The translucent screen floating before Roy silently stated a fact:
Yes, this young man who had been so easily captured by the G-51 Branch… His real name was Alan, and he was actually a Devil Fruit User.
And…
"This Enhancement Ability…"
The moment Roy read the Devil Fruit details, he immediately understood.
Alan's ability was extremely special, even among Devil Fruits.
"Its lower and upper limits are drastically far apart. If an ordinary person ate this fruit, their strength would actually be weaker than a typical Zoan fruit. But if this ability landed in the hands of a powerful Haki user, the result would be beyond absurd!"
Just imagine… If Marine Hero Garp, or the World's Greatest Swordsman, Dracule Mihawk, were the ones who ate this fruit… Then each of their Slice Clones would be almost equal to their full power.
"Seven Vice Admiral Garps… How terrifying would that be? The Marines might as well rename themselves the Garp Corps."
And the strengthening costs of this fruit… They definitely lived up to such power. It had the highest enhancement price among all Devil Fruits Roy had ever seen.
"Want something to eat?" Now, watching the analysis progress bar on the screen, Roy smiled at the young man in the cell and asked, "My treat."
"I… I'm not eating anything from you Marines!"
Alan clearly had no idea about the storm of thoughts swirling in Roy's mind. He only felt that this muttering, smiling Marine was extremely unsettling.
At that moment, the last of the sand in the hourglass trickled down.
"Alright then." Roy casually stood up. "Then I'll be going."
He pocketed the hourglass and turned to leave. But just as he reached the cabin door, his footsteps suddenly stopped.
"By the way, kid… .You should know that even though most Marines of the branch are at the banquet tonight… Saving those people will still be extremely difficult. It would be almost impossible, right?" He tilted his head slightly and asked softly.
"...I already said… I don't understand what you're talking about!!" This time, Alan roared.
It was hard to tell whether his roar carried more anger or fear.
But one thing was certain. Though there was fear and anger in his voice, there was absolutely no wavering.
Roy smiled.
The brave are always worth respecting.
"Senior officer?"
After Roy stepped out of the temporary brig, a Marine keeping night watch on the deck looked at him with confusion.
"I'm a bit tired. I'll go rest first. Send someone to take over my shift. Make sure the prisoner gets food, water, and a blanket." Roy instructed calmly.
"Yes, sir!" The Marine nodded quickly.
After giving his orders, Roy silently returned to his own quarters... A private room at the back of the deck, complete with a skylight.
As he stepped inside, the system's notifications continued to ring in his ears.
[Paramecia · Slice-Slice Fruit has been added to the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia. Current Level: LV1]
[Devil Fruits in Encyclopedia: 19 → 20 (Paramecia: 8, Zoan: 7, Logia: 4, Special Paramecia: 0, Mythical Zoan: 1)]
[Total recorded Devil Fruits reached 20. Additional "Devil Fruit Ability Slot" acquired]
[Fruit Ability Slots: 2 → 3]
[Current equipped fruits: Ox-Ox Fruit · Giant Rhino Form, Rabbit-Rabbit Fruit · Snow Rabbit Form, (Empty)]
Hearing the relentless stream of notifications and watching the glowing text flash on the screen...
Roy's smile grew wider and brighter.
"This trip was absolutely worth it!" He sighed with genuine satisfaction.
Yes.
With the acquisition of the Slice-Slice Fruit, his total number of cataloged fruits finally reached twenty, unlocking his third Fruit Ability Slot.
To him, this improvement was no small matter.
Naturally, the most crucial part was...
"The Slice-Slice Fruit. This ability is important to me. Extremely important!"
That was the real reason Roy was so delighted. Just as he had thought earlier, the biggest headache he faced was his identity dilemma.
He needed his Marine identity and rank to protect himself. He also needed Marine channels to accumulate Enhancement Ability.
But at the same time, however, he needed a massive, essentially limitless amount of money to upgrade that ability.
Achieving these two goals simultaneously was nearly impossible... The latter was especially difficult. Earning huge sums of money quickly was always risky.
