One Piece: Global improvement system

296: Drake’s Dream — Orion’s Realization

May 22, 1504, Age of the Sea Circle"Yo-hohoho, Yo-hoho-ho Yo-hohoho, 

Gather up all of the crew, it's time to ship out Bink's brew Sea wind blows, to where, who knows? 

The waves will be our guide O'er the fiery basins' brink, over ice fields, we'll not sink O'er the treacherous ocean's edge, where the golden sun resides! 

Yo-hoho-ho Yo-hohoho, Yo-hoho-ho Yo-hohoho, Yo-hoho-ho"

On the desolate Minion Island, the crew of the red-haired pirate Shanks was celebrating cheerfully after having completely destroyed the traffickers' base a few hours earlier.

Once again, they had failed to obtain any information regarding the whereabouts of the Gomu Gomu no Mi, but that did not stop them from celebrating regardless, since they would simply have to continue searching with optimism in the future.

One thing that characterized Shanks' crew was how cheerful and easygoing they usually were, though they could also become serious and terrifying the moment it was time to take action.

Meanwhile, Orion was sitting beside a bonfire, completely covered in bandages as a result of the injuries he had sustained during his brief duel with Shanks.

Although neither of them had used lethal attacks, the intensity of their battle had still been quite high, so it was inevitable that Orion — who had been at a disadvantage in terms of power — would end up injured, even if his wounds were not serious.

"Orion, this chicken is delicious!" Perona said happily, her cheeks stuffed with roasted chicken, looking rather adorable.

Around Orion, Perona, Law, Sugar, and Mitsu sat together, enthusiastically devouring the tasty chicken Orion had prepared for them. Meanwhile, Monet remained standing behind him, serving diligently in her self-appointed role as his attendant.

"Young master, would you like me to cool your drink?" the green-haired girl asked as she took the beer mug from Orion's hand and began cooling it using the powers of her new Logia Devil Fruit.

Orion had given the Yuki Yuki no Mi to Monet a week earlier — the very same day he had received it from Shanks — and the girl had accepted it with overwhelming excitement, swearing that she would serve her master with complete devotion from that day onward.

For Monet, who had spent most of her life with her fate resting in someone else's hands, possessing the power of a Logia Devil Fruit like the Yuki Yuki no Mi gave her an incredible sense of security, and her favorability toward Orion had risen nearly to its limit after he entrusted such a treasure to her.

After all, Monet understood very well that the Yuki Yuki no Mi was an extremely valuable treasure to Orion, yet despite that, he had still chosen to give it to her — someone who had been little more than a newly recruited stranger. By doing so, he had demonstrated the trust he placed in her, causing Monet's heart to soften while simultaneously strengthening her resolve to support Orion with everything she possibly could in the future.

Even though Orion had rejected her as a lover before, she still held onto his promise that one day he would make her his woman — even if Orion himself had said it jokingly — and because of that, she intended to become the perfect companion for him in the future.

Orion took the icy beer Monet had somewhat clumsily cooled with her new powers — since she still could not control them properly yet — and said,

"Monet, don't just stand there. Come sit down and eat with us."

"There is no need to worry about me, young master. I will eat once you have finished celebrating."

Even so, Monet remained just as stubborn as ever, forcing Orion to resort to his trump card:

"Sugar will probably feel nervous if she sees you acting so formal during dinner. Sit down and eat."

Orion's words had an immediate effect on the green-haired girl, who glanced toward her little sister Sugar, who indeed looked somewhat nervous amidst such a loud and crowded environment. Because of that, Monet immediately excused herself to Orion and went to sit beside the small girl.

"And you? Are you sure you don't want to eat?" Orion asked, looking toward the sixteen-year-old boy sitting alone in a corner of the gathering, barely daring to move.

This boy was named Drake, and he was a Named Character who happened to be on this island — one whom the system identified as "X-Drake." He and his father, Diez Barrels, were the two Named Characters present in this place, and after Shanks' crew had successfully raided the traffickers' base, Orion had taken the opportunity to speak with them.

