The Pauper King

The day after leaving the Little Garden, the sky was overcast, and the drizzling rain gradually turned into a downpour.

"Hurry upstairs, Vivi! Lina, furl the sails!"

"Ah, got it."

At the stern of the Merry, Lina stood bare-chested in the rain, unmoved, continuing his squats with dumbbells on his shoulders.

He only dispatched a few undead to help pull the sails and furl them.

"3045, 3046..."

"Your progress is a bit too exaggerated, Lina."

Zoro, swinging the weights in his hands, sighed sideways, "Your maximum load suddenly increased from 1200 to 1600, and it's only been a few days?"

"Ah, it's mainly because of what I gained at the Little Garden."

Lina explained simply. Since the first day he ate the Devil Fruit, this was the fastest improvement he'd ever experienced.

Moreover, in the past few days, he'd faintly felt a mysterious power stirring within him.

"What's your current maximum load?"

"I tried it last night, it's close to 4000 kilograms." Lina squatted down and stood up, his well-defined muscles exuding aesthetic appeal as the rainwater flowed down their smooth lines.

Zoro held iron bars in each hand, with several huge iron plates hanging from the ends. He chopped and thrust, wielding them like swords.

"Mine is 5000 kilograms. Your strength is almost catching up to mine, which is pretty ridiculous."

"It's not as exaggerated as you think."

Lina chuckled lightly, letting the raindrops patter on his face and drip down his chin. "After this, I probably won't be able to improve with a Devil Fruit for a long time."

The physical talent of Giants gives them an overwhelming advantage. Unless they enter the New World, it will be difficult to encounter stronger physical templates in the first half of the journey.

I wonder if Crocodile is in his prime or not right now. I hope I don't get backstabbed then.

The dark clouds obscured the sky, and the sea was a hazy gray. Raindrops pattered against the Merry with a tap-tap sound.

"3999, 4000!"

Bang!

After putting down the dumbbells, Lina took off the towel hanging around his neck and went to lie down on the lounge chair under the nearby sunshade to escape the rain.

Squelch--

He twisted the towel into a rope, squeezing out the water instantly. After wiping himself dry, Lina leaned back on the lounge chair.

He glanced at the Log Pose on the table to confirm the course. Just as he lit a cigarette, preparing to relax, he noticed something standing on the sea in the distance through the rain.

"Zoro, am I seeing things?"

Lina wiped his glasses and looked again. "That's a person, right?"

"It seems like it... maybe?"

Zoro also put down the iron bars he was holding and walked a few steps forward, leaning on the railing, squinting as if he could see further that way.

Splash--!

As soon as he spoke, something colossal seemed to rise from beneath the humanoid figure.

A huge hemisphere slowly ascended, and seawater cascaded down its surface like a waterfall.

The two then clearly saw the 'beast', "A ship appearing from the sea!?"

"No, it's a submarine."

Lina retorted, his expression turning serious. "That person just now was probably standing on top of the submarine, but this thing is too big?"

Before he finished speaking, the submarine, which was originally hemispherical, bloomed like a flower bud, transforming into a ship in a short while. Its design was extremely exaggerated, resembling a castle.

"It can transform too!?"

"What a shame Luffy didn't see this, haha."

Lina laughed. Seeing the approaching vessel, he calmly summoned his undead one by one. Fish-Man undead quietly jumped into the water, and Mr. 1 was ready to strike.

Sanji, who was tidying up the kitchen in the living room on the second floor, heard the commotion from behind and couldn't help but come out to take a look.

"What's going on?"

"It's Sanji. It looks like we have visitors." Lina glanced over and gestured.

As the giant ship drew closer, dozens of figures emerged from the deck above. The leader was a middle-aged man with a potbelly, flanked by two guards. Behind them were a group of soldiers in the same uniform, carrying guns.

The guards were a man with an afro and another man wearing a cute blue nightgown but with a vacant expression, which seemed oddly out of place.

