One Piece: Global improvement system

302: Treating Mitsu — A Strange Discovery

May 26, 1504, Age of the Sea CircleThe moment Orion saw that Mitsu was no longer responding, he checked her vital signs, only to confirm that her heart had stopped. Without wasting even a single instant, Orion focused his gaze on the girl's chest, and with the assistance of his Room, penetrated her skin and flesh as though they were not even there, allowing his hand to come into direct contact with the little clone's motionless heart.

"I won't let you die, Mitsu!" Orion said as he activated his special ability, Electro, carefully limiting the amount of energy released to the bare minimum so as not to damage the girl's unprotected heart.

Mitsu's heart received the electrical shock from Orion's attack, effectively "restarting," though it still refused to beat on its own, forcing Orion to perform a very careful massage on it for several seconds until it finally reacted and resumed its task of pumping blood through the little clone's body once again.

While Orion was reviving Mitsu's heart with one hand, he was simultaneously pumping air into the girl's lungs with an ambu bag. He could have used his Room to send oxygen directly into her lungs—or even straight into her bloodstream—but doing so would have consumed an enormous amount of mental energy, and Orion was being careful not to overextend himself with the powers of the Ope Ope no Mi.

Among all the abilities Orion possessed, his Room was undoubtedly one of the most draining, and since Mitsu's treatment had only just begun, he needed to be careful not to exhaust himself too quickly.

Finally, after Orion's desperate efforts to pull the girl back into the world of the living, Mitsu's vital signs stabilized several moments after she had died on the operating table.

Even so, reviving her would mean nothing if he did not treat the severe state her body had been left in by Doc Q's vicious attack, and so Orion pulled an automatic respirator from his inventory and connected it to Mitsu, while also administering sedatives to ensure she would not wake up during the operation he was about to perform—though in her current condition, that was highly unlikely anyway.

At last, with Mitsu's condition minimally stabilized, Orion began operating on her, first treating the damage to her vital organs before slowly moving on to reconstructing her body. The process was slow and extraordinarily complex, and the only reason Mitsu was still alive at all was because Orion possessed a power as miraculous as his Room, which was the perfect tool when combined with his medical knowledge.

Little by little, the hours passed, and Orion's mental fatigue continued to build relentlessly. Even so, he remained steadfast the entire time, because if he faltered for even a single instant, he could fail the operation and lose Mitsu forever.

Finally, after more than twenty-four continuous hours of operating while maintaining his Room, Orion succeeded in pulling Mitsu back from the jaws of death, repairing her body almost completely.

Standing in front of the operating table where the unconscious girl rested, Orion finally deactivated his Room, utterly exhausted, and smiled in satisfaction at the thought that he had succeeded despite everything.

Throughout the previous day, he had nearly collapsed from exhaustion multiple times, yet somehow he had endured long enough to accomplish his goal. Now Mitsu was finally out of danger, and he could at last allow himself a well-earned rest.

Unable to hold on for even one second longer, Orion collapsed onto the floor of the operating room and fell into a peaceful sleep.

…

May 28, 1504, Age of the Sea Circle

When Orion regained consciousness once more, several hours had already passed, and it was now the early dawn of the following day. Considering the moment Orion and his companions had arrived on Gourde Island, nearly two full days had gone by.

"Mmm…" Orion woke up feeling completely refreshed, a pleasant sensation lingering in his head thanks to the good sleep he had finally managed to get.

Moving slowly, he adjusted his cheek against the soft pillow, enjoying its warmth and sweet scent.

"Mm? This pillow…"

Orion was still half-asleep, yet even so he could tell that something about the soft pillow beneath him was strange, because not only was it perfectly soft, but it was also warm and carried an alluring fragrance… something very unusual for a pillow.

His mind still slightly hazy, Orion finally opened his eyes, and what greeted him was not a pillow at all, but rather a pair of seductive breasts capable of stealing the breath from any normal man.

Orion's mind instantly cleared, while the blood in his body rushed directly toward his groin, and lifting his gaze with curiosity to discover which woman possessed such a sensual body, he found himself staring at the sleeping face of the beautiful Toki, who still remained trapped in the coma she had fallen into several weeks earlier.

"Fuck! How did I end up here?" Orion said as he reluctantly lifted himself away from Toki's breasts, before carefully adjusting the beautiful woman's traditional kimono to cover the sensual chest that had been exposed by his movements during his sleep.

