The Cloaked Man

Artoria let out a sigh as she fell down to the floor in exhaustion. A wooden longsword dropped from her hands as she stretched out her legs on the ground.

Her mother called out her name from the window.

"Artoria! If you are done with swinging that wooden stick around then come in and help us serve the customers!"

"Okay, Mom! Let me rest for a bit!" Shouted Artoria as she lay down on the ground and let out a sigh.

Artoria was always a girl from a small village. She would wake up in the morning to help prepare for the intake of customers that came to her family's inn and go to sleep with a tired body.

Although her life was alright, she wanted to do something more. She wanted to explore the world sail around and seek out incredible views that she wouldn't be able to see in her small village island. Taste foods that weren't served at her family inn.

Artoria stared out into the endless open sea peppered with small ships coming and going before letting o it a longing sigh.

"Artoria? Have you rested enough yet?"

"Coming Mom!"

Artoria picked up her still-tired body and made her way reluctantly to her family inn.

"How long will you continue to swing that stick around? A girl like you should learn how to cook and find a boy to be married."

Artoria rolled her eyes at the blonde-haired woman who was her mom.

"I don't want to get married yet! I want to travel the world first… besides. The boys in our village are weird and stupid."

Artoria's mother let out a sigh. "Already eighteen yet still unmarried. It seems that my bloodline will end with you…"

"MOM!"

"I'm just joking," said Artoria's mother with a small giggle. "Take your time to find the right man like how I found your father. Now hurry up and take orders from the customers."

"… fine."

Grumbling to herself Artoria put on a waitress apron and started to serve the customers.

Sometime mid-day, a heavily cloaked figure entered the inn with a subtle presence that Artoria couldn't help but notice.

"Hello sir, how may I help you today?" Asked Artoria after a bit of hesitation.

Surprisingly, a clean strong voice came from under the hood.

"Can I have anything with meat? No seafood please."

"Will beef braised soup work for you, sir?"

"That will be perfect. Thank you."

"That will be around 150 berries."

"Alright, let me get out my wallet… I was sure it was somewhere on my body…"

"You can pay later sir. I'll go ahead and put in the order."

Slightly curious about the face of the person under the black cloak, Artoria gave the order to her mother before imagining what the man looked like under the hood.

Was he handsome or ugly? A big scar maybe? Perhaps he was a fugitive.

As Artoria was imagining a headcanon of the mysterious man being a world-renowned pirate, the door to the inn blasted open as an ugly smelly group of men stumbled in with drunk grins.

"Muahahaha! I am Captain Farnell of the Iron Chest Pirates! Serve me a barrel of rum now or suffer my wrath!"

Artoria let out a frown but decided to serve pirates anyway.

"What may I get you, sir?"

Captain Farnell let out a dog whistle upon seeing Artoria. "Young miss? You look very beautiful. Your golden hair is like a golden thread while your golden eyes shine like a gold coin. Tender and petite body suited for breeding. Would you be my wife?"

Artoria's expression immediately hardened as she couldn't help but feel repulsed and disgusted.

Perhaps this showed on her face as Captain Farnell started to frown. "Am I too ugly for you miss? Will you come over here and serve me or would you rather me force you HAHAHA!"

"WOOOOOO!"

"Get her boss! Show her the night of Captain Farnell of the Iron Chest Pirates!"

"Show her the might of a 300,000 berry bounty!"

Artoria frowned before she slowly inched back to the kitchen where her wooden longsword rested against the wall. However, one of the pirates took out a gun and cocked it toward her.

"Don't move missy or I'll shoot your head out!"

Artoria let out a glare at the pirates. "Shoot me if you dare. The Marines won't let you off if you cause trouble!"

Captain Farnell let out a laugh. "What Marines? Perhaps you are talking about this one?"

A few pirates let out a giggle as they dragged out a heavily beaten-up person. Artoria immediately recognized the unconscious person and went pale.

It was the highest Marine officer that was stationed on their island.

"What did you do to him!" Shouted Artoria as hatred filled her gaze.

"We were collecting some money and this idiot stood in our way," said Captain Farnell with a creepy smile. "I'll do the same to you if you do not wish to service me."

Laughter rang out the inn as the pirates slowly closed in on Artoria causing her to feel nervous. She was unable to find a moment to move as a gun was still pointed at her head.

But just as the pirates were within hand reach from her, a clean voice came out.

"Damnit. It seems I left my wallet on my boat. Can I pay you in a different way miss?"

Artoria and the pirates turned their heads toward the heavily cloaked figure sitting down at the table.

"The hell are you saying at a time like this?" Shouted a pirate. "Does our captain seem like a joke to you?"

The heavily cloaked man shrugged.

"From the way he was talking to the girl makes it seem like he never had an actual girlfriend before. If I was a girl, I'd report him to the Marines even if I was a pirate."

A small vein popped on Captain Farnell's forehead.

"If I was a girl, I'd jump off the ship and drown than pretend to love him. If I was a fish, I'd suffocate myself just to avoid getting close to his lips. If I was a marine, I'd change professions just to avoid looking at his face-"

"SHUT UP!" Screamed Captain Farnell as he whipped out a pistol from his cloak and shot at the cloaked man.

The bullet missed and clipped the hooded man's hood as the cloaked man ducked down, revealing the man's handsome face with black hair and black eyes.

With a smile, the black-haired man winked at Artoria before disappearing into thin air.

The pirates let out a confused shout as Captain Farnell screamed. "WHERE IS HE!"

Captain Farnell soon went quiet when he felt a hand on his shoulder. When Captain Farnell turned around, he was white as a ghost.

"Hi," said the black-haired man with a small wave and a grin.

Captain Farnell swung his pistol to face the black-haired man only for him to disappear once more.

When Captain Farnell looked around the inn, he saw the man at the center of the room, slowly sheathing a black sword.

"Wh-what the hell are you?" Stuttered Captain Farnell with a horrified look.

The black-haired simply smiled as his sword went into his sheath with a click. "You can ask the Marines when you wake up."

"What the hell do you mean-"

Suddenly, Captain Farnell started to spurt blood from all his limbs as several cuts appeared all over his body.

The man stared Artoria in the eyes with a smile. "Will that cover my bill?"