The sun blazed fiercely over the boundless sea, its golden rays dancing across the water's surface. Amid the glittering waves, a battered little boat struggled to stay afloat in the fury of the storm.
Then came a thunderous crash. A massive wave smashed into the vessel, swallowing it whole. All that remained were scattered planks and foam, drifting slowly across the pale-blue-and-gray expanse.
In one remote corner of this vast ocean, a lone boy—clothes in tatters, eyes filled with both fear and determination—clung tightly to a wooden barrel as he floated with the current.
Somewhere else, gentle sunlight filtered through a dense canopy of leaves, casting a dappled glow upon the forest floor. A young boy stirred from unconsciousness, his presence bringing a flicker of life to the desolate island.
"Ugh... where am I?" Lind groaned, his body wracked with pain and weakness. Still, he realized with relief that he hadn't gone to meet King Yama just yet.
"I must be the disgrace of the fishing world... Not only did I come back empty-handed, I even fell into the water like an idiot!"
"Next time I go fishing, I'm bringing someone with me. Damn lucky I survived—otherwise I'd be fish food."
Lind took a deep breath, thankful to be alive.
In his previous life, Lind had been a junior in college, studying agriculture. He was interning at an experimental farm jointly operated by the school and a research facility.
On the weekend, he went fishing alone by a nearby river. After catching nothing for hours, he moved spot after spot—until, in a moment of carelessness, he slipped and fell straight into the river.
Staring up at the familiar blue sky, he muttered, "Looks like I got washed ashore… Must've been the gods looking out for me."
Having survived that close brush with death, Lind still didn't grasp the true nature of his situation. He simply thought himself lucky, like those people in TV dramas who always seemed to wash up safely on shore after nearly drowning.
"I don't even know how long I was unconscious… Hope Professor Wang's okay. I'd better hurry back—"
But suddenly, Lind froze. Something wasn't right.
Reincarnated? Or transmigrated?
He glanced down at his hands and arms, now noticeably thinner and smaller than before.
Whatever the case, it was clear: Professor Wang probably wasn't doing well.
As the head of the base, the man was likely panicking over Lind's disappearance.
Fortunately, Lind had already registered himself as an orphan with the Qidian Orphanage before the accident. He had no real attachments.
Aside from bringing some trouble to Professor Wang and the school, his disappearance wouldn't cause too much disruption.
Still, he did feel a little guilty. The professor had been kind to him lately, and Lind's clumsy fishing accident was sure to bring trouble.
"What a waste of my thesis. Wonder which lucky junior gets to inherit that."
"Then again, maybe the school will just use it as a cautionary tale to warn future students."
Stretching out his stiff limbs, Lind pushed aside thoughts of the professor and began reflecting on the impact of his disappearance. Perhaps it would serve as a lesson.
After all, ag students spent a lot of time in the field, often near rivers and lakes. His little misadventure might become a real-world example for safety lectures.
"Anyway… First things first—how am I going to survive?"
Lind sighed and murmured aloud.
The salty sea breeze brushed past his face, and the soft sand beneath him hinted at what had happened.
"Judging by the sand and the ocean scent… the previous owner of this body probably got shipwrecked."
He pinched a handful of sand, trying to assess his surroundings.
"Just where have I washed up? Please don't let it be a deserted island…"
"I mean, I've read Robinson Crusoe and I know how to farm, but surviving in the wild's a whole different beast!"
The more he considered his situation, the more his head throbbed.
"Well, guess I'll take it one step at a time. Let's see what's around here."
Lind rubbed his temples and was just about to get up when a sharp pain exploded in his head.
"Argh!!"
A torrent of jumbled memories crashed through his mind, overlapping, colliding, and fusing together.
His body convulsed from the pain. It wasn't until more than ten minutes later that the searing agony finally faded.
"This world… It feels so familiar. No, it is familiar!"
Fragments of memory surfaced. Lind's eyes widened.
"There may not be characters from the original story, but the World Government, the Marines, the pirates, the New World… this has to be that world. Just... an earlier time."
"The year's 1477, huh? A bit early—but that just means more time to develop. If I can make it work."
Lying on the ground, Lind slowly organized the memories swirling in his head.
"Schildt Lind, another orphan from Qidian Orphanage, huh?"
"With no family, no one's coming to save me. It's all on me now."
"There's no main continent in this world either… I just hope this island has people."
"If I can find some work, I'll lie low and bide my time. Wait for the right moment."
Resting for a bit longer, Lind finally stood up, enduring the lingering pain. It was time to explore the island.
Time passed quickly. The soft glow from earlier was now a blazing sun.
Lind returned to the beach from the woods, hands full of fruit, back to where he had first woken up.
"What luck… mixed as always."
He stared at the strange purple fruit in his hand, its surface coiled with spiral patterns and jagged grass markings.
