Vic got up early the next morning and began exercising.
People in the world of One Piece generally had powerful physiques. Vic wanted to see where his body's limits lay first, so he could carry out his plan more effectively.
The results were in: his physique was pretty good. He ran ten kilometers, did frog jumps for one kilometer, two hundred push-ups, and five hundred sit-ups.
All of that was still within his limits. His physique was far stronger than that of an adult on Earth.
After training, Vic went home and took a shower before heading to Rebecca's house for breakfast.
Over breakfast, Vic told the old lady that he wanted to find a job. He couldn't keep eating for free; he needed to contribute to his living expenses.
The old lady thought it over and agreed. She was old and couldn't support Vic forever. He would have to make his own living in the future, so she asked what he had in mind.
Vic planned to find a job delivering milk, so he could run while making deliveries.
That would let him train and earn money at the same time. It would also take up only his mornings, leaving him free to learn other things.
"All right, I'll ask around for you."
The old lady agreed. After all, Vic was only ten and still couldn't do many jobs. Once he finished delivering milk in the mornings, he would have time left to study.
"Vic, rest for a few days and get your strength back first. There's no rush to find work. I'll keep an eye out for you."
The old lady was still a little worried about a ten-year-old child, especially one who had only just lost both his parents.
Vic nodded in agreement. He wasn't in much of a hurry either; he still had some money, after all.
When Vic left the old lady's house, Rebecca came skipping along behind him.
"Vic, what are you going to do today?"
As Vic walked home, Rebecca's soft voice came from behind him.
"I want to buy a weapon and then find somewhere to train. I want to get stronger!"
"I want to come too, so I can see how you train, hehe!"
"Come along if you want. I have something to tell you anyway!"
After getting his money from home, Vic went to the street with Rebecca.
Although the streets had been cleaned up for several days, they were still in ruins, with blackened marks everywhere.
The town was only so big, and even fewer people needed weapons.
Vic came to the only weapons shop on the street, where a middle-aged man was dozing behind the counter.
Vic and Rebecca entered the shop and went straight to the counter.
Vic turned and looked at the weapons on display. There wasn't much variety: bows and arrows, spears, flintlock guns, and naginata. Most were katanas, and he didn't see any broad, long swords with double-edged blades.
Vic turned back and tapped the counter, startling the dozing owner awake.
Seeing two children, the owner was puzzled. He didn't know why children had come to a weapons shop and disturbed his pleasant dreams.
A little annoyed, he said, "Listen, kids, a weapons shop isn't a place for you. Shoo, go play outside. There are weapons everywhere; you might get hurt."
Vic said calmly, "We're here to buy weapons, for ourselves. Could you show us what you have?"
The owner was a little surprised and joked, "Oh? Don't tell me you're buying them to kill pirates, hahaha!"
"That's right. I lost my parents because of the pirates a few days ago. I want revenge," Vic said softly.
The owner froze, his smile fading. "How much money did you bring? This batch of weapons just came in. The old stock was all stolen by those damned pirates."
"I have 300,000 Beli. I want to buy two weapons suited to us. What are our choices?"
Vic reached into his pocket and placed the money on the counter.
Rebecca said in surprise, "One for me too?"
"Yes, I'm buying one for you too. I'll explain in detail later."
Hearing that they had 300,000 Beli, the owner immediately said enthusiastically, "Three hundred thousand Beli can buy two ordinary flintlock guns, two swords of slightly better quality, three ordinary swords..."
As the owner spoke, he went over to the weapon racks and showed them the choices.
Vic had long since decided what he wanted to buy. He was mainly checking the prices.
Vic chose a katana of slightly better quality than an ordinary one. It was 1.3 meters long overall, with a 1.1-meter blade. The upper part of the blade was black and the lower part white, with a tempered pattern. Its guard was a broad cross, much like Yubashiri's.
Rebecca picked a slender double-edged sword in the style of an ancient Chinese sword, though its blade was narrower and longer. The blade was metallic white, and the sword was 1.5 meters long overall, with a 1.3-meter blade. It was very beautiful and suited a girl.
Vic didn't actually like katanas very much. They had evolved from the Chinese Tang hengdao, and a soul from China was naturally more interested in his own country's sword culture.
