Late that night, about an hour after lights-out.
Marine Headquarters, base kitchen.
Szzz—
Huge slabs of sea beast meat sizzled on the scorching iron griddle, fat rendering out and filling the air with a smoky aroma.
Rain sprinkled coarse salt and spices with practiced ease. The rich scent of seared meat instantly flooded the whole kitchen.
He'd just finished plating the first "Soy-Glazed Sea Beast Rice Bowl"—a thick steak seared to a golden crust, sliced into bite-sized strips and spread over a bed of glossy white rice, then drizzled with his special, thick sauce.
The sauce flowed along the grain of the meat and seeped down into the rice, and that blend of meat, fat, and sauce was so intoxicating that Smoker, standing beside him, could barely keep from drooling.
He rushed in eagerly.
Instead of diving into his own portion, though, he grabbed an empty food box and started clumsily packing the fresh meat and rice into it, his hands all thumbs.
"Hey, hey," Rain glanced over and couldn't resist teasing him. "You haven't even eaten yet and you're already packing for someone else? So attentive—does Hina know?"
"Shut up!" Smoker's face flushed, and he stiffened his neck in protest. "Hina… Hina's the one who came up with this plan in the first place! I can't just forget her contribution!"
Muttering as he spoke, he carefully closed the box and pushed it to the side. "She nagged me about this all day. If I don't bring her a portion, she'll drive me insane tomorrow."
Only after that did he pick up his own bowl and sit down like a starving wolf, burying his face in it and making muffled noises of satisfaction.
Rain couldn't help but smile at his starved-beast performance.
He'd considered inviting that big golden retriever next door to join them; Rosinante really wasn't a bad guy.
But Rosinante had refused very seriously, insisting he thought the Marine mess food was already delicious.
Rain had just shrugged and let it go.
"Eat," Rain said with a small smile, neatly sliding his own meat from the griddle onto his plate before sitting down.
His movements were refined, but his eating speed was frighteningly fast.
"Mm. Perfect sear," he nodded, satisfied.
He really did owe thanks to that pirate who'd given him his cooking skill—even if he'd forgotten the man's name. A chef who can't cook is definitely not a good pirate.
"I wonder…" Rain cut off a piece of meat, a stray thought flashing through his mind, "if that curly-brow kid chasing the 'All Blue' someday… will ever cook this well?"
…
And so, the "daytime hell training, midnight private feast" life flew by in a month.
Under Zephyr's brutal regimen, the recruit camp was like a different place.
Everyone's physical fitness and willpower had shot up to a new level.
Rokushiki training had fully rolled out. Most recruits were still at the stage where "Soru" barely carried them a few meters and "Geppo" let them step twice in the air before falling.
But a few unusually gifted ones managed to grasp all six techniques.
Shooting and swordsmanship were also mandatory daily courses.
And of all those, the most popular with the male recruits was undoubtedly Rear Admiral Gion's sword class.
She was a future admiral candidate, equal parts sharp and alluring.
Even just casually spinning her sword sent a light fragrance and steely aura through the air, enough to leave the hormone-fueled recruits blushing and breathless.
A few idiots even got into fistfights just to grab front-row spots and earn the "honor" of being personally "corrected" (beaten) by her.
Meanwhile, the "Midnight Cafeteria Trio" had refined their operation into a perfectly wordless routine.
Hina's meticulous nature made her the intel officer. She mapped out the entire logistics network—from patrol shift schedules to premium ingredient deliveries, down to which cuts were earmarked for which officers.
Smoker became the group's security and muscle, using his smoke powers to cover Rain's movements and hauling ingredients back.
And Rain was the undisputed core and soul of the operation—using unbeatable food to bind two future pillars of the Marines to his side.
Another night, cold wind howling outside—
Inside the kitchen, the air was warm and heavy with steam.
Rain and Smoker sat in front of a makeshift stove.
On top was a huge, deep iron pot—Rain's sudden inspiration for tonight's special: hotpot.
Inside, a broth made from sea beast bones and his secret spices was boiling furiously.
The surface was a blazing red, covered with dried chilies, Sichuan peppercorns, and other aromatics.
The numbing, spicy fragrance swirling with rich tallow practically solidified in the air—just smelling it was enough to make every pore open and saliva flood in.
On the table in front of them, a small mountain of top-grade sea beast slices "borrowed" from the cold storage was stacked neatly, marbled with clear snowflake patterns.
Beside those were thick-cut meat rolls, an array of washed vegetables, and fresh seafood hauled in earlier that day.
"Haa—"
Bare-chested, Smoker took a long swig of sake "liberated" from the head chef's stash. The heat from the pot blasted his face, making him pant, flushed and exhilarated.
"Damn that hits the spot!" He grabbed a massive chopstickful of meat dripping with spicy broth and shoved it into his mouth.
Chewing loudly, he mumbled, "No, seriously, Rain… I swear your cooking's gotten even better."
He gestured roughly. "A month ago, that rice bowl you made was already the best thing I've ever eaten. How the hell is this hotpot… even better?"
"That so?" Rain dunked another slice of meat with unhurried grace and took a sip of his own drink. "Maybe tonight's ingredients are just especially good."
"No, no." Smoker shook his head, uncharacteristically serious. "Yeah, the ingredients are top-tier. But your cooking really did level up… are you grinding cooking skills now too?"
After a month together, Smoker's initial caution around Rain was long gone. He still talked tough sometimes, but in his heart, he already considered Rain a real friend.
"Seriously, Rain," Smoker eyed him sideways. "You're a total monster. You eat more in one night than I do in three days, and you don't have an ounce of fat. On top of that… I swear you're getting stronger."
At that, Rain glanced, outwardly calm, at the system panel only he could see.
Name: Corvo Rain
Age: 16
Rank: Sergeant
[Physique Tier]: Advanced
[Talents]: Voice of All Things, Life Return
[Skills]: Swordsmanship (Top-Tier), Marksmanship (Advanced), Rokushiki (Advanced), Stealth (Advanced), Combat Techniques (Top-Tier), Cooking (Top-Tier), Navigation (Advanced)
[Haki]: Observation Haki (Peak), Armament Haki (Top-Tier)
[Sin Points]: 280,237
[Equipment]: Good-Grade Blade x1, Fine Firearm x1, Storage Ring, Mini Weather Kettle
The Mini Weather Kettle was a tool that had popped up in the shop last month. It wasn't expensive and could alter the weather within a one-kilometer radius.
Rain figured it might be useful someday and grabbed it on a whim.
For everyone else, Rokushiki training had been grueling. For Rain, it had been trivial.
With his monstrous body and [Peak] Observation Haki, he'd pushed all six techniques to [Advanced] almost as soon as he started.
And "Life Return" had naturally emerged once his mastery reached a certain depth—a top-tier technique for absolute control over the body.
Why do I eat so much? he thought. Because I can turn every bite into pure energy and stamina with Life Return, obviously…
"Guess I just… digest well," Rain said out loud, brushing him off.
"Right." Smoker clearly didn't buy it, but he didn't press, just raised his cup. "Whatever. Cheers—to our genius Head Chef Rain."
"And to the endless ingredients," Rain said with a grin, lifting his own.
Their cups were just about to clink—
When a crisp, clear, but absolutely authoritative female voice cut through the kitchen from the shadows at the doorway.
"Who's there!!"
The drunken haze vanished instantly from Smoker's face. The glass in his hand slipped and shattered on the floor with a sharp crack.
~~~
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