Chapter 23: Chapter 23: Life Return
Chapter 23: Life Return
The entire room was silent as Zephyr stared at Karen with a look of disbelief, almost as if he were looking at a madman.
Pointing at Karen, he asked Hina, who was enjoying the spectacle, in a deep voice:
"Has he always been this crazy?"
Hina recalled the first time she met Karen—when he boldly confessed his love in front of a crowd—and nodded without hesitation.
Zephyr reluctantly pulled a cigar from his pocket, intending to light it, but Karen quickly snatched it away.
"What kind of nonsense is this?" Zephyr said angrily.
"This is a medical room. No smoking allowed," Karen replied, pointing to a "No Smoking" sign with a smile. Hina chuckled.
---
The atmosphere grew tense again.
With wide eyes, Zephyr stared at Karen, who held onto Yuan Hong (his weapon) with one hand and clung tightly to Zephyr with the other. Unable to hold back, Zephyr asked:
"What do you want?"
Karen set Yuan Hong aside and replied in a deep voice:
"I've heard there are legendary weapons in the world, created by famous swordsmiths, called 'famous swords.'"
Finally, Karen's true intentions were revealed.
"You want a famous sword?" Zephyr raised an eyebrow. As a former instructor for countless Marines, he was naturally familiar with famous swords, as many of his students wielded them.
"Exactly," Karen nodded. In his previous life, aside from being interested in Devil Fruits, he also had a fascination with famous swords. And, of course, beauties too.
Zephyr pondered for a moment. Karen was highly valued—not just by him but by Sengoku and Garp as well. Thinking about it, giving Karen a famous sword didn't seem like a big deal. So, he nodded and said:
"Alright, I'll arrange for someone to find you a suitable blade."
Karen rolled his eyes, feeling disappointed. After all this effort, he's only giving me a 'suitable' blade?
He couldn't help but think, Even Zoro, a pirate, got his hands on one of the twenty-one great swords early on, and he even picked up a decent sword at Loguetown. And all I get is this?
Karen shook his head and said firmly:
"Yuan Hong is like family to me."
Zephyr's face darkened, clearly understanding Karen's implication.
Greedy little brat, Zephyr thought, his mood sour. While it was true that the Marines had a collection of famous swords, these were far fewer in number compared to the demand among Marine personnel.
Still, considering Karen's potential, Zephyr gritted his teeth and growled:
"Fine, I'll get you a fine sword."
Hearing this, Karen smiled in satisfaction, feigned wiping away non-existent tears, and said, "Thank you, Teacher Zephyr!"
"Now let go of me," Zephyr snapped.
Karen quickly released his grip, stood up, and laughed awkwardly. "Haha, sorry, I got a little excited."
"Hmph!" Zephyr turned and walked away without sparing Karen another glance.
Hina, who had been watching, smirked and remarked, "Nice performance."
Karen scratched his nose and chuckled, "Haha, you don't understand. Sometimes, the squeaky wheel gets the grease. If you don't ask, you'll never get."
"Is that so?" came a cold voice—not Tina's, but Zephyr's.
Karen froze as Zephyr re-entered the room, looking menacing.
"Teacher Zephyr, what are you doing?" Karen asked nervously, heart pounding.
Zephyr didn't answer. Instead, with a mischievous grin, he reached out a hand.
Karen instinctively recoiled and covered his face. "What are you doing?!"
To his surprise, Zephyr simply grabbed the fruit basket on the bedside table. Smiling, he said, "Oh, just taking this."
Karen exhaled in relief and scratched his cheek awkwardly. "Haha, my face was itchy."
Zephyr handed the fruit basket to Hina, then turned back to Karen with a sly grin. "Since you're up and about, I expect to see you at training tomorrow."
Karen's smile faltered as Zephyr handed him an apple from the basket, then left the room, whistling cheerfully.
Hina placed the fruit basket back on the bedside table and quipped, "Doesn't look like tomorrow will go well for you."
Karen took a bitter bite of the apple. Though the fruit was sweet, he couldn't help but feel bitter inside.
---
After both Zephyr and Hina left, the room was quiet once again.
Karen placed Yuan Hong back on the bedside and glanced at the now-empty fruit basket. He had already eaten everything in it.
Closing his eyes, Karen focused on his body, attempting to use the technique of Life Return to absorb the energy from his stomach. After his earlier battle with Zephyr, he felt his body gradually warming, the technique starting to work. Even if only for a moment, he felt it.
The Life Return succeeded!
Karen's eyes flew open. It seemed combat was truly the best teacher.
He opened the system interface in his mind:
Reputation Points: 6530/10.000
Skills Acquired:
Unparalleled Skill:
Effect 1: Instantly elevate any skill to its highest level.
Effect 2: The more confidently you declare your moves, the stronger they become.
100% Barehanded Counter: While dual-wielding swords, loudly declare "Look at my sword!" for a guaranteed counterattack.
Without hesitation, Karen selected Life Return and upgraded it to the highest level.
The moment he did, hunger gnawed at him, a side effect of the technique. No wonder Luffy was always starving after battles, Karen thought, finally understanding the feeling.
Though his injuries were mild and the hunger manageable, Karen quickly absorbed the remaining energy from the fruits he'd eaten.
Grabbing Yuan Hong, he headed to the Marine cafeteria.
---
At 4 p.m., most Marines were still in training, so the cafeteria wasn't crowded.
The Marine cafeteria had two options: free unlimited meals or special paid meals. Karen didn't have much money—after a pirate raid, he'd only scavenged about 200,000 beli, which wasn't much when adjusted for modern purchasing power. Thankfully, he rarely spent money during his time in the training camp.
However, since it wasn't yet dinner time, Karen had to order from the special menu. He selected a few dishes, costing him 10,000 Berry, which made his heart ache.
He took a bite of an unfamiliar fish dish and frowned. It wasn't particularly tasty—barely different from the free meals.
No wonder no one eats here, Karen thought bitterly. Expensive and not even good. If it weren't for the timing, only a fool would come here.
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone