That's How Cocky He Is

"Stay close, Zoro."

Duen carried a fishing rod over his shoulder. A half-meter length of fishing line dangling from its end held Wado Ichimonji, swaying back and forth before Zoro's eyes.

Zoro felt like he was about to lose it. What kind of training was this supposed to be? This was outright looking down on him!

"Negative Emotion Points from Roronoa Zoro +..."

"If you can follow me all the way to town, your training will count as a pass." Duen spoke unhurriedly. He had heard the story about hanging a carrot in front of a donkey, and after giving it some thought, he felt it would work perfectly on Zoro.

"Don't treat me like an idiot, you bastard!" Zoro's voice was full of resentment and dissatisfaction.

Feeling the steadily rising Negative Emotion Points in his mind, Duen was overjoyed. He muttered, "I'm helping you overcome your weakness of getting lost so easily. What other senior brother is as considerate as I am?"

As he spoke, Duen slowed down and came to a stop. When he turned around, there was nothing behind him.

Where did he go? Damn it!

Duen's face darkened. He could get lost even like this... This green-haired idiot's terrible sense of direction was probably beyond saving.

He had no choice but to untie the fishing line, put the rod back into his basket, and finally tuck Wado Ichimonji at his waist before heading toward town alone.

The marketplace was bustling with people. Calls for pedestrians to make way, vegetable sellers' cries, and shoppers haggling over prices rose and fell one after another.

Duen knew the place well. After picking through the stalls, he quickly filled half his basket with vegetables. Just as he was about to buy some fruit, he suddenly heard someone shout, "Something's wrong! A Sea Beast has appeared by the shore!!"

A Sea Beast?

After a brief silence, the crowd erupted into noisy chatter.

"What's going on?"

"We've never heard of Sea Beasts around here..."

"Come on, let's go take a look! If we're late, it might be gone!"

Large groups of people rushed toward the shore. Even the vegetable vendors wanted to join in on the excitement, only reluctantly stopping when they looked back at their stalls, which were too inconvenient to move.

"Hey, hey, do you still want those oranges?"

A fruit stall owner urgently reached out toward Duen's retreating back.

"Stay right here and don't move. I'll come back and buy your oranges!"

Duen turned slightly and waved before following the crowd forward.

What did a Sea Beast look like?

Having lived for a full seventeen years, Duen had never seen one before. He was curious too, no less interested than those villagers who loved excitement and feared no trouble.

Waves over ten meters high rose at the shore. A massive Sea Beast with a brown upper body covered in yellow-white markings and a head resembling an owl's thrashed endlessly in the sea. From time to time, it charged toward the shore as though fighting someone.

The crowd gathered in a safe zone over a hundred meters away from the shoreline, discussing it nonstop.

"Wow, so that's a Sea Beast!"

"The part sticking out of the water is already ten meters tall. Just how huge is the rest of it?"

"That green-haired kid is a student from One-Heart Dojo, right... He's going at that monster with two swords... This is nerve-racking to watch!"

Someone even shouted, "Green-haired kid, if you kill that Sea Beast, I'll pay a hundred thousand Beli for its meat!"

"Excuse me, coming through."

Listening to the endless chatter around him, Duen forcibly pushed through the crowd and headed toward the shore.

"Whose kid is this?"

"Hey, stop pushing!"

"Negative Emotion Points from Jacob +10..."

"Negative Emotion Points from Boro +4..."

"Negative Emotion Points from..."

All told, he gained less than a hundred Negative Emotion Points. Duen squeezed out of the crowd, and his view suddenly opened up.

Zoro stood on the shore, gripping a long sword in each hand as he battled the Sea Owl. His expression was solemn, his brows furrowed deeply, and he looked to be struggling greatly.

Behind him, he protected a girl who looked no older than ten. She sat motionless on the ground, likely scared stiff.

A husband and wife stood weakly twenty meters away from the shoreline. Those twenty meters were like an impassable chasm, impossible to cross. The beach ahead had been gouged into deep trenches by the Sea Owl, radiating a powerful warning—once anyone entered that area, they could very likely suffer a fatal attack!

They were terribly worried about their daughter, but the only thing they could do was pray that Zoro would drive the Sea Beast away.

Under everyone's watchful eyes, Duen walked toward the shore.

"Isn't that Mengde from One-Heart Dojo?"

Duen was a familiar face in town, and quite a few people present recognized him.

At that moment, Zoro leaped into the air. Holding his two long swords parallel before him, he suddenly slashed forward. Two neat bloody cuts instantly appeared on the Sea Owl's skin, flesh flipping outward as it roared in pain and retreated slightly into the waves.

Zoro glanced back from the corner of his eye and said coldly, "You really don't make things easy... Duen, where the hell did you get lost to?"

Duen froze slightly, dumbfounded... How shameless could he be? Since when was it me who got lost?

Quickly recovering his senses, he strode forward, passed the trembling couple, and stepped into the Sea Beast's attack range.

The Sea Owl let out an enraged howl. Its enormous fish tail instantly swept past Zoro and descended from above Duen like a mountain, as though it meant to crush him into pulp!

Though Duen had never faced anything like this before, instincts honed through years of training made him push off with his right foot and swiftly dodge to the left.

The fish tail slammed into the beach, sending countless stones and grains of sand flying!

Duen rushed out of the cloud of sand and gravel, aimed himself, rolled forward, and caught the girl in his arms.

In that instant, an idea flashed through his mind. A sinister smile appeared on his dust-covered face, as though it concealed some kind of scheme.

The girl had already been on the verge of breaking down. Frightened once more, her pupils abruptly dilated, her face turned pale, and she fainted.

Duen did not hesitate any longer. Carrying the girl, he dashed more than ten meters in an instant and tossed her into the couple's arms beneath their astonished gazes.

Even then, Duen still saw no increase in Negative Emotion Points in his mind.

Fear didn't count as Negative Emotion Points... Or was the system's definition of [Negative Emotion Points] extremely narrow...

What a strange setting.

"Nicely done."

Zoro was finally no longer restrained. A cold smile curled across his lips as he charged toward the Sea Owl's tail before it could retract into the sea. He leaped up in an instant, erupting with beast-like strength as his two swords flashed downward with sharp, icy light!

Splat!

The two swords sank deeply into the nearly three-meter-wide tail. Foul-smelling blood erupted like a fountain, spraying everywhere!

But at that moment, Zoro's expression changed. He realized something extremely awkward: after the fierce battle just now, the blades of his swords had begun to curl. They were no longer sharp enough to sever the entire tail!

That miscalculation plunged him into grave danger.

Wracked by intense pain, the Sea Owl erupted with the terrifying power of a cornered beast. Its tail slammed heavily into Zoro's chest, sending him flying!

That blow carried at least several tons of force. Zoro crashed into a rock, blood immediately spilling from the corner of his mouth. His face twisted in pain, and it looked like several ribs in his chest had broken.

At only fifteen years old, his strength was still steadily growing. Whether in skill or experience, he was still somewhat immature.

The crowd erupted in alarm and retreated farther back, afraid of getting caught in the crossfire. At the same time, deep worry appeared on their faces.

Nightmare!

At that moment, Duen sensed something. He drew a deep breath and gripped Wado Ichimonji's hilt with his right hand. Two faint crimson streaks spread in intertwined paths from his palm, densely clinging to the blade like cracks.

"Phantom Mirror!"

He rushed toward the Sea Owl. In an instant, Wado Ichimonji left its sheath!

Wado Ichimonji, wrapped in crimson cracks, slashed forward with a low, cold hum!

There was nothing flashy about this slash. It was no different from the basic sword swing Duen had practiced for seventeen years, yet he felt as if Wado Ichimonji had become an extension of his arm. He swung it as naturally and effortlessly as he pleased.

In that instant, bizarre, dazzling scenes reflected in the Sea Owl's enormous pupil. Its body stiffened, and it made no attempt to evade or dodge.

Shhk!

Wado Ichimonji pierced into the Sea Owl's skull, but Duen did not stop. He sprinted along the Sea Owl's exposed body, and in an instant, the sharp blade severed all the muscles and blood vessels beneath its skin!

Boom!

That enormous head, along with its stiff body, crashed down heavily, kicking up sand and stones. After that, it did not move again, seeming to be dead.

Thick blood dyed that stretch of beach red, only to be swiftly washed clean by the rising tide.

Duen slowly sheathed his sword. Against the accompaniment of crashing waves, his blood-soaked figure exuded the solemn, murderous air of a hero.

Clap clap clap!!

Every onlooker burst into excited applause. The clapping thundered on without end.

"Listen to me."

Duen raised his hand, and only then did the applause stop. Everyone looked curiously at this hero who had defended the village's territorial waters, waiting to hear what he would say.

"With all due respect... everyone here is trash."

Whoosh~~

The sea breeze blew, followed by silence as dead as a grave.

"Negative Emotion Points from Roronoa Zoro +555..."

"Negative Emotion Points from Laurent +78..."

"Negative Emotion Points from Sam +78..."

"Negative Emotion Points from Andy +69..."

"Negative Emotion Points from..."

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