With Robert dead, the tide of battle had irrevocably turned against the pirates.
Their ship had already been reduced to a battered, shattered wreck by the waterspouts, with many pirates having fallen from the deck into the sea and others crushed by falling debris such as broken masts.
Now, facing the assault of Nos’s Marines, they were utterly helpless and could offer no effective resistance whatsoever.
On the supply ship, Fogg and Winnie, who had been locked in combat with Hughes, caught sight of Robert’s death from a distance.
The shock that ran through them was immense and profound.
Drake, whom they had encountered before, had been formidable enough…
even he had needed to expend considerable effort to defeat Robert in their battle.
Now, what kind of monster had the Marines dispatched to kill Robert in such a remarkably short span of time?
And what kind of ability was that, anyway?
The power to control seawater was something they had never even heard of!
Hughes, on the other hand, was elated.
He called out to Fogg and Winnie: “It seems the N-6 Branch is full of hidden talent.
Your days as pirates are over!” Fogg and Winnie exchanged glances, both realizing that continuing the fight was no longer viable.
While Robert had been alive, they had respected his strength and acknowledged him as their captain.
But now that he was dead, it was every man for himself…
why would they sacrifice their lives for him?
Both Fogg and Winnie decided to retreat.
As for what they would do after escaping, that was a matter to be discussed later.
Hughes could see that they intended to flee.
There was no way he would let them have their way.
He launched a series of wide, sweeping attacks in an attempt to pin them down, hoping to hold them until reinforcements arrived to finish them off.
Fogg, however, could fly…
how could Hughes possibly keep him grounded?
With a single flap of his wings, Fogg took to the air, easily breaking free from Hughes’s assault.
Left with no choice, Hughes abandoned his pursuit and focused all his efforts on attacking Winnie.
“Fogg, you bastard…
are you really going to abandon me here?!” Winnie roared at Fogg while desperately fending off Hughes’s relentless barrage.
If Fogg fled on his own, she would not even be able to handle Hughes alone, let alone the reinforcements that were sure to come.
But Fogg could not care less about Winnie now.
They had been comrades before, but now they were in a life-or-death crisis.
Why would anyone bother with mutual support at a time like this?
Naturally, whoever had the means to escape should do so first.
Previously, the Marines had no airborne units and had been powerless against Fogg’s aerial advantage.
But now the situation was different.
No sooner had Fogg taken flight than Pons appeared directly in his path, blocking his escape.
After dispatching Robert, Pons had bypassed the badly damaged pirate ship and come to the supply ship’s aid.
He spotted Fogg attempting to flee through the air and moved to intercept him.
Fogg felt a chill of terror run through him at the sight of Pons.
‘This monster had killed Robert…
how could I possibly stand a chance against him?’ Fogg had originally planned to return to his own ship, gather the crew left aboard, and order them to set sail immediately to escape this place.
But now, he could only turn around and fly as far and as fast as he possibly could.
Pons, however, was not about to let Fogg get away.
He gave chase without hesitation.
It had to be said that Fogg, with his Vulture Fruit ability, could fly remarkably fast when fleeing for his life.
Pons pursued at full speed, but the distance between them seemed to be gradually widening.
Nevertheless, Pons was not worried that Fogg would successfully escape.
He fixed his eyes on Fogg and unleashed a Confuse Ray.
The eerie, disorienting light quickly engulfed Fogg’s body.
Fogg suddenly felt dizzy and disoriented…
and then, to his horror, he heard Robert’s voice bellowing at him: “Fogg, you traitor…
are you trying to abandon me and run?!
Come back!
Come back now!” A wave of panic washed over Fogg, ‘Was Robert not already dead?
With his body pierced by so many blades, there was no way he could have survived.
Yet why could I hear Robert’s voice so clearly?!’ Flustered and terrified, Fogg unconsciously slowed his flight.
Pons closed the gap and struck him in the back with a Shadow Ball.
Fogg let out a piercing scream, then plunged downward toward the sea, eventually crashing headfirst into the water.
As a Devil Fruit user, Fogg naturally could not swim.
He floundered helplessly and sank beneath the surface.
From that point on, the battle became a one-sided rout, with the Marines overwhelming the pirates completely.
Winnie was eventually defeated and captured alive by Hughes.
Hughes then led his men in a counterattack against the pirates who had boarded the supply ship, while Nos launched an assault on the remaining pirate vessels.
A large number of ordinary pirate grunts were either killed or captured.
Fogg, who had fallen into the sea, was later retrieved by Marine sailors skilled in swimming.
He had narrowly escaped drowning, but he was still fitted with Seastone handcuffs and taken prisoner.
According to the post-battle tally, the Marines had killed seventy-eight pirates and captured seventy-six others.
A number of pirates remained unaccounted for…
some may have escaped by swimming away amid the chaos, while others may have died and sunk into the sea, their bodies never recovered and thus not included in the final count.
