Time-Limited Mission

"Doriki Value testing is complete. Everyone, follow me!"

The Doriki Value test ended quickly. Among the new recruits, only three stood out. The first was Carl, who currently had the highest Doriki Value, followed by the two Paramecia users, Ain and Ainz, with scores of 402 and 451 respectively.

Carl regretted revealing that he had the highest score in the entire group. If he had known, he would have just thrown a random punch. Now he had made himself stand out and would very likely receive extra attention. How was he supposed to slack off now?

[Daily Mission Issued]: During daily training, slack off for a cumulative total of 8 hours. Rewards: Designated Attribute Enhancement Card ×2, random bonus rewards ×2.

"What the hell? The training camp's daily rewards have doubled?!" Carl could only sigh. As expected of a career mission!

"Ding! Friendly reminder: The currently bound occupation is Navy soldier. The rewards for career missions and daily missions will increase as the host's rank rises. Please correct your attitude. Slacking off is not the same as giving up!"

That was right. Slacking off was merely a means; becoming stronger was the goal. Carl understood this perfectly. Although Kuzan always looked half-asleep, whenever something happened, he really did step up. That attitude of slacking off when it was time to slack off and handling business when it was time to work was something Carl had to learn from.

Even though Aokiji had maintained this attitude ever since the Ohara incident, Sengoku still admired her greatly when he retired and even recommended her as his successor for Fleet Admiral.

Thinking of this, Carl suddenly remembered the Holy Light Fruit he had just obtained. This fruit seemed especially suited to him!

No, there was no rush. There were too many people around. Even if he was going to eat it, now was not the time.

With complicated feelings, Carl followed the new recruits to the training field. Instructor Zephyr had already been waiting for quite some time. Once everyone had arrived, Zephyr took the roster from Shuzo, casually glanced over it, and set it aside before shouting at them, "Attention!"

"I hereby announce the official start of the twenty-fourth Marine training camp! Dress right, then run fifty laps around this field! Begin now!"

At his command, all the new recruits obediently began running laps around the field. Zephyr took the opportunity to study each recruit's records, occasionally discussing them with Shuzo. When he saw Carl's file, he could not help asking,

"Hm? That boy who was late just now is actually the strongest among this batch of recruits?"

"Yes, Teacher Zephyr. Even I was surprised. This pretty boy—no, this kid—looks frail, but I didn't expect him to be fairly strong."

Zephyr nodded and patted Shuzo on the shoulder. "Keep a close eye on this kid. He still has plenty of untapped potential!"

On the track, Carl ran in the middle of the group with a bitter expression. He swore that he was absolutely slacking off, but his slacking time was not accumulating at all. He was nearly frantic. At this rate, he might not even be able to complete the daily mission. Could it be that he had to fake an illness and evade training for it to count as slacking off?

But that would not work either! This was not military training in Carl's old world. Faking an illness would not be so easy. If he were exposed, given Zephyr's attitude toward Kizaru, his relationship with Zephyr might deteriorate. He could even be expelled from the training camp!

After all, he was not Kizaru. Kizaru was a powerful Logia Devil Fruit user, while he was currently just a Marine soldier with no exceptional talent.

What use did Marine Headquarters have for an ordinary soldier who refused to train hard and only wanted to slack off and avoid training? Not to mention Zephyr, an old-school martial arts expert who placed physical strength above all else.

"Host detected to be facing a slacking dilemma. Timed mission issued: Find the perfect way to evade this training session within ten minutes.

Reward: Active Skill [Frailty]. After use, lifespan -3 days, defense -100%, chance of injury +1000%, and grants immunity to fatal injuries and their aftereffects. Duration: 3 minutes. Note: Can only be used once every three days."

Carl's eyes immediately lit up, and he felt that life had hope again. As expected of the Slacking System—it was so considerate. With this skill, he would have control over his own slacking. It cost him three days of his life, but that was all. Besides, the random rewards often gave him additional days of lifespan.

But the problem was, what method could he use to perfectly evade this training session?

