"I will not allow you to surrender."
Krieg's roar came from the blood-slick deck where he lay. "He only has some strange weapon we've never seen. We still have nearly five thousand men. There is no need to fear him!"
For all his monstrous strength, the kind that could whirl a one-ton spear with a single arm, Krieg trusted steel more than skill. In battle he hid behind golden armor, diamond knuckles, a spiked cloak, a great battle spear, and poison shells. Because his toys could explode, the arrogant overlord Believed everyone else relied on gadgets too, rather than true power.
"What… what should we do?"
"Do we still surrender?"
"The boss has a point," some pirates muttered, wavering again.
Rody's eyes glinted as he looked down at Krieg. "Oh? You take pride in that giant armada of yours?"
"Of course. It is the greatest fleet in the East Blue. Don't think beating me with a special trick means you've already won," Krieg barked.
"Is that so?"
Rody bent his knees and sprang into the air. Blades of pressure gathered in his palms, silent and lethal. He swept his arms down toward the sea.
"Hey, look, there's someone above the Dreadnought Sabre!"
"Yeah, what is he doing up—"
They did not finish. A colossal slash fell from the sky and carved the ships into pieces. Hulls split cleanly. Masts toppled. Men vanished in sprays of red. Before the fleet could even scream as one, the sea was littered with broken decks and drifting corpses.
"S-so strong."
"H-he destroyed fifty ships in an instant."
"So this is the power of fifty million."
"It is hopeless. We cannot fight something like this." On the Sabre's deck, pirates dropped to their knees, bodies shaking as they stared at a sea turned scarlet.
"Captain, that was incredible. Even stronger than the war kings of the Beast Clan," Windfire Wheel cheered, arms windmilling in delight.
War had been his world for as long as he remembered. Death did not slow his smile.
"Of course. Lord Rody is beyond formidable," Mike said, pride warm in his voice.
Rody smiled down at the stunned Krieg. "Now then?"
Krieg seemed not to hear. His gaze was empty, his lips trembling. "N-no… fake. It's fake. I must be dreaming."
"Yes. A dream… hahahaha…"
"Tch. Broken already?"
Rody lifted his hand, ready to finish it. At that moment Gin stepped forward and threw his arms wide, placing himself between Rody and his captain.
Rody's interest stirred. "Oh? You intend to stop me?"
"Captain Gin, move. You will die," the pirates shouted, panic rising again.
"Please, Captain Gin, get out of the way. You will be killed."
Gin did not budge. His eyes were steady, voice low but firm. "Lord Slayer, it was our Krieg Pirates who were foolish enough to provoke you. Our fleet has been annihilated. Our leader has lost both hands and his mind is broken. He poses no threat to you now. If you must take a life…"
He dropped to both knees and pressed his forehead to the deck. "Then take mine. I will trade my life for Captain Krieg's. I beg you."
Tears broke from the ranks. Rough men choked on sobs.
"Captain Gin, don't."
"Please, no."
Windfire Wheel exhaled softly. "That one… he has loyalty."
Mike nodded. "Yes. Rare among pirates."
Rody walked up to Gin and looked down at him, face calm. "Is a vicious man like him worth your life?"
"Whether Captain Krieg is good or evil, he showed Gin grace. For that grace, Gin must repay with his life."
"I see."
"The bonds among pirates are touching indeed."
Gin raised his head, joy flashing across his face. "Thank you, Lord Rody."
Rody's smile tilted. "But I refuse."
He kicked. Gin shot across the deck and crashed into a shattered bulkhead. Blood spilled from his mouth. Several ribs had snapped. He could not move.
"Captain Gin!"
"He's alive. Thank the sea, he's alive," the men breathed, relief and terror tangling in their throats.
Gin lifted his eyes. Rody had already seized Krieg by the hair and hoisted him upright.
"N-no," Gin rasped.
Rody turned Krieg's head so Gin could see. Gin's face was wet with tears. His voice broke. "I… beg…"
Rody drew two fingers along the back of Krieg's neck. The blade of cursed energy whispered. Flesh parted without resistance.
Krieg's head tumbled free.
His body fell to the deck with a heavy thud. The severed head rolled to a stop facing Gin, the eyes already dim.
"Boss…"
Gin let out a single raw cry and slumped into darkness.
Rody dropped the head and sank back into Krieg's gilded chair. Nami and Mike strode to his side. Windfire Wheel herded the kneeling pirates forward, their faces ash-white.
"Lord Rody, we surrender."
"We will follow you."
"Please, spare us," they begged, foreheads pressing the bloody planks.
Rody did not answer them. He simply drew Nami onto his right thigh and smoothed a hand through her orange hair. "What is it, my little cat burglar? We are about to claim an armada's worth of treasure. Why so quiet?"
Nami rested her head on his shoulder, voice low. "I am happy about the treasure. Anyone would be. But seeing so many dead… even if they were all monsters, it still hurts a little. Does that make me useless?"
"How could you be useless? Your gift for navigation is unmatched. You feel this way only because you have not seen much of it before. On these seas, the strong rule and the weak are devoured. With time, it will not tear at you so much."
Mike spoke gently. "My lady, you are kind. When you have seen the ugliness of pirates a little more, you will not feel this pain."
Windfire Wheel nodded. "Where I am from, war is daily bread. Death becomes ordinary."
Nami's eyes were still clouded. Rody's tone turned soft. "In that case, let them be yours to judge."
"If I let them go, will you blame me?" she asked, lifting her face to his.
Rody ruffled her hair, smiling. "Why would I blame you? If killing them would make you happy, then kill them. If killing them would sadden you, then let them go. The lives of a few pirates are nothing beside you."
Nami's smile returned, faint but real. "You're far too good to me. I won't release them. I'll hand them to the Marines."
"As you wish," Rody said.
He looked past her at the kneeling crowd. "Bring me the one called Gin."