73: This Ship—It’s Mine Now

The gunshot echoed across the ship, silencing everyone.

The noblewoman stared in disbelief as the man with a gaping hole in his forehead collapsed. She couldn't quite grasp what had just happened.

Who… who did that?

"Who?!"

Masser frowned, scanning the area around him.

The other pirates also paused, looking around cautiously.

Soon, everyone's eyes fell on a young man with black hair, dressed in a military-green trench coat, standing by the railing. His left hand was in his pocket, and in his right, he held a silver revolver, smoke trailing from its barrel.

"Ah, Ashley, look! It's that older brother!"

The older of the twin girls, eyes brimming with tears, brightened up and excitedly whispered to her sister.

The younger twin, with a rounder, slightly baby-faced appearance, wiped her tears and looked over. Her eyes sparkled as she recognized the figure.

"You're dead!", Two pirates not far from Ron raised their weapons and rushed him from behind.

Ron didn't even glance their way, raising his gun and pulling the trigger twice.

Bang! Bang!

The weapons clattered to the ground as the two pirates, each with a bullet hole in their foreheads, swayed and fell, lifeless.

Blood Blade Masser squinted, hoisting his massive blade as he approached Ron.

"Kid, what's your name?"

Ron didn't answer. He simply raised the smoking silver revolver, aiming it directly at Masser.

"You think that weapon scares me?"

Masser sneered, stomping forward with murderous intent toward the black-haired boy.

With a calm expression, Ron pulled the trigger.

Bang!

A silver bullet sliced through the air like a streak of light, hurtling toward Masser's forehead—an unavoidable strike!

Masser's eyes widened, a flash of fear crossing his gaze. But as a pirate with a 27 million berry bounty, he had faced death many times.

In a practiced move, he raised his steel blade to deflect the bullet.

This tactic had always worked against the Marines' lead bullets. But the moment his blade met Ron's bullet, Masser realized his mistake.

The silver bullet, imbued with Haki, pierced right through the iron sword and, in a single shocking instant, drilled into Masser's forehead.

Thud.

His sword, now with a neat hole, slipped from his hand. In the stunned silence of the onlookers, Blood Blade Masser, the fearsome first mate of the Dessa Pirates with his 27 million bounty, swayed and collapsed, blood pooling around him.

"N-No way… The first mate… he's dead?"

The remaining pirates paled, their voices trembling.

Passengers and the noblewoman stared at the young black-haired man in shock.

In their gaze, Ron released his hold on the silver revolver, letting it fall. But it didn't hit the deck as expected; instead, it slowly vanished, as if sinking into water.

"What… what kind of sorcery is this?"

A pirate stammered in fear.

The other pirates also backed away, wanting to distance themselves from the mysterious, dangerous young man.

Ron bent down and picked up the two-meter-long greatsword that had belonged to Masser. Now that the former owner was lying dead, borrowing it didn't seem disrespectful.

As they watched the slender black-haired young man effortlessly lift the massive steel blade, the passengers grew even more awestruck, while the remaining Dessa pirates were petrified.

"Run! Run for your lives!"

"We're no match for this guy!"

In a frenzy, they abandoned their stolen loot and weapons, scrambling back to their pirate ship.

"Leaving now, are we…"

With a swift step, Ron closed the distance between himself and the fleeing pirates.

In their horrified eyes, he raised the enormous sword and casually swung it.

Thin, azure slashes sliced through the air, cutting down every last pirate.

Two seconds passed.

The twenty or so pirates stood rigid, their weapons simultaneously shattering as blood sprayed from their bodies. The sight was gruesome yet strangely breathtaking.

The noblewoman snapped back to her senses and quickly covered her daughters' eyes.

Passengers and the remaining Marines stood in a daze, watching the black-haired young man wielding the massive blade as he walked toward the pirate ship, awe and respect filling their hearts.

Beyond awe, they felt reverence.

Ron stepped onto the pirate ship as the remaining pirates looked on in terror, clutching their weapons and shaking uncontrollably, torn between fighting and fleeing.

Ron swung the greatsword lightly.

A thin, blue slash shot through the air, severing the flag bearing the Dessa Pirates' emblem.

"This ship… is mine now."

Holding the sword, Ron began to advance on the pirates.

As he approached, the pirates' mental defenses shattered. In a panic, they made a final, desperate choice.

"Kill him!"

The pirates raised their guns, firing frantically at the mysterious youth in the green coat.

But Ron barely moved. With slight turns of his head and shifts of his body, he dodged every bullet with ease.

The black-haired young man raised his massive blade in front of their despairing eyes.

"W-Why? Why can't we hit him?"

One pirate dropped his smoking gun, shouting in anguish.

No one could answer him.

"No, please!"

"Ahhhh!"

With a few swift slashes, the pirates were flung overboard, their bodies arcing through the air before crashing into the sea.

Ron, now alone on the ship, guided it away from the merchant vessel under the grateful, reverent gaze of the passengers and the surviving Marines. Watching the ship drift into the distance, one of the twin girls turned to the noblewoman and asked innocently.

"Mother, was it that big brother who saved us?"

"Yes, he's our savior."

The noblewoman looked after the departing ship, her gaze filled with gratitude.

"Mother, what's his name? Will we see him again?"

The noblewoman knelt, embracing her daughters with a gentle smile. "Yes, dear. I'm sure we will."

A powerful, kind soul like his won't remain unknown forever on the seas.

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T/N:

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