"Wala la~."

The leading man cackled and, along with his two guards, jumped onto the railing of the Merry's stern. Their massive bodies made the wooden railing creak.

"I am King Wapol."

The man, his face covered in flesh, grinned menacingly and spoke. The soldiers behind him on the ship aimed their guns at them. "We're going back to Drum Island. Do you have a Log Pose or a permanent one?"

"Looks like they're not here for a friendly visit," Zoro said, hands resting on his sword hilts, his gaze cold and ready to strike.

Before the other party could speak, Lina remembered. The person before him was the original king of Drum Island, who had done absolutely nothing during his reign.

"Screeeech-- Screeeech--!"

The Chainsaw Devil revved his chainsaw, the sharp, grating sound piercing everyone's nerves.

"Hey! Are you trying to..."

BANG!

Before the explosion-haired guard could finish, a dark kick landed squarely on his face, flesh and skin sinking in.

Squelch! Squelch!

Before the other party could react, two deep gashes appeared out of nowhere on the sleeping robe man, blood gushing out.

The moment the chainsaw sound started, Sanji and Zoro instantly sprang into action. Since the other party had drawn their guns upon meeting, there was no need to ask questions.

Direct combat!

BANG! BANG! BANG!

Dozens of gunshots rang out. The Blade Devil charged forward without hesitation, taking the hail of bullets and leaping onto the opponent's ship. Three swords danced, creating a flurry of steel.

"Shoot, shoot quickly!"

"No use, the guns don't work on him!"

"He's a monster, a monster!"

King Wapol's face darkened. Listening to the screams and wails from behind him, he didn't dare to act rashly.

Because three terrifying chainsaws had already reached his eyes, opening their wide mouths and biting down on the swinging blades.

Miraculously, the opponent's teeth actually shattered the chainsaws.

"What the hell!"

Sanji was stunned, watching the opponent chew and swallow the chainsaws whole. "I've been a chef for so many years, and I've never seen anyone eat like this."

"Hahaha, I'm a Deka Deka Human who ate the Deka Deka Fruit! I can eat anything!" King Wapol sneered, patting his belly with his mouth wide open, as if he hadn't had enough.

Bang--!

A gunshot echoed.

Blood splattered from his mouth. King Wapol looked shocked, feeling the intense pain in his mouth, his gaze involuntarily falling on Lina.

"Wh-why? Things that enter my mouth... should be unable to cause harm."

"Seastone doesn't seem to be edible."

Lina lightly blew a wisp of smoke from the muzzle of his gun. "How do my bullets taste?"

"You... you..." King Wapol looked unwilling but could only collapse weakly under a wave of fatigue.

RUMBLE!!!

As King Wapol lost consciousness, his ship began to disintegrate. It turned out the ship was assembled from parts created by his ability.

"I didn't even get a chance to loot anything."

Lina sat back in his lounge chair under the umbrella, recalling the Blade Devil. He watched the giant ship gradually sink and sighed, "We can only see how much the Fish-Men can salvage."

This little disturbance, from start to finish, had only taken a moment. Seeing the farce end, Sanji turned back to prepare dinner.

As soon as he opened the aft cabin door, he bumped into Nami, who was walking out.

"Did something happen?"

Nami asked in confusion. She had come out after hearing the commotion, only to see a massive ship disintegrating.

Nami was instantly dumbfounded. "What the hell! In the blink of an eye, you guys seem to have done something incredible, hey!"

"Ah, it's nothing, just a few uninvited guests."

Lina's cigarette had just gone out. Unknowingly, their strength had grown to the point where they could annihilate a pirate crew in the blink of an eye.

The rain gradually lessened, and the undead returned to the ship after finishing their salvage.

"Is that all?"

Lina looked at the meager treasures salvaged, then remembered that the other party was now just a fallen king, and he understood.

Lina didn't even bother to look. "Just give it to Nami..."