Chapter 34 — Triple-Layer Stacking Efficiency!
Baby 5's working ability—once fueled by the overwhelming joy of being "needed"—exploded with shocking efficiency.
In just half an hour, the enormous dining table inside the villa was packed from end to end with food for a hundred people.
Mountains of roasted meat towered upward, their aroma filling the entire villa.
"Lord Akira! Miss Yamato! Please enjoy your meal!"
Baby 5 wore a maid apron, her face flushed with shy happiness.
The four of them took their seats around the long table.
And in the next second—
a whirlwind descended upon the feast.
Viola had only just picked up her knife and fork, slicing a thin piece of smoked meat. She raised it halfway toward her lips—
—and her entire body froze like a statue.
What she saw was beyond comprehension.
Akira and Yamato had already entered some kind of battle mode.
Neither of them touched the utensils on the table.
They moved with speed that left afterimages, sweeping entire trays of food into their mouths as if performing a high-speed raid rather than a meal.
"Ohhh!! This is delicious! Akira! Don't steal mine!!"
"Move! That piece is mine!"
Bang!!
To fight over the last giant roasted leg, they actually clashed fists in midair, the shockwave strong enough to send plates rattling and dancing off the table.
The knife and fork in Viola's hands slipped and clattered onto the floor.
Her beautiful eyes widened helplessly, disbelief trembling through every inch of her.
"T-this… are they humans or human-shaped monsters?"
Her heart screamed internally.
That food—
was meant for one hundred people!
Even if she and Baby 5 combined their appetite, they wouldn't even reach one percent of the meal.
The remaining ninety-nine percent…
Was devoured by these two creatures?!
"Dressrosa's food supply…"
For the first time in her life, Viola felt genuine fear for the future of her country.
"At this rate… how long can we survive…?"
"AMAZING!!"
Baby 5 stared dreamily at the mountain of empty plates piling up like a small mountain range. Her eyes sparkled, and she almost fainted from happiness.
"They truly… truly need me!!"
Burp—
Yamato let out a satisfied belch with zero shame, patting her stomach proudly before falling back in her chair.
But the moment she placed her bowl down—
Not even a full second passed before—
She jumped to her feet with a loud stomp, kanabo resting on her shoulder, her expression burning with anticipation.
"I'm full! Akira!"
"Hurry! Let's start Layer Stacking!"
Her bright blue eyes gleamed with excitement as she turned toward Baby 5 and Viola.
"You two join as well!"
Yamato pumped her fist enthusiastically.
"The more people, the stronger the training! We'll all train together!"
"Eh?"
Baby 5 blinked in confusion, but immediately stood at attention.
"What is 'Layer Stacking'? But if Lord Akira needs it, I can do anything!!"
As for Viola—
Her entire body stiffened.
Her face flushed instantly, heat rising to the tips of her ears.
"N-now…?"
Her voice was barely audible, like the faint squeak of a nervous insect.
"Isn't this… isn't this development a little too fast…?"
…
Inside the villa, master bedroom.
Akira explained the "rules" in a direct, concise manner.
The so-called "training" required them to endure the full force of both his and Yamato's Battle Judgment.
"F-full… full battle combat…?"
Viola's face instantly drained of all color.
She remembered yesterday's fight—
the kind that nearly split the heavens and earth apart.
Baby 5, on the other hand, looked strangely relieved once she understood the "rules."
"So it's just fighting!"
With frightening "professionalism," she immediately lay down on the enormous velvet bed, positioning herself as if prepared to accept anything.
"Lord Akira! Please use your full strength on me!"
"…"
Seeing this level of "professionalism," Akira's lips twitched faintly.
He turned toward Viola, who was still trembling in the corner.
"You."
"I—I…"
"Lie down."
Akira's voice allowed no room for refusal.
Under the crushing pressure of his overwhelming presence, Viola could only bite her lip, shut her eyes in embarrassment, and lie down beside Yamato and Baby 5.
"Good."
Akira stretched slightly, warming up his muscles.
He looked down at the three "sparring partners" lined up on the bed, and heat surged in his chest.
"Three targets at once."
"Armor of Will's Assessment triggers once every ten seconds."
"Yamato, Baby 5, Viola…"
"That means, every ten seconds of training—"
"I can stack three layers at the same time?!"
"A triple-efficiency boost!!"
Akira nearly screamed in joy.
He inhaled deeply—
—and switched to Full Power Assault Mode.
Bang!
Bang!
Bang!
…
One hour later.
Akira stood beside the bed, his expression pitch-black.
On the bed—
Baby 5 and Viola lay collapsed like wilted flowers, both foaming at the mouth, having completely lost the ability to fight back.
Their frail bodies, under Akira's overwhelming "Full Power Assault," didn't even last a full hour.
"…"
Akira stared at the two utterly shattered "training tools," helpless.
"Of course."
"Their stamina is too low."
"They collapsed after only an hour."
"A triple-efficiency boost that lasts just one hour… what a waste."
"Hey! Akira!"
Beside him, Yamato hefted her kanabo with a deeply dissatisfied glare.
She didn't manage to stack even one layer.
She didn't dare strike at all.
"How am I supposed to stack layers like this?!"
Yamato growled with frustration.
"They're too weak!"
"If I hit them even once seriously, they'll die!"
She stared at the two limp women—
then at Akira, who still seemed completely unfazed.
