Although it wasn't a significant boss, after a victory there is always the opportunity to "conduct an inspection" of the ship, which raised Rogu's spirits a little.
However, as he was thinking about it, he suddenly remembered: during Marcello's attack on Moonlight Village, he hadn't searched the pirate ship. Just like when Alvida attacked Lowe Town, he had missed the chance to "check the boxes" again.
And now, realizing this, Rogu involuntarily asked himself: how many opportunities had he already missed?
These thoughts were especially intensified when he found the ship's warehouse. Opening the doors, he froze in place. The reason was not the lack of treasures, but their abundance!
Crates filled to the brim with gold and jewels, coins scattered on the floor, weapons decorated with precious stones… Rogu was amazed. If he hadn't known that this was the ship of a small pirate gang, he might have thought that he had found One Piece itself!
The Great Age of Pirates… What did it start for?
For wealth, fame and power.
Pirates who go to sea, why do they do it?
Sure, there are those like Luffy who just want to be the Pirate King, but most people are after wealth, and then fame and power. And now, before Rogu, lay real wealth.
But…
"Does this count as a reward?" he said, looking thoughtfully at the treasure. He remembered that before, when he received rewards for pirates, his system would say: reward is ready to be credited.
But here it was about the wealth received, not the reward.
— Does my system really recognize only rewards, but not wealth?
He thought about it. - Okay, the rewards can be used to buy coins. And if these trophies are not credited, then they can simply be sold. True, exchanging all this for belli will be a bit of a hassle.
In the world of One Piece, Belly is the universal currency, except for Sky Island, where Extol is used. But in order to spend gold, jewelry, or weapons, you must first exchange them for Belly.
Crouching down, Rogu picked up a handful of gold coins, feeling their weight in his hand. It was pleasant and mesmerizing. But before he could fully immerse himself in the sensation, his system issued a new message.
[Trophies found for exchange. Want to exchange for a reward?]
Rogu glanced at the message, then glanced at the treasures around him. After that, he chose the exchange without thinking.
He knew what he wanted.
Wealth?
Getting rich is not really that hard. You just need to keep increasing your power and catching pirates. The money will always be there.
So, no matter how dazzling the treasures before him, he never forgot that the real value for him was power. He did not seek money for its own sake. He liked what it could give.
Wealth, fame, power. For Rogu, wealth was just a tool to achieve power. And the more he invests in his power, the more wealth he will be able to obtain in the future!
Power comes with wealth, and wealth comes with power. To wallow in greed? No, that's definitely not about him.
Rogu confidently chose the exchange without hesitating for a second. However, his system suddenly gave another message:
[A trophy with special properties has been discovered. Would you like to exchange it?]
"Special properties?" Rogu frowned and blinked. He decided not to rush into choosing and began to examine the warehouse.
If the system claims that there is something special here, it would be stupid to immediately exchange everything without even finding out what it is. What if he misses out on something truly valuable?
The warehouse was full of treasures, but the amount wasn't prohibitive. Most of them were in plain sight. And if anything was particularly valuable, it was likely hidden in one of those boxes.
Rogu began to open them one by one. The first box was full of weapons and ammunition. The second was filled to the brim with precious stones. When he opened the third, he found… another box inside.
This second box was much more ornate and looked clearly valuable. Rogu carefully took it out and opened it. Inside was a strange fruit, with intricate patterns on its surface.
"Devil fruit?" he said, scratching his chin. A question started spinning in his head: where could these small-time pirates get such a valuable thing?
Rogu took the devil fruit from the box and bounced it around in his hand, judging its weight. The fruit was quite heavy for its size. Its shape was oval, reminiscent of a melon, but slightly smaller. There were intricate patterns all over the fruit, giving it an ominous appearance.
Rogu, not being an expert on devil fruits, couldn't tell what kind it was. He looked at it again, thought about it, and finally returned the fruit back to the box. Then, in the system settings, he selected "No", refusing to exchange it immediately.
"Devil Fruit is difficult to value," he said. "It's truly a special find. Simply exchanging it for a reward is too hasty."
He decided to keep it to himself. As for the question of "to eat or not to eat" - that was a matter for the future. At least for now, Rogu certainly did not intend to eat the devil fruit so easily.
"They say a person can only eat one devil fruit in their entire life. It's a serious decision that shouldn't be taken lightly," he continued to reflect. "Even Blackbeard, for the sake of just one fruit, went so far as to kill his comrades, with whom he spent twenty years at sea. That shows how valuable these fruits are."
Leaving these thoughts behind, Rogu noticed how the treasures around him began to disappear before his eyes. One by one, the boxes filled with gold and jewels evaporated, leaving behind empty boxes. And in an instant, only one thing remained in the vault - a box containing a devil fruit.
[Exchange completed successfully! 85,420,000 Belli has been credited to your account!]
As this message appeared before his eyes, the corners of Rogu's mouth began to slowly rise until they turned into a wide, satisfied smile.
- HAHAHAHA!!! - He laughed loudly, unable to contain his joy. Even with his reserved nature, this sudden wealth caused a storm of emotions, and his laughter echoed throughout the ship.
"A coin shop!" he shouted, barely stopping laughing.
With a new sum of 90,270,000 beli, which was almost one hundred million, Rogu did not hesitate. He immediately bought five black coins, spending part of his sudden wealth. After that, he opened the upgrade menu and clicked on the "+" next to the level of his technique "Silver Moon", which had already reached level five.
Upon reaching level five, Rogu felt a significant improvement in his technique. It was something completely new. Every movement he made became more natural and fluid, and every action became more precise.
For example, tonight, when he cut through all the bullets flying towards him, that was the precision achieved by the Silver Moon's fifth level. Whereas in the past, when he used the technique Crazy Moon: One Hundred and Thirty-First Form, in the Moonlight Village, he couldn't achieve such precision. Sigh... if he had possessed that level back then, none of Marcello's men would have been able to survive for sure.
Now he was eager to see what this technique would be capable of if he raised it to level six.
However…
[Level up failed!]
"What? It finally happened?" Rogu frowned as he read the message. His consciousness instantly came to its senses and he began to analyze the situation.
Ever since the first time he saw the "level up successfully" message, he had suspected that leveling up might not always be successful. And now it had finally happened.
"So there's a chance of success here?" he said, looking thoughtfully at the screen.
His gaze shifted to the remaining coins and balance. The four black coins were still in his inventory. And taking a deep breath, he resolutely pressed the "+" again...