OP: Lord of Mischief C12 Elias' decision

As Rustbay Village celebrated deep into the night, Augustus reveled in the festivities—drinking (not too much this time), dancing, and enjoying the victory that had, somehow, landed in his lap.

Then, in the midst of it all—

[Ding!]

A notification from the Trickster System appeared before him.

[The Mask Ability Recharged]

[The Mask: 1/2 Usage Limit]

[Additional Usage Time Limit at Night]

[Additional 5% Buff for The Mask at Night]

Augustus' eyes widened slightly before a grin stretched across his face.

"So I can use The Mask once during the day and once at night…" he muttered to himself, stroking his chin.

The 5% buff at night wasn’t a huge bonus, but it was still an improvement.

"Not surprising," Augustus murmured thoughtfully. "In the movie, The Mask could only be activated at night. While I can use it anytime, it seems my ability works better when the moon is out."

That was good information to know.

Then another notification appeared.

[TP Earned: 400]

His Trickster Points had gone up thanks to defeating Vargo and completing a side mission.

And now—he had choices to make.

Because as tempting as it was to convert TP into SP and improve his base stats—

His eyes caught something else.

[Trickster Shop]

Augustus' curiousity skyrocketed.

With a thought, he opened the shop menu.

And what he saw... stunned him.

[Pranking Items]

[Banana Peel of Destiny - 50 TP] (Causes even a Vice Admiral to slip)

[Whoopee Cushion of Doom - 75 TP] (Creates an earthquake-level fart sound in a 10m radius)

[Invisible Ink - 100 TP] (Messages only appear after one hour)

[Fake Wanted Poster - 200 TP] (Creates a fake bounty for someone)

Augustus’ eyebrows twitched upward.

Vice Admiral level slip? He had questions.

And then—

He scrolled further.

His excitement doubled.

There was a "Slippery Soap" (150 TP) that made any surface impossible to walk on for twenty minutes.

A "Mimic Mask" (500 TP) that let him disguise as anyone for ten minutes.

And then—

"Exploding Cigars" (600 TP)—designed to explode into confetti and ink while disguised as a real cigar.

Then came "Bubblegum Prison" (750 TP)—which could stick someone in place for a full minute.

Augustus nearly whistled aloud.

But that wasn’t even the best part.

His eyes landed on a different section.

[Trickster Skills & Abilities]

This was where the real power was.

[Illusion Gag - 1,000 TP] (Temporarily make objects disappear for 30 seconds)

[Cartoon Dodge - 1,500 TP] (Avoid attacks in exaggerated, goofy ways)

There were even special combat skills that worked like cartoon logic.

[Rubber Limbs- 2,000 TP] (Temporarily stretch your limbs like a cartoon character.)

[Sound Effect Manipulation - 3,000 TP] (Trigger exaggerated sound effects in reality, like a drumroll before a punch or a dramatic zoom-in noise.)

[Wall Flatten - 4,000 TP] (Run into a wall and turn into a pancake for a few seconds before popping back to normal.)

Then there were the special items, and one in particular caught his eye—

[Hammerspace Storage - 5,000 TP] (Grants permanent access to hammerspace for storing and retrieving items anytime.)

Augustus' eyebrows shot up.

Right now, he could only use Hammerspace when The Mask was activated.

But if he bought this…

He could access it whenever he wanted.

"That would be insanely useful…" he muttered.

He could store weapons, food, disguises, traps—anything.

No need for backpacks. No need for carrying extra weight.

Just reach in and pull out whatever he needed.

Like a walking cartoon arsenal.

But 5,000 TP was a lot.

He’d have to save up for a long time before he could afford it.

Augustus felt his head spin.

"So many insane things I can buy…"

His heart raced with excitement.

Should he convert his TP to SP and increase his stats…?

Or should he save up for one of these ridiculous powers?

It was hard to decide.

It was hard to decide... After considering for a long period of time, he decided to leave the TP for now...

He could just convert the TP to SP anytime, so he was not in a hurry.

He went back to party, and pretended to drink a lot. Hours later, he went to sleep.

---

The next morning, Augustus woke up refreshed and energized.

Unlike previous mornings—where he’d wake up hungover and regretting his life choices—this time, his body felt light, and his mind was sharp.

He sprang out of bed, ready to go outside and train—

But then, he remembered.

Matilda.

His excitement faded, replaced with worry.

How was she feeling now?

Without wasting time, he hurried to her room.

The moment Augustus stepped inside, he saw familiar faces.

Elias. Olf. Johnny. Several other crew members.

And—Matilda.

She was awake, lying on the bed, smiling weakly but genuinely at everyone.

The room was filled with relief and warmth.

Then—all eyes turned to him.

And Matilda’s smile softened even more.

"Speaking of the devil…" Olf chuckled, crossing his arms. "Here he is, the one we were just talking about."

He smirked. "The Devil Fruit user, Augustus."

Elias greeted him with a nod. "Good morning, kid."

Augustus smiled back, but his focus went straight to Matilda.

He walked to her bedside, his expression gentle. "How do you feel, Matilda?"

Matilda let out a weak but warm smile. "I'm feeling better… thanks to you."

She paused, then her voice lowered slightly.

"I heard everything. If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t be alive right now."

Augustus chuckled, waving off the praise as he sat beside her. "Don’t mention it."

Matilda’s smile remained, but this time, there was something different in her eyes.

Something serious.

"No, Augustus…" Her voice was firm. "I owe you my life."

The atmosphere in the room shifted.

Augustus suddenly felt something off.

There was a different air around the crew.

Elias, Olf, Matilda, Johnny… all of them were looking at him in a way they never had before.

Not just as Augustus—

But as someone different.

Was it because they saw him as a Devil Fruit user now?

Did that change everything between them?

Questions raced through his mind—until Elias finally spoke.

"Kid… we were just discussing your fight against Vargo earlier…"

Elias paused, as if choosing his next words carefully.

Then, with slight hesitation, he continued.

"And we decided…"

Another pause.

"That the bounty on Vargo… belongs to you."

Augustus blinked, slightly confused.

Elias took a deep breath. "And not only that… but someone with your power… Silver Hook would only hold you back."

A heavy silence filled the room.

Augustus' eyes widened in shock. "What?"

Matilda spoke next, her voice calm but firm. "We think it’s best if you leave Silver Hook."

"Since you have no bounty, you could turn in Vargo and collect a huge reward from the Marines."

"There’s no need for you to be involved with us anymore—"

"Are you guys serious!?" Augustus interrupted, his voice sharp.

Anger flared in his chest.

"You’re just kicking me out like that?"

His brows furrowed deeply, frustration boiling inside him. "After everything?"

"You think you can just toss me aside?"

The room fell into a tense silence.

Elias sighed, his expression complicated. "It’s not like that, kid."

"Then what!?" Augustus snapped. "You think I’m scared to be involved with you guys?"

He gritted his teeth, feeling indignant. "I trained with you, fought with you—bled with you! And now you’re just telling me to leave!?"

Elias and the others exchanged glances, their faces heavy with something unspoken.

Augustus noticed—and for some reason, the whole scene felt off.

Something was wrong.

Then—Elias finally spoke.

"Kid… we’re not kicking you out."

His voice was calm but resolute.

"I and the top members of Silver Hook have already decided…"

He took a deep breath.

"We’re disbanding Silver Hook."

"We’re going to live a quiet life."

Silence.

Augustus just stared at him.

For the first time—

He was completely speechless.