March 3, 1497, Age of the Sea Circle
"Hi-yah!"
"Hi-yah!"
"Hi-yah!"
On the martial arts training ground, about 100 children were violently punching in the air, maintaining a rigid combat stance.
Among them, one in particular stood out, as his supernatural strength overshadowed the movements of all the other children present.
This person, of course, was Orion, who was training hard to become an agent of Cipher Pol.
It had been 30 days since he had begun his training, and he had to admit that the methods used by the world government were quite effective.
In just this month, he had greatly increased his hand-to-hand combat level, and while it hadn't been enough to raise his skill level on the system screen, he was now much stronger than he had been during his battle with Blake.
Finally, the period of practicing combat stances and strikes ended, and the sparring began.
Orion looked around, looking for someone to fight, but the other children avoided his gaze, afraid that Orion would choose them as partners.
For the past month, he had beaten them up daily, and the other children no longer wanted to approach him during combat practice.
Orion sighed. It was obvious that these children's level wasn't on par with his own. These children were the new recruits, and they were all quite weak. Although they had potential, most of them weren't strong enough to engage in combat with even one of the pirate crews that had attacked Pacific Town multiple times.
Orion, who had been able to single-handedly wipe out over 300 pirates from one of the strongest crews in the South Blue, was on a completely different level.
Orion checked his combat skills on the system screen.
*
Swordsmanship (Level 3)
Close Combat (Level 1)
Moonwalk (Geppo) (Level 1)
Steel Skin (Level 1)
Strong Body (Level 5)
Observation Haki (Level 0)
*
These were all skills that directly influenced his combat power, and he was quite pleased with his progress so far in this world. After all, he had only been here for seven years!
If it weren't for his teacher Roger telling him stories about monstrous existences like Kaidou or Charlotte Linlin, he would probably believe he was one of the strongest children in the world!
Luckily for him, however, he was no longer as ignorant as he had been when he had first arrived in this world, and he knew that this world was filled with monstrous and exaggerated existences. He could only be considered above average, at most.
Orion looked at his latest acquired combat skill and smiled contentedly.
During the battle against Blake and his crew's vice-captain, Vince, he had been on the verge of death, and it was in the midst of that intense battle that his Haki finally awakened.
Although it was the most rudimentary state of the ability, and he was still far from being able to control his Observation Haki, he was very happy to have finally joined the ranks of those who could use Haki in this world.
"Orion! Come here!" shouted one of the instructors.
He answered her call and immediately approached. Before he could say a word, the instructor gave him a piece of paper and said,
"This is your new training routine. Starting today, you will be transferred to the advanced group. You may leave."
Orion's eyes lit up upon hearing the instructor's words.
He had been training here for a month, and they had finally transferred him to the advanced group.
This was something he'd been waiting for a long time, not only because his training in the new recruit group wasn't as effective as in the advanced group, but also because that was where all the Named Characters were!
During this month, Orion had discovered, to his bitterness, that this island was divided into several parts.
The part he was currently on was something like the "rookie village" in video games, and he didn't have access to many things.
However, now that he had been promoted to a higher rank, he could finally make contact with the Named Characters and put his plans for a future escape into motion.
Orion happily walked to his room, gathered his few belongings, and headed toward the boundary between the area he was in and the advanced area.
Now that he had been promoted, he would obviously be assigned a new room in the other area.
The guards let him pass without any problems after verifying his identity, and Orion walked steadily toward his new home.
The location of his new room was similar to the rookie area, a large, multi-bedroom area where all future Cipher Pol agents lived.
Orion found his room and opened the door without thinking much about it. However, upon looking inside, he found someone there.
In the center of the room, there was a pink-haired girl lying in a hammock reading a book. Wrapped around her neck was a big snake wearing a funny hat and with a strange, almost human expression.
The girl heard the front door open and looked away from her book to focus on Orion, who was staring at her in surprise from a distance.
