"What a jerk… always bullying girls."
At the helm, Nami grumbled while smacking her lips, shooting occasional glances toward the cabin.
Ever since they'd left Foosha Village, Reno had immediately whisked Makino into one of the private rooms.
Naturally, the job of steering the ship had fallen to her.
She was a navigator, sure—
But now she had to do the helmsman's job too?
Where was the justice in that?!
Nami had already cursed Reno a thousand times over in her heart.
He got to enjoy himself while saying all the right things:
"Makino just joined the crew. She's unfamiliar with life at sea—I need to teach her some basic navigation skills."
Makino, ever the pure-hearted sweetheart, had even prepared a little notebook to take notes.
The lesson?
Four hours long.
"Ugh… can't he show any mercy?"
…
Inside the cabin—
—[Ding! Congratulations, Host. You have successfully conquered crewmember Makino. Reward available. Claim now?]
The system prompt arrived right on schedule.
Reno ignored it—for now.
Makino lay quietly on the massive three-meter-wide bed, her cheeks tinged pink.
She didn't say a word, just stared at Reno, her gaze full of subtle grievance.
Scoundrel…!
He'd said he was going to teach her navigation…
This was not what she'd expected.
"You're part of my crew now, which means you're mine. Don't worry—I'll treat you well," Reno murmured softly, trying to reassure her.
It wasn't just sweet talk.
Reno wasn't the type to use and toss someone aside.
In time, Makino would come to understand his sincerity.
Truth be told, even though the "lesson" had lasted four hours, Reno had adjusted his approach to suit Makino's much gentler physical condition.
With Nami, he could go all out—barely any breaks.
But with Makino, he deliberately slowed down, keeping the intensity within what she could reasonably handle.
"Mm," Makino replied softly, her voice tired.
Reno quietly closed the door behind him and walked to Nami's room.
To do what?
Claim his reward, obviously!
—[Ding! Congratulations. You have acquired the skill: Teleportation!]
Teleportation?!
Reno's heart leapt.
In the fantasy novels of his previous life, teleportation might've been a basic power.
But in the world of One Piece?
It was broken-tier.
He opened the skill details.
Instant Movement: Within your perception range, you may ignore physical barriers and immediately appear at any desired location.
Spatial Anchor: Set a return point at any location you pass through. You can instantly return to it from anywhere in the world.
In simple terms?
Short-range blinking. Long-range anchoring.
Reno nodded in satisfaction.
In the One Piece world, people often described powerful enemies as "teleporting"—but that was just exaggerated speed.
Even if the naked eye couldn't keep up, Observation Haki could still track them.
But Reno's ability?
True teleportation.
The speed of thought was the speed of his movement.
Even if someone used Haki to sense where he'd moved, their body would still need time to react.
And in that time?
He'd already popped up in Mariejois and back.
And pairing teleportation with the Healing Fruit?
It'd be harder to die than to survive.
Reno was getting more and more excited.
At this rate, once he'd conquered all the story-relevant beauties, how powerful would he become?
He could probably crush Imu like an ant.
Wait—
Imu might be a woman, right?
…Then he couldn't kill her.
He'd just have to conquer her too.
…
Nightfall.
At the dinner table, Reno, Nami, and Makino sat together.
Nami chomped away at her food with zero restraint.
"Slow down," Reno muttered. "No one's gonna steal it from you."
"It's so good!" Nami beamed. "Makino-nee, your cooking's way better than Reno's!"
She spoke with a mouthful of rice, her words simultaneously praising Makino and throwing shade at Reno.
"Okay, now that part you can leave out," Reno sighed, flicking her forehead with a thwack.
"Ow!" Nami rubbed her head and glared at him—then kept eating like nothing happened.
Makino quietly giggled behind her hand.
Though they hadn't spent much time together, she was beginning to think…
Maybe Reno wasn't as terrible as he'd seemed back at the bar.
Was she mistaken about him?
"Makino," Reno said with a smile, "from today on, you're officially the Reno Pirates' brewer and cook."
He was genuinely surprised—her food wasn't just edible; it was restaurant-grade.
A perfect mix of color, aroma, and flavor.
"No problem at all," Makino replied softly.
The truth was, from the moment she agreed to join the Reno Pirates, her fate had already been sealed.
Since I'm here, I might as well make peace with it.
And now that she'd given Reno her most precious thing, her heart had started to accept him too.
If he liked her cooking, then she'd happily make it for him.
"Captain, are we still recruiting more crew?" Makino asked, casually joining in the conversation.
Right now, the crew had only three people—not even the most basic pirate group setup.
"Of course," Reno said with a nod. "In the coming days, we'll be visiting lots of places to find new members."
Upon hearing that, Nami tilted her head and sighed dramatically.
"Oh no… how many more innocent girls are you going to 'corrupt'?"
Reno's face darkened.
"Nami, what did you just say?"
"Just kidding! I was joking, Captain!" she blurted, throwing up her hands as Reno raised his palm again.
All female crewmates, huh?
Makino blinked, her mind flashing back to the "lesson" earlier.
Her face burned with embarrassment.
So our captain… is that kind of guy.