The Clown Was Actually Me?

"You cheated! You cheated!"

Because of Magnus's reminder, Hajrudin lost the match. The old giant Yoruru was so furious that his face and neck turned red, and he nearly stepped in to duel Magnus himself.

"Pwahahaha! I merely told Rocks not to hold back. Going all out is a sign of respect for your opponent, isn't it?"

Magnus laughed merrily. He admitted that without his reminder, it would have been much harder for Rocks to win this battle.

But this was Rocks's own ability. It was only a matter of time before he discovered it himself.

Magnus had no doubt about that.

"I'm sorry, Lord Yoruru. I lost!"

The young giant pursed his lips and gritted his teeth, looking as though he were about to cry.

"Don't lose heart, Hajrudin."

Yaruru patted Hajrudin's shoulder and comforted him. "You're still young. Once you come of age, you'll definitely become countless times stronger than you are now."

"Mm!"

Hajrudin nodded heavily.

"Well?"

Rocks walked up to Magnus. "You can teach me the Six Powers now, right?"

Over the past two months together, Rocks had learned many things from Magnus.

Among them was knowledge of the "Six Powers."

Soru, which allowed one to burst forth at high speed by repeatedly stomping the ground in a short span of time.

Iron Body, which accelerated the flow of blood and made the body as hard as steel.

Paper Arts, which allowed one to control one's body freely.

Geppo, which allowed one to walk through the air.

As well as Tempest Kick, a kicking technique that compressed air into slashes, and Finger Pistol, which concentrated all one's strength in a fingertip to attack enemies like a bullet.

Even Magnus had to admit that whoever developed the Six Powers was a genius. Learning them meant one's physical potential had been developed to the limit, and that one possessed the qualifications to master Haki.

"I won't go back on my word. Ripley, come along too. It'll be difficult for a giant to learn the complete Six Powers, but further developing your body will make it easier for you to master Haki."

That was right. Although Ripley was far stronger than Rocks, she had only recently come of age and had yet to master Haki.

In fact, most giants could not learn Haki.

Their massive bodies gave them immense strength, but also made it more difficult to develop their own potential. To say nothing else, merely coating one arm consumed an astonishing amount of Haki.

"A bet is a bet. Since your little crewmate won, we'll honor our promise. So long as King Harald agrees, we'll use the Adam Wood stored in the warehouse to help you build a large ship."

After comforting Hajrudin, Yaruru stroked his fluffy beard and walked over.

Magnus's original pirate ship, the Black Pearl, was nearly sixty meters long and forty meters wide. It could easily accommodate dozens of people living aboard.

But if Ripley joined them, the Black Pearl would seem rather small.

Ripley alone stood twenty meters tall. On an ordinary pirate ship, if she merely lay down on the deck, there would not be even the slightest bit of space left.

So, to build a new ship, it would have to be at least over a hundred meters long.

Magnus thought of the cargo ships he had seen in his previous life.

They were often hundreds of meters long, with carrying capacities that easily exceeded hundreds of thousands of tons.

The problem now was this.

The Giant race could help him build a ship over a hundred meters long, but whether he could sail it was another matter. Controlling the sails was not something one could manage simply by turning the helm.

There were still too few people in their pirate crew.

Magnus glanced at Charlotte Linlin. Though she would become one of the Four Emperors in the future, she was currently only a five-year-old girl who could not move whenever she saw delicious food.

The bonfire party had gone on for hours, from sunset until moonrise. Charlotte Linlin had spent those hours eating desserts without stopping.

"Delicious!"

A blissful smile appeared on Charlotte Linlin's face.

"Grandpa Magnus, do you want some?"

Seeing Magnus looking over, Charlotte Linlin held out a piece of cake with her grimy little hand.

"Then I won't stand on ceremony."

Magnus chuckled. Charlotte Linlin was still at her most innocent age, utterly different from the cruel and merciless emperor of the seas she would become.

Charlotte Linlin Favorability -10

Current Favorability: 30 (Friendly)

Charlotte Linlin: Although the old man ate my cake, he should be a good person, right?

The smile on Magnus's face immediately froze.

It was just one piece of cake. Were you only being polite?

The clown was actually me?

Magnus sighed. Although Charlotte Linlin was not as brutal as she would be in the future, being possessive over food would not do.

"Linlin, do you know what ice cream is?"

"Ice cream?"

"That's right. It's like cake, except it's cake that you only eat in summer."

Magnus crushed a biscuit and pressed it into a cylindrical shape. The power of his Mythical Zoan quickly formed a large clump of shaved ice around the cylinder.

With the cake and shaved ice combined, a simple ice cream was complete.

June in Elbaf was scorching hot.

This era was nothing like the one in Magnus's memories, where every household could install air conditioning.

Under such circumstances,

the appeal of ice cream became incomparably enormous.

"Linlin, do you want some?"

"Yes!"

The chubby little girl nodded furiously.

"I have plenty more. But you have to share it with everyone and eat it together with them."

Magnus made a large amount of ice cream the same way.

The giants had just finished dinner, so they could have some dessert.

"So cold!"

A giant girl accepted a serving of ice cream from Linlin. After cautiously licking it once, a blissful expression immediately appeared on her face.

"It's practically summer Samla!"

"Haha, I just threw it together. If you like it, I can make more next time."

Magnus said with a smile.

Because after eating the ice cream, Charlotte Linlin also wore a blissful smile.

"It's so good!"

"Grandpa Magnus, I want more!"

"No. Eating too much ice cream in a short time will give you a headache."

Although agreeing to Charlotte Linlin's request might have increased her favorability even more, Magnus knew very well that spoiling a child was harming them.

Magnus did not want Charlotte Linlin to walk down the same path she had taken in another world.

When he needed to refuse, he would refuse.

With Magnus's strength, suppressing five-year-old Charlotte Linlin would be far too easy.

The night quickly passed.

Ever since his cells had become more active, even Magnus's sleep had grown more restful.

When he woke up, he was full of energy.

At the same time, the old giant Yaruru brought him some news.

"Magnus, come with me to Orsto Castle."

"His Majesty wishes to see you."