"Are you my new roommate? Nice to meet you, my name is Gloriosa, and this little girl is Yara, my companion" the girl said, jumping out of the hammock with great dexterity and appearing next to Orion in an instant. The snake coiled around the girl's body made a strange sound, as if it was trying to communicate with Orion, just like she did
Orion came to and extended his hand, intending to shake her hand. But Gloriosa, seeing the outstretched hand, thought Orion wanted to give her a high five, and energetically hit his hand with her own.
"I see you're quite relaxed, that pleases me. On this island, everyone is so serious all the time, it's a bit tiring," Gloriosa sighed, then added,
"But what's your name? Don't you know it's rude not to introduce yourself?"
Orion was amazed by the energetic girl, who talked nonstop, and thought that since he'd arrived on this island where agents were trained for Cipher Pol, this was probably the first time he'd had such a long conversation with someone.
It was true that everyone on Guanhao was a bit taciturn, or at least that was the case in the new recruits' area. Everyone was desperate to show results and advance on the path to an official position within the agency, and they didn't have time for distractions such as interacting with other people.
Furthermore, the same organization encouraged this disconnection between recruits, giving them individual rooms but also offering zero spaces for socializing. The only time the recruits interacted was during training, so it was understandable that there was a distance between them.
However, this didn't seem to be the case in this advanced zone. After all, he had just arrived, and he already had a roommate!
"My name is Orion, nice to meet you, Gloriosa. Nice to meet you, Yara," Orion said in a friendly tone, and his mind involuntarily thought of a figure who had appeared in his master Roger's stories.
Gloriosa. This was the name of a very famous pirate who was on Rocks' crew, along with other monstrous characters, whom he had never encountered, but he could imagine they were Named Characters. After all, such notable people had to play a role in the original story, right?
The Gloriosa in his master's stories was a pink-haired Kuja who had a large snake. Seeing the girl, who was like a mini version of the description Roger had given him, Orion wondered if she was her daughter or perhaps her granddaughter. Or was there no relationship between them?
Orion was deeply curious, but he wouldn't be stupid enough to ask outright when they had only just met. He didn't know this girl, and it was best to be cautious in their interactions. He would be living here with her for some time anyway, so there would be opportunities in the future to inquire more about her past.
"Hey, hey, are you okay?" the girl said, waving her hand in front of Orion's face. Orion immediately snapped out of his thoughts and nodded.
"Yeah, sorry, I was just thinking about something," Orion replied.
"I understand. You probably fell in love with me at first sight. It's partly my fault for being so beautiful, but I have to tell you not to get your hopes up. My partner can only be a very strong man! He has to be at least stronger than me!" The girl replied, crossing her arms and raising her head proudly, as if to say, "You're a commoner, you can only watch me from a distance!"
Orion's eyes trembled involuntarily at the girl's arrogant attitude, and he decided not to remain silent.
On one hand, he wanted to keep a low profile, but on the other, he couldn't tolerate words that tarnished his pride as a man! Being rejected when he didn't even have any intentions toward her was something Orion wouldn't be accused of! His reputation was on the line here!
"Pff! Beautiful? You're just a little brat. Come back in ten years, and perhaps I can consider making you my concubine!" Orion said in a haughty tone.
He had enjoyed incredible nights with Giolla for the past six months; why would he fall in love at first sight with a little girl?! He wasn't a fetishist!
Gloriosa froze, her mouth open in surprise at Orion's words. At first glance, the boy who had come to be her roommate seemed kind and not very rude; she hadn't expected him to respond like that.
However, the surprise didn't last a long time and was quickly replaced by a big smile.
"That's the attitude! If you want to win my heart, you have to at least be mentally strong! Let's have a sparring match! That way, you'll understand the difference in our abilities and accept that you can't win my heart. It's better to realize your limitations as soon as possible and not suffer for many years."
The girl spoke as if she felt sorry for Orion, like he was completely out of touch with reality and didn't know his place in the world.
Orion, on the other hand, heard the girl's words and thought it was rather funny. How arrogant was this girl? She could interpret his words of rejection as an attempt by him to get closer to her.
Orion smiled and said nonchalantly.
"Okay, a sparring match sounds good. I haven't had a good workout in a while."
Orion wasn't lying. For the past month, he had practically trained alone, since the rest of the new recruits were far below his level.
