Chapter 17 - Near Death Experience

Instructor Zephyr arrived at the scene within a minute but waited patiently without interfering. He wants to see how Blaize would fare against an opponent stronger than him.

As his instructor, he requires to find the extent of his fruit abilities so that he can help Blaize better in the future. It would also give him an idea, in which direction the devil fruit could be developed.​​

The four-armed Ape and Blaize clashed. The glowing red dagger strived to sever the creature's insides but the Ape's defense is too good, or to be precise, Blaize's dagger skills aren't that formidable.

Otherwise, with the burning dagger, he could have easily cut the Ape's tough defense. But his attack only left a burning, shallow cut wound on its skin.

Blaize's heat sense captured every minute detail the Ape made and conveyed it to his brain. But against overwhelming strength, all plans are just parlor tricks.

One of the four-armed ape's arm seized Blaize from the ground and lifted him like a chicken. Its electric blue eyes looked into the latter's eyes and with a quick spin, it flung him across the forest.

The toss carried the ape's complete strength. The throw was so powerful, Blaize's figure transformed into a shooting star, and before tossing him, the ape's arm also squashed his body. The crushing strength cracked his skin and deformed his internal organs.

His back smashed against countless trees and ruined everything in its trajectory. Blood dyed his entire body while some sharp branches penetrated his skin.

Zephyr appeared next to Blaize and caught his sorry figure. He could have saved him before the Ape could strike, but he wanted the latter to remember the near-death experience.

Still, the Ape shouldn't have hurt his student. It overstepped its boundary. Zephyr looked at Blaize who lost his consciousness after he caught him and then at the four-armed Ape.

The ape munching on the roasted meat happily suddenly shivered, as if it was eyed by a powerful predator. Turning his head, it scanned the vicinity and spotted Zephyr carrying Blaize in one hand.

Letting out a false threatening roar, the Ape took a step back—recalling a painful memory it once experienced.

"Scarm!" Zephyr uttered the cold word, but the tone pressed the Ape with oppressive pressure, frightening it to the core. Whimpering, the Ape scurried away and vanished into the shadows of the forest.

--

When Blaize opened his eyes again, he laid in an infirmary bed, and to his shock, he was bandaged like a mummy. Fortunately, they left his face bare.

'Hai, I was transferred back to the training Island.'

When he tried to move, prickling pain spread throughout his body. Even so, it's somewhat bearable to him. He lost his consciousness only after Instructo Zephyr caught him and he remembers everything clearly.

"...that damn ape. I am going to beat it black and blue the next time we meet." Blaize silently muttered.

Tearing away the bandage on the hands using his mouth, he then removed it from his legs. What he needs most now is, not rest but meat.

Dragging his injured body out of the infirmary, Blaize then moved towards the cooking area. The air was fresh outside and from the way sunlight directly hit his face, he knew it's around breakfast time.

On the way, other recruits and officers scrutinized him with weird expressions because of his mummified appearance. Unbothered, he walked forward.

Along the way, he checked the system interface in his mind. He remembered the notification and wanted to check what it's about.

There was a change in his attributes, a joyous matter.

[~ Name: Blaize Hunt

Occupation: Marine

Constitution: 15.1 [Strength: 15.1, Speed: 15.1]

Devil Fruit Potential: 15.2

Haki: None

Items in storage: None

Free attribute point: 0 ~]

[~ Task Reward: Defend against the Type A creature [The Golden beast] for a minute.

Reward: +1.0 constitution+ 1.0 Devil Fruit Potential+ 0.5 Free attribute point.

Status: Complete

Do you want to collect the reward now?Yes/No ~]

'A rich reward!' Blaize silently thought and accepted it. Though he was injured heavily, he felt the strength coursing through his body. He broke past the '15' bar limit that hindered him for a month.

The pleasant thing is, he broke the limit on his own. He didn't expect the system to release a last-minute task. Now, he can raise his attributes once again.

After collecting the reward, his attributes changed.

Constitution: 16.1

Devil Fruit Potential: 16.2

Examining his attributes, Blaize unknowingly reached the cafeteria where he met the other trainees of the same grade: Gion, Vergo, Shuzo, and others.

"Blaize, when did you wake up? You were unconscious for an entire day, you know. Are you all right?" Gion asked in a worried tone.

"Yeah. I'm fine." Blaize replied, taking a seat in their group.

"I heard you met the so-called Golden beast which can even terrorize Rear admirals. Why didn't I have such luck?" Shuzo commented. Blaize can only shake his head at his comment.

"It's good that you are fine. You should taste the wild bear meat and seafood fried rice, they are delicious. That' strange, where's the fried rice?" Vergo spoke.

"Vergo, there wasn't any fried rice today." A marine trainee facepalmed.

"Oh, that's right." Vergo nodded his head, unblushing.

"Vergo, why's there a fork bound on your cheeks?" Blaize asked, intrigued by Vergo's rare moment of witlessness.

"Is there?" Vergo continued to eat his food with a straight face while everyone laughed.

"How do you guys do in the three-day survival training?" Blaize asked.

"Aside from Vergo and Shuzo, none of us crossed the three-day limit. I thought you would easily pass but didn't expect you would encounter a Type A creature.

You can only blame it on your luck."

"No worries. I gained a lot from fighting the creature." Blaize comforted himself. It's regrettable that he missed the chance to learn Rokushiki but he can't stop the inevitable.

Having a satisfying breakfast, saying goodbye to Gion and others, he went to meet Instructor Zephyr.

First, he wants to thank him in person for rescuing him in time, and second, he needs to ask what's the alternative way to learn Marine Rokushiki since he failed to survive for three days.

--

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