Diez Barrels was the leader of the traffickers, as well as a low-level pirate who had only recently begun taking his first steps into the pirate world, while Drake was his son, who remained with him despite not wishing to participate in his father's crimes.

Previously, Diez Barrels had been a Marine, but he had abandoned that life in order to pursue a "career" as a pirate and smuggler, since he longed for great wealth and power. Overall, he was simply one of the many pirates sailing the seas of this world in pursuit of their personal desires, and there was nothing particularly special about him.

Orion had spoken briefly with the traffickers' leader in order to determine what kind of person he was, and he had also analyzed him using both the system and his Prism Eyes, discovering that his morality was terrible and his talent mediocre. Because of that, Orion immediately lost all interest in him and allowed Shanks' crew to do whatever they wanted with him.

On the other hand, the situation with Drake was completely different, since both the boy's morality and talent were extremely good, which had led Orion to immediately attempt to recruit him into his forces, though he had ultimately been rejected by the boy.

Although Drake appeared weak-willed at first glance, he actually possessed a great deal of conviction when it came to pursuing what he truly wanted to do, though perhaps that was only because now that his father had been completely destroyed by Shanks, he had finally gained the opportunity to escape the pirate life he hated so much.

Drake had always admired his father as a Marine, so when the man abandoned his position as a Rear Admiral in order to become a pirate, it had been a tremendous blow to the young dreamer and idealist, who longed to help the defenseless as part of the Marines, just as his father once had.

Even so, Drake could not simply abandon his father, because he still loved him, and even respected him to some extent. Perhaps he still held onto a small hope that his father would come to his senses and abandon his life as a pirate, though that was clearly impossible, since Diez Barrels had already tasted the sweet flavor of power and could no longer return to the life he once had.

The pirate leader had even begun to resent his son, who constantly looked at him with eyes filled with sadness, as though silently judging him. Because of that, he had started beating Drake almost daily, which only deepened the despair of the boy, who watched his beloved father sink lower and lower down the slope of human behavior with every passing day.

Drake knew that his father had become the worst kind of person, and he had even witnessed with his own eyes how the man terrorized innocent people, yet he had never dared to oppose him, remaining trapped in a state of constant lamentation that accomplished absolutely nothing.

Now, the red-haired pirates had completely destroyed his father's crew, and Drake had finally decided to stop waiting for a miracle and instead seize this opportunity to escape the island and pursue his dream of becoming a Marine.

However, he had been captured alongside his father by the enemy forces, so he had initially believed it would be nearly impossible for him to leave this place alive — or at least that was what he had thought, because the situation had not turned out to be nearly as terrible as he had expected.

Although Shanks' crew had utterly crushed the smuggler pirates under Diez Barrels' command, they had spared their lives and merely limited themselves to stealing all of their treasures and interrogating them in order to determine whether they knew anything about the Gomu Gomu no Mi.

Shanks had no intention of exterminating every small crew that crossed his path, so after confirming that they possessed no information regarding the Devil Fruit he was searching for, he allowed them to leave freely, and Diez Barrels' pirates fled in terror without daring to look back.

On the other hand, Orion had not allowed Drake to return with his father, because he could clearly see that it was not what the boy truly wanted. As a result, he had retained him "against his will," living up to his reputation as a kidnapper.

After speaking with him about the possibility of recruitment and being rejected by Drake — who, trembling in fear and convinced Orion would kill him for refusing to join his forces, admitted that he wanted to become a Marine and help defenseless people — Orion found himself thinking deeply about the enormous influence the colossal organization held within the minds of the people of this world.

Just as had happened with T-Bone a few weeks earlier, Orion had once again been rejected by someone utterly determined to join the Marines, and that made him realize just how much weight the organization carried in the hearts of ordinary people.