On the Marine side, the fifty sailors brought by Hughes had suffered heavy losses: thirty-eight had been killed, and the remaining twelve were all wounded.
Among the two hundred sailors Nos had brought, sixteen were killed and thirty to forty others wounded.
Still, the complete annihilation of the Glide Pirates at such a cost was undoubtedly worth it.
Though Nos mourned his fallen comrades after the battle, he could not help but feel a surge of elation.
With this achievement, he might even be promoted to Captain.
Even if his rank did not rise, he would certainly receive substantial commendations from his superiors…
a definite boon to his future career.
Afterward, Hughes’s supply ship followed Nos’s warship back to the N-6 Branch, as its mission had been to deliver funds to the branch all along.
Upon arriving at the branch, Nos and Hughes first had the captured pirates locked away in the cells, then proceeded to discuss the fund delivery and other administrative matters.
That evening, after dinner, Nos sent for Pons and handed him a large leather suitcase.
“This is the bounty you’ve earned this time…
the fifty-four million Berry from before, plus the bounties for killing Robert and defeating Fogg, totaling one hundred thirty-one million Berry.” Winnie had been defeated by Hughes, so her bounty did not go to Pons.
Robert’s and Fogg’s bounties, however, were unquestionably his.
The bounty amount previously owed to Pons had been fifty-four million Berry.
But since the replenishment funds had been delivered…
totaling a full two hundred million Berry as the branch’s bounty reserve…
Nos was able to pay out the entire one hundred thirty-one million Berry to Pons all at once.
Pons took the heavy suitcase, his breathing growing heavier.
This was over one hundred thirty million Berry… In the original work, Nami had slaved away for years under Arlong to save up one hundred million Berry.
And now, in a relatively short time, he had earned even more than that.
‘It seemed that being a bounty hunter was quite a lucrative profession.
Perhaps I should consider making it my full-time career?’ Logically, after collecting the bounty, he could leave.
However, it was already getting dark, and besides, he had no way to travel back on his own.
After a moment’s thought, Pons said to Nos: “Lieutenant Commander, I plan to take my leave tomorrow morning.
I would ask that you assign a few Marines to escort me back to Riman Island… There is no need for a warship…
a small boat will do.
I imagine the base has some smaller vessels available… Would you be willing to oblige?” Nos laughed heartily and said: “Pons, my young friend, after all the great service you’ve done for me, of course I’ll help with such a small favor.
However, there’s no need for you to rush off.
Captain X.
Drake will be arriving at our branch in a few days to transport Fogg, Winnie, and the Narut you captured earlier to Impel Down.
I’ve reported your achievements to him, and he seems quite interested in meeting you.
Of course, if you’d rather not see him, that’s perfectly fine…
I can arrange for you to leave tomorrow regardless.” Pons was taken aback, ‘X.
Drake?
Was this the same X.
Drake I knew of?’ In the One Piece manga, there was indeed such a character…
a Marine Rear Admiral who later defected to become a pirate, though in truth he was carrying out a covert mission assigned by Fleet Admiral Sengoku.
‘Nos had said X.
Drake was a Captain.
Was that because he had not yet been promoted to Rear Admiral, or was this an entirely different person with the same name?’ ‘But it seemed rather unlikely that it was someone else with the exact same name…’ After a moment of consideration, Pons said to Nos: “Then I shall impose upon your hospitality for a few more days.” Pons was also somewhat curious to meet X.
Drake.
After all, if it was indeed the X.
Drake he knew, then he would be the first character from the original work that Pons had encountered since transmigrating.
…… Drake arrived sooner than expected.
On the morning of the third day, Drake appeared outside the N-6 Branch’s harbor aboard a warship with twenty Marines.
Lieutenant Commander Nos hurriedly assembled his troops to line up and welcome the distinguished guest.
Pons was also invited to join the reception.
The warship slowly sailed into the harbor.
Drake stood at the very front of the vessel, flanked on either side by two imposing-looking men who also seemed to possess considerable combat ability.
From the very first moment he laid eyes on Drake from a distance, Pons was certain that this was indeed the X.
Drake from the original work.
Drake was several years younger than when he appeared in the manga, but his features were essentially the same…
though in the original work he wore his own pirate attire, whereas now he was clad in a standard Marine Captain’s uniform.
Drake and his two companions stepped off the warship.
Nos and his assembled Marines shouted in unison: “Welcome, Captain Drake, to our branch!” Though Drake was only two rank above Nos, as a Marine Headquarters’ Captain, his status was vastly higher than that of a branch Lieutenant Commander like Nos.
Thus, when Drake visited the N-6 Branch, Nos made sure to show him every courtesy and offer the warmest hospitality.
Pons, however, simply stood quietly beside Nos and did not participate in the welcoming shouts.