Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru was sitting on Anne Bonny’s ship.
Both of his hands were pressed flat against the wooden deck to steady himself against the relentless pounding of the waves.
For some reason, Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru could still sense residual magical energy lingering ever since Medusa was defeated by Anne Bonny.
Up ahead, the eyepatch-wearing captain stood with her bright red hair fluttering in the wind, clad in a long-sleeved white shirt.
She casually sheathed her curved sword and pistol.
One of the crew members handed her a formal blue coat, which Anne Bonny buttoned up only loosely at the top.
“You look rather troubled, Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru,” she noted.
The young man, however, merely gave a slow nod, keeping his eyes fixed on the open sea.
He listened to the muffled churning of the water beneath the hull as moonlight filtered down through a thick blanket of dark clouds.
“Is that so?
I don’t feel troubled at all,” he replied coldly.
Anne Bonny stared at him in utter shock.
Gasps echoed around the deck as the crew members reacted with disbelief to Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru’s blunt answer.
“Hey, kid!
What gives you the right to be so disrespectful to the captain?!
Just because you’re on equal footing with her doesn’t mean you can just go around running your—”
“I never said I was insulting her.
I just stated a fact.
What’s wrong with speaking plainly?” Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru cut in with an icy tone, turning his sharp gaze directly toward the crewman.
A collective chill ran down their spines; they were stunned that someone of Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru’s stature could project such intense intimidation.
While the age gap between them was vast, Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru was a master of psychological dominance.
It was no wonder the crew was usually terrified of debating Anne Bonny, yet Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru treated her with casual indifference, despite his short, child-like height.
In truth, he hadn’t deliberately set out to cause a scene.
“Damn you, you little brat—”
Suddenly, the cold edge of a kunai pressed lightly against the crewman’s neck.
Dark, malevolent magical energy crackled along its tip as three shadowy, ninja-like figures materialized out of thin air, taking up aggressive stances to strike down the insolent crew member.
Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru glanced back over his shoulder and gave a single, dismissive shake of his head.
Instantly, the three phantoms dissolved back into nothingness.
“Keep your unnecessary comments to yourself,” Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru warned, glaring daggers at them.
“I’m only cooperating with Anne Bonny because I’m interested in the prospects she offered me.
So don’t test my patience.”
A heavy wave of pressure instantly flooded the surrounding air, suffocating everyone with its dense magical weight.
Anne Bonny couldn’t help but realize that Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru was a force of nature who could not be underestimated.
“Cut it out, all of you!” Anne Bonny barked.
She locked her uncovered eye onto her crew members in a fierce glare.
Overwhelmed by the pressure, they stumbled backward onto the deck with looks of sheer terror.
“I know you’re all frustrated.
But without him, this ship wouldn’t stand a ghost of a chance against an ironclad vessel!”
“What on earth is the captain talking about?”
Meanwhile, Marinora let out a soft sigh.
Meeting Anne’s gaze, she was instructed to fill the others in on all the details, finally recounting the whole story after they had successfully wiped out the monsters.
As the ship set sail, a traveler named Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru had gazed out at the vast ocean for the very first time.
Up until then, he had never laid eyes on a vessel of such massive proportions, let alone one backed by such a formidable fleet.
To Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru, however, the very ship he rode upon felt like a harbinger of doom.
“It’s like an old myth playing out all over again,” Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru murmured.
He recalled the ancient legend of the god of sea and lightning battling Yamata no Orochi, a monstrous beast boasting eight tails and eight heads, its gargantuan body towering so high it spanned across eight valleys and eight hills fused into one—making the ship beneath him look like absolute nothingness by comparison.
Cast out from the plains of heaven, Susanoo—one of Izanagi’s divine offspring—descended upon the peak of Mount Torikami, where he encountered an elderly couple, Ashinazuchi and Tenazuchi, alongside their weeping daughter.
They were heartbroken over having to sacrifice their eighth child to appease Yamata no Orochi.
Taking pity on them, Susanoo transformed the girl into a small comb to tuck into his hair.
He instructed the couple to brew strong sake and distill it eight times over, setting up a sturdy fence with eight gates, each enclosing a large vat filled with the liquor.
Lured by the potent aroma, Yamata no Orochi eagerly took the bait.
With the beast incapacitated by alcohol, Susanoo hacked off every single one of its heads.
When he slashed into the monster’s tail, however, his blade chipped and shattered against something hard inside the flesh, unexpectedly imbuing the creature with an even more terrifying surge of power.