It would be good for him to see what level the recruits in this zone were at.
Gloriosa clapped her hands happily and took his arm, leading him out of the room.
"That's the attitude! Follow me. We can't fight here, but there's a training area nearby," Gloriosa said.
After a few minutes, they arrived at a large training ground, where quite a few people were exercising. Orion looked around curiously and asked Gloriosa about it.
"Is there a training session in progress now?"
Gloriosa shook her head.
"No, these people are training in their free time," the girl said, pointing to the recruits doing all kinds of exercises around her, and added,
"The training here is a little different from the new recruit area. Here we only have two official training sessions per day, and the rest of the time everyone is free to train on their own. Not counting theoretical classes, there's plenty of time in the day for this type of private training."
Orion understood the situation immediately. In this advanced area, people with potential and motivation had already been filtered out. For a person to gain access to this area, they had to reach a certain level, and such strict supervision wasn't necessary. Instead, this area probably prioritized individual autonomy, while allowing them to exploit their personal skills in more specialized ways.
Of course, the general training that all agents were required to complete wasn't neglected, and the intention was to create powerful and versatile individuals, capable of performing a variety of tasks, from espionage to direct combat. Only the way the training was conducted had changed, but not the original intent.
Gloriosa led him to a small platform that was apparently used for sparring and began to stretch her body joyfully. She seemed very happy to be able to fight with him, which Orion found rather curious.
The people around noticed what was happening and looked curiously in the direction of the platform. As soon as they saw Gloriosa standing there with a child they had never seen before, they could only sigh at the girl's perversity and pray for Orion's well-being.
Orion couldn't have known, having just arrived, but Gloriosa had a special status in this area. Her existence was similar to Orion's in the new recruits' zone: she was completely invincible, and no one wanted to train with her!
Now, she'd finally found someone stupid enough to face her. Just by looking at the smile on the girl's face, her joy was evident.
"Are you ready, Orion? I won't hold back! If you can beat me, I'll accept you as my future husband!" Gloriosa said aggressively with a savage smile, the aura around her having completely changed as she entered "combat mode."
Orion nodded wordlessly, thinking.
"When did I say I wanted to take you as my wife?! Stop putting words in my mouth!"
Gloriosa suddenly disappeared, and Orion was surprised to find he couldn't follow her movements, even with his senses heightened by the buff from her passive ability.
Suddenly, he heard a sound next to him and reflexively covered himself.
*Boom!*
The sound of Gloriosa's leg hitting Orion's guard echoed like thunder, and he flew at high speed, suffering from her beastly strength.
Gloriosa laughed joyfully and used Geppo to immediately catch up with Orion, who was flying without being able to stabilize himself.
She pressed him down on the ground and sat on his stomach, riding him. Then, she began raining down blows on Orion's body, and most surprising of all, her fists were imbued with Armament Haki!
"Duck!" Orion shouted in his mind.
Clearly, Gloriosa's strength was far superior to his; at least he couldn't use Armament Haki yet!
Either way, Orion wouldn't admit defeat so easily. He had to at least fight with all his might, or his pride would crumble!
Orion activated his precarious use of Observation Haki and dodged several of Gloriosa's attacks. Gloriosa was quite surprised to see that Orion could offer minimal resistance, and her attacks became even more aggressive.
Orion dodged her punch and, using his superhuman strength, managed to turn around and pin the girl to the ground, reversing the battle.
Gloriosa was completely surprised to find herself on the ground, and she took Orion's blows without resistance.
The girl felt the pain of the heavy blows, which, thanks to Orion's accumulated buffs, were like hammers, and she immediately panicked and coated her vulnerable points with Armament Haki.
She could use Haki, but she was only 10 years old, and her control wasn't perfect, so several weak points remained in her defense, which Orion accurately exploited.
Gloriosa was much stronger than him, but that was mostly due to her ability to use Haki. She could also use four of the six body techniques taught on this island, although she hadn't been able to fully demonstrate her power before accidentally ending up in a passive position against Orion.
