One Piece: I Loaded a Game Panel

But in the end, he decided against it.

The execution in Loguetown marked the end of a legend and the beginning of a new era. It had inspired generations of pirates and carried the dreams of countless One Piece fans. It should remain pure and untainted. It deserved that much.

Most importantly!

This book was "One Piece: I Loaded the Game Panel"!

Not "Becoming the Mastermind Behind One Piece"!

And definitely not "One Piece: Signing In at Roger's Execution"!

Those readers dreaming of swooping in to claim Roger's kill could forget about it and go to bed.

A triangular arch rose above Loguetown's harbor, bearing the words "LOGUE TOWN." Shops of every kind lined the surrounding streets, with broad covered walkways in front. The streets teemed with people.

After leaving the harbor and entering Loguetown proper, Adrian saw Marine Base soldiers in neat uniforms patrolling the streets at regular intervals.

Leading them was a vaguely familiar red-haired female officer. She wore a mohawk-like hairstyle rarely seen on women, and her crisp white Marine uniform gave her a fierce, capable air.

"She looks like..." Adrian searched his memory, then glanced uncertainly at the woman barking orders at the Marines under her command. "Bellemere? Nami's adoptive mother?"

Adrian hadn't expected to encounter the first character he recognized from the original story so soon after entering Loguetown.

Bellemere hadn't left much of an impression. She had mostly appeared in flashbacks, and she was better known as Nami's adoptive mother than as a retired Marine.

"Bellemere served in Loguetown? I don't remember that... And Nami hasn't even been born yet, has she...?"

Adrian shook his head slightly. He had no intention of going over to chat with Bellemere.

A hot-tempered Marine woman like her wasn't his type at all. She would only take flirting for lechery, and where was the fun in that?

Following the crowd, Adrian left the patrolling Marines behind and slowly reached a large building resembling a town hall. Before it lay Loguetown's largest square, also its busiest spot.

Several middle-aged men dressed as craftsmen were busy erecting a rather crude Execution Platform. In a few days, the Pirate King who had conquered the Grand Line would be put to death upon it.

After leaving the square, Adrian wandered aimlessly through Loguetown.

"One double scoop of chocolate and almond ice cream!"

Adrian bought an ice cream from a roadside shop, intending to eat it as he walked.

He had barely taken two bites when he noticed a weapons shop nearby.

"How did I forget about this...?"

Holding his double-scoop ice cream in a crisp cone, Adrian walked into the weapons shop called Ippon Sword Shop.

"Ah! Welcome, customer!"

Behind the counter, the young proprietor, whose hairline had already receded noticeably, greeted him with enthusiasm.

"I'm Ipponmatsu, the owner of this weapons shop. What can I help you find?"

Another character from the original story, Adrian thought as he sized up the owner.

But Ipponmatsu... What kind of name is that? Does he have a younger brother called Ippon Tight? A father called Ippon Righteous?

Oblivious to Adrian's mockery, Ipponmatsu continued his enthusiastic pitch, sprinkling it with plenty of self-praise. "I guarantee the weapons at Ippon Sword Shop are the best in Loguetown! No other shop would dare make that promise! Whatever kind of weapon you want, I have it!"

Adrian named a weapon whose title was quite a mouthful. "I'd like to buy, um, an Armstrong Cyclone Jet Armstrong Cannon."

"What?"

"You don't have one?" Adrian thought for a moment. "Do you sell Jedi lightsabers?"

"Huh?"

"Not those either? What about a ship-slicing sword?"

"Eh?"

"What kind of weapons shop doesn't have anything?"

"Then ask for a real weapon, you rude customer!"

The young proprietor was about one provocation away from drawing a sword and attacking him, despite being on the verge of acquiring a vast bald patch. Adrian cleared his throat and put on a serious face. "All right, I really am here to buy a sword. A Twelve Supreme Grade Blade..."

Ipponmatsu's eyes bulged, his nostrils flared, and his teeth clenched as he breathed heavily through them.

"I know a little shop like yours wouldn't have one. A Twenty-One Great Grade Sword..."

Ipponmatsu had just relaxed his shoulders when he sat bolt upright again, his anger returning.

"Not expecting one of those either."

Adrian was deliberately dragging out his words.

Ipponmatsu was close to tears. What had he done to deserve this customer?

"Do you have any of the Skillful Grade Swords?" Adrian finally got to the point. "This is Loguetown in the East Blue, Pirate King Roger's hometown, and yours is its best weapons shop. Surely you have at least one Skillful Grade Sword for sale?"

Adrian was after the two Skillful Grade Swords that were still fairly rare across the seas.

The cursed sword Sandai Kitetsu, and the Skillful Grade Sword Yubashiri!

As for what Zoro would do later if Adrian took both swords first...

Come on. Would the second-in-command of the main crew ever lack luck or resources?

At Adrian's words, Ipponmatsu's eyes darted around. His nose reddened, and he put on a pitiful expression. "Sir, how could a little East Blue shop like mine have one of the legendary Skillful Grade Swords?"

Adrian folded his arms and exposed him without mercy. "Funny. I heard somewhere that besides the cursed sword Sandai Kitetsu, you have Yubashiri as your shop's prized possession. That makes two Skillful Grade Swords!"

"Sandai Kitetsu?" Ipponmatsu froze, genuinely surprised. "How come I don't know about that?"

Hm?

