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Port Orris, situated in front of Oris Plaza, was Marineford's largest harbor and the main port for the entire Marine Headquarters.
When Roy, Hans, and the others arrived at their designated berth, they indeed found a ship docked there.
The vessel flew the Cross Star Flag, identifying it as a Battleship of the World Government.
"Boss, are you sure you don't want to eat a Devil Fruit?" Hans asked nervously from behind Roy, with Fal close at his side.
"Naturally," Roy replied, his expression unwavering. "I have no interest in Devil Fruits."
Hearing this, Hans and Fal's faces filled with admiration, clearly impressed by the mindset of such a powerful figure.
At the same time, they couldn't hide their excitement.
Ever since learning that two Devil Fruit Users would soon join their team, they had held an internal competition to determine who would claim the fruits.
It must be said that while Fal and Hans typically played the roles of comedic relief, goofing off and shirking their duties, within the Marine Detention Unit, their combat prowess was surprisingly respectable.
In the end, the right to consume the two Devil Fruits fell into their hands.
"When you meet the government officials, stay sharp and don't embarrass yourselves," Roy instructed, glancing at the pair. "I'll inspect the Devil Fruits first, these are rare treasures."
Roy had no intention of abandoning his "non-Devil Fruit User" persona, nor did he plan to withhold the fruits from them. After all, whether he ate them or not, he could still acquire their abilities.
The problem was that for ordinary people, consuming a Devil Fruit was like opening a blind box.
While most Devil Fruits possessed some utility, purely useless abilities weren't unheard of.
But Roy was clearly not "most people."
With the power of the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia, Roy could precisely determine the specific abilities of any Devil Fruit.
As his subordinates, Hans and Fal were Roy's responsibility.
Therefore, if the two Devil Fruits proved to have truly weak abilities, he would naturally find a reason to prevent them from consuming them.
"Yes, sir!" Hans and Fal replied in unison, nodding without hesitation.
Soon, the group arrived at the World Government Battleship.
After identifying themselves, the soldiers on board nodded. "Lieutenant Commander Roy, your cargo is here. I'll go confirm with the two senior officials in charge of this escort now."
The soldier was extremely enthusiastic, and the way he looked at Roy was full of admiration.
Roy knew this attitude was undoubtedly a result of the World Government's recent propaganda campaign.
"No need! We're right here!"
Before the soldier could finish, Roy heard a voice and saw two people walk out of the battleship's cabin.
They were both wearing black suits and masks.
One of them had a pigeon perched on his shoulder, while the other wore a tengu mask.
"Who would have thought we'd run into the star of the Three-Forces Military Exercise so soon after arriving at Marineford?" The man wearing the tengu mask laughed loudly as he spoke.
"As for you, Lieutenant Commander Roy, I naturally recognize you. Please take the goods, we were just transporting them along the way and don't need to bother with formalities."
After saying that, he called out to the man with the pigeon on his shoulder, and the two walked down from the battleship together.
"Boss... those two look like CP-9," Fal murmured, judging by their attire.
Roy: "…"
'Did that even need to be said?'
He recognized their identities at a glance.
Though they might appear ordinary to others, the distinctive pigeon and the old-fashioned "this old man" speech pattern made them unmistakable.
These two CP-9 agents were none other than Rob Lucci and Kaku, the operatives who had previously infiltrated Water 7.
"I remember these two were supposed to participate in the Three-Forces Military Exercise, right?"
As Roy pondered this, something seemed to click in his mind, and his gaze began to sweep the surroundings.
His expression became even more subtle.
Before he could ask, however, the battleship's soldiers handed him two boxes. "Lieutenant Commander, these contain the two Devil Fruits provided by 'Lizard King' Hanafuda."
As he spoke, Roy could already hear the voice of the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia in his ears.
{Unclaimed Devil Fruit Discovered}
{Devil Fruits identified as Paramecia-type: Fresh-Fresh Fruit and Full-Full Fruit. Analysis and storage in the Devil Fruit Encyclopedia now available.}
{Please touch the Devil Fruits to complete analysis}
At the moment the voice sounded, Roy naturally did not choose to directly touch the Devil Fruits, if these things suddenly disappeared in front of everyone, he wouldn't be able to explain it no matter how many mouths he had.
