A layer of jet-black Armament Haki coated the five people's arms.
Though faint and clearly at the beginner level, it was unmistakable—they had all awakened Haki.
If only Tina had said it, perhaps it could have been dismissed as bias or even a lie to cover for Luoyu.
But now, five people stood as living proof.
There was no way this could be false.
Awakening Haki in just a few minutes?
They had never heard of anything so absurd.
"Heh, hard to believe, isn't it?" Crocodile let out a rare laugh. "But I saw it with my own eyes. That brat's strength is far beyond you so-called admiral candidates."
The unexpected praise made Tina and the others visibly uncomfortable.
You'd have to be a fool not to hear the deliberate provocation laced in his words.
"Crocodile, shut your mouth!" Tina barked sharply.
"Vice Admiral Chaton, please don't misunderstand. Crocodile is just trying to sow discord and stir trouble between us marines."
"Admiral Luoyu has no such intentions."
After all this time working with Luoyu, Tina had a good grasp of his personality.
If he had any life goal, it was probably the legendary "nine-to-five schedule"—complete with weekends off.
To claim someone like that had ambition… now that would be a real stretch.
"Relax, Tina," Chaton said with a dry chuckle, folding his hands behind his back. "How could I be upset at being played by a pirate?"
"Still… if your Haki was awakened personally by Admiral Luoyu, then shouldn't he be the one escorting the Warlord?"
"It's already noon. Why haven't you departed yet? Are you waiting for the Celestial Dragons to respond?"
"If so, I suggest you remind your admiral—rather than sitting around waiting for punishment, he'd be better off completing the escort mission. Maybe then he can atone and lessen whatever consequences are coming."
The adjutant trailing Chaton immediately nodded in agreement.
After the embarrassment their boss had suffered, they finally had a chance to save face—of course they'd support it.
Tina and the others stiffened slightly, glancing nervously toward the guest courtyard.
They couldn't exactly say: Anxious? Tormented? My foot!
It was the weekend. The man was still sleeping!
Catching the change in Tina's expression, Gion frowned. "Tina, I've also heard… peculiar things about the new admiral. Rumors say he's like Kizaru and Aokiji—eccentric in his own way."
"They say he's obsessed with working hours—something about nine-to-five and weekends off?"
"If that's true, and today is a weekend… don't tell me—he's still asleep?"
Still asleep?
Chaton's face froze.
For the second time that day, his own words had come back to slap him in the face.
Normally, someone who assaulted a Celestial Dragon would be living in fear, awaiting divine punishment in terror.
Who the hell could sleep soundly after that—let alone completely blow off an escort mission?
Tina and the others couldn't help but chuckle bitterly.
With a boss like this, it was a miracle they didn't go gray early.
The Celestial Dragon incident had shaken the world.
They had spent the entire night racking their brains for a solution.
Only Luoyu had managed to sleep peacefully through it all.
Now, all they could hope was that—when he finally woke up—he'd think of a way to fix this mess.
Creak—!
The tightly shut courtyard doors suddenly opened.
Luoyu strolled out, meat bun in his mouth and a clay jug of local liquor in hand. He took a swig, swallowed the bite, and blinked in surprise at the crowded plaza.
"Ah… sorry. It's already noon, huh? You guys probably had breakfast already. I only prepared food for myself. Hope you don't mind!"
"Today's my day off. If there's nothing urgent, I'm heading out for a stroll."
And just like that, he turned and walked off, chomping his bun casually.
Colleagues? Missions? Celestial Dragons?
All of it—clearly forgotten like a dream.
Gion and Chaton stood frozen.
Hearing rumors was one thing.
Witnessing it in person… was something else entirely.
A nine-to-five schedule. Weekends off.
They had never heard of such a thing at Marine Headquarters.
And yet—someone had actually done it.
Ding!Congratulations, Host. You've completed your first official Admiral Weekend Check-In: 'Slept in on a day off'.Reward: 1 Silver Treasure Chest.
A crisp system notification rang in Luoyu's mind.
He raised an eyebrow, visibly surprised.
As expected, following Garp to Marine HQ just to slack off… was absolutely the right call.
The higher your rank, the better the perks and rewards.
Clearly, if you're going to be a slacker, you should be a high-class slacker.
When a salted fish flips, you get both sides sun-dried—and maybe even a bonus surprise.
When Luoyu first landed the admiral title, he had figured he'd need to work for a full month just to earn enough salary—five million Berries—to exchange for five silver chests and try his luck at a big win.
He hadn't expected that, just one week into his schedule, he'd already stumbled upon so many surprises.
At this rate, Luoyu was certain—within a year, his strength would undergo an earth-shattering transformation.
Staring at the shimmering silver treasure chest in his mental space, Luoyu didn't hesitate.
He wasn't the type to let treasure sit overnight.
Especially after beating the hell out of a Celestial Dragon yesterday. Who knew what fallout awaited him next?
Every bit of strength counted.
"System, open the silver chest!"
Ding!Please wait…Ding!Congratulations, Host. You've opened the Silver Treasure Chest. Reward: [Divine Talent – Immortal Clan Physique]!
A surge of warmth rushed into Luoyu's mind.
Everything about the Immortal Clan's physique—its essence, insights, and secrets—engraved itself into his very soul.
In that moment, Luoyu suddenly felt something change within him.
Not only had the flow of energy inside his body become more vivid…
Even the flow of power in the world around him—air, earth, sky—became faintly visible to him.
It was as if, with just a thought, he could call upon the forces dancing all around him.
But what surprised him most—
Was the treasure's description.
As expected… anything from the system was premium-grade quality.