"Three-on-one in the name of justice, and Level 2 characters are this weak?!" Klein had thought that obtaining a golden gear, the Great Grade Blade, would let him push through stages easily.
But he only barely cleared Stage 1-1, and Stage 1-2 was completely out of reach.
The good news? He unlocked a new feature: Equipment Forging.
The bad news…
Klein knew what was coming—no doubt a premium bundle would be waiting for him. He followed the tutorial and opened the character equipment menu.
He tapped on the Great Grade Blade.
[Do you want to upgrade this equipment?][Required materials: 500 Berries, 1 Refinement Stone.]
He had just earned a Refinement Stone from clearing 1-1, so he followed the prompt and upgraded the weapon.
[Upgrade Successful.][Wado Ichimonji LV.1 → LV.2!][Attack: XXX → XXX↑!][Crit Rate: XXX → XXX↑!][…]
Each stat increased slightly, but most of his materials were already depleted.
Sure enough, a flashy purchase popup filled the screen.
[Must-have for upgrading! 600% Super Value Rebate!][Limited-Time Four-Tier Discount Bundles!][Would you like to buy an Upgrade Bundle?]
300 Berries: Get 100 Coins, 1 Refinement Stone
680 Berries: Get 300 Coins, 3 Refinement Stones
1280 Berries: Get 600 Coins, 6 Refinement Stones
6480 Berries: Get 4000 Coins, 40 Refinement Stones
"Top up!"
[Current Balance: 838,944 Berries]
Klein purchased all four discount bundles, pouring the materials into leveling up his weapon.
He upgraded Wado Ichimonji to Level 7, boosting its stats significantly.
However, his resources were almost gone again. With the leftovers, he upgraded his shorts to Level 4—being white-grade gear, the boost was minor.
Luckily, the system allowed inheritance, meaning when he changed equipment later, it would carry over the current enhancement level.
After a round of upgrades, Klein confidently resumed stage-clearing—only to get smacked in the face by reality.
"Damn it!"
"This is torture. Is the dev a poet or something?!"
"Aren't games supposed to have beginner protection? Early-game progression should be lightning fast to let players enjoy the thrill of getting stronger, right?!"
And yet…
This game is a goddamn trap!!
Being stuck in stage progression was a special kind of pain. Klein finally understood—and reluctantly sent his character to idle-farm again.
He glanced at the Training Room level.
"Each level increases EXP gain by 5%. It's definitely worth upgrading, but buying it directly from the shop is a rip-off..."
While he was hesitating, a new flashing popup appeared in the center of the screen. The dazzling golden glow nearly blinded him.
It was another set of four-tier discount bundles.
"The discount bundles reset daily?!" Klein felt like he was being watched, but didn't hesitate much and bought them all again.
He upgraded the Training Room and purchased another four-tier forging acceleration bundle.
[Current Balance: 821,464 Berries]
The balance kept dropping, but the Training Room went from Level 3 to Level 5, boosting EXP gain to 25%. With the monthly card and Conqueror's Haki bonus, he now had a 35% EXP boost.
"Auto-mode, engage!"
After showering and lying in bed, Klein was about to doze off when the dorm door opened. Garp, Sengoku, and Zephyr, done with their training, entered one after another.
Garp glared at Sengoku with fiery eyes. "Afro-head, just wait till combat training starts—I'll show you the power of my fists!"
"Dammit Garp, quit yapping. The one who won't know which way is up by the end of it might be you!" Sengoku shot back without missing a beat.
The two were clearly locked in a rivalry, competing constantly—even their training had become a battleground of egos.
Zephyr frowned as he looked at Klein lying in bed. Back in the cafeteria, he had invited Klein to join extra training, but Klein had declined, saying he was too tired and his body couldn't take it.
"Those with less talent should work even harder to close the gap."
He didn't look at Klein again. He already knew—some people were simply destined to be average, coasting through life. He headed straight to the showers.
The noise woke Klein, who pulled out a pair of earplugs he'd prepared under his pillow. He had extras, and tossed one pair to Sengoku.
"Sengoku, for you—so the shouting doesn't keep you up."
Sengoku caught the earplugs smoothly and gave Klein a grateful smile. "Klein, thanks. I'll finally sleep well tonight!"
Klein smiled, walked to Zephyr's bed, placed another pair there, and returned to his own bed. "Alright, it's late. Let's all get some rest."
When Zephyr came out of the bathroom and climbed into bed, he immediately noticed the earplugs.
Sengoku chimed in, "Zephyr, they're from Klein. With those, we can finally sleep through Garp the Snorer's nightly rumble. I barely slept last night."
"Klein…" Zephyr felt a pang of guilt. He looked over at Klein, already resting with eyes closed, and sighed internally: 'Everyone has their own path and way of living. If he doesn't want to join our extra training, I shouldn't force it.'
Meanwhile, Garp was still in the shower, humming a tune, completely unaware.
The next day.
The moment Klein opened his eyes, the first thing he did was log into the game, diving straight into quests and bundle purchases.
He also claimed his idle rewards:
[Idle Complete. Training Room EXP gained: 135][Level Up: LV.2 → LV.3][EXP: 73/300][HP: 110 → 120][Attack: …][Defense: …][Physique: 6 → 8]
The level-up bonuses flowed directly into Klein's body. A warm sensation washed over him—his muscles, bones, and blood felt subtly stronger.
So satisfying!
Three seconds of pure bliss reminded him that his strength had grown once again.
'Rushing water doesn't compete for the lead—it wins by flowing endlessly.'
If he improved even a little each day, he'd become one of the top powerhouses on the seas sooner or later.
Wasting no time, he burned through more bundle materials, upgrading the Training Room to Level 6.
"Once it hits Level 10, I'll unlock the special Training Room. Almost there. The only problem is that the higher the level, the more resources it eats. One day's bundles aren't enough for even one upgrade now…" Klein knew the early stages were easy.
Later? It would only get harder and slower.
Drill Grounds.
Same training tasks as yesterday, but today Klein felt much more at ease. He smirked to himself: 'This is the power of in-game progression. With every level-up, my real strength grows too.'
"Surpassing Garp and Sengoku? Just a matter of time!"
The instructor supervising training had been watching these recruits for a few days. He already had a rough idea of their talent and potential.
But today…
Someone surprised him.
"Klein... Yesterday, he ranked around 300 in every training task. Today, he's jumped to 260?"
"Did I misjudge him?"
He took out his notebook and looked at his earlier evaluation. Originally rated as a B- potential.
After a moment of silence, he erased it and changed it to B.