"It is a way of using aura, I suppose. It has an extra fear effect on living things."
"Amazing!"
Roger gave a big thumbs up.
"Just that alone is enough to make plenty of enemies lose their nerve before the fight even starts."
"What else?"
"Physical foundation."
Bullet continued,
"Strength, speed, defense... they will all increase greatly as I master the form and as my body grows stronger."
"Just now, that was only a partial change in my right arm."
He left out the part where, as his devouring ability evolved, his body could be strengthened endlessly by seizing and absorbing the essence of others.
"Dragon Breath."
He added the last basic ability.
"I can breathe high temperature flames. I have not tested the exact power yet."
At the same time, he hid the more terrifying potential... the way that breath could mutate depending on what he devoured, changing into things like black fire, thunder fire, and more.
Roger listened with his eyes shining.
"Mythical Zoan really is something else!"
"You can brawl, you can tank hits, and you can spit fire!"
"Hahaha, I really picked up a treasure this time!"
Rayleigh, however, was not as openly excited as Roger.
His thoughts ran deeper.
"Bullet, you said this power went directly into your body and only woke up recently."
"Then how much control do you have over it now?"
"How do you develop it further, make it stronger?"
"And this kind of power... will it affect your temperament?"
His questions were practical and aimed straight at the heart of the matter.
Bullet understood exactly what Rayleigh was worried about.
An overly powerful force, especially one saturated with an ancient, violent aura like this...
If the mind was not firm, it was easy to be consumed by it, to turn into a beast that knew only destruction.
"Preliminary control."
Bullet answered honestly,
"I need training and real combat to get used to it."
"As for improving it... that should be tied to making my body stronger and deepening my understanding of the ability."
He carefully steered away from mentioning "devouring" as the fastest route, bundling everything instead under normal training and comprehension.
"As for my temperament..."
He paused, then met Rayleigh's gaze head on, his eyes steady.
"Power is just a tool."
"I wield it. It does not wield me."
The words were firm, like steel, spoken with unshakable confidence.
That confidence came from the maturity of a transmigrator's soul, and from his absolute belief in his own willpower.
He could faintly sense that although Nidhogg's inheritance carried violent instincts, under the balance of the devouring core and his own dominant will, it could be turned into his strength instead of his cage.
Rayleigh studied him for a long moment, as if trying to read truth or falsehood from his eyes and aura.
Only after quite a while did he finally nod, a faint smile curving his lips.
"Good."
"Having that awareness matters more than anything else."
He turned to Roger.
"Captain, looks like we really do have a terrifying little monster on board now."
"Monsters are great!"
Roger slapped Bullet hard on the shoulder and burst into laughter.
"My ship is a nest of monsters to begin with!"
"One more does not hurt!"
"Bullet, welcome aboard for real!"
"You want fights?"
"There are plenty of opponents on this ship!"
"You want to get stronger?"
"Rayleigh here might look quiet, but he is damn good at teaching!"
"Hahahaha!"
Something stirred faintly in Bullet's heart at those words.
But he did not argue. He simply nodded.
"However,"
Rayleigh spoke again, his tone returning to its usual calm steadiness,
"You cannot neglect basic training."
"Starting tomorrow, I will arrange foundational physical training and Haki sensing exercises for you."
"As for the deeper development of your ability..."
He looked straight at Bullet.
"That will depend mostly on your own experimentation and understanding."
"If you have questions, you can come to me or the captain anytime."
"Yes."
Bullet answered simply.
This was exactly what he needed.
A relatively free and safe environment. A top level mentor to guide him.
And from there, using his devouring power, he would carve out a path of growth that belonged to him alone.
Night began to fall, and the first stars pricked through the sky.
Roger, still full of energy, asked more about the details of the ruins and the black dragon carving.
Bullet brushed it off with claims of blurred memory.
Eventually, Rayleigh cut the conversation short with, "The newcomer should be allowed to rest."
As he left, Bullet could feel it clearly. The gazes on him from around the ship had changed.
Shock and curiosity were still there, but now mixed with a hint of reverence... and a subtle, rising expectation.
Back in the simple cabin that had been assigned to him, Bullet closed the door, shutting out the noise of the outside world.
He opened his palm, mind stirring.
A strand of pitch black energy coiled around his fingertips, pulsing with the rhythm of hunger and analysis.
The power of devouring...
This was his true trump card.
On Roger's ship, he not only had to learn to control Nidhogg's strength.
He also had to use this safe haven to quickly grow familiar with and further develop this core ability.
To lay the firmest possible foundation for the day he stood at the very peak of the world.
Outside the window, the sea reflected the starlight, deep and endless, just like the ambition burning in his eyes.