Even though Orion had feelings for Toki and fully intended to take her as one of his wives in the future, he had no desire to take advantage of her while she was unconscious, and so he immediately distanced himself from her sexy curves, no matter how much he wished he could remain there.

After all, he and Toki had not yet reached that level of intimacy, with holding hands being the boldest thing they had done so far—although Orion had also taken advantage of a few ambiguous moments to touch the beautiful woman of Wano's legs.

Even though Orion was a pervert with the lust of a thousand men combined, he still had certain basic principles when it came to his relationships with his lovers, and so he had no intention of taking advantage of the situation now that he was fully conscious, though he still found it rather interesting to wonder how he had ended up in the large bed where Toki was sleeping when he had clearly fallen asleep in the operating room after treating Mitsu.

"Still, Toki is truly well-endowed… You normally can't tell because of the style of clothing she wears. I have to admit, this is quite a pleasant surprise," Orion said, trying to tear his eyes away from the sleeping beauty's chest while all kinds of obscene scenarios began forming in his mind.

"No, now's not the time for this!" Orion finally declared, shaking his head and pushing aside all those lustful thoughts as he climbed out of bed with a massive tent still visible in his pants.

"Fuck, it's been a long time since I've had any intimacy…" Orion muttered in frustration, feeling the state his body was in.

Ever since his wife Olive had separated from him after they entered the North Blue—to conquer another Blue alongside her pirate crew—Orion had not had sex again, since none of his wives were present to help him, meaning he had gone more than two months without it.

At the moment, with his dick practically ready to explode from abstinence, Orion was seriously thinking about what he would do with his wives once he returned home after his long journey through the North Blue, which only made his erection remain just as firm, showing no signs whatsoever of subsiding.

And just as Orion was imagining his glorious return to Pacific Kingdom and the passionate nights he would spend with his wives, Monet entered the room and found herself face-to-face with him, her gaze immediately locking onto the imposing tent threatening to pierce the heavens.

Monet's face instantly turned red as a tomato, and lowering her gaze slightly—though she still continued glancing sideways toward the most prominent part of Orion—she said in a quiet voice,

"Young master… If you require my assistance, you only need to ask, ah!"

Orion walked up to Monet and lightly karate chopped his self-appointed maid on the forehead while saying,

"I already told you to stop having such crazy thoughts."

Then, walking toward the bedroom door, he added,

"How much time has passed? How's the situation now? And how did I end up in Toki's bed?"

The green-haired girl rubbed her forehead with a somewhat disappointed expression, and while following behind Orion, she answered his questions.

"It's been fifteen hours since we found you sleeping in the operating room. It's now the morning of May 28th.

The situation in Gourde is under control. Law successfully treated the vast majority of the city's inhabitants who suffered from the mysterious boy's attack, although there were a few unfortunate cases that were too severe even for him.

As for the reason you were in Miss Toki's bed, it was simply because we no longer had any beds available due to the large number of patients, and I didn't want to leave you lying on the floor… so I personally decided to move you here.

Did I do something wrong?"

"Ahem, no… It was an excellent decision! Very smart use of the available space," Orion said after clearing his throat, trying to appear supportive of Monet's logical reasoning, though the tent still present in his pants completely ruined his formal image and exposed the true reason behind his praise for the girl's actions.

After all, Orion had to admit that waking up to such a magnificent view had been a very pleasant surprise, even if his rationality had ultimately forced him to pull away from it.

"So I was out for more than half a day. It's good that Law managed to handle the situation on his own, I'm really proud of him!" Orion said cheerfully, thinking that having such talented subordinates was truly a blessing.

"I'm sure Law will be happy to hear your words, young master," Monet said with a smile while walking behind Orion with the professionalism of a true maid.

"How are Perona and Mitsu doing? Nothing happened while I was asleep, right?" Orion continued asking.

"Perona is doing well. She wasn't affected by the virus as severely as some of the other residents of Gourde, and after receiving Law's treatment, her condition has almost completely returned to normal.

As for Mitsu… Law examined her while you were resting and couldn't find anything wrong with her, although she still hasn't woken up since yesterday."

Monet answered Orion's questions in an orderly manner while the two of them walked toward the section of the Pocket Dimension where the clinic was located, the same place where Law—and most of the townspeople the young medical genius had treated—were currently staying.