On the contrary, Roy focused on examining the detailed descriptions of the two Devil Fruits.
{Paramecia-type: Fresh-Fresh Fruit}
{Devil Fruit Ability: Can store objects within the body while maintaining their original state, keeping them fresh.}
{LV3: Can store meat, liquids, vegetables, and other items within the body, preserving their condition as they were before storage. Maximum storage capacity is three times the user's body weight. Requires 500 million Beli for Eternal Unlock}
{LV4: Deep Devil Fruit Development. Can store non-hostile creatures within one's body. Requires 1.5 billion Beli for Eternal unlock.}
{LV5: Devil Fruit Awakening: Fresh Domain. Can restore nearby aging, rotting meat, water, vegetables, and animal corpses to a fresh, vibrant state. Requires 8 billion Beli for Eternal Unlock}
This was the detailed data of the first Devil Fruit.
And besides that—
{Paramecia · Full-Full Fruit}
{Devil Fruit Ability: Gain immense strength and vitality through consumption.}
{LV3: Obtain powerful strength and heal injuries through eating. The strength and recovery speed depend on the level of fullness. Requires 500 million Beli for Eternal Unlock}
{LV4: Deep Devil Fruit development. Can temporarily obtain strength beyond limits by consuming enormous amounts of food in a short time. Requires 1.5 billion Beli for Eternal Unlock}
{LV5: Devil Fruit Awakening - Glutton Man. Ability to influence the surrounding environment, devouring all edible items and even microorganisms within range. As long as food remains nearby, the user remains immune to injury and fatigue.}
"These two Devil Fruits are pretty good." Roy remarked, feeling genuinely surprised.
The effects of both fruits far exceeded his expectations.
The first was the Fresh-Fresh Fruit. Its food-preservation ability was extremely useful for voyages at sea.
Moreover, it exhibited characteristics of a spatial-type Devil Fruit, allowing the user to store living organisms within their body after further development. This strategic advantage made it an exceptionally useful support-type Devil Fruit.
The second Devil Fruit, the Full-Full Fruit, was a combat-type Devil Fruit that enhanced strength.
By continuously eating food, one could gain tremendous strength and vitality. Considering that a certain Nika, who hadn't gone out to sea yet, seemed to have a somewhat similar trait...
"Maybe this thing could be called 'Human-Human Fruit, Great Nika Form'?" Roy muttered to himself, though he clearly understood that this Devil Fruit's effects were quite practical, and moreover...
"These two Devil Fruits complement each other perfectly."
The Fresh-Fresh Fruit preserves food, while the Full-Full Fruit consumes it. Their synergy was indeed remarkable.
The only problem was...
"You two... do you both want Devil Fruits that enhance combat ability?" Roy asked tentatively, glancing at Fal and Hans, whose eyes were sparkling with excitement behind him.
"Naturally!" They replied in unison.
"But, as far as I know, support-type Devil Fruits are pretty good too..."
"No!" They retorted.
"Are you two really sure you want to eat..."
"We want to eat them!" They insisted.
Seeing that they had made up their minds, Roy wore an expression of anticipation, as if he were about to witness a good show.
He immediately let them choose their own boxes and then decisively handed over the Devil Fruits.
"All right. Go over there, eat the Devil Fruits, and compare and compare each other's abilities."
Hans and Fal readily agreed, moving to the side to open their boxes and swallow the fruits without hesitation.
Then…
"My ability is... impossible! Absolutely impossible! How could this happen?" Fal wailed first.
"Oh? Looks like your ability isn't so impressive, Fal, my little brother! Come—let Petty Officer First Class Hans teach you what a true powerhouse is!" Hans followed with a triumphant laugh.
But not long after...
"What did you say? Your ability can preserve food?"
Big Brother Fal... no! Godfather, I was wrong just now!
Can we reconcile?!"
"Now? Are you joking?"
As he walked back toward the World Government battleship, a smile curled up at the corner of Roy's mouth as he listened to the sounds behind him.
"Hey, brother, what's your name?"
He looked at the enthusiastic soldier from earlier.
"Lieutenant Commander Roy! I... I'm Private Third Class Arnold in the World Government Cargo Escort Guard!" Arnold saluted crisply, his voice brimming with excitement.
