Target—Hidden Boss!

An entire night had passed since an unknown unlucky pirate crew had been single-handedly wiped out by an unknown terrifying brat with a single blade.

It had been an agonizing night. Having lost their captain, the pirates felt as if both body and mind had suffered immense torment. They wanted to go home.

What were they supposed to do when the enemy had spared their lives after cutting down the whole crew, yet stubbornly refused to leave?

The morning sun shone over the sea as the slightly cool ocean breeze woke the pirates, forcing them to continue facing reality.

"That brat is so strong! Is this what a Devil Fruit user is like? So scary..."

"Yeah, yeah! When he slashed with that blade, it felt like getting cut twice, and then there were those terrifying flames..."

"I feel like those flames can burn my spirit... I'd rather be cut by a blade!"

"Shh... Do you want to die?! He didn't even blink while cutting down so many people, and he split the captain in half with one stroke! You still dare talk about him?"

"..."

The sunlight gradually grew brighter, and the clouds became thinner. It looked like another fine day.

On the deck, injured pirates lay scattered everywhere, groaning as they basked in the sun bare-chested. The occasional murmured discussion was swiftly stopped. After all, on the sea, strength ruled supreme, and plenty of people had been killed for gossiping about the strong behind their backs.

Disaster came from the mouth, especially in a world where supernatural power was so formidable.

Better to sunbathe. At least it could ease the pain in their wounds a little. The ship's doctor had said that more sunlight was good for healing wounds.

"Yawn... pfft!!"

Wright came out of the cabin, yawning, only to see this eye-searing sight—a whole group of burly bare-chested men... Ahem!

This pirate crew was utterly second-rate, and the supplies aboard were desperately scarce. They lacked medical supplies; most of the pirates did not even have enough bandages wrapped around them. They had only survived because the wounds burned by Holy Fire had not bled much.

Listening to the groans around him, Wright had not expected the pain of Holy Fire's burns to be so intense. But recalling that Holy Light Power was inherently an energy closely tied to spiritual power, he formed a few guesses.

"Stop whining. Move closer."

"..."

The pirates looked at one another before reluctantly edging closer to the little demon king. A few even took up positions ready to flee at any moment.

Wright's mouth twitched. Pretending not to care, he raised both hands, and dense golden light appeared in his palms.

"Dawn Light!"

The golden light spread outward like ripples across water. The pirates it touched first remembered how their captain had been sliced in two by golden light and instinctively stepped back in terror. But they immediately discovered that the parts of their bodies touched by the light felt relaxed, their wounds slowly began to heal, and their strength gradually returned.

It doesn't quite live up to its name. I just can't develop that flashlight-like 'blinding glare' effect...

Well, as long as it works, the details don't matter.

Wright shook his hands and muttered words the pirates could not understand.

Ever since discovering Holy Light Power, Wright, a seasoned chuuni, had decisively begun developing one memorable holy-light skill after another.

Freed from rigid numerical limitations—and carrying a few grievances and complaints about the original skills—most of the abilities Wright developed were quite powerful.

"!!!"

As the pirates were successively engulfed by golden light, they finally realized what was happening. They inspected their wounds in disbelief, then howled excitedly. An ability that could fight and heal like this... they had never even heard of it in legends!

Humans were land creatures, after all. On the vast sea, there were too many limitations placed on them, and medical supplies were often the scarcest resource at sea.

For pirates who lived with blades at their throats, there were neither the ports frequented by merchant ships nor Marine bases and fortresses. They did not even possess the strength of Pirate Hunters. Their already scarce medical supplies were difficult to replenish in time, and injury often meant death.

Even the most skilled ship's doctor needed bandages and medicine to treat the most basic blade wounds, and the patient still had to heal on their own. Such large-scale, immediate healing was simply unheard of. It was truly shocking!

"Enough!"

Wright stopped the overly excited pirates. "Come to think of it, I originally intended to keep my abilities secret. Yet now, with you pirates... If I hear even half a word of rumors about my abilities in East Blue from now on, you understand, right?"

Cold sweat poured down the pirates' faces as they hurriedly fought to make promises, terrified that a slow response would get them silenced.

"Yes, yes, yes..."

"Understood!"

"Rest assured, sir! We will not leak a single word!"

"Sir, please let us follow you!"

"Awooooooo...!"

"Oorah oorah!"

Had some strange noises mixed in there?

Shaking his head, Wright dragged his long sword toward the stern. "Follow me? Forget it. I'm not becoming a pirate."

"How much longer until Shimotsuki Village?"

Seeing that Wright had asked about something serious, the pirates obediently quieted down. Their navigator quickly stepped forward.

"Sir, the weather should be good over the next few days, and the wind direction is relatively stable. Barring any accidents, we can reach Shimotsuki Village in two days."

Even the navigator of a second-rate pirate crew knew more about sailing than Lord Wright? This was simply... Fine, it seemed Lord Wright truly had no talent for navigation. Well, a navigator's combat strength was inferior to a swordsman's anyway. Lord Wright's talent was for swor... swordsmanship!

"Mm. Let me know when we arrive. Now get out of the way. Don't blame me for not warning you if you get hurt."

The pirates immediately scattered. Wright looked around. There was plenty of room.

"Hah!"

Gripping his sword with both hands, Wright wielded the blade, which was visibly over one and a half meters long, as if it were a toy.

Horizontal slash!

Upward slash!

Downward chop!

Thrust forward!

Six uninterrupted years of foundational swordsmanship training had given Wright such combat strength despite his young age.

Talent? His physique had been continuously and subtly strengthened by Holy Light Power, to the point that he was growing stronger even while sleeping. But at its core, this body had merely the foundation of an ordinary person.

Unrelenting, grueling training—especially the powerful recovery granted by Holy Light Power, which allowed Wright to train beyond ordinary human limits without worrying about destroying his body—had made Wright who he was today.

In the pirate world, swordsmanship and martial arts had never been ranked above one another. The advantage of martial arts was that it required no weapon; one's own body was the weapon. A martial artist would not suffer a drastic loss in strength the way a swordsman would after losing their sword.

Swordsmanship had its own advantages: its large-scale mid- and long-range attacks were incredibly powerful.

For Wright, though, the most important point was that cutting people with a sword was far cooler than punching them...

"Sir is already so strong, yet he still trains so diligently!"

"No wonder he's so strong at such a young age!"

Fulfilling swordsmanship practice always made time pass unnoticed, and before long, two days had gone by.

"Sir! We're already close to Shimotsuki Village!"

"Mm. All right, I'm leaving. You people should go back and find yourselves an honest livelihood."

Wright changed into his training clothes, put away his top hat and trench coat, slung his luggage over his back, grabbed his long sword, and went ashore. The pirates behind him watched eagerly, and they even seemed somewhat reluctant to see him go.

"If I ever see any of you acting as pirates again, I'll take down every one I see!"

"Yes, sir!"

"And don't leak any information about me. Otherwise, don't blame me for getting rough!"

"Understood, sir!"

Clueless newbie here, please guide me!