider it a gift from their senior—though they clearly can't handle these blades yet," Valthior said.
It wasn't just because Enma would forcibly drain Haki—more importantly, Shanks and Buggy weren't even as tall as the swords yet.
Sitting beside Bullet, Shanks immediately lit up with excitement. "Thanks, Big Bro Valthior!"
Buggy grinned just as widely. "In that case, I'm going to be a swordsman from now on too!"
...
Drop some POWERSTONES to push the story forward!
PS: Read Advance Chapters at https://www.patreon.com/c/ReadJin