“Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!”
Krieg, his head wrapped in bandages, was absolutely furious.
They had been on the verge of complete victory.
Then Marine reinforcements appeared out of nowhere.
That alone would have been bad enough, but the newcomers were completely ruthless.
They had opened fire without caring whether their own Marines were caught in the bombardment.
Collateral damage?
They clearly didn’t give a damn.
The result had been disastrous for the Krieg Pirates.
Many ships had failed to escape, and countless men had been left behind.
“Admiral! We’ve finished counting our losses!”
Krieg turned sharply.
“Report!”
“We lost thirteen pirate ships. More than a thousand men are either dead or missing.”
Krieg’s expression became even uglier.
One battle.
That was all it had taken to wipe out nearly half of his entire fleet.
If Bates were still alive, Krieg would have torn him apart himself for causing this mess.
“Admiral!”
Another pirate came rushing over.
“The Marine ships are catching up again!”
“What?!”
Krieg spun around.
More than a dozen warships were rapidly closing the distance behind them.
His expression shifted between anger and disbelief.
After everything that had already happened, the Marines still weren’t willing to let him escape.
They clearly intended to destroy the Krieg Pirates completely.
For one brief moment, Krieg was tempted to turn the fleet around and fight them to the bitter end.
If the Marines wanted a final battle, then maybe he should give them one.
But the thought lasted only a second.
No.
It wasn’t worth it.
Ships could be replaced.
Men could be recruited.
He only had one life.
There was no reason to throw it away fighting the Marines here.
“Full speed!”
Krieg pointed ahead.
“Shake them off!”
“Aye, Admiral!”
Unfortunately, that was easier said than done.
The Marine warships were faster.
Instead of widening, the distance between the two sides continued to shrink.
Krieg’s face hardened.
This couldn’t continue.
His eyes moved across the men around him before finally settling on Gin.
“Gin.”
“Yes, Admiral?”
“I need you to take some men and hold off the Marines.”
Krieg gave the order as casually as if he were assigning an ordinary patrol.
Gin understood exactly what it meant.
It was a suicide mission.
Even if he somehow survived the battle, capture would almost certainly mean spending the rest of his life in prison.
Still, Gin didn’t hesitate.
“I understand.”
He turned away.
“Leave it to me.”
The vessels broke away from the fleeing fleet, turned around, and charged directly toward the pursuing Marine warships.
Krieg watched them go.
For a moment, he was genuinely moved.
A subordinate as loyal as Gin was difficult to find.
And because Gin was the most loyal, Krieg knew he was the one man who could be trusted with such a hopeless assignment.
Anyone else might simply refuse to die for him.
Krieg watched the three ships grow smaller in the distance.
Once I rebuild my fleet, I’ll kill plenty of Marines to avenge you, Gin.
His solemn mood lasted about three seconds.
Then he turned his attention back to escaping.
Gin was out there somewhere.
Probably.
More importantly, Krieg was beginning to realize that staying in the East Blue was no longer realistic.
He had no choice.
It was time for his backup plan.
…
Gin’s attempt to delay the Marines was going poorly.
Three pirate ships charging more than a dozen Marine warships had little chance from the start.
Before they could even close the distance, two of the ships were blown apart and sunk.
Only Gin’s vessel managed, through sheer luck, to break through the cannon fire and ram into the Marine formation.
With bloodshot eyes, Gin threw himself into one final desperate fight.
At the same time, the remaining fifteen ships of the Krieg Pirates suddenly broke formation.
They split into several smaller groups and fled in different directions, making it look as though the battered fleet had finally fallen apart.
When Colonel Nezumi received the report, he merely sneered.
“A desperate last attempt to escape.”
The Marine fleet soon divided as well.
Several ships broke away to pursue the smaller pirate groups.
Nezumi, meanwhile, kept the main force focused on the Dreadnaught Sabre.
He had no intention of letting Krieg escape.
Unfortunately for him, Krieg had anticipated exactly that.
The pirate admiral was no longer aboard his flagship.
He had quietly abandoned the Dreadnaught Sabre and transferred to another vessel.
Pearl had been left behind as bait.
Cold-blooded, but effective.
…
“Admiral, where are we going now?”
“The Grand Line.”
Bane stared at Krieg.
“What?”
Krieg had suddenly appeared aboard his ship, and now, with the entire pirate fleet on the verge of collapse, he wanted to head for the Grand Line?
Was he trying to get himself killed even faster?
Then Bane reconsidered.
Staying in the East Blue wasn’t exactly a good option either.
After the previous battle, it was obvious that the Marines had no intention of leaving Krieg alone.
Moving somewhere else and starting over wasn’t unreasonable.
Krieg, however, naturally had a very different explanation.
“I’ve already proven myself as the true Overlord of the East Blue.”
He lifted his chin proudly.
“Even a Marine Colonel couldn’t defeat me. There’s nothing left here worth challenging.”
His confidence grew with every word.
“The Grand Line is the obvious next step. It’s time to see what it has to offer.”
He spoke as though entering the Grand Line were no more difficult than sailing to the next island.
Bane looked at the bandages around Krieg’s head.
Fresh blood was already beginning to seep through them.
He fell silent for a moment.
Then he nodded firmly. New chapters come out on g.com first.
“You’re right, Admiral!”
Krieg looked pleased.
“The East Blue was only the beginning for someone like you.”
Bane continued without a trace of shame.
“If you’re going to prove how powerful you really are, the Grand Line is exactly where you should go.”
Krieg raised his head even higher.
“Bane, was it?”
“Yes, Admiral.”
“You’ve done well.”
Krieg gave him an approving look.
“I’ve noticed your efforts.”
He paused dramatically.
“Once I rebuild the fleet, I’ll promote you to Chief Commander.”
Somewhere behind them, Gin was still risking his life to buy their escape.
Bane stared at Krieg.
Another promise.
Of course.
Fortunately, the System was much more reliable than Krieg.
[Quest Triggered: Grand Line]
[Description: Your Big Brother, Krieg, is not fully prepared, but he has decided to challenge the Grand Line anyway.]
[Objective: Escape the pursuing Marines and help Krieg successfully reach the Grand Line.]
[Reward: 5 Attribute Points]
[Reward: Trust Value +25]
Bane’s entire attitude changed at once.
He looked at Krieg with newfound respect.
Personality problems?
Cowardice?
Shamelessness?
None of that mattered.
As long as Krieg kept generating quests like this, Bane’s loyalty was beyond question.
Absolutely unwavering.
…
“Finally!”
Colonel Nezumi grinned as the Dreadnaught Sabre came within reach.
His eyes gleamed with excitement.
“Roy, it’s time for your man to earn his keep.”
Nelson Roy turned toward the man standing beside him.
“Go, Eric.”
He pointed toward the pirate flagship.
“Bring me Krieg’s head.”
Eric smiled confidently.
“Three minutes.”
He stepped forward.
“That’s all I need.”
There was a reason Nezumi had chosen to cooperate with Nelson Roy.
Borrowing Branch 8’s forces was only part of it.
Roy also had a powerful mercenary working for him.
“Whirlwind” Eric.
A user of the Sickle-Sickle Fruit.
Nezumi was confident that once Eric entered the fight, Krieg would no longer be a problem.
Three minutes later, however, Nezumi’s face had become hideous with rage.
Krieg wasn’t aboard the Dreadnaught Sabre.
Instead, Pearl was kneeling on the deck, sobbing uncontrollably and begging for mercy.
“I really don’t know!”
Tears streamed down his face.
“I swear! I have no idea where Admiral Krieg went!”