Chapter 28 As the Future Mitake Narukami Master, It Is Quite Reasonable for Him to Pursue Eternity, Isn't It?
Earning 10 gold in a single day was no small income.
If they neither ate nor drank, they could earn 100 gold in 10 days, enough to buy a house in a good area of the Flower Capital.
However, earning that much did not mean they could save it all. Although Oden and the others were strong, they also ate a great deal, even if Izo and Kikunojo looked thin.
At least 2 gold out of those 10 would be spent on food, and they still had to pay taxes at the beginning of the next month.
Kuri's personal income tax followed a progressive system. The more they worked and earned, the higher the percentage they paid.
After factoring in various expenses, they could realistically save at most 3 gold per day.
Kin'emon and the others were still proper ruffians who could not read a single word and spent money lavishly. No one knew when they might suddenly go drinking at a brothel.
Even so, being able to save 3 gold a day was already something ordinary people would never dare to dream of.
The total income of an average household for an entire month might not even reach 3 gold. If one only needed 30 days of work to buy a house in the capital outright, what kind of concept was that?
Most people spent their entire lives without even earning enough for a down payment.
2 years ago, when Oden was still in the Flower Capital, he could only earn 60 silver a day.
After Ren arranged work for Oden, he no longer paid them much attention. He only had guards check on them occasionally to ensure they did not cause further trouble.
Ren was not afraid of Oden causing trouble. The more trouble he caused, the more debt he would accumulate.
The more debt he accumulated, the longer he would have to work to repay it, and the more he would contribute to Kuri's infrastructure.
As for sending him out to sea, there was no need to rush. At this time, even the future Pirate King Roger was still completely unknown.
Rocks had not yet fallen, and the Great Pirate Era had not even begun.
Time was abundant for Ren. Over the next nearly 40 years, he could steadily accumulate strength to face the drastic changes of the future.
40 years could change far too many things. Thinking of this, Ren could not help but glance at Yukiko, who was sitting shyly in his arms, her eyes lowered.
When he thought of how the beautiful women of this world aged in the future, Ren could not help but shiver.
"What's wrong, Lord Ren?" Yukiko asked softly, confused.
"Nothing, just thinking about something," Ren replied, shaking his head. What he was thinking about was how to remain eternally youthful.
Time was a butcher's knife, and this saying was especially true in the Pirate world.
Think of Dadan, Big Mom, or even the elderly mermaid woman Luffy met in Water 7. All of them had once been top-tier beauties, yet ended up like that after growing old.
Since he intended to turn Wano Country into Inazuma, then as the future master of this land, was it not reasonable to pursue eternity?
"If this world is connected to the movie and game worlds, then there are many ways to maintain eternity," Ren thought to himself.
Items like Pure Gold, the Reversal-Reversal Fruit, and the Vampire Fruit all possessed similar effects. However, these originated from special episodes, movies, or games rather than the main storyline.
Even without those, Ren still had the Ope-Ope no Mi and the Time-Time Fruit as options.
The Ope-Ope no Mi could grant eternal life, something confirmed in the original story, but it came with severe limitations.
First, the user had to awaken the Devil Fruit. Second, the ability could only be used once, after which the user would die.
These conditions were extremely harsh. Very few people across the seas could awaken a Devil Fruit, so who would willingly sacrifice their life for another's eternity?
Moreover, once such a Devil Fruit user reached that level, the Serpent's Seal would be difficult to apply.
Beyond that, there was also the Time-Time Fruit.
Its user was Amatsuki Toki from 800 years ago. Although she herself did not achieve eternal life, someone like her would certainly not have fully developed the fruit's abilities.
The Time-Time Fruit was an exceptionally rare fruit related to time. Aside from its seemingly impractical time-travel ability, there were likely other powers that had yet to be unlocked.
Ren remembered that the Vampire Fruit from the game was located in a place called Suigu Town. He planned to find an opportunity to investigate it.
Even if the exact location was unclear, knowing the name alone made things easier. He could have Kurozumi Orochi ask around during her overseas trips.
In reality, Suigu Town might not even exist in this world, and even if it did, there might not be a Vampire Fruit there.
Aside from that fruit, the remaining options were currently difficult to approach.
Pure Gold had been swallowed by Sea Kings capable of devouring islands, along with ancient civilizations, making it nearly impossible to locate in the vast seas.
Ain, the user of the Reversal-Reversal Fruit, had not yet been born, and Amatsuki Toki had not yet traveled through time.
In truth, Ren did not particularly value eternal life itself. What he truly rejected was aging.
The vortex that would engulf the world would not appear for another 40 years. By then, the new era would truly begin.
If he were unable to witness that era due to aging, it would be a genuine tragedy.
Ren held a deep aversion to growing old. As a person aged, many things gradually became impossible.
In this world, those who stood at the peak were always replaced by newly emerging forces.
As the body aged, the spirit also tended to decay, becoming like an ancient tree—firmly rooted, yet unable to grow new branches.
Still, Ren did not devote excessive energy to this issue. He always understood that power was the foundation.
Without power, even eternal life would only make one a plaything for others.
"Yukiko, the next time we trade with Hakumai, have our people look for Orochi and tell her to have Muzemi quietly gather information about Suigu Town. Don't be too aggressive about it," Ren said calmly.
"I understand, Lord Ren," Yukiko replied softly.
At that moment, her cheeks were already flushed, and she lowered her head, her face faintly red.
The stream flowed quietly through the black forest.
After receiving Ren's instructions, she bit her lip, suppressed her desire, and forced herself to look composed.
Yet that restrained appearance only made her seem even more alluring.
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