Chapter 2: Transmigration and Template
' What's up'- Thoughts
"What's up"- Speech
*What's up*- Sounds
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I vividly remember the incident.
I tried to protect my little sister...
You might wonder why I'm so sentimental.
Well, my sister really wanted to go to a Justin Bieber concert. Since I couldn't say no, I agreed.
Long story short... On our way back to the parking lot, we were attacked by several individuals.
I assume they were refugees. Why? Their accents sounded more Hyberian, and their gazes seemed rather lustful. As if they had never seen the female gender before...
But how do I know I died, you might ask? Because that wretched dog wouldn't stop plunging the knife into my stomach!
And... perhaps because of the sheer darkness I feel. There is nothing beyond it.
Well, I'm grateful that I somehow could help my little sister escape. Knowing that she's alive brings me great comfort, even though I'm no longer among the living."
It was actually quite strange. I always thought that when you die, somehow an angel would come and free us from our soul. Or that we would be judged whether we go to heaven or hell.
However, none of that happened. Except that when I died, I ended up in a room of deep darkness.
I concluded: that I no longer had my five senses. Unless I had gone mad. And this room only prevented me from using them. Whether I had been here for hours, days, weeks, or years, I had no idea. I had completely lost the sense of time. Occasionally, I made a mental count of the seconds, but from time to time, I lost track.
Truly like being in a madhouse.
I'm not sure how much time has passed since then though. But at some point, I lost consciousness.
——
Eventually... Oh thank goodness, I regained my senses, but for some unknown reason, I had a headache. Wait, my head hurt?
Suddenly, I touched my head. And I felt that I actually still had everything attached to me! Maybe I'm not dead after all! I mean, the time in the darkness felt like decades. But how is that possible? I remember the stabs very vividly. Come to think of it, that bastard even stabbed in rhythms.
As these thoughts echoed deeply within me, I realized I only had tiny hands.
Huh, What the hell?! I abruptly sat up and discovered that I was in a room. There was a bed, a wardrobe, and a mirror. It looked quite medieval.
'Have I gone mad somehow? Or is this some sort of dream? If so, why the hell couldn't I have been rich?'
Oh well...
I approached the mirror. I wanted to see whose body I was trapped in.
"Huh," I was a bit overwhelmed.
I stood before my reflection from many years ago. My younger self when I was still ten years old.
I had, just like back then, shoulder-length black hair, blue eyes, lightly tanned skin, and I was 1.50 meters tall.
I pulled my cheeks.
"Quite elastic."
'But how the hell is this possible? And where's my golden finger or the god that appears in all these novels?'
.
.
The real question is, why was I sent here without any information whatsoever? I didn't even receive the memories of the person I've taken over!
Where am I anyway? Let it be in some anime world at least! If this isn't a dream, where am I supposed to find the strength to go back to school and study again?!
.
"Pride, are you coming down now? Dinner will be ready any moment!"
'Huh, who the hell is that?'
As these thoughts raced through my mind, I began to hear a faint buzzing in my head.
I braced myself with one hand. 'It's happening. Just like in all those novels and anime. The moment is here!'
But damn, was it painful. I completely underestimated it. I abruptly started holding my head with both hands, forcefully.
I'm not exaggerating! The pain was immense. It was as if someone intended to split my skull in two.
Suddenly, memories came flooding back. I would guess from the previous owner.
It was weird. I only saw small passages, giving brief glimpses into important parts.
'South Blue? Centaurea? The calendar year 1470? Grandfather Rey? It seems he found me as a baby near a forest. Since he couldn't let a baby die, he adopted and raised me.'
'A cliché!' I screamed mentally.
However, I haven't just received the memories, but also the feelings of the previous owner. His emotions, his love for this Rey.
Well, as long as things don't go the way they did in the manhua, 'Magic Emperor'...
But Pride is my name... suspicious. Not only do I resemble my old self, but in one of the memories, Grandfather Rey also told me that when he found me, he also found a necklace around me, stating that my name was Pride.
'Fucking fishy. After all, my former name was also Pride.'
'Don't bother asking! I know it's a strange name, just go and complain to my parents!'
...
But the main question is: Is someone playing a prank on me? Otherwise, I have no explanation for what's happening right now.
Or... Is this my moment to shine?
Well, just as I was trying to piece the memories together, I heard a voice that belonged to neither me nor Grandfather Rey.
