Chapter Fifty-Four: Baratie Restaurant

“Colonel Smoker, big, big, big news…”
At the Marine base in Loguetown, a breathless marine burst into Smoker’s office, waving a newspaper.
Amid a haze of smoke, Smoker sat idly, surrounded by a pile of small stones on his desk.
His current pastime was stacking those stones, one layer upon another.
But the marine’s sudden appearance made his hand slip; the stones tumbled down.
“What’s the big news?”
Sighing, Smoker swept the stones into the trash and looked helplessly at the marine.
“R-report, Colonel Smoker! We received word from the 16th Branch—Colonel Nezumi went out on patrol a few days ago and hasn’t returned.”
“And today’s paper exposes Colonel Nezumi’s collusion with the Arlong Pirates, extorting the common folk…”
The marine recounted everything, his tone thick with disgust for Nezumi. He was one of those who had followed Smoker from headquarters, and naturally had no patience for those who tarnished the Navy’s name.
“Colluding with pirates?”
Frowning, Smoker took the newspaper and read it carefully.
“Rolan?”
Seeing the name and accompanying photograph, Smoker felt a sense of familiarity. He rummaged through his drawer and pulled out a file.
“So it’s him after all.”
Seeing the name in the file, Smoker realized why the young man seemed so familiar—it was his son.
Roman Yorick, a marine from Loguetown, became infamous years ago when the Boulder Pirates attacked the Navy, severely damaging their reputation.
In order to completely eradicate the Boulder Pirates, Colonel Pattis of Loguetown had Yorick infiltrate them as a spy to provide intelligence.
Unexpectedly, years had passed; Yorick was dead, the Boulder Pirates had gone silent, but now Yorick’s son had appeared.
Looking at the young man who bore a striking resemblance to Yorick, Smoker felt a rare sense of comfort.
From the paper’s description, it seemed that Rolan was as upright as his father.
As for Nezumi’s capture, Smoker didn’t care at all.
A corrupt branch colonel colluding with pirates—if Smoker killed him himself, headquarters would do little more than give a lecture and dock a few months’ pay. It was of no consequence.
But Rolan truly piqued Smoker’s interest.
Strong and righteous—exactly the kind of talent the Navy needed.
“All right, this isn’t a big deal. Spread the word: if anyone in Loguetown spots Rolan, report to me immediately. I’m going out for a drink.”
Tossing the newspaper on his desk, Smoker strode out of the office.
“Yes, sir.”
The marine breathed a sigh of relief and left to resume his duties.

He had been so nervous just now, worried Smoker would issue a warrant for Rolan because of Nezumi. But it seemed Smoker thought just like he did—now he could relax.
…
In the East Blue, endless ocean stretched as far as the eye could see.
After finishing his training for the day, Rolan lounged in a deck chair, savoring this rare moment of ease.
Since arriving in this world, he had done nothing but train and study, never allowing himself a day of rest.
Especially in the five years before setting out to sea, when every day was spent battling the strange beasts of Drifting Isle—a life as fulfilling as it was exhausting.
Since leaving to sea, things had grown easier, but never as relaxed as today.
With Nami joining the crew, Rolan had even fewer worries.
Navigation was in Nami’s capable hands.
There was no need to fear the pirates plotting anything—Zoro kept a close watch over them.
As for himself, after daily training, all he had to do was supervise Donna’s sword practice and Koby’s physical training.
Beyond that, he had nothing to concern himself with.
Any new destination only required a word to Nami, and she would direct the pirates to set course.
For example, today—having learned they would soon pass by Baratie, the famed floating restaurant, Rolan simply told Nami to head there.
He’d heard of this legendary restaurant back in his previous life, watching the anime. Now that he had the chance, how could he pass up the opportunity to try it himself?
Besides, there was that infamous cook linked to Zoro’s fate—if Rolan could recruit him, life would be even more comfortable.
After all, ever since his time with Golden Lion, Rolan’s palate had become rather spoiled by the chefs there; ordinary fare now tasted like cardboard.
If Sanji joined, daily meals would no longer feel like a punishment.
With nothing better to do, Rolan opened his system panel and glanced at his slowly progressing experience bar, letting out a sigh.
They’d been at sea for over forty days, but the system panel showed little improvement since their departure.
“Host: Rolan.”
“Race: Human.”
“Special Ability: Zoan-type Human-Human Fruit, Demon Form, current stage 3.”
“Strength Level: 5 (4960/10000)”
“Speed Level: 5 (6660/10000)”
“Endurance Level: 5 (3460/10000)”
“Swordsmanship Level: 6 (25500/70000)”
“Observation Haki Level: 3 (7860/10000)”
“Armament Haki Level: 4 (3280/10000)”
“Complete daily training for random attribute experience.”

“A normal person’s three main stats are all at level 1; ordinary marines and pirates will have at least one stat at level 2.”
“Consistently completing self-disciplined training for a set number of days grants cumulative rewards—the longer the streak, the richer the reward.”
“Current cumulative training days: 3695/3900, reward ???”
Rolan fondly remembered how, in his first month of training, he’d receive a total of a hundred experience points daily for his three core stats.
Unfortunately, after five years of training, that daily hundred had dropped to fifty—otherwise, after years of diligence, his stats would have long since surpassed level ten.
This gradually led Rolan to understand why all of the system’s mysterious rewards were experience cards—clearly, it was all part of the plan.
But he wasn’t in any hurry to use those experience cards. With his current strength, he was more than enough for anything in the East Blue—even joining the Navy as a colonel would be a breeze.
There was no need to show off and shock Navy HQ for a year.
What he really needed, should he join the Navy, was to find a way to detach from headquarters and get his own branch office.
Only then could he carry out his plans freely—and only then would he start using the double experience cards to advance even faster.
Still, Rolan thought, having his own branch might just be wishful thinking.
With his current talent and strength, the Navy would likely groom him as an admiral—they’d never assign him to a backwater branch. That simply wasn’t logical.
“Big brother, Sister Nami says we’re almost at that Bar-something restaurant! Will there be lots of delicious food there?”
Donna ran over excitedly, tugging at Rolan’s sleeve and swallowing her saliva, her words garbled with anticipation.
Since the banquet at Cocoyasi Village, Donna had developed an almost obsessive enthusiasm for fine food.
When they first left Rossia Island, Donna would eat anything and never waste a scrap.
But ever since that banquet, she’d grown picky, constantly offering the pirate cooks her opinions on their dishes. She still never wasted food, but it was clear that she no longer truly enjoyed her meals.
So when she heard they were about to arrive at a floating gourmet restaurant, Donna had come running in excitement.
“That’s right—a restaurant on the sea. Baratie. They say it has the best chefs in all the East Blue.”
Rolan picked her up with a smile, delighted by Donna’s transformation. A little girl her age should be just like this—bold, lively, and unafraid to ask for what she wants, as long as it wasn’t unreasonable.
He had the means to provide, so of course he would.
Just as the Golden Lion had once nurtured him, giving him anything that aided his growth in strength—be it swords or rare treasures—without a moment’s hesitation.
“Look, that’s the Baratie restaurant.”
Catching sight of the floating eatery in the distance, Rolan stood up from his chair with Donna in his arms and walked to the rail to gaze at it.
“It’s huge…”
Donna’s mouth hung open as she watched the steady stream of ships coming and going—a line of drool forming at her lips.
With so many customers, business must be booming. The food must be amazing!