"You trying to rope me into training again?" Klein wasn't buying it. These past few days, Garp and the others had been trying to drag him into their grind sessions.
As if he couldn't tell what was really going on—those guys just wanted an excuse to spar with him and beat him up.
No way he was letting them get their way.
'I already paid. If spending money makes me stronger, why the hell would I torture myself? That's just stupid.'
Completely backwards logic.
Living's already exhausting enough!
Back then, there was no choice—you had to get strong through training. But now? With options on the table, spending cash in the game was clearly the shortcut to power.
Once again, Klein rejected them righteously: "Nope. Extra training? Out of the question. Never happening!"
The more hardship you can take, the more hardship you'll keep getting.
"You guys can give it a rest already."
Klein stood up, brushed off his clothes and the dust clinging to him. He might've looked a little rough, but thanks to his overwhelming strength, those punches he took were nothing but light taps.
He patted Garp's shoulder with a grin. "Besides, if I actually got stronger, you'd be itching to spar, wouldn't you, Garp?"
"I treat you like a brother, and you'd still wanna beat me up. You think I'm just gonna let you?"
"As long as we never fight, I'll always have a perfect win record!"
Garp pouted and let out a whistle. "Tch—Klein, you're seriously impossible. We're doing this for your own good, y'know. If you don't get strong enough, how're you supposed to take down pirates later? I don't wanna see a guy from my own dorm..."
"...get killed by pirates. That'd be embarrassing as hell."
"Trying to provoke me? Not gonna work." Klein stayed expressionless and even pushed them along: "It's getting late. Shouldn't you guys be heading to your extra training? I'm Healthy-Bro, remember?"
Seeing they couldn't convince him, Garp, Sengoku, and Zephyr finally gave up and left for the ship graveyard to train.
Those guys were seriously committed—training rain or shine, lightning or storm.
A little while later, the cadet who lost to Klein showed up at the dorm and handed over 10,000 Berries.
Klein accepted the money with a welcoming smile—and saw him off with a devilish one. "Wanna beat me next time? Make sure to bring another 10K Berries. Otherwise, you'll always carry that humiliating loss."
"Dammit!! Next time, I swear I'll win it back!"
Next time, huh?'I've got a system, buddy. I beat you once, and you'll never catch up again.'
Looking at the crisp green bills in hand, Klein muttered, "Only 10K Berries... barely a drop in the bucket. Where the hell am I gonna get more money? This is killing me..."
Just one discounted daily pack cost tens of thousands of Berries now. His bank card balance? Barely enough for a week of gacha pulls.
"What if I took on five clients tomorrow?" Klein frowned. "But if I win too easily, they'll realize I'm way stronger than them..."
"Then who's gonna keep handing me free money?"
Racking his brain, Klein suddenly had a flash of inspiration. "Wait... the training here is brutal. If someone helped relax their muscles with a massage—charging 5K Berries per session—that'd be fair, right?"
"Making a few tens of thousands a day shouldn't be that hard."
"Can't believe it..."He'd time-traveled, only to end up experiencing life as a masseur.
In Japanese? That's right—Ma-sa-gee!
After finishing their extra training, Garp, Sengoku, and Zephyr returned to the dorm—and immediately saw Klein sitting on his bed, wide awake.
"Huh? Klein, you're actually not asleep? Don't tell me you finally changed your mind about training with us?" Garp strolled over to his locker.
He casually popped it open, grabbed a bag of donuts, and started munching away like he owned the place.
Even Sengoku looked surprised. "Klein, did fighting with that cadet today make you realize you're not strong enough, but you're too proud to admit it?"
Klein stood and shook his head, smiling. "Who wants a massage? 5K Berries per session. My technique helps relax your muscles."
"Promotes circulation, improves recovery—I guarantee you'll love it."
He looked at the three of them. "So? Who wants to try first?"
"5K Berries?" Sengoku looked at him like he'd grown a second head. "Klein, aren't you here at the Navy Academy to get stronger? What do you even need money for?"
Garp chimed in: "Klein, the Navy covers food and lodging. You don't need to spend a thing. Power's all that matters."
As cadets, their top priority was mastering their skills and growing stronger—to one day become outstanding Marines.
They just couldn't wrap their heads around Klein's actions.
Klein, of course, didn't need their understanding. "5K for a massage is a steal, honestly. Relaxes muscles, improves circulation—and maybe even helps you get stronger..."
"Garp, you planning to lose to Sengoku?"
"Lose to him?" Garp instantly turned into an angry cat with its tail stepped on. "Like hell I'd lose to that afro-headed freak! I'm gonna be the strongest cadet this year! Future Marine Admiral! Pirate-catching Marine Hero!"
"Klein, if your massage feels good, I'll come back every time!"
That's the beauty of Garp—easy to fool. Klein told him to go shower first, then started the massage.
"Hssss—" ʀᴇᴀᴅ ʟᴀᴛᴇsᴛ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀᴛ novel•fire.net
"This is the life! Klein, your hands are magic!"
As a triple-VIP client at real-world massage parlors, Klein had absorbed plenty of techniques. He quickly got into rhythm.
Soon, Garp was snoring away, snot bubble and all.
5K Berries, acquired.
Klein turned to Sengoku and Zephyr, who were still awake, and tossed out another classic provocation:"Sengoku, Zephyr—you sure you don't want in? If Garp gets regular massages and levels up faster, you two'll just end up as punching bags."
A simple bait, but Sengoku had a strong desire to surpass Garp. Just imagining that smug bastard beating him in a duel...
...was enough to make him grind his teeth.
Seeing how much Garp enjoyed it earlier, Sengoku was definitely tempted.
Another 5K Berries—secured.
After experiencing Klein's expert technique, Sengoku immediately felt like it was worth every penny."Klein, I seriously didn't expect you to be this good. After a whole day of intense training, this muscle relief is heavenly!"
"No wonder Garp was moaning so happily just now..."
Every day brought intense workouts. Even with natural talent, a massage helped with both muscle and mental fatigue.
And with Klein's magic hands? Everyone was hooked.
Klein grinned. "Glad you liked it. I learned from a real pro, y'know."
That little massage hustle? Bought him some breathing room—at least for now.
Even young Zephyr, after a bit of pushing and a few well-placed taunts, ended up buying a massage session too.
As Klein worked on them, he thought to himself:'Starting tomorrow, I need to reel in more clients... gotta market to more cadets... challenge more suckers…'
'If I pull that off, maybe—just maybe—I can keep up with the game's spending.'