"Tsk, tsk~"

With only ten minutes left, Carl suddenly felt enormous pressure. His gaze began to wander, and before he knew it, he spotted Ain and Ainz up ahead. He had it!

He would choose you, Ain!

Her ability was the Return-Return Fruit. If Carl remembered correctly, it could be used on a person's age. As long as he turned into a child, would Zephyr really have the heart to make a little kid run fifty laps?

Perfect plan! Time to act!

Carl immediately sped up and dashed to Ain's side. He kept his eyes forward, but the corner of his eye remained fixed on her youthful figure. With a smile that showed no teeth, he said, "Hey, Ain! Can you do me a favor?"

Ain, who had been concentrating on running, turned her head and saw Carl winking at her. Her pretty face flushed slightly. Faced with Carl's handsome, sunny smile, she was too shy to meet his gaze and could only pretend to be nonchalant as she replied bashfully, "Mm~ What do you want me to do?"

Yes! Carl cheered inwardly. Being handsome really had its advantages! If he looked like Silver Fox Foxy, he probably would not have stood a chance.

"Ain, I heard you're a Return-Return Fruit user. Can you let me see your ability?"

Ain's brows furrowed slightly, and she said hesitantly, "This, Big Brother Carl... Now?"

"Yes, yes, right now. Try it on me! Don't worry, I'll take full responsibility if anything happens!" Carl thumped his chest loudly, afraid that Ain would not believe him.

How could Ain agree to that? Did she not know what her own ability did? Using it on Carl would definitely turn him into a child. If he were an enemy, that would be one thing, but she absolutely could not do that to a fellow soldier.

"No, no, I can't, Big Brother Carl. I absolutely can't do that!" After saying this, Ain immediately put some distance between them, her attitude extremely firm.

Exasperated by her inability to understand him, Carl slapped himself hard across the face. Damn it, couldn't you have made yourself a little better-looking? Consider this a lesson. If there's a next time, you can forget about face wash for the rest of your life!

Plan A had failed, but that was fine. He still had Plan B!

Carl ran back to Ain's side and whispered, "Ain, let me see your ability. You don't have to use it on me, all right?" His tone carried a hint of pleading, and he looked at Ain pitifully.

Time passed second by second. Ain could no longer endure Carl's pleading gaze and let out a helpless sigh. Under his watchful eyes, she extended her left hand. A deep pink glow emerged from her palm, flickering like flames, mysterious and eerie.

Now!

A sharp glint flashed through Carl's eyes. His right hand shot out with incredible speed, seized Ain's left hand, and clung tightly to it. His body immediately began to change. The collision scheme was a success!

"What?!" Ain covered her mouth, completely stunned by Carl's move. But she reacted quickly and immediately withdrew her power. However, her ability took effect the moment contact was made, so withdrawing it now was already too late.

Carl, now a fourteen-year-old boy, tripped over his own trousers and fell to the ground. The Marine behind him failed to dodge in time and was tripped by Carl. One after another, the recruits fell, and the commotion on the field quickly attracted Zephyr's attention. After ordering the recruits to stop running, he dashed over to Carl.

Zephyr frowned deeply as he looked at the comical boy hiding himself behind his oversized clothes. In a deep voice, he asked, "What happened?"

"Reporting to the instructor, I asked Ain to demonstrate her ability just now. Out of curiosity, I touched her, and then I ended up like this..."

"What ridiculous behavior!!! You're here for training, not to play house! Ain, do you think being a Devil Fruit user makes you so impressive? Did you really have to show off in front of your fellow soldiers?"

"I, I... It was my fault, Instructor Zephyr!" Ain wanted to say something, but under Zephyr's glare, she lowered her head dejectedly and admitted her mistake, taking the blame for Carl.

"Hmph! What are you all looking at? Don't you need to train? Get back to running!"

"You two, come with me!"

Zephyr left in a fury. Carl lowered his voice and said to Ain, "I'm sorry. I'll make it up to you later!"