Burgess asked probingly.
The moment he brought up conditions, it meant he was already tempted.
The Roy before him was extremely capable. He could attack Mary Geoise single-handedly, break through the Guard Forces, and still avoid capture by the Marines even now. He had to be incredibly strong!
Someone like that was qualified to be his boss.
That meant Burgess had to test what kind of ideals Roy held. If it was something laughable like "for all humanity," then no matter how strong Roy was, Burgess would still tell him goodbye.
"My future goal? Very simple. First, become the greatest pirate. Then overthrow the World Government. Then dominate the entire sea."
Roy said it lightly.
"As for your benefit, I'll give you a powerful Devil Fruit as your welcome gift for joining my crew."
"Wihahahahaha! Overthrow the World Government? That's exciting enough for me! I like it... Then may I know what ability this Devil Fruit has?"
The moment Burgess finished speaking, Roy flipped his hand and pulled out a purple fruit.
It was a dark purple fruit covered in strange spiral patterns, shaped like a cherry.
Burgess's eyes stared straight at the fruit. He did not care at all how this fruit had appeared.
"Paramecia-type, Boiling-Boiling Fruit. This fruit's ability is absolutely powerful. With just a little development, you can boil a person's skin, the moisture and blood inside their body, and then boil the moisture in the air as well. I don't need to explain the result, do I?"
"Wihahahahaha! That really is a powerful ability, Captain!!!"
Burgess changed the way he addressed him without hesitation, his eyes completely sincere.
"I plan to set sail officially in another year or two. You still need to train your strength more. When that time comes, go to East Blue and find me. I'll begin my voyage from East Blue."
As he spoke, Roy directly tossed the Boiling-Boiling Fruit to Burgess.
Burgess caught it in one hand. Just as he was about to put it into his mouth, Roy spoke.
"I advise you not to eat that fruit right now."
"...Why, Captain?"
"Because I took this fruit from Mary Geoise's core warehouse. The World Government is probably searching the whole world for the whereabouts of these Devil Fruits right now. If you eat it now and develop its ability..."
Burgess: "..."
He looked at Roy, then looked at the Boiling-Boiling Fruit in his hand. For a moment, his expression was extremely conflicted, as if he had been put in a truly painful position.
...
What Roy had told everyone was true. He really did plan to officially set sail in one or two years.
As for whether it would be one year or two, that depended on the progress at Tom's Workers.
That was right.
Before this, Roy had made a special trip to Water 7 and found Tom, wanting him to help build a pirate ship.
Tom originally refused him outright, but Roy took out many ideas related to steamships, along with some of Dr. Gero's technological concepts for warships.
After a fierce inner struggle, for the sake of his dream of building the Sea Train, Tom ultimately agreed.
So after Roy left behind two hundred million Beli for materials and the number of his Transponder Snail, he departed.
According to Tom, it would take at least one year and at most two years before the blueprints and shipyard were gradually completed.
So Roy was not in a hurry. At most, it would only be two years.
After finding Yasopp, Fisher Tiger, Laffitte, and Gin, the pirate crew had already taken its initial shape.
Needless to say, Yasopp was the sniper.
The helmsman was Fisher Tiger. As a Fish-Man, he naturally had a special talent for sailing the seas. Tiger was fully capable of serving as helmsman, and he also had a subordinate named Jinbe whose helmsmanship was even stronger.
Laffitte was the navigator.
Daz, Gin, and Burgess were all good at charging into battle. They could fully serve as combat captains or division commanders.
But...
Roy thought for a moment.
This ship was still missing a captain's wife.
Forget it. He would let nature take its course.
At this moment, on Amazon Lily, inside the queen's palace.
The young Boa Hancock was gazing out toward the distant sky through the window.
Elder Nyon, standing nearby, could not help but sigh. As someone with experience, she understood Boa Hancock's current state better than anyone.
"The heinous criminal... or the hero of freedom. Roy, was it?"
Elder Nyon recalled the introduction in the newspaper.
"Someone who could break through the Guard Forces and the Army must be extremely strong, right? If he really ended up together with Hancock, then he would definitely be able to protect Amazon Lily's safety... right?"
...
Time slowly passed like this. In the blink of an eye, the year 1504 arrived.
During this year, aside from finding several like-minded companions, Roy also met some other interesting people and encountered a few interesting matters.
The most worth talking about were his conversations with two individuals.
One of them was Dragon, the current embryonic leader of the Revolutionary Army.
He greatly admired Roy's act of attacking Mary Geoise alone and freeing the slaves. He even came specifically to invite Roy to join the Revolutionary Army, realize their ideals together, and overthrow the World Government.
However, Roy refused him.
Dragon tried persuading him for a while, but after discovering that it had no effect, he sighed and left.
As for the other one, Roy met him in a casino.
He was a man with scars on his face, blind in both eyes, and carrying a cane sword. Roy played a round of dice with him.
The two of them tacitly avoided talking about anything besides the dice.
Only after an entire afternoon had passed did both sides say goodbye to each other.
At present, Issho's ideals did not align with Roy's.
Or rather, Issho's ideals were very similar to Kuma's previous ones. He hoped to begin from the upper levels and change this rotten world from above.
Because of that, Roy merely played a round with him and had no intention of recruiting him.
Once times changed and Roy truly went to war with the World Government, Roy would not need to invite him. Issho would come join Roy on his own.
If there was anything else worth mentioning, it was that the upper ranks of the Marines underwent a major reshuffle.
Kong, the Steel Bone, was promoted to commander-in-chief of the three forces. While vigorously developing the Army and the Guard Forces, he finally experienced the troubles of his predecessor.
The Celestial Dragons should just change their name to the Celestial Flies!
All day long, they buzzed around his ears like flies. They were unbearably annoying!
(End of Chapter)
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