"Very good, we've already lost too much time here. As soon as the people of Gourde leave the Pocket Dimension, we'll return directly to Pacific Kingdom. Were you able to buy the fruits I asked for before the incident happened?"

"Yes, young master, I bought everything you requested. It's all already stored in the Pocket Dimension warehouse, prepared for you to inspect if necessary."

"Very good, thank you, Monet."

"There's no need to thank me, it's my duty as your servant," Monet said, lowering her head slightly and trying to appear professional, though a cheerful smile had already formed on her face after hearing Orion's words.

Orion extended his hand and gently stroked the girl's soft hair, then focused his gaze on the system screen, where new notifications had appeared.

Orion carefully read through the notifications, thinking that this time he had obtained quite valuable rewards after completing the system's emergency mission.

This was not the first time the system had issued a mission of this kind, but even so, he still had no way of knowing what rewards he would receive upon completing it, since even the mission description itself did not mention any rewards whatsoever, instead listing only the objectives, which in this case had consisted of saving the people of Gourde from the epidemic caused by Doc Q.

In addition to obtaining some valuable SP, the subordinates present at the scene had acquired the passive ability "Healthy Body," something Orion always welcomed with open arms, because it meant they would be more resistant in the future against this kind of disease-based attack or other abnormal biological conditions.

Most of his lovers who held the rank of concubine or higher received this ability from the system the moment they became his wives, but it was quite rare for his other subordinates to enjoy that same benefit, making this reward unquestionably positive in Orion's eyes.

The only people who had not received the new passive ability from the system were Drake and Mitsu. The former because he was not officially considered part of Orion's group—since he had not accepted his recruitment offer—and the latter simply because her body had already possessed that passive ability from the very beginning.

She was a clone created using the best technology Vegapunk had available at the time, and not only did she possess an extremely strong body, but also an exceptionally healthy one. In truth, that was the only reason Mitsu had managed to survive Doc Q's most powerful attack, because if Perona or any of the others had been struck instead, not even Orion would have been able to save them, since their bodies would have broken down before he could intervene.

One could say that Mitsu had fulfilled her role as the group's bodyguard perfectly, saving her friend Perona's life at the very last moment, even though it had nearly cost her own.

On the other hand, Law had also improved his medical abilities as a reward for the mission, and Orion found that perfectly understandable, because after all, his little apprentice had been the one responsible for saving the people of Gourde while Orion himself had been entirely focused on saving Mitsu.

Lastly, the "Healing Mist" ability that Foggy could now use was undoubtedly the best reward obtained this time, because it once again increased the usefulness and importance of the adorable emperor penguin of the mist residing in Pacific Kingdom.

Foggy was the national guardian beast of his kingdom, so his abilities naturally aligned with that role. Until now, the adorable penguin had only been capable of using one ability, "Mysterious Mist," a special fog in which all enemies lacking powerful Observation Haki were doomed to wander endlessly without ever finding the exit.

Healing Mist, however, was an ability that accelerated the recovery speed of allies within it while simultaneously actively curing any illnesses they suffered from.

If Orion had possessed this ability before the incident at Gourde, he could have simply summoned Foggy to cover the entire area with the healing mist, thereby neutralizing the virus released by Doc Q, which undoubtedly made it an incredibly powerful ability that would surely become extremely useful for his kingdom in the future.

True to his role as protector, Foggy could not only defend the people of Pacific Kingdom by hiding them from enemies, but now he could also protect them from diseases and injuries, and Orion found himself wondering whether the little penguin would continue evolving in the future and develop new abilities to better fulfill his role as the kingdom's guardian beast.

While reviewing the system notifications, Orion arrived at the area where Law and the citizens of Gourde were gathered, and his little apprentice greeted him enthusiastically.

"Master, you've awakened! Don't worry about anything, I took care of treating all the patients while you were gone," Law said proudly, trying not to smile in order to appear cooler.

Orion could not contain his appreciation for his talented apprentice, and firmly patting him on the shoulder, he said,

"Well done, Law, I'm very proud of you. You're the best apprentice anyone could ask for!"

Law's facial muscles finally betrayed the orders of their master, moving on their own to form a radiant smile that, for once, made the serious boy look like someone his actual age.

After briefly greeting Law, Orion gestured toward Hawkins, who was performing a divination in a corner with a worried expression, before approaching the people of Gourde gathered nearby and speaking aloud.

