It took Darren quite a while to recover his bearings on the walk to the training camp.
So... had he just received royal permission to womanize?
Was that what Toki had meant?
He replayed her words in his head, and the smile at the corner of his mouth slowly twisted into something crooked.
"A virtuous wife at home, huh..."
His mood brightened instantly. He couldn't help but whistle as he walked.
Sure, nothing had happened between him and Toki—yet—but with the duck already cooked and placed right in front of his mouth, was he really going to let it fly away?
It was only a matter of time.
Having a woman as stunning as Toki beside him was like placing cream in front of a fat orange tabby. You couldn't possibly expect the greedy feline not to lick it.
Of course, Darren had no intention of betraying her feelings.
But just as he was basking in the glow of this delightful revelation, he noticed something strange.
All the civilians and patrolling Marines he passed along the way were stealing glances at him—strange glances.
There was admiration, respect, curiosity... and an odd trace of pity he couldn't quite put into words.
"What happened while I was gone? I've only been home resting for two, maybe three days..."
Darren instinctively perked up his ears, trying to catch their whispered gossip.
"Isn't that Commodore Darren!? He's so handsome!!"
"Of course! He's the one who singlehandedly tore through the Beasts Pirates! Even the so-called 'Strongest Creature' Kaido couldn't stop him—had to flee in disgrace."
"I heard he almost wiped out the Whitebeard Pirates too!"
"No doubt about it. He's our Headquarters' very own 'monster'!"
The more he listened, the more his forehead darkened.
How the hell had the story mutated !?
When did he become so absurdly legendary?
Apparently, he'd deliberately let himself get captured by Kaido—endured humiliation—all just to discover the Beasts Pirates' base location?
And then he escaped from prison alone and slaughtered thousands of Beast Pirates?
Even the skirmish with Whitebeard, which he'd barely escaped from, had now become a tale where he almost annihilated the entire crew!?
He suddenly caught a snippet of conversation that made his expression shift.
A group of gossip-hungry uncles and aunties sat together, holding up newspapers like shields but constantly sneaking peeks at him.
"Such a tall, strapping young man..."
"I heard his body's not doing too well..."
"Giggle giggle... totally drained dry, I bet..."
"Look at his face—doesn't he look worse by the second?"
"Kids these days just don't have it in them. Not like me—fifty and still going strong!"
"Oh, please! Your wife said you don't last a minute!"
"But really, it's such a waste. So young and already... lacking."
"He still looks sturdy, though..."
By the time he realized what he was hearing, Darren's face had darkened like a scorched kettle.
A vein on his forehead pulsed visibly, blood surging so fiercely it felt ready to explode.
Which bastard started this rumor!!?
His teeth clenched so hard they ground together.
Who the hell said I was impotent!!?
Fighting off the barrage of strange looks from passersby, Darren instinctively picked up his pace, then broke into a jog, and finally burst into a full-on soru technique sprint.
Only after arriving at the training camp gates at near-maximum speed did he exhale a long breath and wipe the sweat from his brow with a pained, bitter smile.
"...Who do I even complain to about this?"
He couldn't very well go argue with that pack of old busybodies. That would only feed their fire.
"What a goddamn mess..."
With a sigh, he stepped through the gates of the training camp.
"Get your asses moving!! Yamakaji, what the hell are you doing smoking a cigar during training!?"
"And you, Onigumo! What's with that face? Don't glare at me like I owe you a million berries!"
"Useless bunch! When I was your age, I carried hundreds of kilos of gear and chopped my way from Reverse Mountain all the way to the New World without blinking!!"
The familiar bellow of Zephyr's voice echoed across the training ground, and Darren's mouth twitched involuntarily.
He was tempted to ask, "Did your eyes just not blink back then, sir?"
But that would probably earn him a personal demo of Zephyr's Black Arm technique.
He wisely held his tongue.
As he entered the field, he saw Zephyr—sunglasses gleaming—firing a heavy machine gun.
(Yes, a literal machine gun. Don't question it. In the world of pirates, tech trees are just... weird.)
The trainees, weighed down with gear and gasping for breath as they ran laps, scattered in chaos as bullets rained down around them.
Darren didn't rush to interrupt. He simply stood quietly to the side and waited for the exercise to end.
Ten minutes later, the training was over.
The students bent over, hands on knees, soaked in sweat, pale-faced. A few of the less fit even vomited on the spot.
Training here wasn't child's play. Zephyr hadn't earned the title "Demon Drill Instructor" as a joke.
With his overwhelming strength and meticulous knowledge, he could assess a trainee's physical limits precisely—and then push them beyond.
Because no two bodies were alike.
Not everyone could power through Zephyr's brutal regimen and still have energy left to haul a battleship, like Darren.
Darren smiled and stepped forward.
He saluted smartly and called out:
"Trainee of the Third Class, Commodore Rogers Darren, mission completed. Requesting reentry into formation!"
His voice immediately drew attention.
Heads turned toward the field's edge.
"Darren!! You're back!"
Yamakaji, face dripping with sweat, beamed and waved.
"Hahahaha! Darren, you're finally back!! I've gotten way stronger! Let's spar later!"
That excited shout came from Kuzan, who practically bounced in place.
That was Strawberry, Doberman, and Dalmatian, voices calm but sincere.
Even the ever-grim Onigumo gave him a nod.
Darren was well-liked in the training camp.
Strong, charismatic, sharp-tongued but charming. And handsome.
Plus, he was generous—always treating them to good drinks, quality smokes, and hearty meals.
Who wouldn't want a classmate like that?
...Well, okay. Two people.
Tokikake let out a discontented snort.
Gion just glared at Darren with eyes sharp enough to kill a man.