Hunter Guild (Please Bookmark and Recommend)

Marine Headquarters issued bounties, and bounty hunters pursued them for reward money. This was an extremely common sight in the Pirate World.

But bounty hunters had always operated between light and darkness, a mixed lot. There were powerful lone wolves, shady underground assassins, and even quite a few bounty hunters who were themselves wanted criminals.

If they really carried pirate heads to Marine Headquarters to collect the rewards, the Marines might just throw them into prison instead.

Thus, the Hunter Guild, an organization that was half-official and half-underworld, came into being.

The forces behind the guild were highly complicated. The most important was naturally the colossal World Government, which in a sense served as the white glove of those Big Shots.

Then there were the great nobles of various kingdoms, merchants whose businesses spanned several seas, and even the Dark Kings of the Underworld.

For this reason, although most of the bounties publicly displayed by the Hunter Guild were issued by Marine Headquarters, there were also many underground bounties for assassinating the leaders of rival forces or gathering intelligence on enemy nations.

In a kingdom in the central waters of the first half of the Grand Line lay the famous Black Triangle Region, where countless pirates gathered. It was even called the "Thieves' Sea" by outsiders!

Therefore, the Hunter Guild branch in this pirate nest mainly handled those underground bounties.

Ironically, the most frequent visitors to this Hunter Guild were actually pirates. They watched people exchange bounties with grins on their faces, then assessed their strength to decide whether to rob them afterward.

Even when there was no business to be had, they could sit down, drink, and boast wildly.

Yet the guild branch, usually boisterous and noisy, was now so silent that even a pin dropping to the floor could be heard clearly.

All because of the man sitting at the counter wearing a Ghoul Mask.

"Gulp! Is that guy really Demon Sword Apophis? He won't suddenly go berserk and kill all of us, will he? They say every time he kills someone, it's as horrifying as a slaughterhouse!" A pirate captain whose fearsome reputation could make children stop crying throughout the nearby seas was now whispering tremulously. He did not even dare raise his head, afraid that looking directly into the man's eyes would get him killed.

"Who knows? We'd better not run into a monster like that. I heard that after Ogre Barlo, with a bounty of 92 million Beli, was targeted by him, his screams before death could be heard more than a kilometer away. It's hard to imagine what kind of torture could make such a vicious Great Pirate weep and beg for mercy." The pirate beside him trembled, as though those wails of a vengeful spirit were echoing in his ears again.

"I am Apophis. You should all have heard my name. I intend to form my own pirate crew and challenge the Pirate King, so I need to recruit some experienced crew members..."

When they heard that Apophis intended to recruit crew members, the Hunter Guild nearly erupted. He was a powerful adventurer whom even Great Pirates with bounties nearing a hundred million could not defeat!

Although Apophis was said to be extremely cruel, cruelty was synonymous with strength among pirates. For most pirates, they would rather follow a powerful and ruthless captain than a weak and easygoing boss.

If they could get aboard Apophis's ship, they might become founding officers of a future great pirate crew!

"Lord Apophis, I... my bounty is only 27 million Beli, but I have always admired your strength. Please allow me to follow you!" A somewhat renowned pirate stepped forward excitedly and pleaded.

"I do not care whether you are strong or weak. Even Ogre Barlo would only be the difference between one slash and two before me!" A cold voice came from beneath Apophis's mask.

This made the crowd surge even more fiercely.

"Lord Apophis, please accept me! I am Gravedigger Ross, with a bounty of 35 million Beli!"

"Me too! Please take me with you so I can witness your legend!"

Before long, Apophis had taken most of the pirates under his command. He nodded slightly and said, "We have enough people now. Next is the matter of a ship. Only a top-class warship built from Adam Tree wood is worthy of my status."

Although they did not know why Apophis had brought this up, one of the newly recruited underlings still flattered him. "Of course. Legend says Pirate King Roger was only able to complete the Great Voyage aboard a ship built from Adam Tree wood. Lord Apophis should naturally have the same kind of top-class vessel."

Apophis nodded approvingly. "Word has come from an auction in Water Seven that Adam Tree wood will be available. It is estimated to sell for the astronomical price of 300 million Beli. Hand over the money you have on you first so I can bid on the Adam Tree wood. When I am in the mood, I will casually kill a few Great Pirates with bounties over a hundred million and return your money doubled."

At this, the pirates hesitated.

"What? Is my first order as captain already ineffective? You should know that 300 million Beli is only a small sum to me. I am merely anxious to secure that Adam Tree wood."

"This..." The pirates looked at one another, unable to make up their minds.

Creak~~~

The doors opened, and a tall man carrying a suitcase walked in. He wore a similar Ghoul Mask.

At this sight, all the pirates looked back and forth between the two men suspiciously, and their earlier enthusiasm began to fade.

The man in the Ghoul Mask sitting at the counter cursed inwardly. He turned around "calmly," stepped down from the bar stool, and walked straight toward the tall man carrying the suitcase.

Only after standing did the man in the Ghoul Mask realize that the other man was at least 2.4 meters tall. Standing before him, who was less than 1.8 meters tall, the man gave off an overwhelming sense of pressure.

"Gulp!" The man in the Ghoul Mask swallowed nervously and said in a low voice, "Brother, you've crossed the line. This is my territory, Jack the Shapeshifter's."

"Fine, we'll let it go this time. Cooperate with me and finish acting out this little show, and we'll split the money ninety-ten."

Seeing that the tall man did not reply, the man in the Ghoul Mask gritted his teeth and said, "Fine, you win. Eighty-twenty... at most seventy-thirty... forty-sixty is really as low as I can go... Leave yourself some room so we can meet again in the future. Fifty-fifty is truly my final bottom line. Otherwise, we'll go our separate ways."

After the man in the Ghoul Mask kept changing his bottom line, the tall man, who had been standing there like a puppet, finally spoke. "You're blocking the way!"

The man in the Ghoul Mask, who had just felt a weight lift from his heart because the tall man had finally spoken, asked in confusion, "What did you say?"

Finally, the tall man lowered his head. The instant their eyes met, the man in the Ghoul Mask felt his soul freeze. Terror and horror flooded his heart. What kind of eyes were those? They were filled with deathly stillness, slaughter, bloodlust, and brutality, as though they contained every misfortune in the world.

Even more terrifyingly, the owner of those eyes remained calm the entire time, as though he were imprisoning the world's most terrifying demon with the most peaceful state of mind.

Could this guy really be Demon Sword Apophis?

Thanks to I Am Not HR for the 100 reward. Since admirals are basically around three meters tall, it would be awkward if the protagonist were too short, but you probably would not be used to him being too tall either. So from now on, please just ignore the issue of height! ()