OPTC Chapter 318: Doesn't Matter, I'll Step In
The shackled laborers didn't know what had happened, but wisely stepped back. Whether it was the pirates or the strange people who had fallen from the sky, none of them looked like people they could afford to provoke.
The pirates clutched their stomachs, laughing so hard they could barely stand. Three people and one cat on the bridge — plus that weird bird that just flew away — dared to say they'd surrounded over two thousand men? Some pirates laughed so hard they almost couldn't breathe.
Tom's old friend Sword was laughing too, until something felt off. This scene felt too familiar — he remembered laughing until tears came the last time, and that hadn't ended well at all. But this time it was different, right? Two thousand men — how could they possibly lose to just a few people?
"Three little brats, huh? You sure have guts. But that's fine — saves me the trouble of hunting you down myself." Krieg laughed in the crowd, raised a thumb, then turned it down. "Kill them."
"Oh!" The pirates surged forward, surrounding Zhang Da Ye, Tom, and Rui Meng Meng, cackling as they lunged.
Krieg didn't bother to watch the fight. "Send a few down below," he ordered. "Take care of the one under the bridge too."
"Captain, the guy under the bridge is gone!"
"Huh? Ran off?" Krieg didn't hesitate. "Find him. Their ship must be nearby. Hunt down their friends and kill them all."
"Yes, Captain!" Hundreds of pirates ran to the edge of the bridge, climbing down the scaffolding.
"Ahhhh!!"
Screams echoed, and Krieg turned in shock. "What?!"
At that moment, Zhang Da Ye and Rui Meng Meng stood back-to-back. Rui Meng Meng swung her sword, sending out an invisible wave that blasted the pirates away.
Zhang Da Ye swung the streetlamp he wielded like a staff, sweeping with all his strength — a true, literal sweep that sent a dozen pirates flying.
Back in Sabaody, they had already mastered the art of dealing with mobs. Against this kind of small fry, there was no need for fancy techniques — just use whatever was longest and hit as hard as possible.
One wave of pirates down, and instead of hurting them, they'd cleared out space around themselves.
Tom had already slipped away in the chaos, darting through the crowd. In his paw, he held a rope.
Most people didn't notice the little cat weaving through their legs. A few tried to catch him, but bare hands were useless — they usually ended up grabbing their comrades' legs or crashing headfirst into each other.
Blades and axes missed him completely, and those who tried often ended up hitting their own feet instead. Wherever Tom passed, chaos followed — but no one thought to grab the rope he carried.
Sword watched in horror. Seeing his new crewmates getting humiliated was like watching his own past repeat.
Tom finally stopped, panting, wiped the sweat off his forehead, and glanced at the rope snaking through the crowd. With a mischievous grin, he tugged.
"Huh… what's going on?"
Dozens of pirates fell flat on their faces, many of them fainting for no reason at all. The rest rolled uncontrollably like wheels.
"Can't stop—!"
"Get out of the way!!"
The pirates crashed into each other, setting off another wave of confusion. Sword was among those flung into the air, staring down at the ocean below with a bitter smile. "Damn it! Am I really losing to this cat again? I haven't even fought yet…"
"These idiots!" Krieg growled, grabbing his massive spear, ready to unleash his temper — but another commotion caught his eye.
A golden slash cut through the air, slicing an entire section of scaffolding in half. The structure collapsed, sending the pirates climbing down plummeting into the sea.
"What's happening now?" Krieg shouted in disbelief. What kind of monsters were they facing?
"Captain! That woman — she's flying!"
"What?!" Krieg looked up — and froze.
A blonde girl in a blue dress and silver armor stood in the air, her boots pressing rhythmically against nothing, holding her in midair. Her weapon wasn't visible, but that golden slash must have come from her.
Krieg made the only logical conclusion. "The legend says there are fruits in the sea that grant demonic powers — letting people use impossible abilities. That woman… she must be a Devil Fruit user!"
"Seriously?!"
"The power of a demon?!"
The pirates from the East Blue had never heard such a thing before. The thought alone made them shiver.
Luckily, some veterans from the Grand Line explained, "Relax. Even Devil Fruit users are just humans with powers — and they can't swim. Throw her into the sea, and she's dead!"
"Oh, that's it!" The rookies nodded, enlightened. "Open fire!"
Dozens of guns aimed at Artoria — but she didn't even look at them. She simply descended to the bridge.
Because a certain dapper skeleton strolled out of the crowd, calmly sliding his sword cane back into its sheath. "Yohohoho~ Pointing guns at such a lovely lady is terribly rude. But I've already finished cutting — Nose Song Trio: Tail Slash!"
Clang!
The gunmen dropped instantly, collapsing one by one.
"A talking skeleton?!"
"What did he do? Is it a curse? A ghost's curse?!"
The pirates panicked as Brook leaned close, his hollow sockets inches from one man's face. "I~re~sent~you~"
"Eeeeeeek—!" The two men shrieked, scrambling away and crashing into Krieg.
"C-Captain!" they stammered in terror. In a normal pirate crew, offending the captain was a death sentence.
Krieg seized their heads. "Look carefully! That thing has a shadow. It's the power of a Devil Fruit! If you're too scared to fight… then die!"
"Y-Yes, Captain!" The two charged at Brook — and were instantly cut down.
"Yohohoho~ I'm not a ghost at all," Brook said lightly, glancing around at the pirates closing in. "Over two thousand enemies… this will be quite the battle."