Even though Orion couldn't use Armament Haki, the power of the buffs granted by his two passive abilities shouldn't be underestimated. Especially in this place where the recruits were all children and teenagers.
Perhaps in the future, when he had to fight the most powerful people in the world, his enhanced physical abilities wouldn't be of much use, and he'd have to use Haki if he wanted to stand a chance, but this wasn't the case now; his superhuman physical abilities still played a crucial role in battles of this level!
Gloriosa felt the pain of the blows landing on the unprotected areas of her body, and her smile faded. Tears began to well up in her eyes, and her expression was that of someone who had been wronged.
Clearly, this was a sparring match where both sides were competing, but she had hoped to suppress Orion harshly and teach him his place in the world as she had always done with all her rivals... except for her older sister Stussy.
However, now he found himself on the ground, struggling to withstand Orion's attacks!
The recruits around them stared at the situation unfolding on the platform in great shock. Never in a million years would they have expected that the arrogant Gloriosa would be pinned to the ground and beaten!
The looks they gave the boy, who seemed to be a newcomer, began to change; evidently, another monster had appeared to torment them.
In the distance, two instructors were watching the sparring with interest, talking among themselves about the situation.
Although this area offered much more freedom of movement and autonomy for the recruits, the place was swarming with even more instructors than the rookie area. These instructors usually observed and reported on the recruits and their daily activities, and then offered advice or gave pointers on areas for improvement.
Orion didn't lessen the intensity of his attacks, knowing that if he gave Gloriosa a chance to regain her composure, she could turn the tables with her use of Armament Haki. The best thing for him would be to get her to admit defeat as soon as possible.
Suddenly, a shadow crossed the platform where the fight was taking place at high speed.
It was Yara, Gloriosa's snake companion, who violently crashed into Orion's body, tearing him away from her master.
Gloriosa was finally able to escape Orion's suppression and stood up, angry and indignant. Her cheeks were flushed, and her chest heaved violently from her labored breathing.
Yara climbed onto her neck, and she took it in her hands, transforming it into a bow. She then drew an arrow and prepared to attack.
Orion saw the snake being used as a bow, and knew that Gloriosa was definitely a Kuja. If he had any remaining doubts, they were now completely dispelled. Only Kujas used this peculiar attack technique!
Orion knew that arrow was likely imbued with Armament Haki, and he didn't hesitate to draw his camouflaged cutlass Ace
However, before the battle could get more serious, one of the instructors watching from a distance appeared on the platform and stopped the sparring. If he let them continue, there was a good chance these two highly talented recruits would end up seriously injured for no reason.
Gloriosa wanted to continue fighting, but she couldn't oppose the instructor's words, so she simply turned and left, huffing angrily.
Orion shook his head with a smile and followed her. They were roommates, so it was impossible to avoid her.
A boy, who was poking holes in a large rock with his index finger, saw the backs of the two recruits retreating in the same direction, and a dangerous glint appeared in his eyes. It was like the look of a wild beast when it saw its prey. Something inside him was restless after seeing the battle between the two children.
Gloriosa entered the house and slammed the door shut in Orion's face, who was coming up behind her.
Orion simply shook his head, thinking this girl was very temperamental. He hoped she wouldn't be angry for long, otherwise it would be quite uncomfortable living in the same place, even if they weren't spending much time in the house.
He opened the door and saw Gloriosa lying in the hammock, pretending to read a book, even though it was clearly upside down.
Orion said nothing. He grabbed his things that were by the door and decided to just let her cool off on her own.
However, before he could enter her room, the girl's irritated voice echoed.
"Aaaargggh! Aren't you going to say anything? Yes, I lost! Are you going to pretend nothing happened?"
Orion raised his eyebrows in surprise, but before he could answer, the girl continued her monologue.
"Fine! If you want it so much, I'll accept you as my future husband! But you have to keep training and get even stronger! You can't be complacent!" Gloriosa said, her cheeks flushed.
Orion heard the words of the girl who was acting all flustered, and said in his mind:
"Duck! When did I say I wanted you to be my wife?!"
His life with Gloriosa, his future wife, had officially begun.