"Absolutely impossible."
Gawain pursed his lips in response to Hancock's suggestion.
"This is a ship, after all, Hancock. I don't want people excitedly shouting on board all day long..."
Set sail, Gawain Ship!
Such a stupid thing to me..
Gawain casually picked up a slice of pineapple.
"I suggest rejecting this suggestion, but I'm happy that your suggestion is correct; eat fruit."
"Oh well."
Hancock chuckled softly, her eyes narrowed, and took a few slices of pineapple. She casually gave half to Shirahoshi, and while chewing on the pineapple by the pool, she gazed intently at Gawain.
Gawain turned to Franky and continued.
"The Dark Bird Ship has probably already been decided. Besides that, do you have anything else to say?"
"Ah, it's sad, but I was prepared. The Dark Bird really does match the image of this ship!"
As for other matters..."
Franky stretched out his large hand and scratched his forehead.
"I think I do have a few things to do."
Suddenly, his eyes lit up.
It wasn't just a fleeting, playful flash; his eyes truly transformed into dazzling disco balls!
Immediately afterwards, Franky stood up excitedly.
"If you hadn't reminded me, I would have almost forgotten about him!"
Wait a moment, sir, I'll bring him over for you to see, haha!
As soon as he finished speaking, Franky rushed to the ship's control center and pressed various oddly shaped buttons for a moment, after which the entire ship started moving.
Meanwhile, everyone in the rest and entertainment areas stopped what they were doing.
Even Gawain was somewhat surprised. Before his eyes, next to the trees in the rest area, a deck about six meters in diameter suddenly split open.
A circular hole quickly appeared, and then a mechanical Han, nine meters tall and with a waist circumference of nine meters, slowly rose from the opening on the deck.
A moment later, the nine-meter-tall robot shook its head violently, rapidly surveying its surroundings.
Next, he immediately spotted Gawain!
The moment it saw Gawain, the robot suddenly let out an excited mechanical sound.
"Ah~ ah~ ah, it's actually~ the~ great~ Saint Gawain!!!"
The robot quickly moved its legs and rushed to Gawain's front, kneeling down before him as if pushing gold and jade overturning.
Thump!!!
With a loud bang, Gawain felt the beach chair he was lying on shake slightly, and at the same time, the robot continued to speak.
"After three months of arduous reformation, thanks to Lord Franky's genius and my own diligent cooperation, I have finally seen you again, my lord!"
Moreover, I am completely different now than I was in the past; I am now qualified to be your lackey!
My lord, I am willing to serve you with utmost loyalty!
Just as the robot finished speaking, Franky, who was far away, rushed back to Gawain's side using the cola jet device.
After landing, Franky excitedly patted the giant robot's leg.
"My lord, this is another masterpiece I have created in the past three months by taking time out of my shipbuilding work!"
Super Spandam General Unit 01!!!
How about that, hahaha, you probably never imagined that I could transform trash like Spandam into someone so incredibly handsome!
And everyone else...!
Franky whirled around to face the volleyball court, raised his hands, and made a classic Franky pilot entrance gesture.
Then his eyes lit up, he spewed air from all seven orifices, and continued shouting excitedly to everyone.
"Isn't my Evangelion Unit-01 incredibly cool?!"
"He's so handsome!!!"
Jinbe's eyes widened, ignoring the volleyball hitting his face. He jogged and rushed straight to Spandam.
Pat this, pat that, feeling the solid mechanical feel in my palm.
Jinbe gave Franky two thumbs up.
"Super cool!"
As soon as Jinbe finished speaking, the women on the volleyball court all had black lines appear on their foreheads.
With Spandam's current pink, round, afro-like hair and that boring punk metal outfit, how could anyone call him handsome?
Gion and Kalifa then turned their heads away disdainfully.
I can't even be bothered to look at it!
But for men, Spandam was a sight to behold—massive, fluid, and with each step accompanied by a unique mechanical sound.
Even Rayleigh seemed to be experiencing a sudden surge of youthful exuberance despite his advanced age.
He led Lucci, Shiryu, and the others to Jinbe and Spandam Mark I, pointing and commenting with interest.
Rayleigh: "That's really impressive. It can even be modified like this. If we could enlarge the robots countless times, could we create a living mechanical ship?"
Lucci: "I wonder if robots can learn Armament Haki. If they can, they'll be quite powerful. Spandam was a weakling, but with his current physique, he could probably easily defeat even a small-time pirate with a bounty of tens of millions!"
Shiryu: "Such a mechanical body would be difficult for a swordsman who hasn't reached the level of Iron-Cutting to deal with!"
