Time flew by in the blink of an eye—several years had passed.
During those years, Mislanda had been living among the Roger Pirates, growing up alongside Shanks and Buggy, who had become his closest friends.
Since Mislanda was the youngest of the three, Shanks often looked after him like an older brother.
But what no one aboard the Oro Jackson knew… was that the boy they cared for so much wasn't from this world at all.
Yes—Mislanda was a transmigrator!
In his previous life, he had been a university student. He'd never seen the sea before, and the first time he stood before the vast ocean, he had declared that he wanted to set sail one day.
And then… a pillar of light had answered that wish—sending him straight into this world, as a baby!
At first, Mislanda had resisted the absurdity of it all, but eventually he accepted his new reality.
Life among the Roger Pirates was chaotic but thrilling. He followed them everywhere—laughing, learning, and dreaming.
He yearned for power, to grow stronger… but in the body of a child, what could he possibly do?
"Ahhh! Why'd you send me here, huh?!"
Standing at the bow of the Oro Jackson, Mislanda shouted up at the sky in frustration.
I crossed over, didn't I? So where's my cheat? My system? My golden finger?
He'd watched One Piece in his old world—but that was the Luffy era! Right now, Luffy wasn't even born!
"What the hell, at least give me something!"
Mislanda's complaints echoed across the deck, loud and indignant.
Hearing the boy's yelling, Rayleigh walked over, rubbing his temples.
"Hey, Mislanda, cut the noise. There's an island ahead—we're going ashore to rest."
No one could sail the seas endlessly. Every so often, they needed to dock, rest, and resupply.
Especially now—after their latest battle with the Marines, the crew was in dire need of a break.
"Got it, I'll be right there!"
In the years that followed, Mislanda experienced countless adventures aboard the Roger Pirates' ship. He traveled to island after island, witnessing events that would one day become legend.
And soon enough, it was Year 1497 of the Sea Circle Calendar.
Two years earlier, the Roger Pirates had defeated the mightiest pirate fleet of that time—the Flying Pirates, led by none other than Golden Lion Shiki.
After the fall of the Rocks Pirates at God Valley, the surviving monsters—Shiki, Whitebeard, Big Mom—had each gone their own way.
Among them, Shiki's ambition was unmatched, and he had built the largest pirate fleet in the world.
But ambition wasn't the same as destiny.
Shiki didn't have the "protagonist's halo."
At this point in history, Roger was the "Chosen One of the Sea." And so, Shiki fell—defeated and gravely injured.
After that victory, the Roger Pirates obtained all four Poneglyphs of the Road, and they were finally ready to sail for Raftel—the final island.
That year, Roger would become the Pirate King.
However, when the time came to sail to Raftel, Buggy came down with a severe illness, and Shanks volunteered to stay behind to care for him.
As for Mislanda, he had no interest in the "One Piece." His goal was different—
He only wanted to become the strongest in the world.
So the three of them—Shanks, Buggy, and Mislanda—did not make the voyage to Raftel.
And thus, they never learned what secrets lay upon that island.
When the crew returned, their hearts were heavy. Roger said nothing for months.
And then, one day, he made a decision that shook the entire world—
He would turn himself in.
Yes. The Pirate King, Gol D. Roger, chose to surrender.
His illness had reached its final stage; he didn't have long left. He wanted to do something meaningful with what remained of his life.
The crew had tried to dissuade him, but Roger's will was unshakable.
When he sailed off alone to surrender himself, the Roger Pirates disbanded.
The Marines never announced that Roger had turned himself in. Instead, they declared that he had been captured and would be publicly executed.
The chosen location: his birthplace—Loguetown, in the East Blue.
Reading the newspaper, Rayleigh drank all night, sighing until dawn.
"Old man, take me to Loguetown," Mislanda said quietly. "I want to see him… one last time."
Since the crew's disbandment, Mislanda had stayed by Rayleigh's side, unsure where to go next.
After a long silence, Rayleigh nodded. "Alright. We'll go together—to see Roger off."
But as they sailed toward Loguetown, another shocking piece of news reached them—
Golden Lion Shiki had single-handedly attacked Marine Headquarters, Marineford!
He fought Garp and Sengoku together, but was eventually defeated and imprisoned in Impel Down.
For all his madness, Shiki still had guts.
The day of the execution came.
That morning, a fleet of Marine warships arrived at Loguetown.
At the head of the formation sailed a ship with a dog-shaped figurehead—the vessel of Marine Hero Garp, the man in charge of escorting Roger.
Under his watch, the Pirate King was brought to his hometown.
The streets were overflowing with people, crowding both sides of the square, desperate to see the man who had conquered the seas.
Soon, Roger appeared, hands bound in seastone shackles.
Even in chains, his aura was unbroken—his gaze proud, his smile fearless.
A true king—who would never bow his head, even in death.
From the rooftop of a nearby building, Mislanda watched the scene from afar.
After dropping him off, Rayleigh had already left Loguetown. He didn't want to witness the execution. He'd return the next day to retrieve Mislanda.
And then—
Ding!
(System detected: Main Storyline Event triggered. System awakening!)
A voice echoed suddenly in Mislanda's mind, startling him so badly he nearly fell off the roof.
When he realized what it was, he almost cursed out loud.
"So I do have a cheat system, huh?! You damn thing—why are you only showing up now?!"
(Ding. Host is located in the One Piece world. The system only activates upon the dawn of the Great Age of Pirates.)
"Fine, fine—whatever! Just tell me what you can do!"
(Ding. System assigns missions and grants corresponding rewards.)
"So… do I have a mission right now?"
(Yes.)
(Ding. Mission issued: Help Roger trigger the Great Age of Pirates. Reward—Perfect Dark-Dark Fruit!)
(Perfect Dark-Dark Fruit: no double-pain drawback; full elementalization; immune to seastone and seawater effects.)
A translucent screen appeared before Mislanda's eyes, displaying the reward.
"The Dark-Dark Fruit… isn't that Blackbeard's ability?"
He'd met Marshall D. Teach before—back when they were still part of the same pirate world's tapestry.
"I've got a question. If I eat this Perfect Dark-Dark Fruit, will the original Dark-Dark Fruit still appear later?"
(Ding. Of course. This version is produced by the system—it's not bound to this world's version.)
The Dark-Dark Fruit… and a perfect one at that!
Reading the explanation, Mislanda grinned.
He was only eight years old—too young for intense training—but this fruit came at the perfect time.
"Not bad at all," he said with a smirk.
Then he turned his gaze back toward the execution square.
Roger had just stepped up onto the platform.