A Triumphant Return

On the Training Ship, Zephyr let out a sigh of relief as he looked over the recruits, all accounted for.

But soon, he frowned. "Carl, where are the pirates?"

Carl's heart skipped a beat. So there was no getting around it after all! After all, Teacher Zephyr had once been known as the "Non-Killing Admiral."

This showed that he did not advocate killing pirates. Instead, he chose to have them repent for their sins in Impel Down. Yet even so, Zephyr's family had still been brutally murdered by pirates who bore grudges against him.

"Teacher Zephyr, there were thirty-two members of the Musket Pirates. Twenty were killed in battle, and twelve were captured alive. But when we left Chunyu Town, I handed them over to the town mayor to deal with."

"By now, they should all be dead."

Hearing Carl say that, Zephyr's frown deepened.

"Carl, you've been a Marine for ten years. Do you not know that this violates Marine regulations? Any pirate captured alive must be sent to Impel Down, not handed over to civilians to deal with as they please."

"Do you know what the other pirates will do to the civilians of Chunyu Town if word gets out and they land on this island?"

After thinking for a moment, Carl replied, "They'll slaughter civilians even more recklessly."

"If you know that, then why did you still do it?!"

The sudden roar made the other recruits tremble. After spending so long in the Training Camp, this was their first time seeing Teacher Zephyr this furious.

"Teacher Zephyr, aren't pirates reckless by nature? The Marines used to follow the regulations, sure, but did that stop pirates from massacring villages and towns?"

"Putting your hopes in pirates is laughable in itself."

Zephyr was rendered speechless. After a long silence, he said to Carl, "You, come with me."

"Brother Carl!" "Carl"...

Carl turned back to the recruits and signaled for them not to worry before walking into the room without hesitation.

Inside, Zephyr sat on a stool, silently smoking a cigar. When he saw Carl enter, he asked in a low voice.

"Tell me. What were you thinking?"

Carl casually pulled up a stool, then expertly took a cigar from Zephyr's drawer and lit it.

"We're still in our internship period. Bringing those pirates along would waste both energy and supplies, and we couldn't possibly wait in Chunyu Town for Impel Down's transport ship."

"The Hunting Knife Pirates are our top priority. The sooner we capture them, the safer the civilians will be. We can't afford to wait."

"Dealing with them on the spot was the best option."

Carl gave a disdainful chuckle, then said somewhat wistfully, "To put it bluntly, they would only amount to the first level of Impel Down. Rather than waste Marine resources on them, they might as well return to the earth and become fertilizer."

"Carl, I'm very dissatisfied with what you did today. The reason the Marines are the Marines is because we have discipline and regulations."

"We are soldiers, not pirates!"

Carl nodded innocently. "Then what about Admiral Akainu? I heard that in order to hunt down pirates, he wouldn't hesitate to kill civilians too. Is that Marine regulation as well?"

This time, Zephyr had nothing to say. His face alternated between green and red.

"Hmph! You silver-tongued brat. Fine, I can't argue with you!"

"But do less of this in the future. Pirates without Devil Fruit powers are one thing, but don't go killing Devil Fruit users recklessly."

Whether it was the first half of the Grand Line or the second, once a pirate with a Devil Fruit power died—

Their Devil Fruit would be reborn somewhere in the world. It would be fine if someone aspiring to become a Marine ate it, but if it fell into the hands of a pirate, then killing that Devil Fruit user would have been pointless.

That was why the Marines generally captured pirates with Devil Fruit powers whenever possible, only choosing to kill them when there was no other choice.

"Don't worry, Teacher Zephyr. I know what I'm doing, so sorry for the trouble!"

"You little brat... sigh."

Zephyr sighed. For some reason, he suddenly thought of his wife and child, who had died beneath pirate blades. That incident had once plunged him into despair, and his former ideals as the Non-Killing Admiral had gradually begun to change.

The principle of always leaving room for mercy clearly did not apply to pirates.

So, regarding Carl's "recklessness," he only scolded her a little and was not truly angry.

"Enough, enough. I can't be bothered arguing with you. You won your first battle, so it's time to celebrate!"

"Sounds good!"

"Carl, Teacher Zephyr didn't give you a hard time, did he?"

"Hahaha, just look at me. Do I seem like I was? I only broke a few Marine regulations. What's the big deal?"

"Yeah! We only killed pirates. Is killing pirates somehow wrong?"

Before long, the excited recruits surrounded Carl, making her the center of attention.

"Ding~ Eight hours of slacking off accumulated. Daily mission completed. Reward: Designated Attribute Enhancement Card ×2, Rokushiki Secret Technique: Return Life Skill Card ×1, Rokushiki Secret Technique: Rokuogan ×1."

"Detected that the host has entered the final stage of Training Camp. Starting today, daily rewards will be doubled, and the probability of rare items appearing in the random reward pool will increase. Please keep working hard, host!"

"Today's daily rewards have been reissued. Received: Designated Attribute Enhancement Card ×2, Rokushiki Secret Technique: Return Life Skill Card ×1, Rokushiki Secret Technique: Rokuogan ×1."

Looking at the four enhancement cards and four skill cards in the system space, Carl could not help blurting out, "Holy shit!" After briefly saying goodbye to the others, she headed straight into her room.

"I've struck it rich! The internship period lasts thirty days. If it doesn't end early, I can get at least another 116 enhancement cards! Maybe I can raise my physique to B-rank without even using Advanced Attribute Enhancement Cards!"

"And these Rokushiki Secret Techniques are amazing!"

These were both techniques she had never mastered before. Whether it was the immensely practical Return Life or the killing move Rokuogan, both were excellent combat techniques.

There was nothing more to say. She used them immediately.

"System, use all four Attribute Enhancement Cards to enhance perception, and use all the skill cards!"

This left only ten Advanced Attribute Enhancement Cards in the system space for emergencies, along with a pile of snacks and miscellaneous items.

Host: Carl

Age: 24

Physique: C

Perception: D

Will: D-

Special Abilities: [Still as a Virgin] [Quick as a Rabbit]

Holy Light Fruit: 9.6% (Awakening Progress)

Active Skill: Frailty (Available)

Other than the Holy Light Fruit's awakening progress, none of her attributes had changed. That was because the higher an attribute's rank became, the more enhancement cards it required.

Carl was already very satisfied with becoming a little stronger every day. Compared to the weakling she had been when she first arrived at Marine Headquarters, her progress now was astonishing.

Next, as long as she successfully awakened Two-Color Haki, Carl's Training Camp career would come to a perfect end.