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Aero stood on the deck of the Daggerfang Pirate's ship yes, that was the name of the crew he had just joined.
His eyes scanned the deck, where more than thirty pirates bustled about. For a ship this large, it still felt oddly empty. But each pirate was massive, built like a brawler. Compared to them, Aero looked wiry, maybe even fragile.
Yet no one dared underestimate him not after that quick scuffle earlier.
They were just too weak even in the sea like East blue.
At the bow, two pirates were struggling to hoist the massive anchor. Others unfurled the sails. Above them, a pirate flag flapped violently in the wind a grinning skull pierced through the head by a dagger.
"Hey, rookie! What the hell are you gawking at? I didn't hire you to sightsee!" came the gruff voice of the scar-faced captain behind him.
Just then, a panicked voice shouted from the lookout, "Captain! Navy ship inbound dead ahead!"
'Navy?' Aero tensed.
"Just our luck," the captain spat. "Alright, boys! Full sails! Man the cannons! Let's blast those Justice bastards a welcome!"
The pirates moved like clockwork. Cannons were rolled out, their pitch-black barrels gleaming. A team brought up heavy, round cannonballs ten guns in total, all aimed forward.
Meanwhile, the helmsman spun the wheel. This barrage was just a stall tactic there was no way they could go toe-to-toe with a Navy mid-class warship.
Aero had no idea what to do. So, he ran to the nearest cannon team and watched closely.
The ship veered, giving the cannons clear line-of-fire. Aero instinctively covered his ears as the fuses were lit.
BOOM! BOOM!
Ten deafening blasts shook the air. Cannonballs arced gracefully before splashing harmlessly into the sea far ahead of the warship.
A complete miss.
"Blackridge! Bring out my main gun!" the captain barked, spitting in frustration.
A burly pirate named Blackridge stashed his spyglass and waved to a few crewmates. Together, they vanished into the cargo hold.
Moments later, heavy rumbling echoed across the deck.
Aero turned and stared in awe.
The pirates were hauling out an enormous cannon. The barrel pointed skyward like some mechanical beast. The gun was nearly five meters tall dwarfing even the burliest pirates.
Before he could take it in fully, Aero caught something moving in the corner of his vision.
A black cannonball whistled through the air straight for the ship.
The captain, standing at the stern, leapt high. In one smooth motion, he unsheathed his blade and cleaved the projectile mid-air.
It exploded above them, raining black powder and smoke across the deck.
The stench of gunpowder filled Aero's lungs.
That was when he truly felt it how weak he was.
Sure, this body remembered how to handle a blade, but nothing near the captain's level. And right now, only one thing mattered: survival.
Without thinking, Aero shoved aside one of the gunners and crouched behind a cannon. It was smaller than the main gun, maybe two meters long.
The Navy warship was still distant. Aero adjusted the cannon's elevation somewhere close to forty-five degrees.
He shouted to the loader, "Cannonball now!"
As the ball slid into place, Aero focused. Lit the fuse.
BOOM!
The shot screamed across the air.
Hit.
The Navy ship's bow shuddered.
He blinked in disbelief. First shot. Direct hit.
The pirate next to him stared in shock, then admiration.
Aero could make out Navy soldiers scrambling on deck dragging the injured, dousing flames.
He hesitated.
It's them or me. I'm not dying here.
The Navy returned fire harder, faster. The captain, now visibly winded, was struggling to keep up with intercepting shots.
Another round of shells approached.
"Aero!" the captain bellowed. "Get to the main gun—NOW!"
Aero sprinted across the deck.
"Captain, I'll need a test shot or two—!"
"Then shoot already, damn it!" the captain shouted, slashing down another shell mid-air.
Aero positioned the giant cannon, this time lowering the angle to around forty degrees slightly less than before.
He nodded to the loader, who rammed the shell in. Another pirate sparked the fuse.
The cannon roared.
This time, the ball crashed directly into the Navy's sail, snapping the mast. The mast fell across the deck, setting off an inferno. The soldiers now abandoned their attack, scrambling to put out the flames.
The captain, watching from the bow, finally allowed himself a grin.
No longer panicked he was plotting.
Something bold.
Something deadly.
And Aero had just earned his place in this crew.
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~Support with 200 PowerStones = 1 Bonus Chapter
~Thank you for reading!