{Soul #72,832,272,218 Congratulations, you have been chosen to transmigrate into the world of One Piece.}
'What the hell? It was quite abstract. Like the voice you hear from yourself internally, only now I had female company.'
"Who the hell are you? And why me?"
'Not that I'm complaining. It's hard to wrap my head around, but if I'm getting a second chance, I certainly won't object.'
{I'm afraid I cannot answer that question. I was only ordered by the Almighty to convey the appropriate information to you. You are currently in the world of One Piece. I will soon disappear. This means you won't hear my voice anymore.}
"Okay. Anything else?"
.
.
.
{... You're lucky. Not only have you been brought here, but you'll also have the chance to choose your template and a Devil Fruit that hasn't been eaten before my final farewell.}
'I almost jumped up in happiness. But of course, I didn't show it. Or do you think she can read my mind? I mean, when I heard and saw 'South Blue' from the memories, I almost pissed in my pants. Well, we're talking about the One Piece world here! There are beasts everywhere, and the pre-canon era doesn't make it any better. The mantra back then was killing, raping, torturing and plundering.
{Yes, I could perceive your squeal of joy.}
'Damn.'
{Let's get back to the topic. Note that this selection only includes characters who existed in all eras of the One Piece world. After the selection, you will receive the talent, body structure, and training of the chosen character.}
{Selectable character templates...}
[Bege Capone] [Sabo] [Ryuma] [Aokiji] [Shanks]
'Hmm, I can rule out Bege Capone immediately. They'd gobble me up like a snack.'
Sabo could potentially become very strong later on, but I think he's still relatively weak in comparison. So, he's out too.
Aokiji... may have a strong body. But he's quite dependent on his Devil Fruit. And it's not absolute. Maybe the Hie Hie no Mi is already taken.
Ryuma... In my previous life, there were rumors that he was one of the strongest swordsmen of his time. It was also said that he was the only one to have ever killed a real dragon. Hmm... I don't have enough information. Maybe he wasn't as strong as people thought, and I would make a mistake with him.
In the case of Shanks, at least I know he won't be born for another fifteen years and will be one of the Four Emperors in canon. There were also speculations in some discussion forums that he might have reached a power level after the time skip that matches that of Gol D. Roger and Silvers Rayleigh themselves.'
'Let's play it safe.'
"I'll take Shanks's template."
{Ding}
{Shanks's template has been successfully chosen. With steady strength growth, you'll gradually gain more memories of his techniques and advanced training methods. However, you won't receive any of his personal details and memories. To prevent the two personalities from merging.}
"Ohoo. I think that's even better."
{You can now choose a specific Devil Fruit. Keep in mind that you'll still suffer from the curse of the seas. You can choose between Paramecia, Logia, and Zoan.}
'When I watched One Piece, I was always in love with a Devil Fruit! Let's hope no one's eaten it yet!
"Switch to Paramecia."
{Ding}
{Paramecia Devil Fruits that exist. If there's a cross in between, it means the respective Devil Fruit has already been eaten.}
[Gura Gura no Mi]»»» (x)
[Mochi Mochi no Mi]»»» ( )
[Ope Ope no Mi]»»» (x)
[Zushi Zushi no Mi]»»» ( )
[Fuwa Fuwa no Mi]»»» (x)
[Sube Sube no Mi]»»» ( )
'Yes, Baby! There it is!! And it hasn't been eaten yet! Sorry, Fujitora. Looks like you'll have to get a guide dog later on!'
"I choose the Zushi Zushi no Mi!"
{Ding}
{The Zushi Zushi no Mi has been selected. Please note that you will only receive the Devil Fruit, without any experience or memory of how to use it. You'll have to gather the experience yourself.}
'That's fine. I still have quite a lot of memories of the Zushi Zushi no Mi. The ones I could pick up from Fujitora in the anime. For the rest, I'll just have to experience it myself.'
"That's understandable."
{In the next few minutes, you will receive the initial memories of Shanks and his early training. Additionally, there will be a panel showing your progress and status. This panel will appear in front of you when you think about it. The Devil Fruit is located in your system space. Upon waking up, just think briefly about the Devil Fruit, and it will appear in front of you. After that, the system and pocket space will disappear completely. You won't be able to store any more items. Was everything clear so far?}
"Yes, it was."
{Then I would advise you to go to bed. You will be unconscious for several hours shortly. Then I wish you good luck in your future life.}
...
Weekly Power Status
-- Power
Ranking 
-- Power
stone