"Closer! Closer! Finally, we're at the shore!"
Almost at the same moment, two voices echoed in different places.
"Men! Follow me onto the island and claim the treasure that belongs to us! Hahaha!"
Warwick laughed loudly as he leapt from the prow of the Blood Wolf, sprinting straight toward the island.
The crew of the Blood Wolf Pirates clambered down in quick order, chasing after their captain's steps.
Hidden within the forest, Murphy suppressed the urge to strike.
"Almost… just a little longer… why hasn't that one come off the ship yet? Wait… just wait!"
After a while, Murphy's face twisted grimly.
Through his Observation Haki, he sensed that one presence had not left the pirate ship.
The others were nearly within the forest. Among them, one aura was slightly stronger than the rest—Warwick, captain of the Blood Wolf Pirates.
He could not wait any longer. Whoever was left aboard must be the one assigned to guard the ship.
If he allowed the others to plunge deep into the forest, their strength, as he sensed it, would leave most of them dead. Even if a few survived, he would be forced to waste time and effort hunting them down.
Why not let them charge blindly into their own deaths, saving himself the trouble?
Because the ship required manpower to sail, and Murphy could not be sure if the one left behind was the navigator.
If the navigator died in the forest, he would be stranded once more.
So the most important task was to stop them here on the beach.
Why hadn't he attacked immediately? Because he needed to ensure nothing went wrong.
Desperate men would do desperate things. If they destroyed the ship in panic, what would he do then?
Murphy could not afford failure. To have hope snatched away after tasting it would be worse than death. He would either lose his mind entirely or become something monstrous.
With a single step, Murphy vanished.
The giant tree trunk where he had been standing cracked and split apart with a sharp snap.
Appearing and disappearing in rapid bursts, Murphy closed in on Warwick.
He did not hesitate. A straight punch lashed out, the fist splitting the air with a violent gale aimed at Warwick's face.
Murphy wanted to test Warwick's true strength.
In his Haki's perception, the man's aura was not particularly powerful compared to his own.
Still, caution demanded he strike first.
Warwick's pupils shrank violently. In mid-stride, he had no time to react before the boy appeared and drove a fist straight for his face.
The wind from the blow lashed his skin raw.
Instinct took over. Warwick called upon his Devil Fruit power.
His body swelled and warped, fingers sprouting sharp claws, muscles bulging until his clothes shredded. In the blink of an eye, he had taken the hulking form of a nearly three-meter-tall half-werewolf.
He barely managed to cross his arms in front of him.
*BOOOM!*
The impact thundered.
Murphy's fist smashed against Warwick's guard, pain exploding through his arms, followed by a tidal wave of unstoppable force.
His body was hurled backward, smashing through massive trees in a crashing line, still flying toward the beach.
"So weak?"
Murphy blinked in surprise, frowning at Warwick's flung form.
"Mud Solidification: Grasp of the Void."
Murphy's body rippled, and a stream of hardened brown mud shot outward, forming into a massive hand.
It raced after Warwick faster than his fall.
Just as Warwick was about to plunge into the sea, the hand caught him, tethered back to Murphy's body.
On the beach, the pirates gaped in shock as their captain was hurled from the forest, only to be snatched midair by a colossal mud hand.
Some screamed in disbelief, some ran toward Warwick, some bolted back toward the Blood Wolf, some fled blindly into the forest, while others stood frozen.
Murphy sensed it all through his Haki.
The giant mud hand retracted, carrying Warwick away from the sea and suspending him high above the beach.
The grip shifted into a palm. With a brutal swing, Murphy slammed the unconscious captain down.
*BANG!* The ground erupted in a deafening crash.
Warwick lay buried in the sand, his crew blasted aside by the impact's shockwave.
"Mud Submersion."
Murphy dissolved into mud, merging into the giant hand, and rose moments later from the beach.
He looked down at Warwick, who had reverted to human form and lay unconscious at his feet.
Then his gaze turned to the panicked crew, scattering in chaos.
"Mud Domain: Hell of Mud."
Countless streams of mud poured from his body, spreading rapidly across the beach until every pirate was ensnared.
When all of them were bound, Murphy turned his attention toward the Blood Wolf, anchored offshore.
But then he froze, his expression shifting.
Through his Haki, he sensed the man who had stayed behind leaving the ship and approaching quickly. The vessel was now empty.
"What may I call you, sir?"
Kata stopped a hundred meters away, his face plastered with a sycophantic smile.
"Murphy. Aren't you afraid I'll kill you?" Murphy asked, already knowing the answer.
"Of course I fear you, Lord Murphy! But I fear even more the thought of ruining your plans!" Kata replied solemnly, his tone utterly sincere.
Murphy narrowed his eyes. This one had some wit. He must have guessed Murphy's intentions.
It was not hard to see. Murphy's battle had been spectacular, yet he had killed no one—only captured them alive. The purpose was obvious.
"Hahaha! Interesting. Tell me, then. What plans of mine would you ruin?" Murphy asked.
"Lord Murphy… I believe you are trapped here on Demon Island, unable to leave," Kata said cautiously, stealing a glance at Murphy's face.
Murphy remained expressionless.
Relieved, Kata continued. "We can help you leave, if only you would spare us."
Murphy grinned. "Help me leave? If I kill you all, I can leave just the same. And you presume to teach me how to act?"
His face went cold. A mud hand shot out and lifted Kata into the air.
"N-no… that's not what I—" Kata stammered, gasping for breath.
Murphy's eyes flickered. Seeing him struggle without resistance, he finally released him.
"What's your name?" Murphy asked flatly.
"You are clever. But sometimes, being too clever is dangerous."
Kata bent double, gasping for air. "Kata. Thank you, Lord Murphy, for sparing me. I will gather the crew at once and set sail for the nearest inhabited island."
Murphy watched as Kata busied himself, ordering the battered survivors and readying the Blood Wolf. His eyes gleamed with an emotion he could not name.
At last, he would leave this cursed place.