Dracule Mihawk was slightly stunned.
"…Why does that sound so familiar?"
His hawk-like gaze sharpened as he stared at Kane in the sky.
"I remember now…"
"That tone… and although your fighting style has changed…"
"I never forget the ones I've challenged."
"You are Vice Admiral Kane."
"A top-tier Observation Haki user, wielder of the cursed blade Hongying…"
"Known as the Marine who brings death."
He paused—
Then frowned slightly.
"But what surprises me is…"
"Why has your strength changed so drastically?"
"Is it because of a Devil Fruit?"
"And… have you abandoned the path of the sword?"
Mihawk was genuinely shaken.
Back when he was rising—
He had challenged Kane.
He won—
But only barely.
That's why he remembered him so clearly.
But later—
After reaching the peak—
Kane was no longer considered his equal.
Especially after disappearing from the Grand Line for over a decade.
Yet today—
Everything had changed.
What disappointed Mihawk was—
Kane had abandoned swordsmanship.
Chosen the path of Devil Fruits instead.
Kane, however, didn't care.
To him—
Swordsmanship was just a tool.
Not a pursuit.
"Hawkeye brat," Kane said lazily,
"Remember this."
"Today's matter isn't over."
"Next time we meet—"
"If there isn't at least 18 billion Beli…"
"This won't be settled."
With that—
His wings flapped.
And he vanished into the sky.
"…18 billion?"
Mihawk frowned.
"What does that even mean?"
But watching the dragon disappear—
He let out a breath.
If they had continued—
It would've become a fight to the death.
And clearly—
Neither of them wanted that.
This outcome—
Was far better.
Still—
There was no doubt.
Another peak-level monster—
Had appeared in this world.
Meanwhile—
Kane flew through the sky, his expression serious.
"The true monsters at the top… really aren't easy to deal with."
On his arm—
A fresh wound remained.
Small—
But meaningful.
Mihawk's attacks—
Were no joke.
And that Conqueror's Haki coating—
Truly terrifying.
Without his absurd Devil Fruit—
The gap would've been huge.
Still—
Mihawk was injured too.
Call it even.
Soon—
Kane returned to his warship.
He entered his office through the window.
The moment he relaxed—
Fatigue hit him hard.
He even started breathing heavily.
After a while—
He slowly recovered.
He sighed.
"That's one of the reasons I left…"
"My stamina is limited."
If the fight had continued—
He would've shown exhaustion.
The Devil Fruit gave him immense power—
But not youth.
Even with Mythical Zoan enhancement—
He was still an old man.
Against someone like Mihawk—
The stamina drain was terrifying.
And he absolutely didn't want to show weakness in front of that brat.
But still—
He smiled.
"I've finally stepped into the peak tier of this world."
Then he looked at his remaining money.
"…Just a bit expensive."
Only about 100 million Beli left.
But at least—
Life now had direction.
Because after eating the Devil Fruit—
His service fees increased.
Including the system's daily costs.
Which he already knew—
But…
"Why did the voice service fee increase too?!"
Kane's face darkened.
"System… I understand other fees rising, but why the voice too?"
"Host can choose voice mode."
Kane's eyes lit up.
"Oh? Let's try… a soft loli voice?"
"Confirmed. Host, do you like this voice?"
Kane immediately got goosebumps.
"…I'm too old for this."
"Forget it—give me a gentle young woman's voice. Not too cutesy—I can't handle that."
"Like this?"
Kane nodded in satisfaction.
Much better than the cold robotic voice.
Definitely worth the money.
(Absolutely not because of any weird preferences.)
But still—
The cost was outrageous.
From less than 10,000 Beli/day—
To 1,000,000 Beli/day.
"Even housing prices don't rise this fast!"
And on top of that—
He still had daily expenses.
Over the years—
He had developed expensive habits.
On average—
He spent over 1 million Beli per day.
Now with the system—
He was basically burning money.
"Damn it…"
"System, how much to permanently buy out this fruit?"
"500 billion Beli."
"…Does that include all forms?"
"No. Only Fire Dragon form. Others require additional unlocking."
"…As expected."
"That's way beyond me right now."
At that moment—
A voice came from outside.
"Vice Admiral Kane!"
Kane frowned.
"Come in."
Bogey rushed in, flustered.
"Bogey," Kane said calmly,
"Don't panic in situations. How can you uphold Marine justice otherwise?"
"Yes, Vice Admiral!"
"So—what is it?"
Bogey hesitated—
Then said carefully:
"Vice Admiral… your money… is gone."
"We searched the entire ship… it's nowhere to be found."
He nervously glanced at Kane.
After all—
Everyone knew how much Kane loved money.
But—
The expected rage didn't come.
"Oh. I know."
Bogey froze.
"…Vice Admiral, that was 10 billion Beli! This is our failure…"
He felt deeply guilty.
But Kane waved it off.
"It's fine. Not your fault."
Bogey was stunned—
Then moved to tears.
Kane asked calmly:
"Anything else?"
"No, Vice Admiral."
"Good. Then here are my orders."
Bogey straightened instantly.
"Awaiting orders!"
"We head east."
"There's a sea restaurant there."
"According to my information—"
"The pirate admiral
Don Krieg
and his crew are there."
"We're going there."
"Yes, Vice Admiral Kane!"