East Blue — Shimotsuki Village
A green-haired boy was hacking furiously at a training dummy with two wooden swords, sweat pouring down his body. Only when his arms began to tremble did he finally stop.
"Huff… huff…"
"Senior Brother Zoro! Come quick—there's news about the world's greatest swordsman in today's paper!"
Zoro's pupils shrank. He rushed over and snatched the newspaper away.
"Two days ago, Marine Headquarters Captain Karl clashed with the world's greatest swordsman, 'Hawk-Eye' Dracule Mihawk, in a sword duel on Scrap Island near Water Seven…"
"Both Captain Karl and Hawk-Eye Mihawk sustained injuries, yet no clear victor was decided…"
Zoro silently read every word, his gaze locked onto the photos of Karl and Mihawk printed on the page.
The desire to grow stronger surged violently in his chest.
"Hawk-Eye Mihawk… Marine Captain Karl…"
"I really want to fight them—right now…"
"…Kuina."
That quiet call would never again receive an answer.
Two years ago, Kuina had fallen down the stairs… and never woke up.
Marine Headquarters — Marineford
Sengoku frowned as he looked at the newspaper in his hands.
Mihawk attacking Karl?
A Warlord attacking a Marine officer?
As more intelligence about the Seven Warlords surfaced in his mind, a thought slowly took shape.
"Come to think of it… the Warlords have been fully staffed for a year now."
"…It's about time they all got together."
With that, Sengoku reached into a hidden compartment and took out a Den Den Mushi meant solely for contacting the Five Elders.
Karl had previously made a name for himself during the Kaido operation—but that fame had been limited to Marine-internal circles.
This time was different.
For the first time, Karl's face appeared in a world-circulation newspaper, and the reaction was explosive.
What left Karl both amused and helpless was this—
He didn't become famous because of his duel with Mihawk.
He became famous because of his ridiculous looks.
Some busybody editor even placed his photo beside Boa Hancock's, dubbing him:
"The World's Most Handsome Man."
The result?
Karl no longer dared to disembark casually.
Any island he landed on meant facing women whose eyes practically glowed green when they saw him.
Back when he wasn't on the papers, people at most sneaked glances.
Now?
They stared openly—like they wanted to rip his clothes off on the spot.
"So this is celebrity effect…" Karl muttered.
Out at sea, a Marine warship cruised steadily forward.
Karl lay comfortably on a deck chair under a parasol, shirtless, wearing sunglasses, beach shorts, and—most importantly—
flip-flops, the universal symbol of a true boss.
"Captain, this is juice from the galley."
"Mm… ah… just put it there."
Karl stretched lazily, yawning as he gazed at the endless blue sea.
Now THIS is living.
Pirates around? Beat pirates.
No pirates? Treat it like a vacation.
And I still get paid.
Absolutely wonderful.
"Captain, intel from headquarters. Feels like missions have increased recently."
Karl knew exactly why—but there was no need to explain.
He shrugged. "Whatever. It'll only be busy for a while."
"Alright, don't bother me. Wake me if something important happens."
"Yes, sir."
Time flew by.
Before he knew it, the year's end was approaching, and Karl had slacked off for over two full months.
Ding!
Total Slacking Time has reached 500 hours.
[Career Mission – Slacking King] Phase One Complete.
Rewards:
Advanced Targeted Attribute Enhancement Card ×10
Skill Card: Armament Haki · Emission
Karl grinned.
"Use all enhancement cards on Perception."
After enhancement, his status was:
Name: Karl
Age: 24
Physique: B
Perception: B−
Willpower: B+
Haki:
Armament Haki LV6 (Hardening, Coating, Emission)
Observation Haki LV5
Special Traits:
Still as a Maiden
Swift as a Hare
Child of the Sea
Swordsmanship LV3
Devil Fruit: Holy Light Fruit — 23.6% Awakening Progress
Active Skills:
Fragile as Paper (Usable)
Shadow Sight (Active)
Karl's growth remained steady—especially in Haki and swordsmanship, where his progress was nothing short of rapid.
"Captain! We've arrived at Marineford. Please give orders!"
"Mm. Then—dismissed. Everyone rest well."
"Yes, sir!"
After two months under Karl, Nelson had clearly grown—at least now he didn't need instructions for every little thing.
Karl patted Nelson's shoulder and turned away, heading straight for the Fleet Admiral's office.
Knock knock knock.
"Come in."
Karl entered, nodded politely to Staff Officer Tsuru, then sat down quietly—being handsome in silence.
"Karl, you've done very well these past two months," Sengoku said.
"Four pirate crews with bounties over 100 million—taken down efficiently. Your productivity is impressive."
Karl was stunned.
This counts as high efficiency?
Just how slow are other people?
Thinking about it, Karl realized he simply ignored low-activity pirate crews and focused exclusively on those causing chaos.
Naturally, the results piled up fast.
He wasn't about to pull a future Smoker, chasing one Straw Hat from East Blue to the New World.
"All in the name of justice."
Sengoku and Tsuru exchanged a glance and nodded in unison.
Sengoku retrieved an official document and handed it over, smiling faintly.
"Congratulations, Karl. From today onward—
you are a Rear Admiral of Marine Headquarters."
Ding!
Rank upgraded from Captain → Rear Admiral.
Rank-Up Reward:
Special-Grade Targeted Attribute Enhancement Card ×3
Daily Mission Rewards Updated:
Targeted Enhancement Cards ×7
Random Rewards ×4 (storable)
Rare reward chance increased to 7%
Karl's face lit up as he accepted the document, utterly pleased.
"Rear Admiral Karl."
"Yes, sir!"
Sengoku chuckled and passed him another file.
Karl frowned when he saw the heading: Seven Warlords of the Sea.
"Fleet Admiral… this is…?"
"That's right. I never truly approved of them," Sengoku said calmly.
"But pressure from the World Government left me little choice."
"Lately, their behavior has crossed a line. You, especially, should understand that."
Until now, Sengoku had tolerated the Warlords—as long as they didn't go too far.
But Karl's two encounters with them rang alarm bells.
Some of the Warlords clearly did not take the Marines seriously at all.
Karl nodded vigorously.
Absolutely.
Especially that Mihawk—black-hearted bastard.
Look at Moria instead—so professional! I wrecked half his zombies and he still didn't touch me.
"During the World Conference," Sengoku continued,
"I plan to summon all Seven Warlords to Marineford."
"Your task is to 'invite' one of them personally."
The Warlords usually acted freely, answering only to mandatory summons and taxation.
Even the Fleet Admiral couldn't command them at will.
This meeting order had required Sengoku to expend a great deal of effort—and political capital—to secure approval.
After a moment's thought, Karl nodded.
It was indeed a challenging mission.
"Fleet Admiral Sengoku," Karl said,
"tell me—which Warlord am I inviting?"
◇ I'll be dropping one bonus chapters for every 10 reviews. comment
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ You can read 60 chapter ahead on P@treon if you're interested: patreon.com/SwipeSage