Chapter 66

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Under Sceptile's fierce and swift attacks, Mihawk soon struggled to keep up.

The tremendous force transmitted through the sword continuously reverberated through his arms, causing damage and strain, gradually sapping his strength.

At one moment,

His sword was swept away by a tail swipe from Sceptile.

And Sceptile's leaf blade also slashed towards Mihawk's chest.

Swish.

The bright green leaf blade neatly sliced a large cut across Mihawk's chest, even as Sceptile had held back its strength.

"Scept?"

Why didn't you dodge?

Sceptile's gaze remained sharp, like a cold, killing machine.

And at that moment, Mihawk also understood what Sceptile was saying. He didn't know why he could understand Pokémon's language at this moment, when he couldn't even understand Psyduck's "quack".

"Well, I don't know either."

"If I were to take a step back here."

"Then all the persistence and effort up till now would be destroyed."

Mihawk stood firm, his pupils trembling slightly, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth.

This was the first time Dak saw Mihawk in such a dire state, even in the original story, he had never seen this man defeated.

"Scept."

So, this is defeat.

"Is that so. In that case, I cannot back down even more."

"Scept?"

Even in death?

"Then I'd rather die."

Mihawk stepped back, picked up his sword from the ground, and swung it at Sceptile again with both hands.

Sceptile also raised its arm, transforming into a green streak of light, sweeping from in front of Mihawk to behind him.

Swish.

In an instant, another shallow scar appeared on Mihawk's abdomen.

Sceptile had kept Dak's "point to stop" in mind very well.

It wasn't over yet.

Sceptile turned around to approach Mihawk again, planning to deliver the 'fatal blow' to end the fight.

Mihawk withdrew his sword to his back, turned around to face Sceptile, and spread his arms wide.

"Scept?"

What are you doing?

Sceptile's eyes widened, its sternness dissipating somewhat, obviously shocked by Mihawk's actions.

"A scar on the back is a swordsman's shame!"

Mihawk's face broke into a wild smile, blood dripping from his mouth.

"Scept!"

That's the spirit!

Sceptile grinned, fully acknowledging Mihawk in that moment, and the final leaf blade was released.

"Quack, quack!"

At the crucial moment, Psyduck's anxious voice sounded.

The dazed little guy had only now reacted, clumsily running over with its head in its hands, seemingly trying to stop Sceptile.

Psyduck's intervention also made Sceptile halt its next attack.

"Sceptile, that's enough, there's no need to continue."

At this time, Dak also came to his senses, declaring the end of the battle.

He had been stunned.

What, role reversal?

You're Roronoa Mihawk, and he's Dracule Sceptile, right?

Mihawk collapsed backwards, lying on the ground and gasping for breath, his eyes slightly unfocused.

Until a duck's head entered his field of vision did he gather a bit more focus.

No choice.

Psyduck got too close, poking its bill into Mihawk's face.

But if it didn't get this close, its short arms couldn't reach Mihawk, making Psyduck anxious. Tears had already started forming in Psyduck's large eyes.

"."

Are you crying for me? That's a first.

Mihawk didn't speak, just let Psyduck hug his head.

For the first time, he clearly felt emotions like 'care' and 'worry', coming from a little duckling that usually seemed to do nothing but hold its head in confusion.

When Dak approached and saw the wounds on Mihawk, he shook his head helplessly.

Mihawk in this state obviously didn't need to protect them; they might even need to protect him.

The plan to have Mihawk accompany them to Water 7 was scrapped.

"Sorry, Dak."

Mihawk also realized this and sincerely apologized to Dak.

Failure didn't trouble Mihawk much; instead, it became a motivation for him to move forward.

He was quite frank about it.

Dak shook his head and then said, "Don't worry, just rest up. If you feel sorry, remember to spend more at my shop next time."

Dak planned to let Mihawk continue to guard them while taking the kids out for fun.

Because-

[Main Quest: Breeding Lesson 5 - Taking Care of Kids, Completed]

[Reward: Pocket Token Upgrade—Added Saving Function (Belly can be stored in the pocket token, with expenses directly deducted from the token)]

Dak turned to look at the Pokémon.

The little ones, with their eyes shining, were incredibly excited after witnessing the scene, completely enamored with Sceptile.

Since they were at a quest location, the main quest was successfully completed, and there was no need to have Mihawk accompany them anymore. It might be better to coax him into spending more at the shop.

"No problem."

Mihawk agreed without hesitation.

To him, this was hardly an inconvenience; even for Psyduck's sake, he would frequent the Mystery Hatchery House.

He didn't realize how important Psyduck had become to him; it's just that this man wouldn't express it openly.

"Sceptile."

Keep getting stronger.

After leaving these words, Sceptile turned and left, looking very cool.

But Dak thought, where could you possibly go?

In the end, it was Bon Clay who took Mihawk back to his place.

These injuries weren't too severe for Mihawk; a period of rest would suffice for recovery, while Dak returned to the shop with the others.

The little ones were now extremely excited.

Scraggy and Poochyena were even imitating the scene of the battle between Mihawk and Sceptile.

Scraggy spread his arms wide, mumbling, and then Poochyena bit into a stick and poked forward.

'These kids...'

Dak shook his head, withdrawing his gaze.

