By the dock, quite a pile of stones had already been stacked up, and most people had left. Ada and Bolton had moved two large cannons onto the deck. Victor asked how to adjust the angle and then began experimenting.
The pirate ship was still out of firing range, so Victor wanted to figure out the cannons first and give the pirates a proper lesson.
When the pirate ship finally came into range, all the cannons had been lined up on the deck, aimed at the distant sea.
Victor fired a cannonball at a 45-degree angle toward the pirate ship. It missed but splashed the water near the ship, startling the pirates onboard. It almost hit the ship itself.
Ada and Bolton helped reload the cannons. They each fired one shot, but none hit the target. Victor kept firing and adjusting the aim.
The pirates were terrified. Though none of the shots landed directly, the cannonballs were landing dangerously close. Pirate captain Bradley was anxious—he wasn't afraid of a direct fight, but he feared their ship might sink before they even made it ashore.
Bradley shouted loudly, "Get those sails up! Grab the oars and row—quick! We have to land before the ship gets hit, or we'll all end up swimming!"
"Hey, you lot! Carry the cannons up here and fire back!" he barked at his crew. But before he finished, a cannonball struck the mainmast, breaking it. The mast collapsed, pinning two men underneath. They bled from their mouths and passed out, eyes rolling back.
Bradley was shocked; the mast nearly crushed him too. Furious, he yelled, "You idiots! Don't sail in a straight line—speed up! Stop moving the cannons; our ship can't take much more. We have to seize that cargo ship; we can't risk damaging it."
"Roger!" the crew shouted.
Bradley thought: I'm the Iron Fist Bradley, bounty 5 million Belly, summoned by the King of Pirates to seek the One Piece. I'm not going down here! That cannon operator? When I get ashore, I'll deal with him personally and show him my terror.
The shore drew nearer. Although the ship zigzagged, several cannonballs still hit the deck, wounding a few crew members.
"Captain, I don't think this ship will hold much longer. We should prepare to swim over," suggested Bert, the second-in-command.
"Swim over? That's like walking into the slaughterhouse. No way."
"How about this, Captain? We pretend to surrender when we swim over. Both of us have bounties, so they won't kill us immediately. Then we make a sudden break and fight our way out. With our skills, that's not impossible." Bert glanced at the rowers and said calmly, "As for them, they're on their own."
Bert was originally a bounty hunter. To find the One Piece, he teamed up with Bradley and gathered a crew to form this pirate gang. His strength was less than Bradley's, so he took second place. His bounty had reached 3 million Belly.
"Wait a bit longer. If the ship really can't take it, then jump into the sea. For now, we move forward as far as we can," Bradley decided.
Victor noticed the ship's zigzagging and knew sinking it by cannon was difficult, but he kept firing. Occasionally he even scored a hit. Soon the ship was within a hundred meters.
Looking at his dwindling ammo and the pirate ship less than a hundred meters away, Victor smirked coldly. He jumped off the ship and headed to the pile of stones.
Picking up a rock, he balanced it, spread his legs, and threw it toward the pirate ship. The rock struck the side of the ship, punching a hole.
Victor's lips curled. The result was pretty good. All that throwing knives practice wasn't wasted; he was much more accurate than with the cannons. Holding something in hand just felt better.
He ordered Ada and Bolton to gather rocks for him while he rapidly threw them at the pirate ship. His stance was that of a mini-Kappu.
While Victor was throwing stones, the town mayor arrived with the security team at the dock. Seeing the pirate ship riddled with holes, he laughed heartily.
"Hahaha, Victor, well done! That pirate ship is done for. You've grown so strong. If your parents knew, they'd be proud," Mayor Andre said, a bit sentimental.
Orens was his secretary for over ten years; they had a deep bond. Seeing Victor's growth brought him comfort.
Victor turned to the group behind him and smiled at their leader, "Uncle Andre, you're here. This pirate ship can't hold on much longer. I expect the pirates will jump into the water and swim ashore. Have everyone spread out and guard the coastline. Don't let a single one escape."
"All right, we'll do as you say. Everyone, spread out and take up arms. Secure the area, and shoot on sight if any pirate resists," Andre agreed and ordered the security team sternly.
Victor watched as Andre arranged the militia, then motioned for Ada and Bolton to bring over the remaining cannonballs.
By now, the pirate ship was less than fifty meters from shore—battered and listing, its crew dazed. 'What kind of monster lives on this island?' The pirates exchanged uneasy glances. If they made it ashore, would they even survive?
Bradley and Bert exchanged a nod.
They knew when they were outmatched. Time for Plan B: play weak.
Victor hefted a cannonball, eyed the ship—and 'threw.'
'BOOM!'
The impact detonated the shell on contact. Three direct hits later, the ship groaned to a halt, slowly sinking. Pirates leaped into the sea, swimming frantically toward land.
Just then, Rebecca arrived at the docks—a blur even Andre barely registered before she materialized at Victor's side.
'Damn. She's fast.' Andre hid his surprise. 'Like mother, like daughter.'
Rebecca had sprinted the moment she got the warning, weapons in hand. Now, chest heaving, she thrust Victor's sword toward him. "Here. Your blade."
She glanced at the sinking ship and smirked. "You called me here to watch the show?"
Andre chuckled. "Rebecca, be fair. Dead pirates are 'good' pirates. If they'd made it ashore, people would've died. Victor handled this perfectly."
Victor shrugged. "Didn't expect them to be 'this' weak. A few rocks and cannonballs, and they folded."
He'd assumed pirates could deflect projectiles—like the Straw Hats, who treated cannonfire as a nuisance.
Everyone (except Rebecca) twitched. 'Who complains about enemies being' too easy'?'
But Victor and Rebecca had trained relentlessly. This was supposed to be their 'test'—a chance to measure their growth against real pirates.
Victor, ever cautious, had skipped the exam and sunk the entire damn ship.
Now, at gunpoint, the soaked pirates surrendered without a fight, hands bound as they were herded together.
Their eyes kept darting to Victor—specifically, to his hands. 'Who the hell throws cannonballs?!'
(If Victor knew their thoughts, he'd scoff. 'Please. There's an old man in Foosha Village who does this for fun. Even the King of the Pirates ran from him. I'm' barely 'trying.')
The mayor and militia buzzed with excitement. Capturing this many pirates was a 'huge' win.
Bradley and Bert were dragged forward. The mayor studied them—the hulking captain and his sword-wielding first mate—and frowned. 'Why do they look familiar?'
Uneasy, he turned to Rebecca. "Disarm that one." He pointed to Bert's sheathed blade. 'Better her than a militiaman.'
What no one noticed:
Behind their backs, the two pirates were sawing at their ropes with hidden knives—prepared for this exact scenario.
('"Wait, ropes actually work in this world? Can't they just flex and snap them?"'
Nope. Unless you're a monster like Zoro (who, let's recall, needed Luffy's help to escape execution post-capture), ropes 'work.' And Bert was 'nowhere' near Zoro's league.)
Rebecca strode over, casual as ever.
The moment she reached for Bert's sword—
'SNICK.'
Rope severed, Bert moved. Steel flashed as his blade settled against Rebecca's throat, edge kissing skin.
"Don't. Breathe."