Returning in Triumph

On the training ship, Zephyr let out a sigh of relief when he saw that every single recruit was present.

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

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

That showed he did not advocate killing pirates, instead choosing to let them repent for their sins in Impel Down. Yet even so, Zephyr's family had still been brutally murdered by pirates bent on revenge.

"Instructor Zephyr, the Musket Pirates had thirty-two members. 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. Don't you know that what you did violated Marine regulations? Any pirates captured alive must be sent to Impel Down, not handed over to civilians for their own judgment."

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

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

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

The sudden roar made the other recruits tremble. After spending so long in the training camp, this was the first time they had ever seen Instructor Zephyr this angry.

"Instructor Zephyr, aren't pirates inherently this reckless? The Marines used to follow the regulations, sure, but have pirates ever stopped massacring villages and towns?"

"Putting hope in pirates is ridiculous to begin with."

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

"Big Sister Carl!" "Carl"...

Carl turned back to look at the recruits, signaling for them not to worry, then walked into the room without hesitation.

Inside, Zephyr sat on a stool, quietly smoking a cigar. When he saw Carl enter, he asked softly.

"Tell me. What were you thinking?"

Carl casually pulled over a stool and sat down. Familiar with the place, she took a cigar from Zephyr's drawer and lit it.

"We're in the middle of our internship. Bringing those pirates along would waste both effort and supplies, and there was no way we could 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, so we couldn't afford to wait."

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

Carl snorted, then said with some feeling, "To put it bluntly, they were only fit for the first level of Impel Down. Rather than waste Marine resources, 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 rules."

"We are soldiers! Not pirates!"

Carl nodded innocently, then said, "What about Admiral Akainu? I heard he won't hesitate to kill civilians if it means hunting down pirates. Is that Marine regulation too?"

Zephyr fell silent, his face alternating between green and red.

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

"But don't do this kind of thing so often in the future. Pirates without Devil Fruit abilities are one thing, but don't go around killing ability users."

Because whether it was the first half or the second half of the Grand Line, once a pirate with a Devil Fruit ability died—

Their Devil Fruit would be reborn somewhere in the world. It would be fine if someone who aspired to become a Marine ate it, but if it fell into the hands of a pirate, then killing that pirate would have been for nothing.

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

"Don't worry, Instructor 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 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 to keep arguing with you. You won your first battle, so it's time to celebrate!"

"Got it!"

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

"Hahaha, looking at me, do you think he did? I only violated a few Marine regulations. What's the big deal?"

"Exactly! We just killed pirates. Is killing pirates somehow wrong?"

Before long, Carl was surrounded by the excited recruits and became the center of attention.

"Ding~ Eight hours of slacking off accumulated. Daily mission completed. Reward: Designated Attribute Enhancement Card ×2, Rokushiki Secret Art: Return Life Skill Card ×1, Rokushiki Secret Art: 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. Obtained: Designated Attribute Enhancement Card ×2, Rokushiki Secret Art: Return Life Skill Card ×1, Rokushiki Secret Art: 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 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 needing Advanced Attribute Enhancement Cards!"

"And these Rokushiki secret arts are amazing!"

Neither was a technique she had mastered before. Whether it was the incredibly practical Return Life or the killing move Rokuogan, both were excellent combat techniques.

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

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

With that, only ten Advanced Attribute Enhancement Cards saved for later use and a pile of snacks and miscellaneous items remained in the system space.

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 (Usable)

Other than the Holy Light Fruit's awakening progress, all her other attributes remained unchanged, because the higher an attribute's rating became, the more enhancement cards it required.

Carl was already very satisfied with becoming even a little stronger each day. Compared to the pathetic weakling she had been when she first arrived at Marine Headquarters, she had improved at an astonishing rate.

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