[Cover Story Serial: "Daughters Arc — 'Ugh! Why am I the only one who has to train?!'"]
"Two hundred thirty-six… two hundred thirty-seven… two hundred thirty-eight…"
In the vast courtyard, Chisio was leisurely sipping black tea under a sun umbrella, while Ace was on the ground, panting heavily as he did push-ups. The little guy gritted his teeth, occasionally turning his head unwillingly to look into the distance at Nojiko and Nami sisters, who were happily swinging on the swings…
...
A pigeon?
He'd been knocked flying by a pigeon?!
Was this… an illusion?
As Rob Lucci stared at the white bird, the human-like disdain and mockery in its gaze made his fists clench tight. Rage surged within him, burning away the brief flicker of shock.
"Get lost!"
He lunged forward again, channeling all his strength into his finger.
"Shigan! (Finger Pistol!)"
Ssst!
The attack shot out faster than lightning — its power easily enough to pierce through steel plates.
But then—
Crack!
Lucci's eyes widened in disbelief as his own finger snapped. The white pigeon casually flapped its wings… and slapped him across the face.
BOOM!
The boy in the black suit was blasted backward, crashing into the heavy iron door and leaving a deep dent. Blood sprayed from his mouth; his cheek swelled grotesquely, turning him into a pig-headed mess.
Th-this… how—how is that possible?!
For a long moment, everyone — not only Rob Lucci, but also the five hundred imprisoned soldiers — stood frozen, unable to believe what they'd just witnessed.
Then—
"You just said… that weakness is a sin. That soldiers who fail to defend their homeland don't deserve to live."
A calm but cold voice echoed from above.
"Then let me ask you this — a government agent who can't even beat a pigeon… according to your so-called 'Justice,' shouldn't you gut yourself in shame right about now?"
Startled, the soldiers instinctively looked up. Their eyes widened — the corrugated steel roof had been peeled open by a single hand.
And through that gap dropped a tall figure draped in a white cloak of Justice.
Moonlight streamed down through the hole, illuminating a face so strikingly handsome it almost didn't seem real — though now, his expression was icy cold.
For a second, the soldiers just stared, dumbfounded.
So handsome…! Does someone this beautiful really exist in the world?
Coo coo~
The pigeon — Little Luo — chirped gleefully, circling once before landing on Nao's shoulder.
"Cough… cough, cough…"
The black-suited boy clutched his chest, wheezing violently as he struggled to look up at the man before him. He gritted his teeth.
"Marine…? Do you even know what you're doing? I'm an agent of the World Governme—"
"Oh? Pulling rank again already?"
Before he could finish, Nao grabbed him by the collar and lifted him effortlessly, smiling coldly.
"I might have respected you if you'd at least stood by your words. But now…"
THUD!
Like tossing out garbage, Nao hurled him aside. Lucci smashed into the wall several meters away — the impact so violent the entire section collapsed.
He slid weakly to the ground, pain tearing through his ribs and abdomen. A few of his bones had definitely broken. His body convulsed uncontrollably — he could barely even move.
What kind of monstrous power is this…? Lucci's pupils trembled. He couldn't even react, let alone resist. Who the hell is this guy…?
"Hey! What's going on in there?!"
The heavy iron door suddenly creaked open again. A handful of pirates guarding the entrance stormed in, rifles in hand, shouting angrily:
"Didn't we tell you to stay quiet?! What's with all that noise—huh… huh… huh…?"
Their voices faltered mid-sentence — because in the shadow of the doorway, Nao was standing there silently, head lowered, his sharp gaze fixed on them.
For some reason…
The moment their eyes met his gaze, an uncontrollable shiver ran through their bodies — a chill surged up from the soles of their feet.
"Who the hell are you, bastard—"
The pirate captain gritted his teeth, raising his gun. "Everyone, open fire! Take him down first!"
The others snapped out of their daze and instinctively lifted their weapons, pulling the triggers all at once.
But in that instant—
A surge of azure lightning burst forth, leaping across the room and swallowing them whole.
Zzzzt—!
Within barely a second or two, several charred bodies collapsed to the floor, their original forms no longer even recognizable.
"W-what… what kind of power is that…?"
"So strong…"
The soldiers watching swallowed hard, stunned by what they saw. And then, among them, an older veteran—someone who'd clearly seen the world—suddenly froze, eyes widening as realization struck him. With a trembling voice filled with disbelief and joy, he cried out:
"M-My God… you—you're the Marine's White Dragon, Vice Admiral Nao!!"
The others might not have remembered Nao's face, but it was impossible not to know that name.
In an instant, the entire warehouse erupted in cheers — soldiers shouting, hugging one another, tears of relief streaming down their faces.
"It really is Vice Admiral Nao!!"
"This is amazing!"
"We're saved, we're saved! The Karemia Kingdom is saved!"
…
Amidst the roaring cheers, Rob Lucci's eyes held a trace of confusion.
White Dragon Nao?
He'd never heard the name before. Judging from the soldiers' excitement, this man must be some famous figure in the Marines…
Nao noticed the look in his eyes and shook his head slightly.
In his view, Rob Lucci was nothing more than a child who had been brainwashed by the World Government from an early age — his humanity stripped away, molded into nothing but a cold, efficient weapon of darkness and death.
It was no surprise he'd barely ever interacted with the outside world — to the point he didn't even know Nao's name.
Turning away, Nao faced the soldiers.
Seeing his movement, the men quickly fell silent, their cheers fading though excitement and admiration still shone on their faces.
