"Mm – ah – nn…"
On a gently rocking war‑ship, a soft groan drifted out of a small cabin.
Luffy sat up in bed. The room was empty, but the steady rise and fall of his body told him the floor itself was swaying.
He threw back the blanket and stared at the child‑sized frame beneath it.
So, it wasn't a dream after all.
Judging by the motion, this has to be a ship's cabin.
His head still foggy, Luffy rubbed his temples and flopped onto the pillow again.
That cheap‑grandpa Garp must have been nearby… Figures, who'd abandon a kid that small in a place that deadly?
He pulled the quilt over his head, hoping a bit of darkness would restore his frayed nerves.
"Wait! I'm forgetting something!"
He jerked upright. "Just before I blacked out I heard… something about experience points?"
Memories of all those "system" web‑novels he'd read in his previous life snapped his mind into focus.
System.
He called silently in his heart.
Zzt,
The world flickered white and, suddenly, a string of icons hovered at the lower right of his vision:
Attributes
Equipment
Partners
Ship
Shop
System
The Attributes icon was a simple black silhouette. Equipment was a shirt, Partners three stick figures, Ship a tiny boat, Shop a blindingly golden ingot, and System two dull gray characters.
Four of the six, Equipment, Partners, Ship, and Shop, were greyed out. Only Attributes glowed.
No matter where Luffy looked, the icons stayed fixed in the corner; when he focused on something else, they faded until almost invisible, as if they'd always belonged there.
Since Attributes worked, he concentrated on it.
Open.
A panel expanded before him.
Name: Monkey D. Luffy
Level: 1
EXP: 5 / 100
HP: 50
Endurance: 5
Strength: 2
Agility: 4
Mental Power: 85
Just as Luffy leaned in to study the numbers, the cabin door burst open and a dog‑head poked inside.
"How're you feeling, Luffy?"
Hearing movement, Garp had hurried over to check on his adorable grandson. Seeing the dazed look in Luffy's eyes, he stepped in and thumped the boy's head with a thick palm.
"You okay, Luffy?"
"Darn it! You tossed me into that death trap and left me there!"
Luffy snapped back in the tone he dimly recalled using with Garp.
"Ahahaha! Full of fire, good! Makes Grandpa proud." Garp ruffled Luffy's hair like a shaggy dog. "You're going to be the strongest Marine ever. A setback like that can't stop you!"
Luffy grabbed the giant hand, but it was useless.
"Rest up. I'm off for some delicious senbei!"
Garp finally let go and strode out.
Maybe I should wait till he's older before I toughen him up that far, he mused, closing the door.
Luffy watched him leave, grinding his teeth until the footsteps faded.
Looks like only I can see this panel.
Garp had barged in while the screen was still open, yet he hadn't noticed a thing.
No sooner had Luffy thought that than a voice echoed in his mind.
[Yes. Only the host can view the system.]
"Huh? You can talk?" he whispered.
[This system has basic AI and can answer your questions. You may communicate silently.]
Then explain these attributes for me, Luffy asked mentally.
[Attributes convert your body into data. As long as HP isn't zero, no injury will hamper your combat ability. At 0 HP, the host dies.]
[Each level‑up grants +10 to every stat and 10 free points to distribute.]
Endurance: affects HP, defense, and recovery. Haki becomes usable at 500 Endurance.
• Strength: raw attack power. At Strength 500 + Endurance 500, Armament Haki unlocks.
• Agility: movement speed and reflexes. At Agility 500 + Endurance 500, Observation Haki unlocks.
• Mental Power: mental offense/defense and willpower. It rises only with age and experiences, not training. Mental Power 500 + Endurance 500 unlocks Conqueror's Haki.
"Hold on!"
Luffy interrupted. "You said my body's data‑fied?"
[Correct. Any blow you take just subtracts HP; your flesh won't show damage until death.]
[Different body parts lose HP at different rates. Hair damage is 0, though injuries to the scalp will cost HP depending on severity.]
[Reality feels unchanged; the data simply preserves bodily integrity and gives clear numbers.]
"Does that mean I'll stay a kid forever?"
Sweat beaded on his palms as he stared at the panel.
The system fell strangely silent, as if running at full CPU.
"Hey, answer me!"
He didn't care that he was yelling into an empty cabin.
[The body will grow.]
The answer came out at last, ice‑cold.
[But the stats will remain fixed unless you level up. Without EXP, your physical capabilities will never rise.]
"Thud…"
Crushed, Luffy collapsed face‑first onto the mattress, staring blankly at the wall.
So if I can't gain levels, I'll be stuck with a child's strength forever? Will I live my whole life like this?
He shut his eyes in despair as silent tears seeped out.