But now...
"Slice."
Roy whispered silently to himself and in the next moment, the Slice-Slice Fruit slotted into his newly unlocked ability slot.
"Buzz!"
Roy's muscles and skin began to shift and distort, and it was as if his body was tearing itself apart.
Yet he felt no pain.
Instead, he sensed an indescribable transformation in his body and consciousness.
In the next second, a naked figure identical to him, essentially another Roy Amos, materialized out of thin air right before his eyes.
And in that instant, his strange new perception became even clearer.
He felt as if the body before him was merely an extension of his own. His consciousness seemed split into two parts. Yet both remained under his unified control.
Even for someone with many Devil Fruit abilities like Roy, this sensation was completely novel.
Soon, he regained his focus.
First, he grabbed a spare uniform and put it on the clone. No matter how many Devil Fruits he had, staring at his own naked body was simply unsettling.
Then, he began operating his Slice Clone, examining every subtle change.
And then, both Roys curled their lips into the same slow smile.
"Just as I thought..." He murmured softly.
Then, controlling the Slice Clone's body, he sent out a punch.
"Bang!"
A blast of force tore through the air, producing a sharp, slicing wind. One could even see faint white fur sprouting across the Slice Clone's arm.
It was Snow Rabbit fur.
Which meant that...
"The Clones made by the Slice-Slice Fruit are perfect copies. Including the Devil Fruit powers themselves."
Roy had already suspected this back in the small brig like prison.
After all, the Alan inside the prison was clearly a Slice Clone, yet Roy's Devil Fruit Encyclopedia was still able to analyze his abilities.
This proves that the Slice-Slice Fruit clones almost certainly copy the user's Devil Fruit abilities. The only limitation is that the clone cannot be used to create another clone.
For most people, this characteristic would be useless.
Even if you discovered that the Slice-Slice Fruit could copy Devil Fruits, what would you do with that information?
In this world, aside from that freak, Blackbeard, normal people can only eat one Devil Fruit.
But for Roy, things were different.
For example...
"This clone of mine also possesses the Snow Rabbit Fruit and the Giant Rhino Fruit abilities."
"The only limitation is that the Slice-Slice Fruit occupies one slot in the clone and cannot be swapped out. This means the clone has one fewer ability than Roy's main body. However, that's already more than enough!"
Roy understood just how significant this discovery was. It meant that the dilemma he had been struggling with finally had a solution.
Starting today...
He could remain in the Marines and steadily accumulate Devil Fruit abilities.
Meanwhile, his other clones could gather the massive amounts of Beli required to upgrade the encyclopedia.
Using any means necessary and not worrying about the consequences.
And right now, he already had a bold idea.
"First, I need to conceal my identity..." Roy muttered softly, glancing around the room.
Soon, his gaze landed on an item.
Next to the storage cabinet in the corner was a mask. It resembled the head of a rooster, looking vivid and lifelike.
Roy remembered exactly what it was.
Hans had brought it back from his hometown in the South Blue two years prior as a gift.
"This is our South Blue specialty, the 'Sea Beast Mask,' forged from high-quality South Blue iron ore."
According to Hans's proud explanation, it was one of the most famous specialties of the South Blue. It was commonly seen across many South Blue kingdoms, as well as in various Grand Line kingdoms. It was famous for being sturdy, snug-fitting, and difficult to damage.
Naturally, Roy later learned from the never-to-be-named Mr. Fal that—
Yes, it was a South Blue specialty. However, Hans's real reason for buying it was that it was cheap.
The next day, Hans, who had carelessly stepped onto the deck with his left foot first, was punished with half a month of night duty. The mask had been tossed into Roy's room and forgotten ever since.
But now, Roy picked up the mask and tossed it casually to his Slice Clone.
After the clone put on the mask and a Marine uniform, Roy inspected him carefully. No facial features or body shape could be recognized at all.
Only then did Roy nod in satisfaction.
"Alright… let's begin."
(End of Chapter)
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