Chapter 41: Slaves
Ren did not waste any more words. The dark purple energy around his body condensed into a serpent-shaped shadow, hissing as it bared its fangs.
Seeing that reconciliation was impossible, Horo could only fight to the death. His expression turned manic as flames erupted across his entire body, clearly intending to burn both the ship and himself to ashes.
"Even if you're a Devil Fruit user, since you don't plan to let me go, then let's be buried in the sea together! Three thousand degrees Celsius—Great Eruption!"
Blazing flames surged outward, burning fiercely like a miniature sun.
The torrents of fire spread in all directions, yet Horo's face showed no sign of triumph. Cold serpent shadows had already bound him tightly, lifting him into the air.
The released flames raged uncontrollably, but they never reached the ship's hull below.
The icy aura released by Ren extinguished the fire, and beneath the fading flames, the entire ship was quickly coated in white frost.
Ren could not receive 2 Devil Souls at the same time, but even without full reception, he could still wield part of his power in a normal state. In this situation, his abilities were only at an unawakened level.
Even so, the strength of Devil Fruit users varied greatly.
The world was still vast.
"This is the ship I've taken a liking to. I won't let you destroy it," Ren said indifferently. "And I won't drown, simply because I can freeze the sea."
In truth, seawater posed little threat to him. Sea Stone factors had almost no effect on his body.
Horo continued struggling, but Ren directly planted the Serpent's Seal on him. Although Ren planned to use these pirates to earn some extra money, the actual work of sailing the ship still required their hands.
It had to be said that the Serpent's Seal was extremely convenient. Unfortunately, it was ineffective against true powerhouses, and even Shutenmaru had nearly resisted it in the past.
If Shutenmaru had not willingly submitted to Ren with almost no resistance, the Serpent's Seal would have had very limited effect on him.
After sealing Horo, Ren did the same to the remaining rabble who had been knocked unconscious by Haoshoku Haki.
By now, they had slowly awakened and were kneeling respectfully to the side, awaiting Ren's orders.
"Sir, which direction should we sail?"
Ren tossed him a map.
"To the nearest Marine base," he said calmly. "But wait a moment first. By the way, you should have the latest wanted posters on board, right?"
"Yes!" Horo nodded hurriedly, then turned and shouted at his subordinates. "Hurry up and bring the wanted posters to Sir!"
Soon, a nimble young pirate brought over a thick stack of posters.
Pirates like them often paid a small fee to News Coo birds for information while sailing the seas, and wanted posters were usually included with the newspapers.
"These are all the wanted posters."
"Find one for a pirate named Redfield," Ren said.
He nodded, sat down in Horo's original seat, and let them get to work.
Seeing this, Horo immediately ordered several women to serve Ren. Part of it was due to the influence of the Serpent's Seal, and part of it was his own hope that Ren would show mercy and not hand him over to the Marines.
Even under the Serpent's Seal, a person's own will did not simply vanish.
No matter what, Horo did not want to fall into Marine hands. If Ren assigned him a task, he would endure the humiliation without complaint, but who would willingly accept torture for nothing?
At Horo's command, the women aboard rushed forward to curry favor with Ren. Massaging his shoulders, pounding his legs, serving tea and water were trivial matters, and several even tried to openly offer themselves.
Ren merely waved them away without expression.
He glanced at the scantily dressed women. Some were original members of the Night Fire Pirates, while others were captives taken from the pirate crew defeated earlier that day.
Regardless of which they were, none of these women were innocent. For them, Ren likewise applied the Serpent's Seal.
There was no need to send such people to the Marines. They would be taken back to Kuri and sent directly to the pleasure quarters.
However, there was a third group aboard the ship.
These were women plundered from ordinary civilians, locked below deck, humiliated and treated like playthings.
Toward these victims, Ren's attitude was entirely different. Not only did he refrain from controlling them with the Serpent's Seal, he ordered the female pirates to clean them up and release them.
Some of these women had suffered so much that they stood motionless, like lifeless dolls.
Fortunately, most had not yet reached that state.
Now cleaned and dressed, they looked around with frightened expressions at the surrounding pirates.
Since their capture, they had endured torment like livestock. Now, something was clearly different.
Their fearful gazes finally settled on Ren, seated at the very top.
This was someone they had never seen before. If Ren had appeared earlier, they would not have failed to recognize him.
"Don't be afraid," Ren said gently. "From now on, you will no longer be tormented by these pirates."
"I am a pirate hunter. Next, I will send these pirates to a Marine base. You can disembark there, and the Marines will send you back to your hometowns."
Ren's presence was like a ray of light piercing their numb, humiliated lives.
Even so, many still found it hard to believe. In this world, how could pirates be so obedient before a pirate hunter?
Before long, Molly and Yuriko arrived as well.
"Disgusting. Pirates really are scum," Molly said angrily after boarding and understanding the situation. She drew her sword, intending to cut them down.
However, although Ren did not stop her, Molly hesitated after injuring one pirate. She had never killed anyone before.
Yuriko, more soft-hearted, felt deep sympathy for the abducted women and often stayed with them, offering comfort as they sailed toward the Marine base.
Gradually, the women began to realize that they might truly be saved.
This was because the pirates who once treated them like livestock were now locked in filthy, foul-smelling cells themselves, while the women were given the cabins the pirates had previously occupied.
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