"No need for formalities," Roy replied, returning the salute before asking curiously, "I came to ask about something, I've noticed a lot more ships in the harbor, and those two CP-9 agents earlier..." He gestured vaguely around.
As he spoke, he raised his hand and pointed toward his surroundings.
As he had observed, Port Orris was noticeably more crowded with ships than usual. Upon closer inspection, many of these vessels were not Marine ships.
"Lieutenant Commander, you didn't know? Oh, I understand... you must have been busy with training lately," Arnold said, his initial surprise giving way to understanding.
"As you can see, these ships and those two senior officials are all here for the Three-Forces Military Exercise at Marineford."
"Although the Martial Exercise is still some time away, since the participants are drawn from various branches of the World Government's military, everyone except the Marines will arrive early for training," he explained succinctly.
"I see," Roy replied, finally understanding. He couldn't help but marvel at how seriously the World Government was taking this Martial Exercise.
Arnold, now in full flow, continued to introduce the ships to Roy one by one.
"Lieutenant Commander, look—that ship belongs to the Allied Kingdoms Guard. It carries elite guards from various Allied Kingdom member states."
"That ship is from the Sky Guard, hailing from the Western Sky Peak."
As a low-ranking member of the World Government's guard, Arnold clearly possessed extensive knowledge of the organization's operations.
While nodding in acknowledgment, Roy's attention was drawn to several other ships.
"And those ships?"
Even among the numerous vessels docked in the harbor, these particular ships stood out as distinctly unique.
One ship resembled an albatross, equipped with a massive Den Den Mushi.
Another ship, packed with boxes of all sizes, looked like a cargo freighter.
"Ah, the ship with the giant-scale Den Den Mushi is the 'World Economy News Paper' live broadcast vessel," Arnold remarked casually.
"The other one is a transport ship belonging to the Giberson Ocean Chamber of Commerce. It's said to be carrying materials for the Three-Forces Military Exercise, supplied by the Lu Feld Conglomerate."
"I figured as much," Roy replied, narrowing his eyes.
The World Economy Newspaper is the industry of the Underground World Emperor, "Big News" Morgans.
The Giberson Ocean Chamber of Commerce is the industry of the Underground World Emperor, the Shipping King Giberson.
The Lu Feld Consortium is the industry of the Underground World Emperor, the "God of Fortune," Lu Feld.
"After all, this is the 'world'," He murmured to himself.
The six great Emperors of the underground world each monopolized a certain illegal industry and wielded enormous power.
Public opinion, smuggling, usury... Their money came from sin and crime.
But clearly, the World Government didn't care about any of that.
They clearly knew that the Underground World's "Joker" was actually one of the Warlords, Doflamingo, yet they turned a blind eye.
As long as their rule remained secure, sin didn't have to be sin.
As long as their rule was threatened, justice no longer mattered either.
Just like right now with the event symbolizing the World Government, the Marines' Three-Forces Military Exercise.
The people funding and preparing it behind the scenes were actually these very figures.
How ridiculous.
"Then I suppose that ship over there belongs to Drug Peclo Company, right?" Roy quickly shifted his gaze to another vessel.
Its bow was shaped like a sickle.
Arnold nodded. "You guessed right. The Drug Peclo Company imports pharmaceuticals from all over the world. They voluntarily provided the necessary medicines for this exercise."
He added in a hushed tone, "And as you surely know, they also handle the funeral industry, the Martial Exercise inherently carries risks."
His answer confirmed that Roy's guess was correct:
Drug Peclo Company... the industry of the Underground World Emperor, the "Major Undertaker" Drug Peclo.
This dark emperor monopolized industries related to death: funeral services, pharmaceuticals, and... assassination!
He was said to be the king of all hitmen, the "Shadow King."
Nearly every renowned Hitman in the world operated under his protection, but they were also bound by his rules.
"The king of hitmen, huh…"
At that moment, a smile appeared on Roy's face.
"Lieutenant Commander?" Seeing Roy's expression, Arnold looked puzzled.
"What's wrong, sir?"
For some reason, he felt that Roy's smile looked a little evil.
"Ah, no, nothing." Hearing Arnold's question, Roy coughed lightly twice.
"I just thought of something happy."
(End of Chapter)