Ability User (1)!

By the light of the moon, Merlin could make out his face.

Mera was holding a revolver in his right hand, aiming it at Merlin. Merlin watched him warily.

"Viscount Mela, of the Mela family. It's you!"

Mera looked at Merlin uncertainly, then gritted his teeth. "Who are you? Were you the bastard who was throwing bombs around my house just now?

"Do you have any idea this could draw soldiers from other countries here?"

Merlin's expression didn't change. "Laplace, my father is Lance. You should know him. I believe the two of you once partnered up to mine the platinum-lead ore veins."

Mera's expression turned savage for an instant. Lance? That stray dog from another country who'd had the good luck to marry Lucia.

By the moonlight, Merlin saw the jealousy in his eyes. Without a word, he yanked a grenade from his belt with his right hand, darted to the side, and pulled the pin.

Bang! Bang! Two gunshots rang out in quick succession.

Merlin dodged the bullets, darting left and right. Three seconds later, he hurled the grenade toward the window. It hit the floor with a sharp clatter, then exploded with a roar.

A miserable cry rang out amid the blast. Hiding behind a sofa, Merlin panted and looked at the blood seeping from his upper right arm.

He bit his lip, a fierce glint in his eyes, then pulled another grenade from his belt.

His right hand gripped the safety lever while his left pulled the pin. He listened intently to the sounds outside. A muffled groan came from outdoors.

Without hesitation, Merlin pulled the pin and charged out. In the first second, he ran two meters. In the second, he saw Mera lying outside, writhing on the ground. In the third, he hurled the grenade at him.

In the fourth second, Merlin turned and threw himself to the ground. BOOM! An explosion rang out.

A shock wave mixed with flames slammed into him.

Merlin pulled another grenade from his belt, rolled backward to his feet, and looked outside. His eyes suddenly widened.

Mera had turned into a half-beast resembling a werewolf. He struggled to his feet, glaring at Merlin with ghostly green eyes.

Was he an Ability User?

Click! Merlin pulled the pin, staring fixedly at him. Mera saw what he was doing and snarled, staggering up and running outside.

In the second second, Merlin hurled the grenade with all his strength. It landed right beside Mera's right foot and exploded with a roar.

Merlin lay prone, shielding his head with both hands as he squinted and watched Mera's direction.

The grenade blasted Mera off his feet, sending him tumbling away.

A few seconds later, Merlin saw Mera lying motionless. He gritted his teeth, pulled another grenade from his belt, and yanked the pin. After counting to two, he threw it at him.

The grenade had barely hit him when Mera suddenly sprang up and rolled to the side.

BOOM!

This time, the explosion sent him flying. Mera let out a shrill scream, and his right lower leg was blown clean off.

Merlin pulled another grenade from his belt, yanked the pin, counted to two, and threw it at him again.

BOOM! Mera was blasted to the ground once more. A few seconds later, flames caught on his body. Merlin hesitated for two seconds, then pulled another grenade from his belt. He held it in his left hand, brought it to his mouth, and bit down on the pin. With his right hand, he drew a dagger from his thigh and slowly walked over.

Mera had reverted from his half-beast form. Merlin came to stand beside him and ground his foot into Mera's mangled leg. Mera's body twitched, but he made no other movement.

Merlin felt slightly relieved. He slowly crouched down, the back of his right hand touching Mera's injured leg. At a thought, a fainted gray rat appeared outside, while Mera's body vanished.

At that moment, Merlin slumped to the ground, lingering fear in his eyes.

"He was an Ability User? I'd never heard anything about that."

Just then, as Mera was equipped, the [Equipment Slot] that appeared before Merlin conveyed an extraordinarily unusual message to his mind.

Merlin understood the message.

[Detected one complete portion of Origin Power. Extract it?]

Merlin's eyes widened. His heart pounded as a suspicion took shape. He focused his thoughts.

"Extract."

The image of Mera in the [Equipment Slot] blurred. A dozen seconds later, Merlin saw a hazy, wolf-shaped mass of energy appear inside the slot.

Then another message appeared in his mind.

[Each Equipment Slot can equip only one "equipment" item. Select the "equipment" item you wish to equip now.]

