He opened the box, which looked like a package, and found a pair of pale red armguards lying quietly inside.
Rono peeled away the packaging and eagerly put them on.
The armguards were peculiar. The upper half covered the backs of Rono's hands and his fingers, with three gaps left between the finger bones. This made it easier for his bone claws to extend. The palms were uncovered, and the material was soft all over, fitting snugly against his hands like skin. The fingers were covered too, but the tips could open to let the claws out when he used Scarlet Armament. Rono tried it. As the claws extended, the material around them folded back, like a thin membrane wrapping around his fingertips and leaving only the bone claws exposed.
The armguards were pale red all over, with pink streaks of light flowing across them. Like the material on the hands, they were almost imperceptible to the touch. Rono clenched his fists and exerted his strength. The armguards grew redder as his strength increased, eventually turning dark red. The streaks of light glowed pink and danced with every movement of his arms, as if they were alive, leaving faint traces in the air.
For gear this impressive, five hundred million had been money well spent.
System Loli stood on the armguards, which reached just to the crooks of Rono's elbows. Rubbing his chin, he appraised them. "Not bad. They're pretty much up to standard."
"By the way, System, why did you make me buy a piece of equipment? I don't need defense, and I already have plenty of offense." Rono looked at the System. He was the one who'd sent Rono to buy equipment from the Research Department, and after much deliberation, Rono had settled on these armguards.
"Hmph! If you don't buy equipment, how am I supposed to upgrade you?" System Loli tipped his head back. "Bring over the ore I told you to buy." Rono obediently went to get it. "Now watch me show off."
System Loli raised both hands. The armguards Rono had taken off floated in midair, and the ore began circling them. Rono noticed a layer of gray-black stone dust gathering on the floor. As more and more piled up, half an hour passed. The System let out a breath. "The success rate is high, but I still have to be careful."
"Success rate?" Rono looked at the armguards suspended in midair. They'd changed a little. Numerous black patterns now covered them, giving them a fierce appearance. They'd lost some of their elegance and gained a more savage edge.
"That's right. The farther you get, the lower the success rate." System Loli sat on Rono's head, crossing his legs. "Put them on and see."
Rono pressed the mechanism, and a burst of steam hissed out. He slid his hands inside, and the armguards slowly closed around them. Once he had both on, Rono could tell something was different. "System, Character Panel."
"Beep—Character Panel activated."
3D Rono spun on the display. His basic information was listed below. Name: Wolf Rono Age: 17 Height: 3.73 meters (You've already passed your growth spurt, so you probably won't get much taller.) Equipment: Armguards 1 (unnamed) (Ability: Increases punch power by four to five times; low stamina consumption) Skills: 1. Self-Healing Factor (Description: Super Regeneration can be incredibly useful. With the Self-Healing Factor, anything is possible.) 2. Bone Claws (Description: Your bone claws, harder than an adult's bones, rival the Great Grade Swords. Negligible stamina consumption. You can't handle my bone claws.) Devil Fruit Ability: 1. Bone Planting Armor (Description: Has formidable defensive power. Ordinary bullets can't penetrate your defense. Moderate stamina consumption. As solid as a rock.) 2. Scarlet Armor (Description: Has tremendous explosive power and mobility, but poor defense. Severe stamina consumption. I can take on ten.) 3. Control External Objects (Description: This is an incredibly powerful ability, but you can only control little things. Severe stamina consumption. Even the underwear you wear belongs to me.) 4. Tree Man Gelu (Description: There's a chance you'll turn into a Tree Man Warrior when you get emotional. [To be honest, the odds are so high that even this System is scared.] No stamina consumption. My finest hour is when I use my ultimate move.) Combat Mode: Berserker Mode: 1. Fearless Of Life And Death. Unafraid of injury, you exchange injury for injury and life for life. Assess the battle with a perfectly calm mind. 2. Combat Awareness and Combat Comprehension Ability are greatly enhanced, giving you the perfect ability to break through your limits and turn the tables. 3. You can easily lose your reason and become a monster that knows only slaughter. 4. A Berserker's pride keeps you from leaving the battle. You'd rather die than cower. (I want to fight ten.) Skill Duration: 12 minutes (Intense combat will greatly reduce the duration.) Skill Cooldown: 20 hours Physical Constitution: 8213 (Can be upgraded. Required: 3 Enhancement Points) Bone Hardness: 9910 (Cannot be upgraded yet.) Mental Power: 100/100 (Cannot be upgraded.) Observation Haki: 3 (Can be upgraded. Required: 10 Enhancement Points) Armament Haki: 5 (Can be upgraded. Required: 10 Enhancement Points) Available Upgrade Points: 0
Rono stared at his Physical Constitution and Bone Hardness on the System panel and sucked in a breath. This was kind of terrifying. One upgrade had added so much. After a few more, he'd be unstoppable.
"Don't get too excited. The increase was so big because this piece of equipment was already good. From now on, you should pray that the upgrade succeeds. Even when it does, you'll usually only gain one to three points in total," System Loli warned, pouring cold water on his excitement.
"What's that skill about?" Rono asked.
"That's a feature the equipment already has. If you want to upgrade skills, get it to level five first," System Loli replied in a seasoned tone.
"Then let's upgrade it again." Rono had plenty of ore and could do it a few more times.
"All right. Don't cry later." The System shrugged and swept in all the remaining ore from the floor.
"Congratulations, Host. Upgrade successful."
"It actually worked?" System Loli was astonished. At level two, the success rate was only sixty percent.
"You don't know? People like me are called lucky in the West." Rono grinned from ear to ear. This time, he'd gained two points, both in Physical Constitution, bringing it to 97. He noticed his reflexes and five senses had become sharper.
"Time to go back and show off." Rono didn't take off the armguards again; they weren't in the way. He raced all the way to Enies Lobby. Even at full speed, his ship made good time, but it was already evening when he arrived.
"Dad." Gelu said the only word he knew. The little guy had spotted the Red Devil.
"Son!" Rono raised his right hand and activated Scarlet Armament. His muscles swelled rapidly, and the armguards turned dark red, giving off a luminous glow. The black patterns gradually turned red too—not a dark red, but a fiery crimson like molten lava—slowly forming a skull.
"I'll call you Flowing Fire." Rono gazed at the armguards' eerie beauty and murmured.
"Stupendous! Rono, that's so cool!" Spandam's eyes sparkled.
Before you continue