Raising my hand, I summoned my King Piece—a small yet immensely powerful artifact that marked my role as the ruler of my Peerage. Pressing it against my chest, just above my heart, I watched as it phased through my skin like a ghost. Instantly, a wave of energy surged through me.
The transformation was subtle but undeniable. Each piece in my Peerage system carried unique benefits, and the King Piece was the strongest of them all.
A flood of new information filled my mind.
[One Piece is available for travel.]
[Haki is available for Peerage members.]
A grin tugged at my lips. Not bad at all.
The King Piece granted me a passive 10x growth boost to all my attributes—strength, speed, endurance, magic, everything. It also removed all human limits, ensuring that I could keep growing indefinitely. As an added perk, it provided energy wings for flight, which would definitely come in handy later.
But my real power came from my Peerage System itself. Unlike the version in High School DxD, which boosted specific attributes, mine granted permanent growth multipliers across the board.
The Queen Piece granted a 10x boost—equal to my own.
Knights, Rooks, and Bishops each received a 5x boost.
Pawns—though the weakest—still gained a 2x boost.
Each member would become exponentially stronger over time, and as long as I lived, they could never be permanently killed. If a Peerage member died, they would respawn after 24 hours. They would also always be in their prime and stop aging around 25. It was the ultimate safety net.
Still, I wasn't going to summon anyone just yet.
This island was a complete death trap—barren, rocky, and completely isolated. Not exactly the ideal place to bring someone into existence. More importantly, I had something bigger on my immediate to-do list.
I wasn't alone here.
For now, I decided against exploring. Why bother? The biggest treasure on this island—the Flame-Flame Fruit—was already secured inside my Gate of Babylon. Instead, I sat down on a boulder, stretching my legs and letting the salty ocean breeze wash over me.
To be honest, I wasn't exactly thrilled about being in the One Piece world. Sure, it had its perks—Haki, Devil Fruits, insane swordsmanship—but the downsides? Yeah, there were plenty.
For one, 80% of this world was open water. Just thinking about it made me shudder. I had a deep wariness for the ocean, and this world was practically a nightmare filled with Leviathan-sized sea monsters lurking beneath the waves.
Then there were the pirates, marines, and celestial dragons—arguably worse than the sea monsters. There was no truly good faction to join. The pirates were unpredictable, the marines were corrupt, and the celestial dragons? Pure scum.
If there was one world worse than One Piece, it would be Subnautica. Fuck Reaper Leviathans.
Still, there were a few things that made this place worth sticking around for.
Boa Hancock and Nico Robin. Enough said. Haki and Marine Six Styles. Both of which I planned to master. Devil Fruits. Specifically, the two I already had—Rumble-Rumble (Lightning) and Flame-Flame (Fire).
Fire was arguably one of the most practical abilities in any world—perfect for survival, blacksmithing, alchemy, and, of course, combat. Lightning, though? Lightning was just badass. Raw speed, insane destructive power, and total versatility.
The only thing stopping me from eating them both was the effect of consuming two Devil Fruits. Even with my immortality, there was no guarantee I wouldn't just drop dead instantly. Not to mention the whole "can't swim" debuff that came with it. Better safe than dead.
Yeah… not exactly ideal in a world that's 80% water.
So, for now, I would wait. Ace was already here. I just needed to find him.
With everything checked over, I figured I had time to kill. Sitting around doing nothing was boring, so I decided to train, explore, and plan my next steps.
I clenched my fists and focused on my physical power, courtesy of my Heavenly Restriction and King Piece's boost. Taking a deep breath, I threw a punch at the air—
BOOM!
A powerful shockwave blasted outward, kicking up dust and shaking the trees around me. I hadn't even hit anything, and the force alone sent small rocks tumbling across the ground. I didn't notice much of a difference from before absorbing the king piece.
Curious, I turned toward a large boulder nearby. Taking a stance, I pulled my fist back and punched forward with full force.
CRACK!
The massive rock split in half, jagged cracks racing through its surface before it crumbled into rubble.
I couldn't help but grin. "Yeah, that's never gonna get old."
"You don't happen to know where to find food, do you?"
I stiffened. That voice was too familiar.
Slowly, I turned my head—only to see a shirtless, freckled man with a distinctive orange hat standing a few feet away, wiping sweat from his forehead.
Portgas D. Ace.
Well, shit.
I grinned, dusting off my clothes and trying to act like I hadn't just been lost in thought. "That depends. You looking for something edible or just desperate?"
Ace let out a tired chuckle, adjusting his hat. "Honestly? At this point, I'll take anything that isn't a rock or poisonous."
"You have no idea," another voice muttered.
Turning my gaze slightly to the right, I spotted a disheveled man slumped against a tree, his clothes covered in dirt. Deuce.
"You look like hell," I commented.
"Feels like it," Deuce groaned. "We've been here for days, and the only thing we've found is a few half-rotten fruits and some questionable mushrooms." He gestured toward Ace. "This guy's been trying to fish, but all he caught was a weird-looking eel that tried to bite his face off."
Ace crossed his arms, huffing. "It wasn't that bad."
Deuce shot him a look.
I smirked, pulling my backpack off and kneeling down. "Lucky for you guys, I came prepared."
I unzipped the pack and pulled out a couple of wrapped portions of dried meat, tossing one to each of them. Ace caught his easily, tearing into it without hesitation. Deuce hesitated only for a second before following suit.
Ace let out a satisfied sigh. "Damn, that's good."
Deuce, chewing quickly, glanced at me. "Where the hell did you come from, anyway? Don't tell me you just showed up here for fun."
I shrugged, keeping my answers vague. "Shipwreck."
Ace nodded. "You're lucky you had supplies. We barely managed to hold on to anything."
I nodded, my thoughts drifting to the Flame-Flame Fruit locked inside my Gate of Babylon.
Ace didn't know about it. He wasn't here for it.
That meant I had all the time in the world to decide what to do with it.
For now, I'd keep it that way.