Klein glanced over the skills his character currently possessed:
Conqueror's Haki [LV.3], Tekkai [LV.2], Geppo [LV.2]; the rest of Rokushiki and minor skills like Iron Fist were all still at Level 1.
Among them, only Conqueror's Haki and Iron Fist were gold legendary quality.
He hesitated.
Leveling up Conqueror's Haki would clearly offer the most value—going from 3 to 4 would push its power to the next tier.
But in the end…
Klein still chose to level up Iron Fist!
One month later—
He had to make Garp beat Sengoku. Then Sengoku would have to call him brother!
Skill scrolls could be obtained again…
But chances to make Sengoku call him "bro" were rare. Miss it, and it's gone forever!
This was the kind of once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that needed to be grabbed with both hands.
Besides…
Klein still had two Random Skill Upgrade Scrolls in his inventory. If he could save up five or ten of them—
He'd use them to level up, maybe even trigger a gold legendary upgrade!
[Skill Upgrade Successful!][Iron Fist: LV.1 → LV.2][Attributes: ...]
As the skill leveled up, the system immediately fed back into Klein's mind, flooding it with memories of Iron Fist training and a much deeper understanding of the technique.
Pay-to-win is beautiful!
Let's go all-in!
Every time the system boosted his strength, Klein felt genuine joy from the depths of his soul.
Pure enjoyment.
No grinding, no painful training, just raw power gains.
Absolutely perfect!
Games like this? Please give the readers a dozen more!
Once he was done with this system, he'd make sure all his bros got a turn enjoying it too.
Jieh jieh jieh jieh—
After upgrading his skill, Klein returned to the main menu to clear his dailies and buy all the limited-time deals.
Only then did he click on the new icon.
Life Skills!
Clicking it open, he found that learning them required equipping a mentor with a special life skill.
Things like Cooking, Navigation, Shipbuilding, Medicine, Musical Instruments, Singing, Dancing, Painting, Circus Acrobatics, Calligraphy, Butlery, Fishing…
Some of the practical skills needed materials to perform, while others like talents required daily practice attempts.
These added experience to life skills over time.
In-game…
Life skills gave attribute bonuses.
In real life, they meant actually mastering the skill.
Klein opened the mentor tab and saw that he had two characters in his inventory:
One was Nami, who specialized in Navigation.
The other was none other than the world's greatest swordsman—Dracule Mihawk.
And Mihawk's list of skills…
Was surprisingly long!
He had Cooking, Navigation, Farming, and Blade Maintenance.
Seeing those last two, Klein immediately pictured Mihawk in his castle, slicing veggies on a cutting board with his little knife.
"Yeah, that tracks."
"Mihawk's probably got some mean kitchen skills."
"But farming though…"
"This game is trolling, right—"
"Hey! That dev is a damn genius!"
"Bwahahaha—!"
Klein couldn't help laughing like a villain in his heart.
Once he calmed down…
He found that he couldn't actually learn any of Mihawk's life skills.
His avatar was grayed out—he was currently busy mentoring Black Wukong in swordsmanship and couldn't appear twice.
The game had also added new features like fishing, cosmetics, gourmet dishes, and challenge stages.
After a brief tour, daylight had crept in.
It was morning.
This was the first time Klein had played through the entire night—but unlocking the battle pass really gave him a ton of rewards.
After logging out, a wave of sleepiness hit him, but he could still manage.
He cleaned up and followed Garp and the others to the cafeteria, then began the day's lessons.
At lunchtime—
Klein grabbed Tsuru, found their instructor, and pitched his proposal to build a bathhouse.
Shua—!
As soon as he brought it up, Instructor Carter's eyes turned into the shape of Beli.
"A bathhouse?! Love it. We need one!"
Just think of all those female Marine officers…
Usually so fierce and stern in uniform—it's honestly gotten a bit boring to look at.