This world was created by a Japanese person. He doesn't understand our Chinese sword culture. There's nothing I can do about it for now.
I'll have to wait until I have money and find a famous swordsmith to forge one to my liking.
Either way, it's just for practicing the basics. This will have to do for now!
Rebecca, on the other hand, was very pleased with her sword. She held it up and examined it with a smile. Girls really did have a hard time saying no to pretty things.
Once they had made their choices, Vic paid, and the two little ones headed for the door with their weapons. But before they could leave, the owner called out to them.
"Wait here a moment."
With that, he went into a small back room behind the shop.
The two children waited in puzzlement for a while before the owner emerged with a small, dusty booklet. It was clear he hadn't touched it in a long time.
"This is a booklet on kendo basics passed down by a kendo grandmaster I studied under when I was young.
"Everyone at our dojo relied on this booklet for the basics.
"But I had too little talent and accomplished nothing. I couldn't even master the basics of kendo.
"So I could only slink back to this island with the booklet. Later, I opened this weapons shop."
"I just heard you say you wanted to deal with pirates, but pirates aren't so easy to deal with. I'll give you this booklet on kendo basics. Sigh, I hope you two survive!"
The owner also sighed over the state of the world.
Vic took the booklet and flipped through it. It wasn't thick, only a dozen or so pages, and it really did cover the basics of kendo, with no moves or sword techniques.
"Thank you, sir. This is just what we need."
With that, Vic bowed slightly to the owner, then led Rebecca out of the weapons shop and headed south.
After leaving the shop, Vic said nothing and kept heading south.
"Where are you taking me?" Rebecca asked in confusion.
Vic paused, but still said nothing, and then continued forward.
Is it right or wrong to draw Rebecca into this whirlpool? I'll have to ask Rebecca what she thinks in a little while.
He kept thinking as he walked.
Rebecca was confused when Vic didn't answer, but she kept following him, holding her sword.
When they reached the edge of the forest to the south, Vic finally stopped. He found a clearing covered in green grass and sat down cross-legged.
"Rebecca, come sit down."
Once Rebecca sat down, he asked solemnly, "Rebecca, what do you want to do when you grow up? What kind of person do you want to become?"
Rebecca thought for a moment and replied, "I want to become a Marine like my mom and dad, someone who can protect Grandma and everyone else."
"Do you know how dangerous it is to be a Marine? Just like your parents, you could die at any time!" Vic was very direct.
"But that's what I want," Rebecca said seriously. Children in this world matured early.
"Do you know that before the Pirate King was executed, he revealed that he had the One Piece?
"From now on, this world will be even more chaotic. Bloodshed, tears, and killing will continue.
"As the vanguard against pirates, the Marines will always stand at the front and could face death at any time. Think carefully before you answer me!"
Rebecca thought for a moment and looked at the kendo basics booklet on Vic's lap. She picked up her sword, raised it, and said seriously:
"Vic, help me. Help me get stronger!!!"
Vic fell silent for a moment. Since Rebecca had made her choice, his plans from now on would have to include one more person.
"All right, I'll train you and help you get stronger. If you want to become a Marine, you have to get stronger. The weak are just cannon fodder in the Marines. Will you do what I tell you seriously from now on? Can you do that?"
"Yes, I can!" Rebecca said firmly.
"All right, then. I'll speak to your grandmother when we get back. From now on, you'll train according to my plan."
With that, Vic instructed Rebecca to take up a horse stance under the shade of a tree. After correcting her posture, he had her hold her sword horizontally with both hands, her arms raised straight out in front of her.
Vic returned to the grass and sat down, then opened the booklet on kendo basics and began reading.
Vic intended to read through it once to get an understanding before carefully working out how to practice.
But he was startled to find that after reading it once, all dozen or so pages were imprinted in his mind.
I can remember everything I read! My memory was pretty good in my previous life, but nowhere near good enough to remember something after reading it once. Is this a transmigration perk?
He pondered for a while, then thought it might be because he had two souls!
Without anything to compare it to, he couldn't find an answer. But as far as Vic was concerned, it was a good thing. He would be able to learn faster from now on.