**Hey. I'm Ael Riven.** No, it's not my real name—because I can't use it. My parents don't support this, so everything I write, I write in secret. It's risky, yeah, but this is the only way I can create something that's *mine*.
I'm still in high school, buried under studying and prepping for college exams. That pressure's real, so I can't promise I'll write all the time. But when I do, it's everything I've got.
English isn't even my first language—it's my fourth. So I use AI to help smooth out the words. But don't get it twisted: the ideas, the world, the characters, the heart of the story? That's all me. I know exactly what I want to say—I just need a little help saying it clearly.
Thanks for being here. Thanks for reading. Even if I'm writing in the dark, maybe someone like you will see the light in it.
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The cursor blinked on his screen. He sighed. "One Piece... finally," he mumbled, adjusting his hoodie. The room was dim except for the blue light from his laptop. Posters of various anime plastered the wall behind him. Naruto, Attack on Titan, Demon Slayer... all finished. All conquered. Only *One Piece* remained. The last titan.
"A thousand-plus episodes? Man... this is gonna take a while," he muttered, dragging the slider to Episode 1. "Let's just see what the hype is about."
Twenty episodes in, and he was starting to get it. Not fully. Just enough to feel the beginning of that itch — that maybe, just maybe, this show *was* something special. Luffy's energy. Zoro's calm. Nami's tricks. He didn't love it yet. But he didn't hate it either.
He stood up to grab a soda from the fridge. The floor creaked beneath his socks.
Then came the pain. Sudden. Searing. Sharp.
A splitting sound, like fabric tearing across reality. His chest twisted violently, like someone had tied a noose around his soul and yanked.
And darkness.
---
When he opened his eyes, the sky above him was too bright, too blue. Wind tickled his skin. The scent of salt and sea. He blinked. He wasn't in his room.
He wasn't... himself.
He sat up quickly—no, *she* sat up. Her body felt off. Lighter. Slimmer. The weight on her chest and the air brushing her bare skin made her freeze.
A glimpse at her hands. Smaller. More delicate.
She ran to a nearby puddle, splashing water with trembling steps.
There she saw it.
Orange hair. Large, expressive brown eyes. A face too familiar.
Nami.
Her—*his*—reflection was Nami.
"What the hell?!" she shouted, stumbling back. Her voice, too. Higher. Feminine. Clear.
And then came the chime.
> \[SYSTEM LOADED]
> \[Congratulations, Host, you have been reconnected into the world of *One Piece*!]
> \[New identity: Nami]
> \[Initial Quest: Join the Protagonist Pirate Crew (a.k.a. The Straw Hat Pirates)]
> \[Reward upon completion: 4 Max-Level Cards (Usable on Skills or Traits)]
> \[Bonus Trait Activated: 10x Beauty Amplification. Current beauty exceeds global standards. Estimated charm: Beyond Boa Hancock.]
Her jaw dropped. "No. No way. I'm... in One Piece? As *Nami*?"
> \[Mission Timer: 4 hours before you meet Monkey D. Luffy. Prepare yourself.]
"Luffy?" She remembered him. That happy-go-lucky idiot with a straw hat and a stupid grin. The kind who made friends with sea monsters and punched warlords just because he felt like it.
She dropped to the ground, her knees in the sand. "This... is insane."
Her mind raced. She tried to recall all she knew. Twenty episodes. That's it. She barely knew where the Grand Line was. She knew Nami joined early, that she betrayed the crew at some point for her village, and then returned. That was it. Everything else was fog.
"I'm underprepared for this. I should've watched more... damn it."
> \[You have unlocked: 4 Max-Level Cards]
> \[Use them now? Y/N]
She swallowed. "Y."
> \[Select Skill to Maximize.]
She didn't hesitate.
"Conqueror's Haki."
> \[Conqueror's Haki: MAX. Unshakable Will. Aura of Domination.]
"Observation Haki."
> \[Observation Haki: MAX. Advanced Precognition. Danger Awareness. Emotional Sensing.]
"Armament Haki."
> \[Armament Haki: MAX. Blackened Body Defense. Devastating Impact.]
She paused at the fourth.
"I'll keep that one. For later."
She stood, feeling the rush. Like energy infused her blood. Like her very presence warped the world slightly. Her senses expanded. She could *feel* every footstep in a hundred-meter radius. Hear distant ships slicing through the sea. Smell gunpowder from the town over.
A gull flew overhead and immediately swerved away.
Even the *air* respected her now.
Then came a small voice from within. Her own.
Not the new Nami. But her past self. The anime fan. The gamer. The introvert.
And she laughed. Just a little.
"This is nuts... but also... kinda badass."
She looked down at her clothes. A short orange skirt. A white and blue top. Her brows twitched.
"Why does it have to be this outfit?" she grumbled.
She pulled her orange hair back into a loose ponytail and stole a white shirt off a clothesline nearby, tying it casually around her waist to dull the skin exposure. Already she'd seen five men turn their heads and nearly crash their carts.
> \[Charm Level: Intimidating.]
"Great," she muttered. "So I'm a walking goddess now."
But there was no time to relax. Luffy would be here soon.
And unlike the real Nami, she had no plan to betray him. Not because of trust.
But because of power.
She smirked faintly, the expression subtle and smooth. "Let's see how this world handles a Nami with Conqueror's Haki."
And as the sun rose higher over the coast, the future changed course with every silent footstep she took.
---
**End of Chapter 1**