I pulled the Talaria camper I'd built in the MCU out of my inventory. Then I used [Matter Manipulation] to convert the vehicle's outer shell and repair nanites entirely into adamantium and got in.
It had energy shields, but just in case there were strong enemies who could break through them, I prepared ahead.
For now, I planned to go after the 'Dark-Dark Fruit' and the 'Bat-Bat Fruit, Model: Vampire'. Both were Fruits I could obtain at this point in time.
"'Bat-Bat Fruit, Model: Vampire' should be on Trans Island, and the 'Dark-Dark Fruit' is probably in the New World, right?"
No matter how far it was, riding the Talaria would get me there fast. The camper version had the same plasma thrusters as Iron Man's, so assuming the One Piece world was Earth-sized, I could circle it in about a day.
"Good thing I made it."
I took [Jack Sparrow's Compass] out of my inventory, set it to the location of the 'Bat-Bat Fruit, Model: Vampire', and departed. Of course, the AI handled autopilot. I also activated the active camouflage panel (stealth) to avoid annoying encounters mid-flight.
After about three hours of gaming in the vehicle, an island came into view, so I paused the game and checked the compass. Hovering above the island, the compass needle spun in circles.
"So this is Trans Island."
I landed the vehicle on the island and put it back into my inventory. Then I used [Jack Sparrow's Compass] and my [Treasure Detection] ability to start searching for the Fruit. It didn't take long to find it.
"Preparation really pays off."
I ate it without hesitation. It tasted awful, as expected. Having to keep eating these in the One Piece world was horrifying.
"If it's to get stronger, can't be helped."
To get rid of the Devil Fruit aftertaste, I pulled a candy from my inventory and popped it in my mouth, then got back in the vehicle and set off to find the 'Dark-Dark Fruit'.
The 'Dark-Dark Fruit' was extremely far— it took five hours. I asked the AI, and apparently the One Piece world's planet was a bit larger than Earth. The Dark-Dark Fruit was on a small, nameless island, but I found it easily.
"Ugh... damn it, having to eat this nasty thing again..."
I hesitated for a moment, then started eating. I barely held back the urge to throw up and finished it. Then I pulled out another candy. Eating two of these awful things in one day was torture.
"Think of it as really strong medicine."
I pulled the vehicle out again and tried to head for a large city, but on the way, something flew toward the Talaria. Zooming in, I saw a large bird wreathed in blue flames flying at me.
"Huh? Isn't that Marco?"
This was a Yonko's territory, so there were monsters with insane Observation Haki. Stealth mode worked on me, but I hadn't expected the vehicle to be spotted.
I should've flown higher—my mistake. I slowed the vehicle and turned off stealth mode. Still, this was the Whitebeard Pirates. They were reasonable people, so talking wouldn't be a bad idea. I opened the Talaria's door and looked at Marco.
"Almost lost you. Who are you, yoi?"
That speech pattern... anyway, I greeted him for now.
"I'm Taejin, a merchant. I sell goods."
"Hmm? Don't see any goods, yoi."
I pulled a chunk of meat from my inventory and showed him. In One Piece, weird abilities were everywhere, so it shouldn't matter.
"Wow! That's an amazing ability. Wait here for a bit, yoi."
I nodded at that "yoi"... Anyway, Marco turned around and flew back the way he came. I followed slowly in the vehicle and saw an enormous ship. The bow was pure white, carved into a whale's face—Whitebeard Pirates' flagship, the Moby Dick.
"So that's the Moby Dick. Huge."
Marco landed on the ship, went inside somewhere, and came back out a few minutes later.
"We're running low on food, so can you sell us some supplies, yoi?"
"I can sell, but since they're from faraway foreign lands, they might not suit your tastes."
"Doesn't matter, yoi."
"Well then, I'll sell."
It couldn't be helped. These were modern-era ingredients. I drove the vehicle over and parked beside the Moby Dick. Since the sea was below, I had to keep it hovering.
The Whitebeard Pirates gathered, looking at the Talaria with curiosity. I waited, and 'Thatch', wearing a chef's uniform with dreadlocks, approached.
"You're the one selling ingredients?"
"Yes, I sell them, but since they're foreign, I'm worried they won't fit your palate."
"Don't worry about that. I'll cook them well. So what do you have?"
I pulled various ingredients from my inventory and showed him. Thatch inspected them one by one.
"This meat's good quality. Can I buy 50? And that well-packaged jerky too—about 100."
Thatch pointed at vacuum-sealed beef cuts and bulk jerky.
"Meat's fine, but I don't have that many jerky packs. Maybe 50."
I couldn't sell all 100—I needed some for myself.
"Hmm... can't be helped. And for vegetables, this and this..."
Thatch bought a ton of vegetables, fruit, and flour too. There were a lot of people on the ship, after all. I had a ridiculous stock of other ingredients, so it wasn't a problem.
"So how much total?"