Without the slightest hesitation, Mera's wretched body appeared outside.

At the same time, the image of the [Equipment] in the [Equipment Slot] changed. A fearsome wolf-shaped figure made of mysterious energy appeared.

Then another message appeared in his mind.

[Detected one complete portion of Origin Power. Consume it to generate a new "Equipment Slot" space?]

Merlin's mouth fell slightly open. After making sense of the message, he thought,

"So Devil Fruit essence can expand the number of Equipment Slots I have?"

He didn't agree immediately. He looked at Mera in front of him. His chest still rose and fell faintly. "He's still alive even after his Devil Fruit power was extracted?"

Could this be the special ability of his [Equipment Slot]?

Merlin wasn't sure, but that didn't stop him from making sure. Gripping his dagger, he stabbed it into Mera's neck. With a wet sound, a spray of blood splattered across the side of Merlin's face.

He looked utterly savage.

Somehow, killing someone didn't seem so revolting anymore.

Merlin didn't know whether that was good or bad, but he understood that getting used to this might help him survive longer in the future.

He exhaled a breath of stale air.

Merlin looked at his current equipment.

[Name: Unknown Origin Power]

[Effect: Once equipped, grants you the ability to transform into a timber wolf and freely shift between human, beast, and half-beast forms. It also grants you the biological traits of a timber wolf.

However, you will also be subject to a Natural Limitation (PS: This limitation is intrinsically tied to this Origin Power. It can be "weakened," but not erased).]

[Synchronization Value: 1%]

[Evaluation: A supernatural creation formed through the ingenious combination of pure will and the world's Origin Power.]

"Could this be the true origin of Devil Fruits?"

Shock flashed through Merlin's eyes. On the internet in his previous life, people had come up with all sorts of theories about the origins of Devil Fruits, but he'd never expected...

He stopped dwelling on it. Whatever existed had its reason.

Merlin could sense a strange power that had suddenly appeared inside him. He also instinctively understood information about the fruit's ability.

"Zoan. Dog-Dog Fruit. Timber wolf form?"

Feeling the Zoan Devil Fruit power bolstering his body, Merlin was overwhelmed by a sense of immense strength. At the same time, he noticed an itchy sensation coming from the wounds on his thigh and right arm.

The wounds were healing faster.

A delighted look flashed across his eyes. It seemed fine to equip it for now. He looked at the [Equipment Slot] interface before him.

The name of the equipped item had changed under the influence of his subconscious.

[Name: Zoan: Timber Wolf Form]

Merlin focused his thoughts, and the Equipment Slot vanished from before his eyes. He looked around, put the grenade in his left hand back on his belt, and saw that he had only four grenades left.

He considered, "Should I go kill the others and take their grenades for myself?"

But the next moment, he hurriedly shook his head.

"Mera's injuries must have been caused by those soldiers.

"I can't let myself get carried away!"

Merlin looked around, recalling where Mera had appeared. He stepped on and killed the rat he had equipped earlier, then headed in a certain direction.

A wolf's nose was incredibly keen. Even with the smoke from the explosions filling the area, scents wouldn't disperse so easily.

Merlin walked left from the broken window in the main building. A minute later, he found a hidden passage leading underground, inside a rockery cave beside the wall.

Merlin looked at the large stone that had been moved aside. A circular hole, a meter in diameter, lay there.

His gaze shifted to a suitcase beside the cave, and his eyebrows lifted slightly.

He sniffed. There were no other scents inside the entrance. Then, remembering that no one had ever heard of Viscount Mela marrying or having children, Merlin realized what it was. The suitcase probably held his belongings.

With that in mind, Merlin opened the suitcase. On top lay stacks of ten-thousand-Beli bills, their fresh ink scent rising from them.

Each stack seemed to hold about a hundred bills. He flipped through them and counted roughly thirty stacks: thirty million Beli.

Merlin continued rummaging through the suitcase and felt a hard object wrapped in cloth. He picked it up and unwrapped it. His expression turned somber.

In his hand was a fruit with a strange pattern.

It was covered in swirling, vine-like patterns.

About half the size of his palm, it resembled a plum.

It was a strange Devil Fruit.