"Attention, citizens of Gourde. Now that your treatment has concluded, you may safely return to your city. Do not worry, the enemy who attacked you has been neutralized, and the air of the city is now clean and free of all disease."

The people of Gourde listened carefully to Orion's words, already knowing that he was the leader of the group that had saved them—since Law and Monet had informed them about it beforehand—and upon hearing that they could return to their normal lives, they erupted into cheers and cries of joy.

Orion raised both hands, gesturing for silence, before continuing.

"I am now going to open a door so that you may return to your city. Please proceed in an orderly manner, that way we can avoid accidents."

After Orion had collapsed the previous day, the door he had opened for Monet and the others to freely enter and exit the Pocket Dimension had closed, meaning the people of Gourde had remained trapped there until now.

Now that they could finally return home, they were eager to leave this strange dimension where the sun did not shine and there was no sky, yet they did not wish to anger the mysterious—and powerful—leader of their saviors. Because of that, they behaved cautiously, accepting Orion's arrangements and forming an orderly line to leave the Pocket Dimension.

Orion opened several doors simultaneously to allow them to exit, though the number was still fairly limited, since he had not yet fully recovered from the fatigue caused by overexerting himself during Mitsu's operation.

Even though his "Strong Mind" ability had already reached level 8, the mental strain he had endured had still been enormous, even causing his "Hyperfocus" skill to increase by two levels—bringing it to level 4—and even improving the hidden attribute "Determination."

Orion was aware of the existence of hidden attributes such as "Understanding" or "Determination," but those attributes could not be improved actively, and generally only increased during extremely rare and intense situations.

"Mr. Orion," a voice suddenly called out beside him.

Turning to see who had spoken, Orion found Drake standing nearby with a somewhat nervous expression as he scratched the back of his head.

"Drake? What is it?" Orion asked curiously, sensing through his Haki that the young man's emotions were in conflict within him.

"I-I wanted to apologize for the way I behaved toward you earlier!" Drake suddenly declared, taking Orion by surprise.

"When you offered for me to join your forces, you told me that I could help far more people in your kingdom than I ever could in the Marines, but I simply treated it like a joke…

However, after seeing how you all saved every person on this island, it's obvious that you weren't lying, and because of that I want to apologize for my disrespectful attitude!" the passionate young man said before bowing deeply, forming a rigid ninety-degree angle with the ground.

"There's no need to apologize. It's normal that you would think that way without having any proof. Besides, I respect your honesty! Haha," Orion replied amicably, and noticing that Drake appeared less tense than before, he added,

"So then? Have you decided to accept my offer after thinking it over more carefully?"

"No! My dream is still to become a Marine! But I still wanted to apologize for treating you with disdain," Drake answered with complete seriousness and a pristine gaze.

"You're a very strange kid… In any case, don't worry too much about it. My offer still stands if you ever change your mind in the future," Orion said, waving his hand while opening another door leading out of the Pocket Dimension.

"Thank you for the offer, Mr. Orion, but I won't change my mind!" Drake declared seriously, with a determination Orion had never seen in him before, and which might very well become the driving force behind his future growth.

Truthfully, Orion had never felt that Drake had been particularly rude when rejecting his proposal, mainly because the serious young man had looked so nervous while doing it that it had practically resembled a hostage fearing his captor might become angry if he said the wrong thing.

However, for the serious Drake, the disrespectful thoughts he had harbored toward Orion at the time—thinking he was nothing more than another tyrant making empty speeches about helping people—were not something he himself could simply ignore.

More than seeking Orion's forgiveness, Drake was trying to find inner peace with himself, and just as Orion had said, it could truly be said that he was a rather strange young man, though nearly all the Named Characters Orion had encountered were strange in one way or another.

Orion stepped out of the Pocket Dimension, appearing in the middle of Gourde City, where the first rays of the morning sun were still illuminating Doc Q's decapitated corpse.

"Mm?"

Suddenly, Orion sensed something strange with his Observation Haki, and as he approached Doc Q's corpse, his eyes widened in immense surprise upon discovering an unexpected situation.

At the same time, all of his senses went on high alert as a feeling of danger washed over him. With a mere movement of his mind, he closed every door he had opened for the people of Gourde to return to their homes, while simultaneously unsheathing his cutlass with a grim expression.