The Pirate Kingdom Gambit
Guerrilla plan for the Pirate Kingdom. An unpredictable operation where fast-footed Hyacinth and Kidd would rescue the hostages while Mortis and I drew attention. No matter how many pirates there were, I didn't think we'd lose. The only thing nagging at me was Hornigold's presence. In these waters, his invincible fleet was strong, and his pirates were strong too. But in the end, the being that matched all that strength was Hornigold himself.
I've got to bet it all on these 8 tickets right here.
Picking Needle in Desert LV.3
- If it's you, you can do it in one go!
- You won't ever lose items.
- Retrieve dropped items immediately.
I tore the ticket without hesitation. Honestly, Constellation Tickets lost more than they gained. With 8 of them, sure, something good might come out, but if they spat out skills too overwhelming to handle even with 2 reroll tickets? I'd collapse before the fight even started. Plus, a few more and I could grab three more abilities, so long-term thinking was better. My only resolve was to stake it all on this rank-up ticket.
Retrieve dropped items right away? Then I could throw weapons and recover them instantly? This was good—for hurling greatswords or whatever, and even if I fell into water like before, I could fish myself out. Of course, I'd have to judge the situation carefully when picking up.
Shapeshifter LV.3
- Transform into an 8m giant hamster.
8 meters? How huge is that? A giant hamster the size of a building? If I accidentally transformed, my party might get crushed. But against something massive like a giant knight, it could be perfect. Just the ability to get that big was an advantage. Heck, maybe I could win by rolling around.
Metal Mimic (Chamber Pot) Summon LV.2
- Summons a chamber pot-shaped metal mimic!
- It's chamber pot-shaped, but if left with contents for a day, it chases and eats the user!
- Becomes more vicious.
More vicious? What did that mean—did it move and attack on its own? I summoned it, and sure enough, arms sprouted from the sides of the chamber pot. It flailed them like it wanted to grab something to fill itself, so I pretended not to see and unsummoned it quietly. Why... give back my cute(?) chamber pot.
Still 5 left—no giving up hope yet.
Flesh Creation LV.2
- Creates fruit using you as fertilizer.
- Made from your body's components.
- No wounds occur.
- Greater efficacy.
Riko would love this—it's an elixir fruit, so better effects mean it boosts party stats. Long-term, super useful. If the World Tree fruits got stronger as I grew...? No need to push hard; sip elixirs and grow steadily. Lately, everything dragged me into big incidents, so a growth booster was welcome.
Hero Appears! LV.2
- Dramatic transformation/entrance plays flashy music for 1:30.
- Grants N% stat bonus proportional to the situation.
- Counts as bard buff; does not stack.
- ON/OFF toggleable.
- Activates on ultimate move use too.
This was straight out of a tokusatsu show. But I didn't have an ultimate move...? Someday maybe. If two musics overlapped, double buff? It didn't stack with bard buffs, but this was separate. Dramatic entrance into flashy finisher... In a frilly princess dress, kids would go wild. And the pervy followers would boost my faith. Oh, now I had sky gods too? Kinda creepy.
Chicken Summon LV.3
- Fried chicken of choice from hand.
- More chicken varieties possible.
Rawk—! Where did fried chicken end?! I could now summon every chicken in existence. Traffic light chicken appeared too. Gnawing a fruity drumstick, I sighed—open a restaurant, make bank.
Down to 2 rank-up tickets. Only 2 useful for the immediate crisis... Not bad odds. 50% even!
Plant Conversation LV.2
- Converse with intelligent plants.
- You are a plant.
- Converse with non-intelligent plants.
Hm... not bad... I'd really be the Forest Maou. Lost in woods? Even mute trees would talk to me.
One ticket left. Was this okay? Did my prayers fall short? Please, strong skill...! Something to turn this around! Focus on my mains—Bopal Weapon or Spirit Sword!!
"Here goes!!"
I tore the ticket with a shout, light exploding.
Abyss of Hatred LV.2
- Gain power equal to lives opponent has killed.
- Stronger with victims' intense grudges and hatred.
- Easier to lose mind to strong victims' spirits.
- Mental resistance greatly reduced.
- Higher mental strength boosts resistance.
- Lower activation threshold.
Lower threshold...? Easier to activate constantly? Ultimately, anytime use? Not sure... but definitely strong—no complaints. Would I get stuck in Maou mode...? I asked for strong, got strong. But couldn't use it. No clue how low the threshold was. If usable on Pirate King Hornigold, fight over—we'd win. In the end, 8 rank-up tickets ended in future growth.
Back home, open a chicken shop, catch a breath. At this point, no one beats me in fried chicken.
Good thing Forest skill hit MAX. If another maxed? Chicken Maou? No thanks. Ethanol Maou? Nah. One more succubus pheromone level? Succubus Maou? Chills and cold sweat hit.
"Results good, bro?"
"We can eat tasty chicken now."
"Nice."
I summoned all my fave chickens: cheese, spicy, roasted smoked—anything. Mint chicken had Hyacinth staring like world-ending horror, grossed out.
Gave Circe a Flesh Creation LV.2 fruit for review; one bite, she bounced happily, munching away.
"Looks tasty—can I?"
"Master rank or die."
"For real...?"
Kidd munched warm chicken wordlessly. Crispy fresh-fried, juicy—sailor's life expression.
Now bone-in too, but where'd bones come from? Kidd and Hyacinth crunched for nutrition; Mortis lazily pulverized bones whole.
Chicken fatigue? Whole oven roast, swapped to A++ beef equivalent, grilled.
Cheat skills nonstop.
Water on demand too. Maybe last meal, so everyone stuffed regret-free. Rested till fast-approaching Pirate Kingdom.
"I see it."
Kidd's telescope call; all stood. Cradling dozing Circe, I saw massive black pillar propping island. Motion mysterious—even peeking inside sea, unknowable. Natural cliffs wrapped, mithril-plated outside. One entrance; bottom stone-wrapped—force way in, obvious. Guerrilla op hit snag pre-start. Nautilus too big for outlet rapids hole; not swimmable for humans. Forced to hurl sub inside.
Invisibility magic on, clung underside fast—we infiltrated Pirate Kingdom.
"Not spotted...?"
Hyacinth's worry passed uneventfully. Entry success.
Inner sea: skull piles. Slaves thrown in—thrashing alive, dead, leg-stoned sinking. Amid brutality, Nautilus past corpse-eating fish, deep spot secured.
Circe cast underwater breathing; left her, four swam quietly to shore.
Deep night. Moon cloud-hidden darkness; four moved to kingdom walls.