Chapter 3: The Executives
"On this sea... there is never a shortage of those who don't fear death..."
"Don't fear death? I'd say they're looking for it... Hic..."
Nereus and the others left the tavern one after another. Since they hadn't been whispering earlier, everyone in the tavern heard their conversation and knew exactly what Nereus was leaving to do.
Although they didn't know who the provocateurs were, in their eyes, those fools had already been sentenced to death.
"Are you that certain? To make it to the New World, those guys can't be weak."
Amidst the chorus of agreement, a dissonant voice suddenly spoke up, drawing the attention of the drinkers at the nearby tables.
"Kid, how long have you been a pirate... no, how long have you been in the New World?"
The middle-aged pirate who spoke first looked at the one who retorted. He appeared to be just a wet-behind-the-ears brat. Through his drunken haze, the older pirate's eyes seemed to hold a hint of intention to educate the junior.
"I was born in the New World. Just set sail last month. What about it? Don't look at me like I'm a nobody now; I'm gonna make a name for myself..."
"Hahaha, it's good to be young. But do you never read the news?"
"I can't read."
As soon as these words came out, the tavern fell into a stunned silence, followed immediately by an eruption of laughter.
There were plenty of illiterate pirates, but usually, when a crew traveled together, at least one person among them could read. A rookie setting out alone like this was quite rare.
"Listen well, kid. There are many strong people on this sea, and quite a few can be called 'monsters.' This island itself is a monster's lair. But in this gathering place of monsters, there are two people you absolutely must not offend.
They are monsters among monsters. One is named Rocks, and the other... is Nereus."
"Are they really that strong?"
Normally, these two names alone were enough to deter anyone, but this young man clearly knew nothing, asking a question that seemed incredibly stupid to the other pirates.
"You know about Marine Admirals, right? The highest combat power of the Marine Headquarters. They count as monsters too. But Rocks killed an Admiral. That was the first time I ever heard of a Marine Admiral being killed by a pirate.
As for Nereus, although he looks like an ordinary human, he's actually a Fish-man. Yet, he can hold his own against Rocks on land without losing ground. do you understand what that means?"
Fish-men, as a special demi-human race in this world, possessed unique natural talents.
Because of their ability to breathe underwater, aquatic combat was the Fish-man race's home turf.
A Fish-man's combat power underwater was typically several times greater than on land.
If a member of such an aquatic combat race could display that level of power on land, then how strong he was underwater... went without saying.
Seeing that the young man in front of him still didn't seem to believe him, the middle-aged pirate didn't say anything more. He simply waved to the person behind the bar and bought another barrel of rum.
Then, he filled the young pirate's glass.
"Drink up. This one's on me. I've seen too many reckless hotheads like you. If you survive, remember to buy me a drink later. If you die, well, this is your farewell drink."
The young pirate sensed the condescension in the other's tone and didn't take the drink.
Accompanied by the laughter of the other pirates, he puffed up his cheeks and ran out of the tavern, heading in the same direction Nereus had gone. It seemed he wanted to see for himself what this "monster among monsters" really looked like.
...
Southeast Coast of Hachinosu.
A group of people were checking their weapons.
There were members like Nereus, who looked no different from humans; members like Sebastian, whose racial traits were distinct; and merfolk members with human upper bodies and fish tails.
Unlike Fish-men, merfolk only gained the ability for their tails to split into legs and walk on land after the age of 30. Furthermore, this was an ability exclusive to female merfolk. Thus, the merfolk were staying in the shallows.
The two leading the group were equally tall, and between the two of them, they couldn't scrape together a decent head of hair.
The Fish-man on the left had blue-green skin, thick lips, a large nose, and held a harpoon in his hand. His name was Sunbell. In the original timeline, he was a member of the Roger Pirates, but now he had been poached by Nereus.
The Fish-man on the right had a shiny bald head, sported two mustache whiskers, and was fingering a string of prayer beads.
His name was Babel. He was a member of the Rocks Pirates in the original timeline. Together with Sebastian and Big Pan, these four were Nereus's top executives.
"What's taking that guy Sebastian so long?"
Babel impatiently rotated the prayer beads in his hand, complaining that Sebastian hadn't returned yet.
"Maybe Big Bro Nereus had something urgent for him," Sunbell replied in a calm tone. Although Babel fingered prayer beads and called himself a monk, his temper was far more explosive than Sunbell's.
"That guy Rocks isn't here right now. Aside from him, is there anything on this island that could stump Big Bro?
Couldn't he just make a call for something like that? Did he really need to run over there personally? I think that brat Sebastian just ran off to suck up to Big Bro..."
"Babel, suppose you teach me: how do you contact someone by phone when they don't have a Den Den Mushi on them?"
Just as Babel was grumbling, Sebastian appeared behind him, responding with no small amount of irritation.
"Also, who are you calling a brat? I'm older than you. I just don't look as old as you do—going bald at such a young age."
The theoretical lifespan of a Giant was three hundred years. Giant hybrids were also influenced by this, resulting in a very long adolescence.
But Babel seemed more concerned about his hair than his age.
"This is monk training! Training!! It's not baldness, it's a tonsure!! Just because you have some Giant blood, you think you're special? Does that make you proud?!"
"It's alright. At least I won't go bald."
Sebastian flipped the hair on his back. That flowing black hair caused several veins to pop on Babel's forehead, forming cross-shaped anger marks. The word "bald" seemed to be attacking his very soul.
Once, Babel had long hair like flames. But as time passed, those luscious locks had abandoned him, bringing on a midlife crisis ahead of schedule.
Of course, to the outside world, Babel always insisted he shaved his head himself for better spiritual practice.
"Stop arguing, you two. The Captain is here."
Sunbell patted their calves to alert them of Nereus's arrival. As for why he patted their calves...
Sebastian was enormous due to his Fish-Giant heritage, and Babel himself had a physique comparable to a small giant.
This wasn't uncommon among Fish-men; Fish-men like Wadatsumi were almost as tall as Ancient Giants.
Compared to these two, Sunbell—who was actually quite muscular himself—looked like a dwarf.
Hearing this, the two stopped arguing. Quarreling was a daily occurrence for them, practically a unique form of entertainment.
But when it came to business, they knew their priorities.
Amidst various greetings of "Captain," "Big Bro," and "Boss," Nereus arrived in front of the group.