Half a day later, aboard the two Marine warships that had long since set sail—
Aside from Admiral Luoyu, who was leisurely enjoying his afternoon tea, the captured CP9 members had also been transferred aboard.
Though Hina and Smoker didn't shackle them, they were still tossed aside like baggage.
And after personally witnessing Luoyu's overwhelming strength and effortless suppression, the once arrogant Spandam and his crew had already wilted.They cowered in the corner, pretending to be invisible.
"Chief Spandam, what do we do now?"Fukurou, unzipping his mouth with a zrrt, couldn't hold back any longer.
"Wasn't this new Admiral of the Marines supposed to be just slightly stronger than Lucci?"
"If that's the case, is Lucci really that strong? Because this guy seems way beyond him!"
Jabra and Kumadori exchanged grim looks, clearly unable to answer.
Spandam's jaw was clenched so tight it looked like he'd snap his own teeth.
"Tch! I swear I'll find a way to get even!" he growled.
"Yeah, he's strong, I admit that—but don't forget: Lucci gained fame much earlier and he has a Devil Fruit ability!"
"Jabra didn't even use his fruit in that fight! If he had, things wouldn't have ended so one-sided!"
Within CP9, Rob Lucci was acknowledged as the strongest.
But both Jabra and Kaku were considered close behind—the elite frontline fighters of the group.
Spandam's support clearly lifted Jabra's spirits.
But then…
Fukurou chimed in again, blunt as ever.
"True, Jabra didn't use his fruit… but the Admiral didn't even use his hands."
The room went silent.
The atmosphere turned suffocating.
Even though Fukurou always blurted things without thinking, no one dared to refute him this time.
Outside, Tashigi took a drag of her cigarette and actually cracked a rare smile.
"These CP9 idiots really don't learn… but that owl-faced freak actually said something smart for once. I like that."
"Never thought the new Fourth Admiral would be such a lunatic."
"Hmph. You can still laugh, Hina," Smoker grunted.
"But don't forget, what happened earlier has to be reported to Fleet Admiral Sengoku. If we don't write this up properly, we'll be the ones punished—even if CP9 were in the wrong."
Hina's smirk froze.
She rubbed her temples, instantly regretting everything.
"Fighting pirates, I like," she groaned.
"But writing reports? Ugh, I feel a migraine coming on."
"Hey Smoker, why don't you write it?"
"Me?" Smoker nearly bit his cigar in half again.
"If I knew how to write reports, I'd already be a Vice Admiral in headquarters—not some washed-up Colonel in Loguetown."
After all these years, he was still stuck in the same post.
"Brigadier Hina, Commodore Smoker," said Koby, stepping forward and saluting crisply.
"Admiral Luoyu has already written a report. It's a bit… simple, but you can just send it in."
Hina and Smoker blinked.
They exchanged a look of mutual surprise.
Luoyu voluntarily writing a report?
That… was not expected.
If an Admiral took responsibility for the report, there was no way the blame would fall on them.
But when they opened it—
They froze.
"This is… simple?"
More like minimalist!
Was this a report or a haiku?
Suddenly, a familiar chime echoed in Luoyu's mind:
Ding! Congratulations, host. You have completed your first Admiral-rank mission while on duty.You have earned an additional 500,000 performance bonus.Current system points: 1,110,000.
Luoyu's brow lifted, and his hand paused mid-sip.
He'd expected to get those points—the reward was practically in the bag.
But he didn't expect the system to auto-confirm the mission so quickly—he hadn't even made it halfway to Red Line yet!
Still, it was done.
Five hundred thousand performance points, instantly added.
He stared at the updated total—1,110,000 system points.
A dangerous glint flashed in his eyes.
He hadn't yet tried redeeming a Silver Chest ever since the rewards upgraded from Bronze.
Now that his points had crossed the threshold?
Luoyu's inner gambler was getting antsy.
If only the 5 million Beli monthly salary didn't pay out until the end of the month—he'd be splurging right now.
Still, with the line now in reach…
Screw it—time to roll the dice.
"System, can I redeem a Silver Chest now?"
Ding! Host has 1.11 million points. Silver Chest costs 1 million. Redemption available. Would you like to proceed?
Luoyu's eyes sparkled.
No hesitation.
"System, redeem it—now!"
Ding! Please wait.Ding! Redemption successful. One Silver Chest obtained.Silver Chests have a 70% chance to yield items from this world.30% chance to obtain rewards from alternate dimensions.The rarer the reward, the lower the odds. Good luck, and may fortune favor you!
Luoyu's face twitched.
He had been excited during the first half of the message…
But that "good luck" disclaimer at the end? It instantly felt like one of those "thank you for playing" gacha failures from back on Earth.
He knew this scammy feeling all too well.
Still, he took a deep breath as the shimmering silver chest materialized in his mental space.
This was it.
He believed in the magic of single draws. One and done. No hesitation.
Even if it was just one Silver Chest—
Who knows? He might just strike gold.
"System, open the Silver Chest—now!"
Ding! Please wait…Ding! Congratulations, host. Silver Chest opened successfully…
A blinding golden light erupted inside Luoyu's consciousness.
As the chest opened and the notification sounded in his ears, Luoyu was left frozen.
He recognized exactly what he was seeing.
And if it was what he thought it was…
Things were about to get very interesting.