The more she thought about it, the angrier she became.
"This efficiency is terrible!"
"They can't endure anything!"
The stagnation of their "training progress" made Yamato more frustrated than she had ever been.
She paced back and forth around the room, kanabo resting on her shoulder.
Then suddenly—
Her bright blue eyes lit up.
"Ah!!"
Yamato clapped her hands loudly and rushed back to Akira.
"Akira!!"
"You have armor that makes you stronger, right?!"
"Then give them two sets of Armor of Will too!!"
She grew more excited with each word, as if she'd discovered a divine tactic.
"Think about it!!"
"If all four of us have Armor of Will—"
"We'll all get stronger together!"
"And they'll have way more stamina!"
"Then when the four of us train at high speed—"
"The layer stacking rate—!"
Yamato practically fell onto her knees from excitement, creating a gust of wind.
"Just imagining it gets me fired up!!"
"..."
Akira could only stare at Yamato, the ultimate "training maniac," with a defeated expression.
"You think that armor grows on trees?"
"That thing comes from random draws. Whether I get it or not depends entirely on luck."
Even so, while his mouth complained, Akira's heart actually wavered.
"But…"
"What she says does make sense."
"These two 'assistants' really are too fragile. They need reinforcement."
"Otherwise… triple efficiency means nothing."
"And besides…"
Akira glanced at his current remaining balance—
more than 4 billion Berries.
"Tch… as if I'm not tempted."
That cursed gambler's soul inside him began to burn again.
"System!"
Without a shred of hesitation, Akira opened the lottery interface.
"Load 100 million Berries!"
"Item Lottery!!"
"I don't believe it! I will pull two armors today!!"
[Ding!]
[One billion Berries deducted.]
[Remaining assets: 3.8 billion Berries.]
The familiar golden blind-box interface appeared.
"Open!"
Akira tapped without thinking.
A brilliant golden light burst out—
A Western-style sword with an ancient design and a gem-embedded hilt slowly materialized in Akira's hand.
"…"
Akira froze completely.
He stared at the sword.
That familiar shape…
That sharp aura…
"This is…"
"Isn't this…"
"'Gryphon,' belonging to Red-Haired Shanks?!"
…
At the exact same moment.
In the New World—
on the deck of the Red Force.
"Ahh… the sake today's pretty good too…"
Shanks lay lazily on the deck, drinking.
As usual, he reached to his side for the sword that never left him.
But—
His hand grabbed only empty air.
"Hm?"
The drunken smile on his face stiffened.
"Where's my sword?"
He sat upright instantly.
The spot where Gryphon should be—
was empty.
"GRYPHON!!"
His mind snapped completely awake.
"Beckman!!"
Shanks roared so loudly the entire ship shook.
"Yasopp!! Lucky Roo!!"
"Everyone, get out here!!"
"MY SWORD IS GONE!!!"
Boom!!!
The entire Red Hair crew erupted into panic.
"What?! Captain's sword is missing?!"
"Search the whole ship!!"
They tore the Red Force apart from hull to mast.
Minutes later—
Shanks stood at the bow of the ship, wind whipping his cloak.
His soul looked like it had left his body.
Gone.
It was truly gone.
"Who… who was it…?"
A storm raged inside Shanks' mind.
"Who could steal my sword… without me noticing?!"
…
Back in Dressrosa, inside the villa bedroom—
Akira stared at Gryphon in his hand with a devastated expression.
"You're addicted to stealing, aren't you?! System?!"
Akira roared in his heart.
"I asked for armor! Armor of Will!!"
"Not a sword, damn you!!"
"I already have Murakumogiri and the kanabo!!"
"You give me another sword—what, do you want me to practice Three-Sword Style?!"
Bang!
Beside him, Yamato—already recovered—began another round of Layer Stacking (though now only at single efficiency).
Akira, irritated, tossed the priceless Supreme Grade sword into the corner of the bed, letting it sit among random unused items.
"System!"
Akira shouted internally as he continued to face Yamato's brutal "training."
"These lottery rates suck!!"
"Isn't there another way?!"
"I want to BUY Armor of Will!!"
"Can it be purchased directly?!"
The system's reply stunned him.
[Ding!]
[Detected strong desire to purchase item.]
[Opening System Shop (P2W Edition).]
A completely new interface unfolded before Akira.
Filled with all the items he had previously drawn.
And at the very top—
The one he had been dreaming of.
[Item: Armor of Will (Unique · Givable)]
[Price: 1,000,000,000 Berries]
"..."
Akira turned into a statue.
He stared at the 1 billion price tag.
His mind went blank.
Three seconds later—
"ONE BILLION BERRIES?!?!"
Akira's scream nearly blew the villa roof off.
"The lottery only costs 100 million!!"
"And you're selling it—"
"For TEN TIMES THE PRICE?!"
"System!!"
"Why don't you just rob me outright!!!!"
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Read ahead and support the story on Patreon:
🔗 patreon.com/FaaanzKun
✅ 20+ chapters ahead of WebNovel
✅ 2 new chapters every day (Monday–Saturday), exclusive on Patreon
🌙 Note: Sunday is a rest day, so there will be no updates tomorrow. Regular uploads resume as usual on Monday.
Thank you all so much for your amazing support 💖
Your encouragement keeps this story alive and growing stronger every single day! 🌟
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —