Second-Tier Attributes, Joining the Marines

After making arrangements for Loa, Vice Admiral Momonga went to the warship's command room and took out a Den Den Mushi directly connected to Sengoku.

Marine Headquarters, Marineford

Brrr, brrr, brrr. Brrr, brrr, brrr.

Click.

Sengoku picked up the receiver on the Den Den Mushi's back and asked, "Momonga, what is it?"

"It's like this, Fleet Admiral Sengoku. I picked someone up on a deserted island while returning to Marineford."

"Picked someone up?" Sengoku's mouth twitched. Though the movement was subtle, the Den Den Mushi still caught it and faithfully reflected it on Momonga's end. Pretending not to notice, Momonga continued his report. "Yes. On the way back, we encountered the Scissor Pirates. I don't know why they kept following our return route, but we finally forced them ashore today."

Momonga briefly reported the previous battle to Sengoku, then asked for instructions. "As for this person named Loa, should we recruit him into the Marines? Newly emerged pirates have been appearing one after another lately. We need fresh blood."

"However, his seasickness is severe. Extremely severe."

At the end, Momonga solemnly used the words "extremely severe" to describe it.

"Seasickness..." Sengoku sighed. He wanted to offer his opinion, but didn't know what to say. This guy sounded fairly capable, and he could quickly become a fighting force after joining the Marines. But while you might have heard of Marines who couldn't swim, had you ever seen a Marine who got seasick?

Still, it was true that the situation on the seas had become increasingly unstable recently. There were many newly emerged pirates, and they were all fairly strong. What Momonga said did need to be taken seriously. Besides, the Marines had suffered a serious gap in strength over the years. Any potential talent was someone they needed to recruit.

With that in mind, he stopped dwelling on Loa's seasickness. "It can be considered. Ask him what he thinks first, and remember to investigate his background. Oh, and once you return, I have a mission for you. Make preparations. It concerns the Shichibukai."

"The Shichibukai?"

Vice Admiral Momonga repeated the name and clenched his fist. This system, which had existed for over a decade, had always been a thorn in his heart. The mighty Marines actually needed pirates to stabilize the situation on the Grand Line!

He gritted his teeth unwillingly, but soon loosened his fist and answered seriously, "Yes!"

No matter what, he was first and foremost a Marine. A soldier's duty was to obey orders.

After weeks apart, Loa could finally sleep in a real bed. Even if it was just an ordinary Marine room, and the thin blanket could not conceal the hardness of the wooden boards.

But it was still a bed! Not a pile of leaves spread over rocks and dirt!

The ship doctor's medicine was effective. Earlier, he had been so weak he could barely move, but now he only felt slightly nauseous.

Loa rolled around contentedly on the bed, silently called for his cheat, and opened the system panel again.

The familiar interface appeared before him.

Name: Christopher Loa (World Auto-Correction)

Energy Stage: Second Tier, Level Zero

Energy: 0/400

Magic Power: 500/500

Magic Power Recovery Speed: 00/s

The difference between the second tier and the first was obvious. With as much as 500 magic power, Loa could finally use the two most magic-consuming spells in Dragon Slayer Magic: Ice Dragon's Roar and Ice Dragon's Wing Attack. The former's power had already been plain to see.

And beyond the increase in magic power within his body, there was even a new icon on the talent tree. After examining it carefully, Loa had no idea what kind of Dragon Slayer Magic this counted as, but the skill was indeed very useful.

Ice-Make Magic: Uses magic power to give ice a shape, and can also take away the shape of ice.

That was right—this was the magic of a certain secretly exhibitionist man. Though useful, it had no connection to the Dragon Slayer Magic created by Irene Belserion.

"Could it be because my attribute is ice, so I can indirectly learn Ice Make?"

That was the only guess Loa could make. In the world of Fairy Tail, Maker Magic was already the most flexible kind of magic, one entirely dependent on the mage's own ability. Even when passed down between master and disciple, its expression could vary greatly.

Since it was so flexible, an Ice Dragon knowing Ice Make was hardly strange. Loa just wanted to know whether something made with Ice Make could match the power of one of his ordinary claw swipes.

