Ninth Tower Information

Footsteps echoed softly... The second-floor cafeteria had not changed much.

The third-floor library was somewhat different... There were no guards, only an old man with white hair and beard, his face covered in wrinkles.

"Good morning, Lord Joey."

"Lord Joey..." Reg followed behind.

The old man sitting in a chair by the entrance waved his hand without even looking up.

After giving a slight bow, Colin started upstairs. "Lord Joey is sixty-five this year. His Power Level was 000 when he was young, and he excels in Observation Haki and Armament Haki."

"Haki..."

Reg could not help but yearn for it... Although Joey's Power Level had not been as high as Lucci's 4000 in his youth, it had not been far off, especially since he excelled in two types of Haki.

"Teacher Colin, aren't we going to Eighth Tower?"

Reg voiced his question while also observing the fourth floor. The projection screens were much larger and seemed to be made of exquisite materials. There were three of them.

Three large projector Den Den Mushi slept with their eyes closed in a highly regular rhythm... Huge bubbles even rose from their mouths.

Compared to Eighth Tower, there were three times as many Den Den Mushi here.

"Mm... After all, I promised to tell you about a shortcut." Colin paused for a moment.

"Teacher Colin... Did you really give up your position as an instructor?!"

Emotion welled up in Reg, turning his eyes slightly red... He had not expected Colin to truly go this far.

After all, giving it up now... meant all those years he had spent as an instructor would have been for nothing.

As far as positions were concerned, Tower Forest Island made no distinction between superior and inferior... To rise from a teaching staff member to an instructor again would take many more years.

"What else could I do? A shortcut... doesn't mean it'll be easy. You can't do it alone." Colin began walking again.

"Thank you, Teacher Colin." Reg could not think of anything else to say... He also felt somewhat guilty.

If Colin knew that Reg would run away after the new year... he would probably turn around and bury him right now.

"Reg, this was merely a choice I made personally... I was an orphan too back then. You're far too much like me. I only want you to go farther." Colin turned back with a smile, his gaze carrying a faint hint of scrutiny.

"Yes, Teacher Colin."

Reg did not know what Colin had seen through... He could only nod in response.

The fifth-floor staff rooms, interrogation rooms, and confinement rooms were still largely unchanged... The cleaning aunties in the corridors smiled and nodded at them.

"My things haven't been moved in yet... but your dormitory is ready. Let's go."

After reaching the sixth floor, Colin stopped in front of Door No. 11... and pushed it open.

Reg actually felt a little anticipation... This feeling was truly complicated and subtle.

"I'll take a shower first... We'll talk when I'm out."

Colin casually hung his coat on the rack, along with his tie and yellowed white shirt...

"Okay."

Reg swept his gaze around and the corners of his lips rose... The polished wooden floor, the simply arranged table and chairs, the large bed, and even a refrigerator!!

These living conditions... made him feel, for a moment, as if he had returned to his previous life.

But the lack of a computer or circuit boards quickly brought him back to reality... He curiously opened the refrigerator, finding it crammed with all kinds of food, fruit, and things like ham.

"No electricity..."

Reg searched around and found only a thick black cable embedded in the wall... It was probably connected to the Den Den Mushi screening room on the fourth floor? Den Den Mushi themselves possessed energy like electricity.

"The seventh floor..."

Reg looked up at the bluestone ceiling, casually took out some food, and began eating... At this rate, he might end up like Luffy in the future—stuffing a couple of drumsticks into his pockets before a fight to replenish the energy his body consumed at any time.

"Rest for a while first. Remember to eat lunch in the cafeteria at noon... You can eat your fill. After the lunch break, you can choose a teacher yourself in the afternoon... Oh, and Joey likes people to call him Brother Joey. Just call him that."

"Seven days later, your special training begins."

After explaining everything, Colin left cleanly and decisively... Even his steps seemed a little lighter.

"Yes, Teacher Colin."

After Colin left, Reg collapsed onto the bed and began sorting through the information he had just received... The reason he had not immediately gone to train was because he was an orphan.

The reason Jabra and Kumadori had joined during the same period as him... was because there had been vacant spots. Just last month, five reserve members had left.

One of them had failed to reach the Power Level standard, while another had turned fifteen and only mastered three of the Six Powers, so he had been kicked out of Ninth Tower.

What awaited them... was not death, but a transfer to one of P1–8, where they would become official members.

The remaining three had mastered four of the Six Powers and passed the World Government's assessment, becoming official members of P9.

Just as Reg had seen in the first-floor classroom... P9 had never had more than fifteen members.

Whether official or reserve... if he had made the request last month, Colin would have directly rejected it and postponed it until this month.

Just like the one-year-old Lucci in his memories... he had gone alone to some kingdom and slaughtered five hundred soldiers and pirate captains, all because he had accepted that kind of mission.

The criteria for applying here were simple... have a Power Level above 400 and master four of the Six Powers, regardless of age.

The upper age limit was fifteen... once they reached that age, they had to leave Tower Forest Island to carry out missions.

That was why there had been a newcomer in P9 in his memories... Sea Otter Nero, who had only mastered four techniques.

Though Lucci had kicked him into the sea with one kick, saying, "There's no need for a rookie who hasn't even mastered all Six Powers."

Lucci had dared to do that... because he was P9's strongest member in eight hundred years.

Although he had not been born yet... Colin understood very clearly that as long as one was powerful enough and obeyed orders, then... they could get eighty percent of what they wanted. That remaining zero percent naturally concerned the Dragon People.

As for P0, even Colin only mentioned it in passing... Reg could sense Colin's attitude: respectful, but keeping his distance.

P9's internal assessments were held once a year... every year had a minimum Power Level requirement: 100 at age five, 150 at age six, and so on, until it reached 400 at age eleven.

The remaining four years could be used to train and master the Six Powers.

Mornings were for group training, while afternoons were free... much like university, with all classes being electives:

Joey taught swordsmanship and martial arts on the seventh floor... where there was a dojo.

Wotori Yamanba taught stealth and assassination... in the primeval forest.

Joey taught the customs and cultures of different places, psychology, building intelligence networks, management, and more... in the classrooms on the first floor.

Colin, who had just arrived, taught hellish training at the top of the tower.

Simply put... it was Reg's kind of insane training regime.

That was how Colin had lived in his youth... otherwise, he would never have risen from being an orphan to become a P9 member, then safely withdrawn from the front lines and come to this island.

The first three courses all had assessment standards, held once every six months... for Joey's class, students could choose either swordsmanship or martial arts, while the others depended on each instructor's judgment.

Failing to meet the standard... would not get anyone kicked out. After all, Power Level represented everything here.

But the large interrogation room on the fifth floor would be open to them... being beaten while hanging was merely the most basic punishment. The other methods were simply too horrifying to watch, and Reg had no desire to try any of them.

As for how many people would take this elective... Reg guessed Jabra might come and give it a try. He could not be sure about Wotori Yamanba, since his mother was in this tower.

The others were unlikely to come either... their daytime training and studies were already strenuous enough, and they needed sufficient rest as well.

Not everyone had Reg's constitution, one that required very little sleep.

The reason Joey had asked, "Is it worth it?" was because of Colin... this elective had practically been opened for him alone. It was rather extravagant and luxurious.