Chapter 257

Before long, they arrived at a spacious hall where a massive crowd waited in line.

"This is the registration area. Even if you gentlemen haven’t decided on a crew name yet, you can still register." The receptionist pointed ahead with a warm smile. "Once you register, you can join the Pirate Training Class organized by the East Blue Marines. We invite professionals to teach you how to become pirates, allowing you to graduate faster and better."

Seeing the four fall into a stunned silence, he continued. "Of course, I know some of you probably think you don’t need to be taught how to be a pirate, that you just need to raise a flag and set sail, but..." His voice hardened into a serious tone. "That is an old-fashioned view, and a dangerous one. You must understand that the ocean is vast, filled with countless unknown dangers. How can you set out so blindly?"

"Isn’t that what an adventure is?" Luffy scratched his head in confusion and grinned. "It’s precisely because it’s unknown that it’s fun!"

As Luffy’s words hung in the air, before the other three could even nod in agreement, the receptionist shook his head in absolute resignation.

"See, that is an irresponsible way of thinking." His gaze sharpened. "Let me ask you... if you recklessly set out to sea and encountered danger, what would you do?"

"Send ’em flying!" Facing the question, Luffy didn’t hesitate for a second. He raised his fist with a bright grin. "I’ll just send everyone flying!"

"...And what if you can’t send them flying?"

"That won’t happen. I’m really strong!"

"If! What if! What if you can’t send the enemy flying?"

"I will definitely send the enemy flying!"

"..."

’This kid isn’t following the script at all!’

The receptionist stared at Luffy, whose expression was dead serious. Refusing to deadlock on this topic with a stubborn teenager, he shifted his tone and asked, "Then what if you suddenly run into a maritime disaster out at sea?"

"We won’t run into any trouble!"

"What if you end up stranded on a deserted island with no food? What then?"

"I’ll find food!"

"And if that food is something you’ve never seen before?"

"Doesn’t matter, as long as it’s edible!"

"What if you get poisoned?"

"What about water? How do you survive without it?"

"Furthermore, what if you arrive at an island with customs and cultures you’ve never encountered? How do you behave?"

"How do you distinguish safe food? Identify drinkable water? Handle sickness on your ship?"

"Or if you unexpectedly acquire something valuable, where does a rookie crew go to sell it?"

"You see, you know none of this!"

Seeing Luffy scratch his head in growing frustration, the receptionist breathed a quiet sigh of relief. A sharp edge returned to his voice. "It’s a good thing you haven’t set sail yet. Otherwise, another ignorant crew would have perished to the waves."

He shook his head grimly. "Based on incomplete statistics, countless crews are born every year, but ninety-nine percent perish at sea due to various accidents. In reality, the vast majority of these dangers are avoidable. These pirates just don’t know any better. If you don’t believe me, think about it... aren’t there crews around you who suddenly vanished without a trace? That’s because an accident happened."

He looked at Luffy, who opened his mouth to argue. Refusing to give him the chance, the receptionist smiled and pressed on. "Of course, it’s fine. We will teach you all of this when the time comes. We’ll teach you how to identify food, find water sources, and handle illnesses. We’ll teach you how to navigate if you get lost. We impart all of this to you, entirely free. The classes cost nothing. You’ll only need to spend a little money to buy teaching materials for certain courses."

He bowed slightly to the crowd, his voice projecting through the hall. "The Pirate Guild will escort every single one of its members and impart our knowledge to you. We’ll help you better integrate into this new era and become the vanguard of the times! From Bronze to Sea King, you’ll step closer to your dreams one step at a time."

"Alright!"

A sudden burst of clapping rang out, followed instantly by enthusiastic applause from all around. It echoed through the hall for a long time.

Once the applause faded, the receptionist gestured to the side. "Next, we’ve arrived at the Task Area. That’s right, once you join the Pirate Guild, you can take on any task here and earn generous rewards to get through your tough early days. It works even in the Grand Line, as long as you have this..."

He pulled an armored Den Den Mushi from his coat pocket. "Tap here, and you can access the Pirate Guild Software. It has all sorts of tasks for you to choose from. One tap and the task is yours, easy and convenient. Once you complete it and pass the corresponding review, we’ll deposit the reward directly into your account. You can also gather and share intelligence, sell equipment you no longer need, chat, and search for partners. The features are comprehensive, and the categories are rich."