Adrian raised an eyebrow. The owner didn't seem to be lying. Had Sandai Kitetsu only found its way to Loguetown later?

It didn't matter. Adrian practiced neither Three-Sword Style nor Two-Sword Style. One Skillful Grade Sword was enough for him.

"So you're saying your shop really doesn't have Sandai Kitetsu?"

"Absolutely not! I know every sword in my shop. How could I overlook one so legendary?" Ipponmatsu declared. "There is absolutely no Sandai Kitetsu here. If there is, I'll eat it on the spot!"

Adrian said calmly, "If you don't have Sandai Kitetsu, surely Yubashiri isn't made up too?"

Ipponmatsu's face fell. At last, he realized the flaw in what he had said.

By insisting only that he didn't have Sandai Kitetsu, hadn't he practically confirmed that he did have Yubashiri?

With a sigh, Ipponmatsu turned solemn. "Sir, Yubashiri is the prized possession of Ippon Sword Shop!"

"One million Beli."

Seeing that Ipponmatsu was willing to negotiate, Adrian named his price without hesitation.

One million Beli was the average price for a Skillful Grade Sword. Only in competitive settings like auctions would one fetch slightly more than the market rate.

Twenty-One Great Grade Swords, meanwhile, started at a market price of ten million Beli.

As for the Twelve Supreme Grade Blades, some had been lost for ages, while the rest were largely in the hands of legendary powers at the pinnacle of the world.

Wanted one?

He might as well go to bed and dream. Anything was possible there.

The offer of one million Beli didn't move Ipponmatsu in the slightest. He spoke one word at a time. "Sir, you may not know this, but when my father passed Yubashiri down to me, he made a point of saying that this Famous Sword had been handed down through the Ippon family for generations."

Adrian found it amusing. "A weapons shop owner cares about traditions like that?"

"You misunderstand, sir. My family has treasured this sword for generations. It means more to me than I can say...

"So...

"You'll have to pay more!"

After some friendly negotiations, Ipponmatsu sold the Skillful Grade Sword Yubashiri to Adrian for 1.43 million Beli.

Why such an oddly specific figure...?

Because Adrian had also sold Ipponmatsu the long sword that had been hanging at his waist for seventy thousand Beli. "Sold" might have been a generous description.

After accepting a considerable sum of Beli, Ipponmatsu muttered, "...What about a tip?"

Ahem. Ipponmatsu said nothing.

He merely turned and went into the room at the back of the shop. A moment later, he returned carrying a wooden box wrapped in black cloth. Inside, a long sword lay undisturbed.

Adrian took hold of Yubashiri's exquisite black lacquered scabbard. He pressed the guard forward with his thumb, then drew the blade with his other hand.

The long sword had a simple design. Its black-lacquered blade was nearly straight, with only a slight curve, and bore a small irregular clove pattern along its edge.

"Good sword!"

Adrian voiced his admiration.

"Of course! Yubashiri is... Hey, wait, sir! At least hear Yubashiri's story before you leave! You rude man!"

On the streets of Loguetown.

Adrian looked Yubashiri over from every angle, utterly pleased. It was the first Skillful Grade Sword he had ever acquired. How could he not be pleased?

"Hm? Tao Ya, what are you doing in Loguetown too?"

Glossy pink heels adorned her feet. Black stockings sheathed her long legs, the pale skin beneath faintly visible. Black denim shorts traced a breathtaking curve, and above that...

"Tao Ya, your gaze is as bold as ever~"

A somewhat helpless look appeared on Gion's dignified yet alluring face.

"Ah, ah, ah..." Adrian blinked and stammered, "I-I feel like my b-brain is... t-trembling..."

Gion blinked twice herself. "Tao Ya, what are you talking about?"

Adrian dropped the exaggerated expression, gazed deeply into Gion's eyes, and said with utmost sincerity, "I'm just expressing how happy I am to see Miss Tao Zhi again."

"How happy?"

"My oo stirred."

"?"

"Ahem. I mean I want to whip out the short sword hidden at my waist!"

An inexplicable delight colored Gion's voice, and an unreadable light gleamed in her captivating red eyes. "It's been a while, Tao Ya, but your personality is still as awful as ever~"

The awkwardness between them vanished completely after only a few joking exchanges.

Adrian smiled faintly. "I'm sorry, but even now, my thoughts about Miss Tao Zhi remain indecent."

Gion turned, and Adrian quickened his pace to walk shoulder to shoulder with her.

"By the way, what brings Miss Tao Zhi to Loguetown?"

Gion seemed surprised. "Isn't that what I just asked you, Mr. Tao Ya?"

"Sorry. My eyes beheld something so beautiful that my ears stopped working for a moment."

"And now?"

"With my head full of oo, I can't give you a precise answer."

"I won't fuss over something as minor as being the object of a younger man's fantasies."

Though Gion had swiftly delivered a reply brimming with the charm of an older woman, a close look would have revealed her ears slowly turning a delicate pink.

And here I thought Momousagi Gion really was a mature, elegant, voluptuous older woman. Who knew she had the heart of an innocent girl...?

And once he saw her that way...

Adrian grew even more excited!

Just as he was about to press further, Gion hurriedly changed the subject, seizing on the first thing that came to mind.

"Tao Ya, I've heard rumors about you lately~"

"Rumors?"

"About what you did on... Oatfee Island... You destroyed the Capone Gang, which had dominated the West Blue underworld for years, and uprooted its entire operation."