For the majority of the population, the Marines were synonymous with justice and peace, and that was not a perception that could easily be changed, though something had to be done about it, because in the end, the Marines were merely the armed branch of the World Government — his ultimate enemy in this world.

Orion contemplated the situation carefully, arriving at the conclusion that he could not simply remain idle regarding this issue. At present, although he was trying to improve the world using every resource available to him, his actions on a global scale were still fairly limited.

With the help of the Revolutionary Army, he could assist a tremendous number of people, but due to the very nature of the organization — which had essentially been created as a countermeasure against the World Government — it was impossible for them to gain the people's favor in the same way the Marines did.

Even though the Revolutionary Army was carrying out all kinds of beneficial actions across the world and saving countless lives, to a large portion of the population they were nothing more than a terrorist organization, one that represented a threat to their already difficult lives, comparable to that of pirates.

Because of that, a thought suddenly appeared in Orion's mind: it was necessary to create a new organization similar to the Marines — a new Marine force!

For some reason, the moment that thought surfaced in his mind, he remembered Zephyr, the retired Marine Admiral who now served as an instructor for the Marine's elite young recruits.

The two of them had interacted frequently during their time on Jewel Island, speaking at length about the future of the world, pirates, and peace, discovering that they shared many similarities in both ideology and worldview.

Zephyr himself was somewhat disappointed with the Marines as an organization, yet he continued helping train the future pillars of the Marines simply because he knew there was no other force capable of restraining the massive number of pirates wreaking havoc throughout the world.

But… what if there were another organization? What if he could recruit all those individuals dissatisfied with the current corrupt state of the Marines?

Would he then have a greater chance of recruiting talents such as Drake or T-Bone, people who possessed an overwhelming desire to help others with all their hearts?

Orion's heart had begun pounding heavily the moment these ideas surfaced in his mind, though he ultimately forced himself to remain calm, since this was not something that could be decided in an instant.

Now that he had a new objective worth exploring, Orion intended to analyze the matter thoroughly, discussing it with his wives and most important allies first, and only afterward would he take action, though he was already almost certain that this was a path worth pursuing.

In any case, after Orion failed to recruit Drake, he had kept him "kidnapped" so that he would not return to his father Diez Barrels' pirate crew, and had promised that later he would personally take him to a nearby inhabited island as a final favor.

That was everything that had happened over the past few hours, and the reason Drake was currently sitting timidly in a corner while Shanks' pirates, Orion, and his companions celebrated joyfully with a grand banquet after obtaining all the treasure accumulated by Diez Barrels' crew.

"So? Are you sure you don't want to eat something?" Orion repeated upon noticing that the nervous boy had not answered him.

"N-no, it's not necessary. T-thank you," Drake replied in a somewhat high-pitched voice, clearly on the verge of panicking.

"You're a pussy, aren't you? My older sister Hototogisu told me about people like you, but this is the first time I've ever seen one in person," Mitsu said with a curious look while biting into a chicken leg, before adding,

"What does it feel like to be such a coward? Is it true that you cry every day? Have you ever peed your pants out of fear?"

Mitsu was once again displaying her absolute lack of tact, though curiously enough, the little girl's words caused Drake to feel tremendous humiliation, which in turn transformed his nervousness into anger, unintentionally helping him regain his composure and avoid completely losing his mind in the situation he found himself in.

After all, he still had his pride as a man, and he could not simply allow a little girl to treat him like a coward!

"I'm not a coward! A little girl like you should learn to respect her elders, or you might end up getting hurt!" Drake declared in a burst of courage that surprised everyone present, since up until now he had behaved extremely timidly and withdrawn, not even daring to raise his gaze.

Meanwhile, Mitsu tilted her head in confusion, unable to understand why Drake had suddenly become so angry, since her questions had not been asked out of malice, but rather genuine curiosity, though the little girl did not fully understand how hurtful certain words could be, especially when spoken sincerely.

