A cook, vice-captain of the Rocks Pirates?

Lox's eyes widened suddenly, his chewing stopped, and his face was filled with disbelief.

Gatz couldn't wait to fork up a large piece of grilled fish fillet and stuff it into his mouth.

The fish fillet has a crispy, golden-brown exterior, while the inside is tender and juicy.

The moment he bit down, the scalding hot juices burst in his mouth, and the aroma of the oil, enhanced by the intense heat, shot straight to his head, making him so happy he almost fainted.

"Waaaaah! I'm alive again! I feel so full of energy!"

Gatz shouted incoherently as he wolfed down his food.

Silent Silver took a bite of raw fish tartare. The raw fish, mixed with a special sauce, was smooth and tender, with a rich flavor. It had the freshness of the fish, the richness of the sauce, and a wonderful sense of layering from the spices.

For the first time ever, a slight smile of enjoyment appeared on his usually stern face.

This meal was more than just delicious.

As the food was consumed, streams of pure energy flowed into the body along the warm current.

The fatigue from many days of sailing vanished, and the minor bumps and bruises on my body were healing at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Everyone felt that their physical and mental abilities had reached an unprecedented peak.

This is the miracle that comes from combining top-quality ingredients with god-like culinary skills!

It has transcended the realm of cooking and is almost a panacea!

For a moment, only the sounds of swallowing, chewing, and satisfied sighs filled the deck.

A whole giant tuna was devoured in no time by four grown men and a child, and even the soup was drunk clean.

Everyone slumped onto the deck, rubbing their round bellies, their faces beaming with a happiness they had never felt before.

Gatz let out a long burp and exclaimed sincerely, "Following Chef Renn, even if I'm at sea every day, it's more enjoyable than being a king!"

Everyone nodded in agreement.

Lockes leaned against the ship's railing, looking at the satisfied crew and then at Ryan, who was tidying up the kitchen utensils, and a surge of unprecedented pride welled up in his heart.

He stood up, walked to the highest point of the ship, and announced in a loud voice.

"We have the strongest captain, the best crew, and the best chef in the world! We are not a bunch of aimless wanderers, we are the kings who will conquer this sea!"

Rocks spread his arms wide and roared at the vast ocean, "From this day forward, our name will be the Rocks Pirates! This name will resound throughout the entire world in the future!"

"Rox! Rox!"

Gatz and Dorum excitedly waved their fists and roared.

Silver also stood up, though he didn't shout, but his eyes burned with the same intense fire.

Ryan stopped what he was doing, looked up, and looked at the man standing at the bow of the ship, full of vigor.

The sunlight shone on him, as if draping him in a golden battle robe.

A barely perceptible smile appeared on Ryan's lips.

He knew that a legend of a maritime overlord was about to begin after this ultimate feast.

And he will be one of the most indispensable creators of this legend.

[Ding! Congratulations, host, for completing the hidden mission: The Birth of a Tyrant, the Rocks Pirates Officially Become Famous. Rewards: 5000 experience points, 3000 cooking points, unlocking the exclusive ability "The Meaning of Food," where the dishes you cook will have a slight but permanent physical enhancement effect on your companions.]

The system notification sounded in his mind, and Renn's eyes became even more profound.

The meaning of food? Permanent increase?

This game of chess is getting more and more interesting.

……

After drifting at sea for nearly a month, the Rocks Pirates finally saw the first island on the Grand Line.

It was an island made up of many giant cacti, and the shape of the mountain peaks resembled upside-down bottles. It was the famous welcome island in the first half of the Grand Line—Whiskey Peak.

As soon as the boat docked, a group of seemingly hospitable townspeople surrounded it with drums and gongs, led by a smiling mayor wearing a cowboy hat.

"Welcome! Welcome, pirate friends who have traveled from afar! We are the residents of Whiskey Peak, and we love nothing more than hosting banquets for generous navigators like you!"

The mayor warmly offered wine and food, and the townspeople sang and danced, creating a joyous scene.

Gatz and Dorum had never seen anything like this before, and they were overjoyed.

Gatz took a large glass of ale, gulped it down, and patted his chest, laughing loudly, "Hahaha! The people here are so genuine! I love it here!"

Dorum took the food and began to eat it without any hesitation.

Although Lox accepted the welcome with a smile, there was a hint of amusement and wariness in the depths of his eyes.

He glanced at Ryan beside him.

Ryan remained silent from the moment he came ashore. He didn't touch any of the food or drinks offered by the townspeople, but simply scanned every warm, smiling face around him with his calm eyes.

His Observation Haki had already been activated.

Beneath the laughter and merriment, Renn could clearly sense a chilling, lurking killing intent.

Chapter 6: One-hit kill

These people's heartbeats and breathing are completely different from the expressions on their faces.