Krieg was stunned — he could see emotion on the skeleton's face, a frown and focus, like he was alive. Devil Fruits truly were the treasures of the sea.
After dropping Brook onto the bridge, Jin Peng flew off again. The rest could handle themselves — his job was to support Ye Yan.
Now, all the Amber Travel Group's bridge fighters were assembled. Their mission: keep the pirates on the bridge — or knock them all out.
Shark Chili, Ye Yan, Perona, Wendy, and Carla were assigned to clear the pirates under the bridge and seize fifteen ships before returning to assist the others.
Below, fewer pirates guarded the ships. Krieg had brought most of them up to show off his crew's strength, leaving only a dozen or so per ship.
Ye Yan and Shark Chili took five ships each; Wendy and Carla took another five. Perona, whose physical skills were weak, wasn't suited for close combat — one stray bullet could be a real problem.
So she stayed inside Shark Chili's cockpit by the Amber, her spirit body drifting alongside Wendy for backup.
They had initially planned to protect Wendy more, but she insisted on fighting to grow stronger. Carla agreed — real strength didn't just come from magic, but from facing battle itself.
Everyone split off. Shark Chili leapt from the sea, landing on a pirate ship's deck.
"Enemy attack!" one pirate shouted — only to freeze at the sight before him. "A… a shark monster?!"
"I'm B-Series Robot No. 9, Shark Chili. Remember the name." He introduced himself — then slapped the pirate across the deck with one hand, pure brute force.
"Who the hell—?" Others raised their guns and blades.
"Water Strike!"
Shark Chili thrust out his hand — droplets of seawater shot like bullets, hitting each pirate in the gut.
"What the—" The pirates crumpled one by one, unconscious before they hit the floor.
Shark Chili tossed the bodies overboard and jumped to the next ship.
Meanwhile, Ye Yan, still dressed like a monk, stood on the waves, carried by his summoned sea spirit. He climbed aboard under a dozen stunned stares, then calmly struck his bronze gong.
GONG!
"My body… it won't move!"
"The monk spoke in riddles before striking again: 'Sweep not the ground lest an ant be harmed; guard the flame, pity the moth drawn to light…' Then his tone shifted. 'Hit them! Hit them till they smoke!'"
"Heheheh~"
The flag demons cackled as they burst from the banner, pummeling the frozen pirates like sandbags. Within moments, the ship was cleared, the pirates tossed overboard, and the ever-compassionate Monk Ye Yan moved on to the next.
"Wendy, are you sure you don't want help?" Perona's ghost drifted beside her, while Carla carried Wendy through the air.
"I want to practice magic more — and learn to fight." Wendy clenched her fists, then apologized. "Sorry for being stubborn."
"It's fine. I don't like fighting anyway." Perona smirked. "I'll just sit back and watch your magic show."
"Mm!" Wendy nodded.
"Wendy," Carla warned, "we're close. Get ready."
"A flying cat… and a little girl?" The pirates on deck were confused but raised their swords. "Hey, brat! This isn't a playground!"
Wendy landed lightly, spread her arms, and chanted, "Swift wind that races across the sky, Burner! Steel arms that rend the heavens, Arms!"
Magic circles spun on her forearms, bathing her in shimmering light.
"Something's wrong! Get them!" the pirates yelled, rushing forward.
Wendy kicked off, vanishing from sight — and in the next instant, her fist smashed into a pirate's chin, launching him dozens of meters away.
The others gawked.
"So fast — I didn't even see her move!"
"And that strength— what the hell?!"
"She's a monster in a kid's body!"
Even Perona blinked. "Huh? What did Wendy just do? How is she that strong?"
Carla explained proudly, "Burner and Arms are support magic — they boost her speed and strength. Taking down small fry like these is nothing."
"But I thought she couldn't use magic on herself?" Perona asked.
"Only healing spells. Support spells are fine," Carla said matter-of-factly.
"Wow…" Perona looked envious as Wendy punched another pirate into the sea. "If she used that on me, would I be this strong without training?"
"Don't even think about slacking!" Carla scolded. "Support spells only multiply what you already have!"
The pirates of East Blue were pitifully weak — Wendy didn't even need an attack spell. A few quick punches, and they were all down.
"Phew…" Wendy exhaled, eyes bright with newfound confidence. "Carla, Perona — let's move to the next ship!"
…
"What are these people?" Krieg muttered, watching from the bridge. "What kind of monsters did we mess with?"
After the fighting started, his two thousand men split into four groups:
One surrounded Zhang Da Ye and Rui Meng Meng, thinking to chop them down.
Another went after Brook, swinging hammers and clubs.
A third tried to corner Artoria and knock her into the sea.
The last chased Tom through the scaffolding yard, trying to catch the cat.
That was four hundred men per opponent — and yet, in less than ten minutes, half his crew was already down.
Krieg's hand hovered over a switch on his armor. The war spear wouldn't be enough; even his hidden weapons might not hit these monsters. Should he use the poison gas…?
Jin saw his intention. "Captain, if we use that, we don't have enough masks — we'll lose half the crew. Let me and Pearl handle it!"
Pearl banged his shield confidently. "Yeah. Doesn't matter how strong they are. I'll step in!"
[Powerstones plz...
patreon.com/GuessMyName33 for 50 chapters ahead
If you like this novel, check out my other novels in my profile!]