Even so, she could not allow Drake to speak to her like that, because her older sister Hototogisu had taught her that if a pussy confronted her, she had to put them in their place, otherwise she herself would become the pussy.

She did not completely understand the situation, but she trusted her beloved older sister's teachings, so she immediately jumped in front of the newly emboldened Drake and raised her tiny fists — which looked far more adorable than threatening — before exclaiming,

"Let's settle this with a fight!"

Orion shook his head upon seeing how things were developing and decided it would be best to put a stop to the situation before Drake ended up injured, but unfortunately, the boy did not give him time to intervene, because upon realizing that his opponent was merely a small child, he confidently accepted the challenge, while Law raised a hand to offer a silent prayer for him.

Drake charged toward the little clone with great determination, but the result was nothing like what he had expected, since Mitsu mercilessly beat him in a completely one-sided fight, utterly destroying the last remnants of self-esteem he still possessed.

"You're very weak, but you're not a pussy, because at least you fought me head-on. My older sister Hototogisu says that anyone who fights head-on isn't a pussy," Mitsu said with a deadpan expression, recalling the teachings of her beloved older sister, who at that exact moment was repeatedly sneezing back in Pacific Kingdom.

"Don't get discouraged, being weak isn't bad. It just means you have more room to grow," Perona said while patting Drake on the back in an attempt to cheer him up.

"Sorry for being weak trash that doesn't deserve to breathe," the boy muttered in complete despair while remaining on all fours on the ground.

"Perona, be careful, your negative Hollows are affecting him," Monet said calmly as she adjusted her glasses with an elegant gesture.

"Ah! Sorry, I still can't control these adorable little ghosts very well yet," Perona replied, sticking out her tongue in an adorable gesture while stepping away from Drake, freeing him from the effects of her negative Hollows.

As for the reason she now possessed those powers, it was because the smugglers under Diez Barrels' command had possessed the Horo Horo no Mi — in fact, it had been the only Devil Fruit they owned — so after Shanks' men seized the treasure, Orion had claimed it for himself, just as they had agreed beforehand.

Even so, Orion had not intended to immediately give the fruit to Perona — even though the system showed that she possessed almost perfect compatibility with the Horo Horo no Mi — but in the end, the girl had accidentally consumed the Devil Fruit due to a careless mistake.

While everyone had been celebrating during the banquet, Perona had grabbed the Horo Horo no Mi and eaten it by accident, believing it to be an ordinary fruit, creating a rather unexpected and slightly comedic sequence of events.

Even so, for Orion this particular incident carried special significance, because many years earlier something similar had happened with Ina, which led him to wonder whether certain forces existed that pushed people toward consuming specific Devil Fruits.

Perhaps it was simply the timeline correcting itself once again — assuming she had originally been the user of this Devil Fruit in the original timeline, as Orion theorized — or perhaps it was the Devil Fruits themselves possessing some kind of will, seeking out individuals who had high compatibility with them, just as the system indicated.

Whatever the case might be, it was not something Orion could ignore, and in the future he intended to pay close attention to any other similar situations.

In the end, Perona had eaten the Horo Horo no Mi and obtained the powers of her negative Hollows, which had left her completely fascinated and far happier than Orion had expected.

Even so, only a few hours had passed since she acquired her powers, so she still could not control them properly and had been unintentionally affecting everyone around her throughout the banquet, leading to several comedic situations.

Looking at the lively celebration around him and the happy smiles on Perona and the others' faces, Orion took a sip of his ice-cold beer and enjoyed the present moment. His journey through the North Blue was nearly complete, and tomorrow he would most likely part ways with Shanks and the others so they could each continue on their separate paths.

Only one final stop remained before the end of his nearly six-month-long journey through the North Blue.

…

Meanwhile, on an island not far from Orion's current location, a blond young man with a serious expression was using tarot cards to predict his future, and no matter how many times he tried, he continued obtaining the same result: a tragic future was about to knock on his door.