He lifted his chin, gazing toward the future with a slight smile. "One-stop service, giving you more time to pursue freedom and adventure."

Smoker quietly read the newspaper in his hands. Ever since Dante took over most of the East Blue, his workload had dropped significantly. Anyone wanting to cross Reverse Mountain and enter the Grand Line had to pass through Dante’s territory first. Given the current situation, to cut to the chase, not even the West Blue, known as the strongest sea, likely held many pirates capable of slipping past the East Blue Marines into the Grand Line.

The conclusion was obvious. Ever since Dante introduced the New Pirate Regulations, the scum hiding in every corner were busy getting certified. They had no time to breach his station. Even if a few lucky ones reached Loguetown’s waters, his subordinates took them out before he had to lift a finger. His team was growing stronger, too.

"Sure enough... it’s a complete mess out there." Smoker flicked ash from his cigar and sighed, leaning back in his chair. "At least no major incidents have happened yet."

After the public execution, ambitious figures from other seas began emerging. The chaos intensified after Mock mentioned the Three Ancient Weapons capable of destroying the world in his previously suppressed broadcast. The news spread across the entire world in an instant, prompting ambitious souls to dream of obtaining these weapons and dominating the world. Consequently, a frenzy to find the Ancient Weapons erupted, leaving no room for anything else.

This gave Marine HQ and the World Government massive headaches. Everything related to history was a restricted zone forbidden to explore, let alone Ancient Weapons that could threaten their rule. Smoker never expected the boy to go to such lengths, exposing even those secrets just to draw the World Government’s attention.

Where did he learn so many secrets? Could it be? Was Mock really the son of the Pirate King, gaining information from something the dead legend left behind? Smoker pondered for a moment, failed to figure it out, and dropped the thought entirely. He finished his cigar butt and lit a fresh one.

A soft giggling caught his attention. He turned to see Tashigi holding an armored Den Den Mushi, snickering to herself in the corner of the office. He frowned. "You’ve been laughing since this morning. What’s so funny? Is putting a new outfit on a Den Den Mushi really that hilarious?"

"It’s not just a new outfit, Captain Smoker!" Hearing her superior’s voice, Tashigi snapped out of it and replied with a helpless expression. "It’s Captain Dante’s latest invention. Once you put this on a Den Den Mushi, it turns into a Mobile Den Den Mushi. There’s so much fun stuff on it. Kuina started a group chat, and I’m chatting with her and the others right now!"

"Still calling him Captain Dante? Hah. He’s a rebel now," Smoker scoffed, curling his lip in distaste. "And our current mission is to keep an eye on him."

His tone was cold but casual. He glanced at the device in Tashigi’s hands, flicked his ash, and let an edge of disdain enter his voice. "Chatting? Calling? So what’s the use of that thing? Can’t a regular Den Den Mushi make calls just fine?"

"I... I don’t really know how to explain it, but it’s incredibly interesting! Oh, right, he sent you one too, and it’s linked to a Special Account. Our accounts have unlimited talk and internet, but I heard everyone else has to pay some kind of fee. Why don’t you give it a try, Captain Smoker? I asked you at the time and you didn’t want it, so I just put it in the drawer next to you. Open it up and you’ll see, it’s really easy to get the hang of!"

"That’s pointless. It’s just chatting. Why go through all this trouble?" Smoker blew out a plume of smoke. "Some new invention? Dante just made it up to scam people."

"Captain Smoker, saying that is like falling behind the times and stubbornly making excuses." Faced with Smoker’s disdain for new technology, Tashigi sighed. "You taught me yourself: never judge a book by its cover without seeing it with your own eyes."

"Hey, hey, hey! You’re getting too out of line! I’m not old yet!"

"Oops, gotta go. They’re gossiping about Captain Dante upstairs again. I heard the world’s most beautiful woman went over to their side a while ago..."

"..."

Smoker scowled at his adjutant, who immediately ignored him to focus back on her screen. He flicked ash off his cigar in frustration, fell silent for a moment, then yanked open his desk drawer. Inside sat another armored Den Den Mushi, different from the one in Tashigi’s hands. This armor looked more formal and imposing, carrying a sleek military aesthetic.

He hesitated, then grabbed the thing. With a dismissive scoff, he muttered, "Let’s see what the difference is. What, putting clothes on it makes it a new invention?"

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