Daily Life (1)

A table made from ordinary trees.

A small pink head kept drooping downward, swaying as if it might collapse onto the desk at any moment.

Beside her, a black-haired boy listened attentively to the lesson, his hand constantly jotting down key points.

When the class ended, Dawn handed the notes he'd taken to Hina.

Looking at the little girl Hina, who had finally succumbed to drowsiness with hazy eyes, Dawn couldn't help but shake his head helplessly.

Perhaps the weather was too good today—the gentle breeze and bright sun made it so comfortable that Hina had simply surrendered to sleep, whereas before she'd at least listen a little.

Dawn wore a simple white training uniform. His clean, handsome face carried a serious expression, making him seem less like a fighter and more like a scholar with a bookish air.

Paired with that plain white training uniform, it gave him a uniquely neat and pure vibe.

The cultural classes went smoothly, everything proceeding in an orderly fashion.

As for training, aside from continuing to master the "Six Powers," Dawn never slackened in developing his Devil Fruit.

And because of the special auxiliary abilities of Dawn's Devil Fruit, unsurprisingly, he became popular with everyone.

After all, with his own aura amplification active, Dawn could thrash his unboosted self.

Who wouldn't love such a massive support ability?

But Dawn didn't relax due to everyone's praise. He trained relentlessly, fought, studied navigation, and then developed his Devil Fruit.

Because Dawn knew that this world was about to enter an era of rampaging chaos.

All those without strength would be devoured by the violent tide sweeping the world.

Every bit of power he gained made him better able to protect himself, to withstand the... little ripples... when that tidal wave came.

Yes, for now, Dawn could only passively resist some small splashes that might accidentally spray his way.

Even setting aside subjective bias toward the good-aligned faction, joining the Marines was the best choice for Dawn.

If he became a pirate like the protagonists in other fanfictions, he'd probably die before growing up and getting strong in this era.

Even if he tried to lie low until he matured, then set sail when older, such a plan would be nearly impossible.

Because this was the starting point of the era's rampage, and Dawn... was just a child. Even if he was stronger than ordinary people, the sea would soon be far too dangerous.

When the Great Pirate Era arrived, no place was truly safe.

Even the Holy Land Mary Geoise, where the Celestial Dragons lived, would later be climbed by Fisher Tiger up the Red Line to free the slaves.

In such an era, unless you had a ridiculously overpowered cheat—like rivaling a famous pirate at five, trading blows with a Shichibukai at ten, beating a Yonko commander at fifteen, and punching out Emperors and Admirals at twenty—joining the Marines was definitely the wise move.

In this world, strength was paramount, but when you hadn't developed yet, backing mattered even more.

If you became a pirate, you'd be a wanted criminal with no connections. The more monstrous your talent, the more the Marines would focus on you. They might even send an Admiral to take you out.

If you somehow escaped, congratulations—the attention would only intensify. With such potential, you might be the next Yonko, right?

Time for the three Admirals to serve you!

Aokiji for crowd control, Akainu for damage, Kizaru for flanking to prevent escape—they'd kill you for sure.

The Marines didn't play fair with one-on-one fights; they'd all jump you together!

But as a Marine, it was different. You're monstrous? Resources! Training methods! Teachers! You'd have everything!

What? Too monstrous and attracting trouble? Someone wants to take you out? They'd be messing with the Marines' next generation!

Is Garp's iron fist not hard enough? Or are the three Admirals' ice-fire-light combos not tasty enough?

They'd kill you for sure.

So if you ever end up in the world of pirates, for the sake of survival, joining the Marines first is definitely a better start than becoming a pirate.

After class.

Dawn woke the drowsy Hina and said, "Hina, you fell asleep in class today. Navigation is very important—you should take it seriously."

"Hina is very unhappy. Just leave navigation to the professionals," Hina replied, clearly displeased at being lectured by her deskmate right after waking up.

"Don't think you don't need to learn navigation and can just leave it to a professional navigator later."

Dawn's expression turned serious. "You need to understand that in a world full of oceans, ships are the only means of transport. If you have even a decent grasp of navigation, it will definitely come in handy."

Dawn looked at Hina earnestly and began giving examples to illustrate the importance of navigation, trying to make her take the subject seriously.

Before this, Hina had only half-listened in navigation class, with little real effect.

Even though he always lent her his organized notes, that didn't help much.

Like his previous life, the ocean covered most of the world, but unlike that world, the landmasses here weren't connected.

The land here consisted of islands of various sizes.

And each island, due to its geographical location and local weather, had distinct ecological characteristics, generally divided into spring, summer, autumn, and winter islands.

In such a world, knowing navigation versus not knowing it was like the difference between a researcher and an ordinary person in his past life.

Thinking it over, Dawn looked at Hina and posed a question. "Let me ask you, on a pirate ship, besides the captain, who has the most say?"

Watching Hina's unconcerned expression in the face of his persuasion, Dawn decided on a "roundabout strategy."

"Vice Captain!" Hina answered without hesitation, shooting him a "do you take me for an idiot" look and grumbling, "That's common sense, isn't it!"

"What if I said it wasn't?" Dawn saw that Hina had indeed been hooked by the question and couldn't help chuckling inwardly, silently applauding his own cleverness.

"How could that be? On a pirate ship, isn't the person with the most say after the captain the vice captain?" Hina retorted defiantly.

"Wrong. The answer is the navigator."

Dawn wagged his finger and said, "The navigator is that important. Even if you're a slave who was captured, if you're a navigator—

surviving, or even turning around and becoming a pirate's comrade, isn't impossible. In this world full of oceans, the navigator is just that important."

"How could something like that ever happen? I think you're just trying to trick me into studying hard, aren't you? Hina is very unhappy."

Hearing this, Hina's face was full of suspicion, feeling like Dawn was trying to fool her.

To that, Dawn smiled and said, "I'm not lying to you. Back when I was captured..."