Once the dragon was finally slain, Susanoo pulled a legendary divine sword from within its tail—a sacred blade christened Kusanagi, which was later passed down to the Sun Goddess, Amaterasu.
The sheer scale of the legends left Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru pondering in silence whether a mere ship was truly worthy of carrying him, especially after having just undergone reincarnation.
He could only hope that this path would eventually lead him to the mysterious entity pulling the strings behind his new reality—even if it meant dealing with that annoying man in the Oni mask.
He still vividly remembered his first encounter with Anne Bonny.
The memory lingered fresh in his mind, even if their initial impression of one another hadn’t been entirely pleasant.
From a distance, a faint, subtle smile touched Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru’s lips.
~o0o~
A canvas banner billowed atop a tall wooden mast, proudly displaying a skull and crossbones symbol.
Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru walked steadily toward his designated vessel, while Anne Bonny barked orders at her crew to load the trade cargo.
“What are you lollygagging for?
Get those crates on board and prepare to cast off, you lazy scumbags!” Anne Bonny yelled.
The crew handled the cargo with extreme care, double-checking the ship’s structural integrity and armaments.
With preparations complete, Anne Bonny and her crew prepared to depart.
Nearby, the eyepatch-wearing captain cast a glance toward a cluster of small, humble fishing boats bobbing in the water.
Even so, that didn’t mean Anne Bonny could let her guard down.
As long as she remained trapped within these treacherous waters, an eyepatch-wearing captain could never truly roam the seas as a free wanderer.
Standing a short distance away was a young nobleman flanked by his loyal personal servant, overseeing a squad of private guards loading their necessary supplies.
They watched the massive crew of thirty-four sailors bustle across the deck with critical eyes, each man moving with practiced discipline.
The commanding aura radiating from Anne Bonny felt less like a pirate and more like a high-ranking naval general—an unsettling presence that made the nobleman deeply uncomfortable. Read the latest chapters at novelping dot com.
“Emilio-sama!”
“My apologies.
Did my expression betray me again?” asked the young aristocrat, Viscount Emilio.
“Indeed it did, sir.
As the rightful head of the Strandt family, Viscount Emilio Strandt, you must never display weakness in front of guests.”
“It matters little to me.
Besides, I’ve always despised pointless formalities!”
At that moment, Anne Bonny strode over with a wide, mocking grin on her face.
Her elderly, monocle-wearing servant immediately stepped forward, offering a deep, respectful bow worthy of a distinguished guest.
Emilio, thirty years of age with neatly combed white hair and a refined, athletic build, offered a polite half-bow with his right arm pressed against his chest.
Without warning, Anne Bonny closed the distance and landed a heavy, resounding slap onto his shoulder.
One of Emilio’s guards instantly lunged for the hilt of his sword, only for the old servant to motion for him to stand down.
“What’s with the long faces?
Is there something wrong with how I greeted Emilio?” Anne Bonny laughed.
“Besides, he understands my ways.
Why should I bother bowing when social status is nothing more than a meaningless title?”
“Damn you!”
“Got a complaint to make, you miserable soldier?”
The guard’s bravado instantly evaporated.
He knew all too well what happened when you crossed her; during their very first meeting, Anne Bonny had effortlessly slaughtered a band of cutthroats who had been terrorizing innocent lives.
It was a stark reminder of her dark past—a past where she had chosen to carve out a new destiny through a mix of piracy, trade, and illicit dealings, all while strictly adhering to a personal code of ethics never to harm the innocent.
Because Emilio and his men had initially underestimated her and tried to fight back, they had suffered a crushing, humiliating defeat.
The eyepatch-wearing captain let out a weary sigh, endlessly baffled by people who refused to accept reality yet foolishly insisted on picking fights they couldn’t win.
“Please forgive the rudeness of my men.
I suppose this is my fault for letting them cultivate such hostile attitudes toward you.
As Viscount Strandt, I offer you my most sincere apologies.”
“Save the apologies, Emilio,” Anne Bonny chuckled.
“I’m sure they’re just hoping for a second chance to settle the score and restore their lost ‘honor.’ Am I right?”
“About that—”
“Don’t worry about it.
Anne Bonny will have me back the moment she officially recruits me.”
Cutting into the conversation, Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru suddenly stepped up beside her.
He stood tall against the ocean breeze, fixing his sharp, piercing gaze directly on her.
“Who are you supposed to be?”
“My name is Hasetsukabe no Koharumaru.
I’m here for the journey.”