Chapter 1 Shields Town"Ah... why isn't he here yet? If he doesn't come soon, Zoro will starve to death. Speaking of which, is he even human? He's been hungry for a week and he's still alive..."A lazy young man with a sword at his waist, soft black hair, and a grass root he'd picked up God knows where in his mouth, muttered to himself.Meruem sighed helplessly."What's with transmigrating into One Piece..."In the Great Pirate Era, the world was in turmoil, and powerful individuals from all over rose to prominence.After a car accident, Meruem, who thought he had transmigrated to some ancient era, originally planned to be a literary plagiarist and comfortably ascend to the imperial court.A single newspaper shattered his worldview: "Red-Haired Shanks, Whitebeard Edward Newgate, Charlotte Linlin, and Kaido become the Four Emperors of the New World."He recalled how his eyes almost popped out when he first saw that news. In just one minute, he went through disbelief, excited frenzy, speechless choking, and finally, acceptance of reality.Monsters were everywhere, and the Marine often became background scenery in this world. He knew at a glance that the law couldn't protect his life.However, there was also some good fortune. When he transmigrated, he was given a cheat: [Sun Breathing] from Demon Slayer. God knows how he could make fire come out of his sword, but after his unremitting efforts, he had more or less mastered it... to a degree similar to Yoriichi Tsugikuni's mastery.But was it useful? No, it wasn't. He couldn't change the weather, couldn't emit sword energy, and couldn't cut open the clouds in the sky with a single slash. He might have a little Observation Haki, but his Armament Haki couldn't even cover his entire hand, and there wasn't even a shadow of Haoshoku.He constantly hunted bounty criminals with bounties not exceeding a million Berries to supplement his life. When he learned that Zoro had been captured, he made up his mind to join the Straw Hat Crew. Covered by the protagonist's halo, he would surely live safely until the grand finale.He definitely would... But Meruem might have arrived too early. Recently, for some unknown reason, the small-time pirates had all disappeared, leaving him with no income. He couldn't even afford cigarettes, so he could only chew on a grass root to relieve himself."Kid, hand over all your money. If you're obedient, we can let you go."A voice sounded from behind him. Meruem didn't even turn his head, yawning boredly."Are you deaf, kid? We are the great One-Eyed Bandit Group! Our captain, Lia, is a big bandit with an 800,000 Berries bounty!"Hearing this, Meruem suddenly turned his head, his gaze burning as he looked at the ugly man surrounded by a dozen people.The dozen people, all pointing guns at Meruem, looked at his expression with some confusion. How could someone being robbed look at them as if he had seen a relative?"800,000 Berries... If you give me 1,000,000 Berries, I'll let you go," Meruem said with a smile. He understood sustainable development; generally, he would first set a price, then fight if they couldn't agree, then negotiate again after the fight. If they really couldn't agree, he would just take the bounty.Everyone was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter. Lia, in the middle, shook his head and said, "Looks like he's a fool with a bad brain. Boys, kill him!"Bang!A bullet flew towards Meruem. He dodged it with a slight tilt of his head, his expression unchanged. He continued, "Looks like you don't know me. I am Meruem, the bounty hunter."Lia looked confused. A subordinate whispered in his ear, "Boss, he's 'Fire Blade' Meruem. He's made quite a name for himself in the East Blue recently. They say he's very strong..."Lia frowned and said, "There are plenty of people who seek fame through false means, and he's even trying to extort me! Extorting bandits! Is there no law left?! Boys, attack!"Bang, bang, bang!The flintlock gunshots rang out continuously. Meruem sighed helplessly, took a step forward, and two flashes of fire streaked past.By the time everyone reacted, two bullets fell from the air, split in half, and Meruem was already standing behind their boss, his blade at the boss's neck. The smooth blade reflected the boss's now dazed face."Tell me, isn't this very troublesome? Hurry up, give me 1,000,000 Berries, or I'll take your head to exchange for money."Lia's neck recoiled, but the distance of the blade didn't change at all. With a slight lapse in attention, his head would say goodbye to his body today.He stammered, "B-Brother, you're being very unreasonable. How can you rob a bandit?"Meruem didn't reply, he yawned, and the blade moved slightly.The icy chill stimulated Lia's neck, making his hairs stand on end. Cold sweat trickled down his forehead, but he didn't dare to wipe it away. He said urgently, "B-Brother, I-I have money. Look, your sword is so clean, you wouldn't want to clean it if it got my blood on it. The money is in my chest pocket. I'll get it myself, please don't... don't move."As he spoke, he reached into his Pregnant and pulled out a wad of banknotes, estimated to be around 1,200,000 Berries. Meruem reached out and took it, then casually sheathed his sword and walked towards the town.Lia gasped for air, touching his neck, then, after a moment, shouted, "B-Brother, there's 1,200,000 there! Leave some for me!"Meruem paused, then sped up and left.In the empty mountains, only Lia's mumbling remained: "Brother, you're not playing fair... Didn't we agree on 1,000,000?"...Swish!Flames lit the cigarette, and wisps of smoke curled upwards. Meruem took a satisfying drag from his cigarette.After all, it was this world's body; he could smoke as much as he wanted, it wouldn't harm him anyway.He looked towards the Marine Base not far away. An ugly man with a disgusting hairstyle walked out, none other than Helmeppo.He took food without paying and then complained that it tasted terrible. It made one's desire to punch him constantly rise.After a commotion, he finally left.The townspeople numbly cleaned up, not even a sound of cursing could be heard."Indeed, for me to be a shield for someone like that, it's not even about safety anymore; my entire body is resisting it."Meruem lay on a rooftop, muttering to himself."It's a rare chance to live again. Following Monkey D. Luffy to experience this magnificent Grand Line era, pursuing that most expensive freedom, that's truly the ideal."He slowly closed his eyes and fell asleep... "Koby~ I'm hungry~"Hearing this voice, Meruem opened his eyes and watched the Straw Hat and the pink-haired boy walk over together below.Meruem put the food he'd bought with the money he'd stolen yesterday on his back, jumped off the eaves, stood in front of Monkey D. Luffy, handed him the package, and said:"Luffy, let me be a pirate and go on an adventure with you."Luffy's eyes turned into stars when he saw the food, and he said without hesitation:"Okay~"