After two hours of scouting, Lind was almost certain: the island was tiny—probably no more than a kilometer in diameter. He'd be living like a castaway for a while.
He truly wished it were a larger, inhabited island where he could settle down and build a future.
Still, things weren't all bad.
Though small, the island was rich with fruit trees—coconuts, bananas, durians, and other tropical varieties. The abundance surprised him.
He even spotted animals like squirrels and rabbits during his search. At least food wouldn't be a problem.
As for water, he found several small ponds scattered throughout the island.
They weren't exactly clean, but humans in this world were built tougher than in his previous life.
Drinking from them wouldn't be an issue. And if needed, he could always boil it first.
All in all, surviving here wasn't going to be difficult.
And this Devil Fruit he held… gave him hope.
"No golden finger's shown up since I woke up. So this fruit might be my only shot at changing fate."
"Judging by this body's natural talent, it's probably just average. Without a Devil Fruit, I'd be stuck at the bottom of the ladder my whole life."
Holding the fruit in both hands, Lind spoke softly.
"You only live once. Might as well gamble everything on this."
"In the original story, those powerful fruits were always out of reach. But now that I've got one…"
"No way I'm living out my days scraping by!"
With newfound resolve, Lind took a huge bite.
"Ugh—what the hell?! The rumors weren't kidding about the taste!"
His confident expression crumbled instantly.
The taste was so foul he nearly gagged. But remembering the legends from his past life, Lind forced himself to finish the whole thing.
He chose to believe. Some said you had to eat the entire fruit for its power to awaken.
Eyes squeezed shut in pain, Lind devoured the last bite. Then, in desperation, he grabbed a coconut he had cracked open earlier and gulped it down, hoping to wash away the awful flavor.
"Good thing I had the sense to prep this first. Otherwise, I'd be retching everything back up."
Sipping the coconut water, he ranted about the fruit's taste.
Only after draining it dry did he start to feel human again.
Sitting casually on the ground, he nibbled at the remaining coconut meat and focused on the strange power now stirring within him.
"…Whoa. This fruit is wild."
"Was this ever in the original series? A mutation-type ability? If I can develop it right, it might rival the Little Devil Fruit Tree!"
The potential excited him—until he realized the fruit's limitations.
Mutations were:
Uncontrollable
Weak in effect
Nearly impossible to develop
Those three flaws spelled trouble.
The first was the worst: he couldn't even risk mutating himself.
Sure, a beneficial mutation might be fine—but what if it turned him into a brainless zombie? Or worse, some genderless freak?
He shuddered.
Future Kaido or Shiki might love this kind of power. They could feed it to loyal subordinates and play the odds. With enough bodies, they could build a monstrous mutant army, rivaling even the Hundred Beasts or Flying Beast legions from the original tale.
But Lind's goal was personal strength. He couldn't afford to gamble like that.
Next came the problem of weak effects.
Even a successful mutation might only give something like a cheetah's speed, a tiger's strength, or a wolf's claws.
That sounded decent—until you compared it to Zoan Fruits, which enhanced every physical attribute far beyond any beast's natural limit.
What good was a wolf's claw if it was weaker than a regular kitchen knife?
And finally: development.
Mutations were static. A wolf's claw would always just be… a wolf's claw.
Unless a genius like Vegapunk modified it, there was no way it would evolve into something like Wolverine's.
And if Vegapunk did enhance it, the mutation might just get in the way.
"Until I figure out how to control the direction of mutation, I absolutely cannot use it on myself!" Lind growled.
His hopes of turning into the Hulk or Magneto had evaporated.
If he wanted to grow stronger, he'd have to rely on old-fashioned methods—martial arts and swordsmanship. For now, the fruit would be used to mutate other things and assist his training.
"No use betting everything on a miracle. I'll need to get creative."
"For now, I'll stick to what I know. Let's hope this island's plants give me something useful."
"This body's talent is mediocre. Without external help, I'd be lucky to reach the level of a pirate with a few million in bounty."
Drawing from his years of experience and endless reading, Lind had an idea: farming.
He would cultivate and mutate a wide variety of crops. Some flashy, some subtle—but each one boosting his strength bit by bit.
Who knew? Maybe, one day, a single grain of rice would extend life for centuries. A single peach might grant immortality.
"The path ahead is rocky… but the future is bright. I'll stay hidden and rise in silence!"
Swallowing the last bite of coconut, Lind stood up and declared boldly:
"First, stockpile food. Build defenses. Develop in secret. And when the time comes…"
He turned to face the open sea, eyes burning with conviction.
"I'll let this world hear my voice."
*********
Hey everyone! I'll be dropping an extra 1 chapter once we hit 200, 400 power stones! If you're enjoying the story, don't forget to spend some power stones. I'd really appreciate the support. Thanks a bunch!