Franky, listening to the praise from the crowd, burst into laughter.
"Of course! My skills are just that amazing, Spandam, show everyone!"
"Yes, Franky!"
Spandam gave a mechanical smile, then began to move his limbs, performing a truly robotic dance...
Franky excitedly moved closer and jumped up with Spandam Mark I.
Watching the two dance, Gawain frowned and pondered for a long time. He suddenly realized that even though he had tried his best to take Franky seriously, he had actually underestimated him!
At this moment, in Gawain's eyes, Franky's transformation of Spandam was far more than just a simple transformation!
Looking at Spandam, who was over nine meters tall, Gawain no longer saw him as just a trash villain in the Pirate World.
What he saw was a Pacifista style completely different from Vegapunk's, but equally capable of being mass-produced!!!
With that thought in mind, Gawain solemnly stood up and went to Spandam.
Seeing Gawain approach, Spandam frantically turned off the flashlights embedded in his two cleavage areas...
He then stopped dancing and knelt down again in front of Gawain.
"Stop kneeling, get up, let me take a good look!"
Gawain said to Spandam.
Upon hearing this, Spandam jumped to his feet, standing ramrod straight.
Gawain observed as he spoke to Franky.
"Franky, what's the manufacturing cost of this Spandam?"
"Uh, sir, I got the money from Iceburg myself, I absolutely did not embezzle the shipbuilding budget!"
Franky panicked a little. Did the adults think he was wasting his time?
After all, it really cost a lot to make this thing!
Gawain waved his hand and continued to ask.
"That has nothing to do with it. Just tell me, how much did it cost to build him?"
"Oh, you don't mind? That puts my mind at ease, haha."
It cost me a lot of money to modify it. Iceburg approved two billion for me. The project is the practice and basic application of life mechanization.
Two billion wasn't enough. I spent all the money I'd earned over the years and had to add another three hundred million to finally get it done.
Overall, it's about 2.3 billion!
"The cost is too high." Gawain frowned. "Have you tried to create an assembly line to build inanimate robots without using living people as a prerequisite for modification?"
"Of course I'd like to, but that's very difficult, sir!"
Franky explained sheepishly.
"Just the parameters alone are complicated, after all, a pure machine is not like a living person, who can raise questions about the body structure that it feels."
Besides, figuring out how to make the robot move in a planned and systematic way, and ultimately act according to commands, is extremely complicated.
Also, I can't find any good advanced attack methods that can be applied to robots!
Pure robots certainly can't master Armament Haki, so they can only fight using basic explosives and their bodies.
If I could have a powerful Logia Devil Fruit User as a reference, I might be able to find some new directions regarding robot attack methods.
For example, Admiral Kizaru's laser beam would be perfect for this. It has a fast attack speed and high damage. If you could make a robot shoot laser beams from its rear end... or even from its hands, that would be incredibly cool!
However, lasers also have drawbacks, namely, they cannot provide their own energy source, which means they consume a great deal of energy.
As soon as he finished speaking, Franky chuckled and rubbed his hair.
"My lord, if you could acquire Logia Devil Fruit User could be used as an energy source, preferably one with strong offensive capabilities, I could study them carefully."
Perhaps I can make a breakthrough!
"I see!"
Hearing Franky's words, Gawain took a deep breath, then smoothed his brow.
Franky is seriously underrated!
In the comics, he never had any good research and development environment.
They are either on the verge of death, scavenging things from junkyards to repurpose themselves.
Or they're fighting all day long in Water 7 to protect the shipyard.
Even after joining the Straw Hat Pirates, he never received research funding exceeding several hundred million!
He has never collaborated with any small or medium-sized manufacturing organizations, let alone a large manufacturing center Water 7.
In just three months, after I gave him the freedom to research and develop, he actually managed to create a prototype of Vegapunk's Pacifista?!
But think about it, in the original comics, after the Summit War, Franky spent two years hanging out in Vegapunk's hometown and managed to turn himself into Kuma after his transformation.
We had absolutely no funds, and we had to find all the materials ourselves!
What kind of conditions are these?
Therefore, once he truly gave Franky the opportunity, he was indeed qualified to be compared to Vegapunk.
In terms of Devil Fruit development, Franky may be far inferior to Vegapunk, but if we only talk about mechanical modification, the two are absolutely evenly matched!
Gawain's eyes lit up, and he then spoke to Franky.
"In just three months, you've given me one surprise after another, that's wonderful!"
He patted Franky on the shoulder, then turned to Lucci and said.
"Find a Devil Fruit Encyclopedia."
