Harvest and Return

On the coast, seven giants sat in a row.

The cages that had held them were already submerged in the water; Figo had only dragged one up and thrown the Worry Demon, Geld Chuck, inside.

To let them come ashore, Xiao had also unlocked the shackles on their legs. They could run if they wanted, but every single one sat more obediently than the last.

Run? Whoever wanted to run could run.

Never mind that their hands were still chained—even if they weren't, weren't the three benefactors still being forced to serve the demon warden under his tyranny?

Not far away, a bonfire blazed. The three CP9 members divided their work clearly, continuously cutting up a massive Near-Sea King corpse, bleeding it, roasting it over the fire, and quickly supplying it to Figo.

Watching dozens of tons of Near-Sea King disappear bit by bit into Figo's stomach, Little Tiger and the Female CP9 exchanged a subtle glance.

So we were the clowns. What the giants said was true—Figo really could eat an entire Sea King in one sitting? Then those stories about him tormenting and humiliating prisoners were also real?

Can't provoke him. Can't provoke him.

After this series of upheavals, Peslo's desire to report Figo to the Five Elders had faded considerably.

Figo normally couldn't eat this much, but having just received a massive boost of Giant Power and gone through a fierce battle, he urgently needed replenishment. His powerful digestion quickly converted the meat he ate into energy within his body.

After downing three-quarters of the Near-Sea King, Figo belched, patted his belly, and stood up.

"That's about enough. Good work. Roast the rest and share it with the giants."

The giants sitting in a row were moved to tears. We actually get to eat?

"Old Xiao, how's the little bug?" Figo asked toward the other side.

"No good. Can't contact headquarters."

The Den Den Mushi had been smashed onto the shore but hadn't died a heroic death—just a cracked shell. The signal was weak, and they couldn't reach headquarters.

They'd have to wait for it to slowly recover and repair itself.

As for the Marine soldiers, only six were left, all wounded, wrapped in bandages just like Figo now, resting by the shore... They'd each gotten a share of the first piece of roasted Near-Sea King meat to fill their stomachs.

"Is that so? Take care of the little bug for me, Old Xiao. Good thing I already contacted the Fleet Admiral earlier. He said he'd dispatch the nearest warship to pick us up. Shouldn't be too late."

After all, this place was pretty close to Elbaf. The Fleet Admiral would definitely consider the Giant race's rescue of the seven giants and get them out quickly.

Having given these instructions, Figo found a flat, open spot, lay down, and closed his eyes to rest.

Not far away, the Nun, still wearing Seastone handcuffs, also lay on the ground, utterly hopeless, her mood oddly calmed. She spoke up: "Can I borrow a light for a cigarette? Marine soldier."

"Quit. Smoking's banned in Impel Down."

The Nun fell silent.

The giants admired her—she still dared to make requests even after being caught? Seeing Figo close his eyes to sleep, they ate their meat in tiny bites, afraid of waking the demon warden, weak, pitiful, and helpless.

Try to escape?

Look at the pile of mush in the cage.

Look at the shattered ground.

Look at the two halves of the warship still sinking.

Don't be ridiculous! A bad life is better than a good death!

Figo wasn't actually sleeping; he was tallying his gains. He now had seven rewards to choose from.

As long as he'd truly captured them, the rewards wouldn't disappear even if he released them. The three CP9 members mostly offered Six Powers-related rewards, which Figo wasn't in a hurry to pick.

He figured he could still make rapid progress in the Six Powers through his own training. Once he hit a plateau, he'd use their rewards to level up.

The remaining four were the Character Event rewards from Doham and Giant Kevin, plus the capture rewards from the Nun and the Worry Demon.

Oh, right—Giant Kevin still didn't know that the Worry Demon, captured right after fighting Figo, was the real killer of his daughter. Figo didn't bother to mention it.

Whether to use this to recruit him into the Marines or something else—he'd leave that to the Fleet Admiral.

Kevin's reward was the easiest to choose.

[Reward: Giant Power (Rare) +187 → 1832 (Level 3 Giant Youth)]

Next was Doham. The one who had first awakened Figo's Observation Haki didn't master Armament Haki himself, nor did he use a sword. So among dozens of scattered abilities, Figo naturally chose to strengthen his strongest.

[Reward: Physique +63 → 12399 (Level 4 Monster)]

A fierce battle and a meal of Near-Sea King meat had also boosted Figo's physique by over twenty points on its own.

Now for the main event—the two SR-rank criminals with 100% Capture Participation!

The Nun's reward offered a choice among Devil Fruit Development, Disguise, or Commerce. None were particularly friendly to Figo. After some thought, he chose Devil Fruit Development.

Although he couldn't activate this ability since he hadn't eaten a fruit, and due to his Fish-Man Power, he wouldn't consider eating one unless he encountered something exceptionally suitable and tempting.

Still, the added Devil Fruit Development ability would help Figo somewhat when fighting Devil Fruit users, aiding in judging enemy situations.

[Reward: Devil Fruit Development (Temporarily Inactive) +2093 → 2093 (Level 3 Devil Fruit Proficiency)]

100% Capture Participation, a Crime Index of 91, SR3 rank—it gave Figo 2093 points in one go, the largest single haul yet!

And this record was about to be broken again!

[Prisoner: Geld Chuck]

[Level: SR9]

[Status: Imprisoned]

[Crime Index: 113]

[Capture Participation: 100%]

[Available Rewards: Armament Haki, Doctor, Observation Haki]

A Crime Index of 113 shattered the highest record Figo had ever seen, and the available rewards were unprecedentedly generous! Most people carried dozens of abilities, and picking one decent option out of three was already lucky, but the Worry Demon had dropped both Armament and Observation Haki at once!

The Doctor ability would have been a solid choice at any other time, making this a genuinely tough decision.

In the end, Figo chose Armament Haki.

[Reward: Armament Haki +3277 → 6355 (Level 3 Mid-Rank Armament Haki)]

It doubled outright! From now on, Figo could train quickly to match that data threshold—maybe he could even coat his entire body in Armament Haki!

If he could personally catch a hundred or so pirates like this, Figo might become the world's strongest in no time.

But that was just wishful thinking. In the current era, the Worry Demon was already a Great Pirate ranked in the top fifty bounties. Other Great Pirates weren't going to stand still and wait for Figo to catch them. More critically, there were plenty he probably couldn't beat yet.

This battle had given Figo a rough measure of his limits. A major level jump from SR9 to SSR1 would certainly bring a leap in power, but he'd already struggled a bit to catch the Worry Demon. Against SSR-level Great Pirates, he likely wasn't their match.

Even among SR7, SR8, and SR9, he couldn't guarantee invincibility. Combat depended on many factors—if he ran into someone like Sugar, an outlier, he might stumble even at R-class.

"Looks like I won't be participating in SSR-level captures anytime soon."

Impel Down? Not even Impel Down had them! The deepest prisoner in Impel Down right now was also SR9!

SSR probably represented the very tip of the world's strongest—Admiral-level, or at least someone who could stall a Marine Admiral for a while!

In other words, SSR1 is about the average level of a future Yonko Commander? SSR9 is Roger and Whitebeard at their peak? What about Rocks? What about Im?

The higher you climbed, the harder it got. Eight years of effort and struggle in Impel Down, and now I'm just standing at the door of the summit, barely scraping by...

As Figo thought, drowsiness crept in, and he actually fell asleep. He really was tired.

It wasn't until nightfall that Xiao woke him: "Lord Figo, the Marine ship to pick us up has arrived. We're heading back!"

Figo grunted and opened his eyes. So it's here?

In the end, he never got to visit the island town.

Next time, for sure.