Before, I Had No Choice. Now, I Want to Be a Good Man!?

After studying the Goro Goro no Mi for a while, Ortolan put it back into the box and closed the lid.

He had no intention of eating the Goro Goro no Mi right away. For one thing, there were still some factors he had yet to consider—for example, whether he even wanted to become a Devil Fruit user.

Becoming a Goro Goro no Mi user would undoubtedly result in a significant boost in strength. However, it would also turn him into a landlubber, which was highly inconvenient at sea. According to rumors, most Devil Fruit users died in shipwrecks... Though he had no idea whether that was true, the climate of the New World was indeed terrifying. You could be sailing normally when an iceberg suddenly fell from the sky—such things were hardly rare. How could that not be frightening?

And beyond the concern of becoming a landlubber, there was also the question of which Devil Fruit type was the current meta.

Everyone knew that, at first, Logia-type Devil Fruits were the meta. Their powerful elemental transformation made it impossible for most people to harm Logia users before they found a way to counter them.

But afterward, the power of Haki emerged and directly erased the greatest advantage of Logia elementalization.

Then Whitebeard appeared with the Gura Gura no Mi, shaking the world and earning the title of the Strongest Man. Everyone thought Paramecia types would become the meta, after all—the Strongest Man and the Straw Hat protagonist were both Paramecia users!

Following the strongest might lead you astray, but following the protagonist could never go wrong, right?

Then the problem came. The appearance of the Strongest Creature in the World—Kaido of the Beasts—directly pushed the prestige of Mythical Zoans to its peak!

Even the protagonist, who had been a Paramecia user for so many years, suddenly got a cheat code and became the same kind of Mythical Zoan!

Looking at it that way, the current meta was obviously Mythical Zoans. The once-popular Logia types no longer seemed quite so enviable—they had fallen two whole versions behind!

Of course, that was all just teasing. In Ortolan's view, while the major Devil Fruit categories might indeed differ somewhat in strength, the Goro Goro no Mi stood at the pinnacle of Logia abilities. No matter which version it was in, it could be called overwhelmingly powerful.

The Goro Goro no Mi was an exceptionally well-rounded Devil Fruit. Its abilities included devastating lightning attacks, highly effective enhancement of Observation Haki, lightning-fast high-speed movement that could achieve an effect similar to teleportation, and an extremely broad range. It also did not require refraction like Borsalino's Pika Pika no Mi. At the same time, its user could apply electrical therapy to themselves to a certain extent, including but not limited to "restarting the heart" and "curing internet addiction"... Ortolan even felt that this ability development—using electrotherapy to adjust one's own body—was the most terrifying aspect of the Goro Goro no Mi. It might even allow one's physical abilities to evolve and strengthen further, while attaining the imagined level of "Lightning Release."

A comprehensive improvement in strength, speed, explosive power, attack power, area coverage, perception, and more!

That showed just how formidable the Goro Goro no Mi was. It truly far surpassed ordinary Logia abilities, so it was no wonder it was widely acknowledged across the seas as one of the "invincible" Devil Fruits!

Thus, Ortolan was still very fond of the Goro Goro no Mi. If he decided to become a Devil Fruit user, he believed there was a very high chance he would not refuse its power!

But setting that aside, the main reason he had not eaten the Goro Goro no Mi immediately was that the full moon was approaching. Eating a Devil Fruit now would just be raising the difficulty for Charlotte Linlin, causing trouble for Cake Island, and giving himself more work to do.

Given Charlotte Linlin's formidable strength, she should be perfectly capable of handling that much pressure. But if he started going berserk as a Goro Goro no Mi user, Cake Island would truly suffer.

Charlotte Linlin had invited him here and given him this and that. Ortolan currently held a fairly friendly opinion and attitude toward her, so he had to give her at least that much face.

"Let's wait until after the full moon... If I decide to become a Devil Fruit user, I'll eat the Goro Goro no Mi then. These next couple of days will be just right for giving it some proper thought. After all, this is something that will affect the rest of my life," Ortolan muttered to himself, smacking his lips.

After pulling his thoughts away from the Goro Goro no Mi, Ortolan began considering what Charlotte Linlin had said earlier.

Whether violence could serve as an effective medicine for his "berserk episodes" could be set aside for now. He would have to see the results of that beating first before saying anything.

But as for whether he should join and return to the Big Mom Pirates and the Charlotte Family, that required careful consideration.

Can't find the book by its title? Try searching for the author instead—it may have simply been renamed!

Before coming here, Ortolan had not been particularly interested in the matter. Even though he knew full well that the Big Mom Pirates, under Charlotte Linlin's leadership, would gradually rise to their peak and eventually become one of the New World's four great pirate powers—a Yonko-level pirate crew.

They were a pirate force standing at the summit after Pirate King Roger.

It was highly tempting. And once he agreed to Charlotte Linlin's invitation, the training resources and methods of cultivation available to him afterward would likely be top-tier. They would probably help improve his strength far beyond his expectations.

There were many benefits!

But these things that seemed free were, in essence, extremely costly. Just like that line from The Queen Who Lost Her Head: she had been too young then to understand that every gift fate bestowed had already been secretly marked with a price.

Ortolan was young too, but he had lived two lives. He understood at least a little.

Once he accepted Charlotte Linlin's invitation and enjoyed all the benefits provided by the Charlotte Family and the Big Mom Pirates—

From then on, he would inevitably have to answer to Charlotte Linlin, serve her ambitions and purposes, become one of her vanguard commanders, ride across the four seas for her, spread the Charlotte name, and place her throne Standing in the Heavens!

"Is this what I want?" Ortolan quietly asked himself.

He had a good habit: whenever he faced a major choice, he would calm himself and ask this question repeatedly, examining his own heart so that he would not be swayed by the sugar-coated bullets of the outside world.

"No, this isn't what I want. At least, not right now..." Ortolan quickly arrived at the same answer as before.

Forget joining Charlotte Linlin's crew—he had not even decided whether he wanted to become a pirate at all.

This world was so vast, and these seas so magnificent. Ships sailing through this turbulent world did not have to fly pirate flags alone!

He could become an outstanding adventurer, or perhaps a pirate hunter who walked along the edge of danger. Ortolan had even once imagined himself joining the Marines and sitting in the seat of a Marine Admiral—or even Fleet Admiral!

It was just that he did not know whether, given his background... if the Marines had political background checks, would he pass?

Thinking about it now, if he could truly become a Marine, then perhaps... that would actually be an incredibly exciting choice. He would become a big shot with connections in both the underworld and the law, someone who could thrive anywhere.

If he became a Marine Admiral or even Fleet Admiral, while Charlotte Linlin unified the four seas and became the Pirate Overlord—or perhaps even the Pirate King—

Then who on these seas would dare provoke them?

If they were in a bad mood or found the World Government unpleasant to look at, they could just slap their thighs, and even Imu's throne would not be beyond their reach!

At that thought, Ortolan's eyes lit up. Huh? That actually sounded really interesting!?

"I wonder whether that bargain-bin mother of mine would be interested if I told her this idea? If she is interested... could she help me pass the Marines' political background check? Come to think of it, do the Marines even have such a process?" Ortolan pondered excitedly.

Could this be... Before, I had no choice. Now, I wanted to be a good man?