"Since they're imported, the prices aren't set yet."
"Then how about this?"
Thatch handed me 10 million Berries. Unofficially, I'd heard 1 Berry = 1 Yen = 10 Won, so that was 100 million Won in Korean money.
"Hmm... that's too much. I'll take half."
"Oh~ you're selling reasonably. I'll buy a lot more next time you come by."
"Understood. And this is on the house."
I gave him a few bags of candy.
"What's this?"
"Candy."
"The fancy packaging makes it look expensive."
It was just cheap candy from a mart. The flashy printed packaging probably looked luxurious.
"I'm giving it because you bought a lot."
"Thanks. Eat a meal before you go. I'll make something good."
"Then I'll take you up on that."
Following Thatch's guidance, I moved to the Moby Dick's dining hall. Several people were inside eating snacks or drinking, chatting.
I found an empty seat and sat down to wait for the meal Thatch was making. The Whitebeard crew's pleasant expressions made me think—so this was the composure of a strong pirate crew.
After waiting a bit, Thatch brought out several dishes. It was a lot for one person.
"Looks delicious. Thanks, I'll eat well."
"Honestly, you saved us. We would've had to detour for days without you."
I ate the food. It was delicious. Makino's cooking was good, but this was a level higher. Really tasty.
"This is great."
"Right? I put some effort in."
That's when the dining hall door opened and a strange laugh rang out.
Zehahahaha
'Speak of the tiger—no, think of him and he appears.'
Someone who looked exactly like Blackbeard, 'Marshall D. Teach', came into the dining hall and sat across from me.
"You're the guy. The merchant who came in that weird ship."
Looking at him, he had black hair, an O-shaped body, and several teeth missing.
"Nice to meet you. I'm Taejin. I sell various goods."
"I'm Marshall D. Teach. Call me Teach. You like cherry pie?"
"I've never had it, so I'm not sure."
"Tsk tsk... you've been living at a loss. Thatch! Two cherry pies, please."
"Got it."
Thatch got up and went into the kitchen.
"By the way, you're ridiculously handsome. You must make a lot of women cry."
"You flatter me."
"It's true. You're the most handsome person I've ever seen. I'm jealous."
"Thank you."
Starting with Teach's compliment, we talked about various things. Talking like this, he didn't seem like a bad person.
"And do you sell Devil Fruits too?"
"I do sometimes. Don't have any right now, though."
"If one comes in, let me know. I'll pay extra for a good one."
"Will do."
Teach seemed worried I might get the Fruit he wanted and sell it to someone else. I'd already eaten the Dark-Dark Fruit, though. While we talked, Thatch brought out two cherry pies.
"Here you go."
"Friend, Taejin, right? Try this."
Teach held one out to me and took the other for himself, recommending it. I took the cherry pie from Teach and tried it.
"Oh~ this is good."
"Zehahahaha, knew you'd like it. Feels like we've got something in common."
In the original, Luffy thought it was disgusting, but it was pretty good to me. Maybe it was because Thatch was a good cook. I ate happily, and Thatch said,
"I'll make a few more for you to take."
"Sounds good."
We chatted like that in the dining hall when Marco came looking for me.
"Hey, merchant! Pops is calling you, yoi."
"Oh~ finally meeting Whitebeard?"
I followed Marco out of the dining hall into the captain's quarters. Inside, Whitebeard was sitting, writing some documents. Even sitting, he was taller than me. At 666 cm, he was over three times my height. The pressure from his sheer size was no joke. And this was 10 years before the original—he didn't feel weakened yet.
"So you're the merchant."
"It's an honor to meet the strongest man on the sea."
"Thanks. We shortened our voyage because of you. Got a way to contact you if needed?"
"Not yet, but I plan to get a Transponder Snail soon."
"I see. Let me know when you do. Marco, give him a Vivre Card from one of the boys, so he can get here easily."
Marco looked flustered and said,
"Pops, this is the first day we met this guy. Are you sure it's okay to give a Vivre Card, yoi..."
"I don't think he's the type to stab us in the back."
A Vivre Card is a 'life paper' made from a fingernail. It lets you know the maker's general direction and life force. It's great for finding people, but it can be used for tracking, so you don't give it unless you trust someone. So in a way, I'd made a good first impression.
"Then I'll contact you once I get a Transponder Snail."
"Good. We'll use you a lot."
Marco and I left the captain's quarters and went up to the deck.
"Hey, Vivre Card! Whoever has one, raise your hand, yoi!"
Thatch walked over to Marco and said,
"If it's for this guy, I'll give mine. We'll see each other the most."
"Got it, yoi."
"And this is cherry pie."
I took the Vivre Card and cherry pie from Thatch.
"Thank you. I'll eat this on the way."
"Safe travels."
Thatch was a good person. I'd eaten the [Dark-Dark Fruit] already, so I hoped he'd survive. As I moved to the Talaria to leave, everyone waved. I waved back and got in the vehicle.