"Yes, sir!"
Lucci rushed into the cabin and, after a brief conversation with his men, quickly rushed out carrying Devil Fruit Encyclopedia.
Holding the Devil Fruit item given to him by Lucci, Gawain turned to the Logia page.
"Franky, you decide for yourself which Devil Fruit be more beneficial to your research!"
At this point, Gawain handed the encyclopedia to Franky and waved to everyone.
"Everyone, please take a look. If there's any Devil Fruit you like, we can try to find it."
Whether it's buying, stealing, or even applying to the Five Elders myself, it's all possible!
After saying that, Gawain patted Lucci on the shoulder.
"If there are more illustrations, bring them over and distribute them to everyone."
"Yes, sir!"
Lucci left quickly and soon returned carrying more than a dozen illustrated books. At the same time, everyone gathered in the rest area.
They each picked up the illustrated guide and glanced at it, but many immediately put it down.
Grandpa Rayleigh was the first to put down his book, and he chuckled.
"I am a staunch advocate of fruitless Devil Fruit. I have spent my entire life adventuring at sea with only my own body and the sword in my hand. I will not look any further."
"I don't need it!"
His Jinbe was solemn.
"While I appreciate your kindness, sir, as Fish-Man, it is absolutely impossible for me to eat Devil Fruit!"
I don't have any ideas at the moment.
Gion briefly and said softly.
"My swordsmanship still has room for improvement, and my physical fitness has not yet reached a point where it cannot be improved at all. For me Devil Fruit now, the fruit does not have any special meaning."
If one day I fail to improve, perhaps I will choose a path, and at that time, I will take the initiative to talk to you."
After the three of them finished talking, Hancock lay down next to Shirahoshi and said boredly.
"I already have the Mero Mero no Mi."
"Me too, sir. I, Jabra, and Blueno, we've all eaten the Devil Fruit."
Kuma glanced at everyone and pursed his lips.
"Ahem, sir, I have the Paw-Paw Fruit too!"
From this perspective, it seems that Gawain's men don't actually have any need for the Devil Fruit for the time being.
However, after hearing what Lucci said, Lucci Gawain.
"Lucci and Kaku did a good job in Sabaody recently, so it's not unreasonable to reward them with a Devil Fruit for that reason."
A while ago, Shalria gave me four Devil Fruits, you can choose one.
If you don't like it, you can request other Devil Fruit.
"Well..."
Hearing Gawain's words, Lucci shook his head helplessly.
"My lord, the Devil Fruit sent by Shalria... are really not suitable for battle."
Those Devil Fruit were so girly and so cute.
She sent over all Zoan: Hito Hito no Mi, Model: Sika Deer (Deer Form), Nezu Nezu no Mi (Hamster Form), Inu Inu no Mi, Model: Pig Mini Pig Form), and Usagi Usagi no Mi... Angora Rabbit Form...
Those Devil Fruit are only suitable for Celestial Dragon to feed their pets; they're really not suited to our style..."
"Haha, well, as expected of Shalria."
Gawain chuckled and shook his head, then continued.
"Then you can decide on your own targets. If you come across a suitable one, whether it's at an auction house or with a pirate crew, you can try to get it yourself."
If it's an auction, I'll instruct Kalifa to provide you with the funds.
"Yes, sir! Thank you for the reward!"
Lucci knelt deeply in a half-kneeling salute. Even though he still had a cold expression, he was happy for his old friends.
At this moment, Franky, who was in the distance, finally chose his target.
He then showed the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia to Gawain.
"My lord, I've made my choice, haha!"
He said excitedly.
"If we're considering mass-producing robots, besides the Laser-Laser Fruit, the most suitable ones would be the Rumble-Rumble Fruit, or the Mera Mera no Mi, or even the Atsu Atsu no Mi (Logia)!"
If I could have those Devil Fruit users cooperate with me in research and development, then the goal of creating automated robots might not be impossible to achieve.
As for me..."
Franky put down the Pokédex, raised his hands in his signature pose, and shouted with great enthusiasm.
"My body is mechanical, and mechanics are my eternal dream, so I would never choose Logia ability that would make me a mess!"
But I saw a Devil Fruit that was perfect for me!
He pointed to the illustrations in the Gawain and said excitedly.
"That's... the Munch-Munch Fruit!!!"
Before updating, I checked the subscription numbers, and they had already increased to 940!
It's unbelievable that in just ten days, we're about to break the 1000 mark!
We haven't even been featured on any homepage!
The future looks promising, haha!
You're half-dead, you scumbag, keep it up!