More importantly, as a chef, he could tell the quality of the food just by smelling it—it was poorly made, and some of the ingredients were not even very fresh.

This is highly unusual for a small town known for its hospitality.

"What's wrong, head chef?"

"Is the food here not to your liking?" Locke asked in a low voice.

Raine shook his head and replied in an equally low voice, "The meat is rancid, the wine is cheap, the smiles are fake, but the murderous intent is real."

Lox's smile deepened.

He had sensed something was wrong, and Ryan's words confirmed his suspicions.

As expected of the chef he had chosen, not only was his culinary skill superb, but his perception was also so keen.

"interesting."

Lockes raised his glass, gave a toast to the mayor from afar, then downed it in one gulp, laughing heartily, "Then let's play along."

The banquet was held in the square in the center of town.

Gatz was already half-drunk, with his arm around a townsman's shoulder, boasting about how they hunted the bluefin tuna and how Rocks knocked out a sea monster with a single punch.

The townsman smiled and agreed, while subtly trying to get information out of the other person, his eyes gleaming with greed.

Renn found a corner to sit down and watched coldly.

He saw the so-called mayor quietly make a gesture to the people around him.

As night deepened, the atmosphere of the banquet grew increasingly lively, but the murderous intent lurking in the shadows also intensified.

Finally, at the stroke of midnight, the truth was revealed.

"Do it!"

At the mayor's command, the smiles on the faces of all the townspeople vanished instantly, replaced by a ferocious killing intent.

They drew swords from their clothes and charged at the Rocks Pirates from all directions.

"what?!"

Before the drunken Gatz could react, a long sword was already slashing at his face.

"clang!"

With a crisp sound, a spear precisely parried the knife.

It's Silver.

He remained vigilant throughout, his eyes now cold, and with a flick of his spear, he pierced the attacker through.

"Bastards! You dare to play dirty tricks!"

Gatz instantly sobered up halfway, roared, grabbed a nearby table and smashed it.

Dorum reacted quickly, drew his axe and hammer from his waist, and engaged the enemy in battle.

These so-called townspeople are actually members of the Mosk Guild, a group of bounty hunters who will stop at nothing for the reward.

They thought dealing with a rookie pirate crew would be a piece of cake, but they didn't expect their opponents to be far stronger than they imagined.

Lockes stood still, not even moving, and just stared coldly at the leading mayor, who was also a member of the Mosk union, Lyca.

"Is that all you've got? What a disappointing welcome ceremony."

Lox's voice was full of disdain.

Lyca's expression changed drastically. He hadn't expected the other side to be so prepared, and that each of the crew members was exceptionally skilled.

He gritted his teeth, pulled two short-barreled muskets from his curly hair, and aimed them at the least threatening target in the crowd.

That eight-year-old child!

"Go to hell, kid!"

Leica pulled the trigger.

He believed that capturing the child as a hostage would turn the tide of the war.

The bullet whistled through the air, heading straight for Ryan's forehead.

However, Ryan's face remained expressionless.

Just a second before the bullet struck him, his body shifted slightly to the side.

The bullet grazed his hair and struck the cactus behind him.

An incredibly fast dodge!

Leica's pupils contracted; before she could even be shocked, she saw the child move.

Instead of backing away, Ryan took a step forward and casually grabbed a... frying pan from the table next to him.

Yes, a dark, iron frying pan used for frying eggs.

Before Lyca could fire a second shot, he felt a blur before his eyes and a gust of wind rushed towards him.

boom!

A dull, loud metallic clang.

Raine's small figure leaped high into the air, and with an extremely tricky angle, slammed the frying pan in his hand hard into Lyca's face.

The immense force caused Leica to see stars, spurt blood from her nose, and have two front teeth fly out.

He fell straight backward like a wooden stake, and the musket in his hand fell to the ground.

One hit, instant kill.

The entire room fell silent for a moment.

Both the Mosk union members who were fighting and Gatz and his men stared in disbelief at the eight-year-old boy who was holding a frying pan and slowly landing.

Gatz rubbed his eyes hard, unable to believe what he was seeing.

That head chef who quietly cooks in the kitchen every day... he's surprisingly fierce when he gets into a fight?

And the weapon is a frying pan?

Raine shook his slightly numb wrist, glanced at the unconscious Lyca on the ground, and looked at the frying pan in his hand, seemingly quite satisfied with the feel of the weapon.

"Alright, the flies are taken care of."

Locke's voice broke the silence. He took a step forward, and a terrifying aura erupted from him, instantly enveloping the entire square.

"Now, it's your turn."

He gave the remaining bounty hunters a devilish smile.

A one-sided massacre has begun.

Rocks' intervention completely sealed the fate of the battle.

He was like a tiger charging into a flock of sheep, each punch carrying an overwhelming, domineering power.