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After loading the character template, Tashigi suddenly felt an inexplicable trust toward Kael, and a growing sense of belonging to the Dusk Pirate Crew.
Tashigi attributed this to having adapted to her environment and the changes around her.
But in truth—
All of this was due to the system subtly increasing her loyalty to Kael and the Dusk Pirate Crew to the maximum, without altering her core personality.
As things stood now, if Kael asked Tashigi to kill Smoker or innocent civilians, she might still be unable to do it.
But on the flip side, if someone tried to frame Kael, she would absolutely be the first to draw her blade and cut them down.
That—was the mysterious power of the system!
And it was also the strongest safeguard behind Kael's unrestrained recruitment of crew members and his generosity in bestowing them with power.
Leading Tashigi, Kael descended the stairs to the "Basement Level One" below the deck.
When they took over the Tiga, the shipwright had explained…
The captain's quarters and crew bunks were originally planned to be on this level.
But Kael, being a system user, was willful and disliked the lack of sunlight below deck, so he insisted on placing the captain's quarters on the deck instead.
Anyway, decoration and spatial planning were handled by the system—he just had to provide the Beli.
After walking just a short distance, the two arrived at the door of an unused room.
Under Tashigi's curious gaze, Kael suddenly stopped and opened the shipyard system in his mind.
After browsing the facility store for a bit, he quickly locked onto a facility called [Training Room].
Like the [Captain's Quarters], the training room also cost 5 million Beli.
But in Kael's view, its function was even more powerful!
This was the only method—aside from using experience items—that allowed crew members to gain EXP.
If leveling up with EXP items was considered pay-to-win…
Then the training room was the crew's everyday leveling activity.
He pressed the purchase button and selected the room in front of him.
Since Kael had placed all his Beli in the safe inside the captain's quarters, he could use the system anytime, even without carrying money.
A strange ripple appeared before the two of them.
In an instant!
As if fantasy and reality overlapped, an elegant new door replaced the old wooden one.
And above the door hung a plaque: [Training Room].
Just like the captain's quarters.
Even after experiencing so many oddities, seeing the door change before her eyes still made Tashigi gasp and cover her mouth, eyes wide with shock.
"Wh-What just happened!?"
Kael smiled and waved his hand dismissively:
"What happened? I just activated my Devil Fruit ability."
"You'll see more things like this in the future. Don't make a fuss, or we'll look like country bumpkins."
As he spoke, he placed his hand on the doorknob and gently pushed.
The next moment, a vast open space appeared before Tashigi's eyes.
The level 1 training room wasn't huge, but also not small—roughly the size of three to four basketball courts combined.
The walls were lined with various training equipment…
Dumbbells for strength, straw targets for sword practice, wooden dummies for martial arts…
Any training tool one could think of was here.
Though the quality didn't seem top-tier, the variety alone was impressive!
"Captain… maybe you're right. I really haven't seen the world."
Tashigi clicked her tongue in awe.
Having never witnessed such a miraculous scene, she felt like from this day on, nothing in the world could surprise her again.
Most crucially…
She was certain that the actual space of this room far exceeded the size of the ship itself.
Letting out a deep breath, Tashigi stepped into the training room behind Kael.
At the same time, Kael read through the system info for the training room:
[Facility: Training Room]
Level: 1
EXP: 0/5
Description: A place for training and cultivation. Unlocks more equipment as the level increases.
Effect: Partners who train here enter a high-efficiency training state with heightened focus. Gain 100 EXP per hour.
Level Limit: Max 3 partners can train simultaneously. Each can train up to 8 hours per day.
This was the full info.
Train for one hour, get 100 EXP!
Though there were limits on number and time, its powerful effect made it the most cost-effective facility by far.
No contest!
"This is a training room I created with my fruit power, specifically for you and future crewmates."
Kael led Tashigi to a rack of wooden training swords.
The swords were labeled with different weights, allowing for progressive training.
He casually grabbed a suitable one and tossed it to Tashigi, saying seriously:
"From today on, you'll train here for 8 hours a day. No more, no less."
"Here's a training notebook—you can adjust according to your own needs."
"But remember—this notebook cannot leave this room!"
"Yes, sir."
Tashigi took the notebook curiously and saw a big red circle on the cover.
Inside the circle, it read: Top Secret.
Gulp~
She instinctively swallowed hard.
Peeking at Kael and seeing his serious face, she quickly composed herself and opened the notebook carefully.
What she saw was a detailed table of contents:
Training Method for Armament Haki – Page 1
Training Method for Observation Haki – Page 18
Training Method for Tekkai (Iron Body) – Page 25
...
"This… this is a Haki and Rokushiki training manual!?"
Tashigi's eyes widened, golden light practically sparkling in her pure gaze.
Though the original story shows Tashigi as a skilled Haki user years later…
That was only because she and Smoker benefitted from the Straw Hat Crew's achievements. The Navy reassigned the credit for defeating Crocodile to them, thus shifting resources their way.
In reality—
Even for Smoker, a Navy Headquarters Colonel, getting such a manual would've been impossible!
It's one thing to learn, another entirely to be able to teach.
This notebook was authored by none other than former Admiral Zephyr, now chief instructor of the Navy Academy.
It contained his own deep insights into Haki and Rokushiki.
Its value was immeasurable.
If not for his connection with Kizaru, Kael—having left the academy—would never have gotten it.
Now that it was in his hands, Kael chose to share it instead of keeping it for himself, leaving it in the training room for all trusted Dusk Pirates to learn from.
After all, only those Kael trusted could enter the training room, so there was no need to be stingy.
Only by strengthening his crew could he, as the "freeloader" captain, gain more benefits.
Tashigi quickly became absorbed in the manual's content, completely forgetting Kael was still standing there.
Clearly, she had already triggered the training room's focus effect.
This surprised Kael, who found himself swallowing back all the things he had planned to say.
"Damn…"
"Just reading a book is enough to trigger training mode? This room's too convenient!"
"But…"
"Why can't the captain enjoy this convenience too!?"
Kael shouted internally.
He looked at Tashigi with envy.
The damn training room didn't grant the captain EXP—that was understandable, maybe.
But even the focus buff was limited to crew members!?
Where's the justice?! Where's the law?!
The captain is human too! The captain also needs training!
I want to master Armament Haki quickly too!!
Sigh…
After venting internally, Kael quietly left the training room to avoid disturbing Tashigi's state.
He even gently closed the door behind him.
Though he could still use the training equipment, without buffs, there was no point in lingering.
Besides, he'd already memorized the contents of the manual.
The early-stage training wasn't that intense—anywhere would do.
Kael chose to return to the captain's quarters to begin his own training.
That room, at least, had a stamina-recovery buff.
Train, rest, repeat—always in peak condition!
As long as I have willpower—anywhere is a training ground!