But with a bathhouse built…
He might just get to witness them in bath towels, or robes—
Oh my god!
That'd be too good!
Klein looked thrilled—clearly, this bathhouse project wouldn't hit much resistance.
But soon enough…
When they got to the topic of profit sharing, things went off the rails.
"I want 90%!" the instructor said shamelessly.
Klein's expression darkened. "What the hell?! I won't make a single Beli off this! That's daylight robbery!"
He snapped back instantly.
"No way. If we take only 10%, we won't make anything. You can have 40%, max!"
"..."
The instructor took a sip of tea, visibly annoyed. "80%. I'm not backing down. Without my permission, you can't build anything on school grounds. And without you? I can still build it myself!"
His whole attitude screamed 'Take it or leave it', which made Klein want to curse his entire family.
Are you serious?
Some people might be shameless—but this guy redefined the word!
'Believe it or not, I'll spit soda right in your face!'
Klein was trembling with rage!
This old geezer is evil!
On the side, Tsuru could tell Klein, who was unusually obsessed with money, was about to explode.
She quickly reached out to hold him back, sat gracefully across from the instructor, rested her chin on her hands, and said calmly:
"Instructor, you're pushing it."
"Klein is one of the school's top talents. He has a high chance of becoming an admiral in the future. And right now…"
"He runs a training program that draws lots of students. He's extremely popular and influential here."
"Many of those students have relatives working in the Marines."
"If we publicize your behavior or organize a protest…"
"I'm sure you'll have a lot of trouble coming your way."
Her words were firm and calm, her deep blue eyes unwavering as she stared him down.
"Peace brings profit. Everyone wins."
"Otherwise…"
"No one wins."
Faced with that cold but powerful gaze, the instructor furrowed his brow in thought.
Eventually, he gave in: "Fine. We'll go with your plan."
He couldn't afford an actual riot or organized protest from the student body. That would definitely blow up.
"Phew—" Klein let out a long breath and gave Tsuru a grateful look.
If it weren't for her, the negotiation would've completely collapsed.
The instructor casually asked, "So what's this bathhouse going to be called?"
"Platinum Han!"
"Platinum Han?" the instructor blinked. "What kind of name is that?"
Klein didn't explain much. "It's a name that brings wealth."
That's where my bro got his start, made it big, and became a legend.
Back in Jinghai…
He could practically cover the sky with one hand.
One day—
I, Klein, will make it so every Beli that falls from the heavens over Marineford…
Is from the Moretti family!
As they left the office, Klein beamed. "Tsuru, no wonder you're top of the culture class. If it weren't for you, we'd never have sealed this deal."
"No need to be so formal. Platinum Han's mine too now—I did it for myself," Tsuru said cheerfully. "If you really want to thank me…"
"Then show me that 'Beautiful Woman Fist' again sometime."
???
Three big black lines appeared on Klein's forehead.
"Heehee—" Tsuru's eyes curved into little crescents as she smiled sweetly. "Look at you all nervous. So funny."
Funny your face.
As they walked, Klein said, "Well, since we're partners, I can give you some special training, maybe a few pointers—but a performance..."
"Forget it!"
Tsuru didn't reply—just smiled with a strong, knowing confidence on her face.
Once there's a first time…
There'll be plenty more!
Klein quickly changed the subject. "How about lunch's on me at the cafeteria today?"
"…You do know the cafeteria's free, right?" Tsuru rolled her eyes. "But since you brought it up, one day you owe me a proper fancy meal!"
Klein figured he'd unlock Cooking eventually anyway, so he agreed on the spot.
No problem.
With my future cooking skills, I'll take you straight from heart… to stomach!
Tsuru reminded him: "Don't forget to draw up the bathhouse design later. Just…"
"I really doubt your drawing skills."
"..." Klein's face darkened.
Once my Drawing skill levels up…
I swear I'll completely change your opinion of me!
And slap that smug face of yours with the truth!