"Since you already know who I am, I won't bother introducing myself," Nao said with a faint smile. He glanced at the collapsed iron door. "We need to focus. That little lesson I gave this kid made quite a bit of noise — I'm guessing the sentries outside have noticed and gone to alert the pirates on the ship."
"So, you all stay here for now. I'll head to the port and be back soon."
He turned, ready to leave — but at that moment, a few soldiers exchanged glances and quickly called out to stop him.
"Wait a moment, Vice Admiral!"
"Hm?"
Nao turned back, slightly surprised. "What is it?"
"Although we know that once you take action, those pirates will definitely be scared out of their wits,"
an old veteran said loudly, straightening his back, "this is still our country. Protecting the Kingdom of Karemia is our duty. Please—give us another chance! Let us be the ones to finish this fight!"
"That's right!"
Another soldier, gritting his teeth with frustration, added,
"We only lost before because they attacked in the middle of the night, and they had those mortars blasting us apart! To lose like that—then get taken hostage and used as bargaining chips against our own kingdom—it's humiliating beyond words!"
"Yeah, we can't swallow that!"
"So please, sir! Leave this to us!"
…
More and more soldiers joined in, their voices rising together.
Nao stood quietly, watching them, a faint smile on his lips—but he said nothing.
When no reply came, the soldiers' voices gradually weakened, and the leading veterans began to fidget nervously.
Did we… go too far?
Vice Admiral Nao came all this way to save them. He probably just wants to end this battle quickly and get some rest. Maybe they shouldn't be making extra demands or getting in his way…
Just as they were feeling uneasy, a calm voice broke the silence:
"Of course you can."
"Huh?"
All the soldiers lifted their heads in surprise and joy.
Nao smiled at them, his tone carrying a rare warmth. "Your weapons were confiscated and piled up in the next room."
"Go. Take them. Head to the port. Fight—
and take back what belongs to you!"
"YES, SIR!!"
The soldiers exchanged looks, then roared in unison.
"Let's go, brothers! It's time to show those pirates the strength of the Karemia Kingdom Army!"
The veterans raised their arms and laughed heartily as they charged out of the warehouse.
The others followed like a flood, trampling over the fallen iron door, retrieving their weapons from the next room, and surging toward the port.
Their killing intent filled the air—the momentum was overwhelming.
Nao watched their backs as they disappeared into the night. He smiled faintly, then lifted his foot to follow.
But just as he stepped across the threshold, a weak voice came from the ground below him:
"You… weren't you supposed to kill me?"
Nao glanced down at the black-suited boy lying battered on the floor.
"You should be grateful I arrived in time," he said coldly. "If I'd come even half an hour later—and you had already started killing the soldiers in this warehouse—then even if your superiors came crawling here to beg for you, they'd only be able to take your corpse back."
Nao's voice was calm, but every word cut like steel.
"As for now," Nao said calmly, "I don't intend to kill you yet. But I hope you remember this—"
"This world is one where the strong prey upon the weak—where power grants freedom, and the weak have no choice."
He lifted his gaze toward the bright moon hanging high in the night sky, his tone quiet but resolute:
"But weakness itself has never been a sin.
It is the abuse of strength—the act of bullying the weak—that is truly vile.
Those who have no restraint, who only act on their whims, can never become true 'strong ones.'
And such people have no right to even speak the word justice."
Leaving those words behind, Nao turned and walked away without so much as another glance at Rob Lucci.
The black-suited boy could only stare blankly at the departing figures of the man and his white pigeon, their silhouettes fading into the night...
...
The port under the cover of night.
The grand celebration banquet was still in full swing.
But just then—
Two pirates burst onto the deck in a panic, shouting at the top of their lungs:
"Bad news! Bad news, Captain! Captain!"
"What's all the fuss about?"
On the main seat, the red-haired, lanky Captain Bobitru frowned impatiently. "Spit it out—what is it? The royal army making a move again?"
"No, Captain!"
The chubbier pirate panted heavily, "It's the warehouse! Something happened at the warehouse!"
"We saw from the watchtower that the warehouse door collapsed! The hostages have all escaped! Bill and Huck, who were guarding the door, are nowhere to be seen either. Probably already taken out!"
"What!?"
Some of the drunker pirates were still passed out on the floor, but most of the crew sobered instantly at the commotion. They rushed to the deck's railing, peering toward the distant shore.
Bobitru shoved away the two women draped around him and strode forward, grabbing a telescope from one of his officers.
Through it, in the faint moonlight, he could see a massive crowd surging out from the direction of the warehouse—charging straight towards them.
"Damn it!"
He slammed his fist against the railing with a loud clang. "How the hell did they escape!?"
"Could it be…" one officer hesitated, "that black-suited kid who got locked up later?"
"Impossible!"
Bobitru snapped immediately.
That so-called World Government envoy did have some skill, sure—but that warehouse gate was made of solid iron, two meters thick!
Even he himself would struggle to break it down head-on—let alone some brat!
"Forget it!"
The vice-captain snorted. "Even if that kid helped them, it's still just a bunch of half-dead soldiers—five hundred at most. We've got a thousand men here! A thousand to five hundred—the advantage is still ours!"
"That's right! And we still have half our mortars left on the ship!"
Bobitru grinned viciously, raising his arm with a sweeping gesture.
"Fire first! Let those bastards taste the same bombardment they suffered this morning! Once they're screaming and running for their lives—then we'll charge in and capture every last one of them alive!"
"Yes, Captain!"
The pirates quickly regained their composure. Many sneered as they aimed their cannons toward the approaching soldiers, black muzzles gleaming under the moonlight…