Still, it really was useful! Loa marveled.

During his days on the deserted island, Loa could condense ice with cold air, but that required water. Now, he could directly create ice through magic power, making it much more convenient and swift.

That was also why he could condense ice in midair to use as footholds.

More importantly, the two passive abilities had undergone changes that left Loa both pleased and worried after he entered the second tier.

Dragon Force: /100%. Dragon Force can increase the strength of a Dragon Slayer's Dragon Slayer Magic. However, once it exceeds 0%, the body begins to transform. After exceeding 90%, the Dragon Slayer's body begins to dragonize.

Dragon Body: 18/100%. The degree to which the body gradually adapts to Dragon Force. Increases a Dragon Slayer's overall physical abilities. The adaptation level can be temporarily raised by consuming energy, but the side effects are severe.

Although Dragon Force was the source of a Dragon Slayer's power, its increase was hardly good news. Loa could only hope that an awakening mode like the one in the original story would appear later. He didn't want to become a dragon himself.

Dragon Body was different. The benefits of this ability, which improved a Dragon Slayer's overall qualities, outweighed the drawbacks. At worst, his seasickness would become more severe. Feeling half-dead didn't mean he would actually die.

Wendy was like that a year later in the original story. She had grown stronger, but she had also begun getting seasick. The stronger a Dragon Slayer became, the lower their resistance to transportation.

Night fell.

Knock, knock, knock!

A knock sounded. Half-asleep, Loa opened his eyes and rubbed them.

"Come in!"

Creak.

Although the Marine soldiers maintained it well, the warship's age was undeniable. When the iron cabin door was pulled open, it gave off an unpleasant scraping sound.

Anime characters had one advantage: they basically never changed their look, and sometimes they were too lazy even to change clothes. Vice Admiral Momonga's eye-catching purple mohawk stood out clearly beneath the moonlight.

He entered, first apologized for the cabin's simplicity, then got to the point.

"Mr. Loa, where would you like to go next? I'm sorry, but our next destination is Marineford, and outsiders are not allowed to enter. If you need it, we can dock at the nearest island."

"Marineford... So this timeline is before Akainu became Fleet Admiral?" Loa stroked his chin with interest.

This was the world of One Piece. Because the seas were vast and pirates were as numerous as crossing carp, the Marines were incredibly powerful. Otherwise, they could not suppress those rampant pirates.

And Marineford was the famous Marine Headquarters.

Loa understood Momonga's hidden meaning. On the surface, he was saying that outsiders could not enter Marineford, so Loa would have to disembark at another island. But from another angle, wasn't this also a test to see whether they could recruit him into the Marines?

With that thought, Loa smiled and took the opening. "Is that so? Then, Vice Admiral Momonga, can I join the Marines? You see, I have nowhere to go anyway. I'm alone, with no ties or attachments. If I join the Marines, I can devote myself to my work completely."

With a slight adjustment, that would have been his line when applying for a job after graduation.

Loa's desire to join the Marines was not a spur-of-the-moment decision, but the conclusion he reached after careful consideration.

In the world of One Piece, what ability was the most important? Devil Fruits? No, it was Haki.

Loa could not yet determine whether attacks enhanced with magic power could restrain Devil Fruit users like Armament Haki, but simply learning Haki itself would greatly increase his strength.

This world was far too dangerous. From the manga's plot alone, there were Dragon People who treated human lives as worthless, the tyrannical Drum Kingdom, and the Flamingo and Sand Crocodile who toyed with people's hearts. If he wanted to live brilliantly on these chaotic seas, his half-baked Dragon Slayer Magic alone would not be enough. After all, Loa had not been raised by a dragon girl, and his understanding of magic was limited.

Thus, Loa's purpose in joining the Marines was obvious. He needed a teacher to teach him Haki and improve his combat ability. He was fine when bullying weaker opponents, but if he truly encountered an expert, he would definitely get beaten senseless. Looking across the world of pirates, what organization could possibly be a more suitable choice than the Marines?