[Quest System]

A new main quest has been issued.

[Main Quest: Breeding Lesson 6 - Growth]

[Objective: As a breeder, only when a Pokémon truly grows can you demonstrate your success. Please ensure at least one Pokémon truly grows.]

[Reward: Pokémon Pokédex (Mechanical) Fabricator]

The quest was somewhat abstract, leaving Dak puzzled for a moment.

How exactly is growth defined? For Pokémon, what constitutes growth?

Physical development counts as growth, as does learning lessons.

The timing for the reward was impeccable.

It's a mechanical version of the Pokémon Pokédex, like the one Ash carries, not the book-style Pokédex Dak showed to Robin.

With the navy planning to buy Pokémon eggs in bulk, there's no need to confirm with Dak what Pokémon hatched; they can directly use the Pokédex for identification and get a brief introduction.

As for how much to sell the Pokédex for, that would depend on the cost price to be determined later.

Marking it up five or ten times isn't too excessive, right?

There should also be a scarcity marketing strategy, limited sales, and a VIP membership system.

Of course, Dak decided to put these ideas on hold for now, focusing on more pressing matters.

That being, Sceptile was injured.

Not exactly injured, but a notch appeared on its leaf blade, likely from clashing with Mihawk's sword.

Sceptile hasn't mastered Armament Haki, and with Mihawk's sword being one of the supreme grade swords, close to becoming a black blade, it's not too surprising the leaf blade was damaged.

"Let's go."

Dak led Sceptile to the lab, making it the first to experience the recovery device.

The effect was good.

Sceptile's leaf blade quickly returned to its original condition, sparking curiosity in Sceptile.

Previously, injuries were healed by eating certain special berries or waiting for natural healing, but now they could recover instantly.

Doesn't that mean...

He can fight endlessly without any concerns?

Such thoughts crossed Sceptile's mind, sparking a gleam in its eyes.

However, Dak didn't notice what Sceptile was thinking.

He was already considering what to do next.

Although a new main quest had appeared, the priority was to get the Water 7 branch up and running, which was a hassle.

"Bon Clay."

"Hm?"

"Go to Water 7 and buy a shop in the outer city, near the north shore. No, wait."

Dak suddenly paused while assigning tasks to Bon Clay.

Opening a shop on the commercial street didn't seem like a good choice because it was too inconspicuous. It might be better to do something unique.

"What's up?"

"Find some shipwrights in Water 7, not for building ships, but to help us construct a shop on the north shore. Right, go to the scrapyard and find a fish-man named Tom to take on this job."

Dak thought it over and rearranged his plans.

Building a house could be done by anyone; it wasn't necessary to seek out Tom, the world's number one shipwright.

Dak had plans for Tom, intending to recruit him to the Mystery Hatchery House for future development projects.

Even if not Tom, Franky and Iceburg could also work, having been with Tom for so long they surely had experience. However, they were too young now, with limited skills, and Dak wasn't willing to wait ten years.

Having Tom build the storefront was just a gimmick to start this relationship.

"Tom, the fat guy building the sea train? He's swamped right now, how could he take on this job?"

Bon Clay wasn't just idly standing by.

In his free time, he and Robin would leave the shop to gather information to help Dak analyze the situation in the sea and keep an eye on major events.

The sea train project had been in the newspapers, so Bon Clay was naturally aware of it.

"That's true."

Dak frowned, stroking his chin.

Tom was once taken to court under the pretext of 'building a ship for the Pirate King', eventually sentenced to 'offsetting his crimes with the completion of the sea train'.

Isn't that just nonsense?

Doesn't the World Government know about Rayleigh in Sabaody? Or Crocus in Twin Cape?

They ignore the Pirate King's crew members there, but arrest a shipbuilder? It's nothing but bullying the weak.

As the sea train's completion neared, the World Government's true intention was revealed—the blueprint for the "Pluton".

They aimed to mass-produce that ship, gaining the power to utterly dominate the world.

As for Tom, he might be spared if he handed over the blueprint, because the World Government didn't care about his life. Releasing him wouldn't matter since the verdict had been publicly announced. Killing Tom would be a slap in their own face, requiring another excuse.

But Tom was destined not to hand it over.

He was a kind-hearted man.

When Water 7 faced rising water levels due to Aqua Laguna, inconveniences between islands, shipyards fighting over customers leading to deaths, and residents slowly dying, he was the only one to stand up.

A fish-man.

To save an island, to save a group of humans, to make trade between islands on the Grand Line more convenient, to improve people's lives.

If the folks in Fish-Man Island knew about this, Tom would be branded and possibly targeted by extremists seeking to kill him.

Such was Tom, which is why he wouldn't allow a power that posed a significant threat to the world to reemerge. The Pluton blueprint, a heritage passed down by his ancestors, couldn't be easily given away.

But Tom didn't know this, or rather, the somewhat naïve fish-man hadn't yet guessed the World Government's true intentions. He was still dedicated to building the sea train.

Even if not for his own life, but to prevent the residents of Water 7 from worrying about drowning.

Tom was fully committed to the sea train project, with no time for other jobs. How could he help Dak build a breeding house?

They had to approach others to convince Tom.

Franky, too impulsive, wouldn't work.

Iceburg, now he was a possibility.

(End of Chapter)