Robin, Who Set Out on the Ball-Busting Road and Never Returned

"Heh-heh! You dared to toy with me, old man. I have to say, you've got some real guts!" The Red-Haired Pirate Captain whistled, bent over, and aimed the black muzzle of his gun at Captain Jones's forehead.

"Don't kill me, don't kill me!" Captain Jones let out a shrill, desperate wail. The ear-piercing sound made the Red-Haired Pirate Captain frown, and he pressed his foot down even harder.

"You're so damn noisy, you old geezer!"

"Yes, yes! I'll shut up, I'll shut up."

"Since you've used this method to scare off quite a few pirates before, that means this ship is still an untouched virgin territory. After all these years... you must have accumulated quite a bit of treasure, right?" The Red-Haired Pirate Captain bent down and whispered into Captain Jones's ear.

"Well..."

"Hmm?"

"Of course, of course! Those riches are only worthy of the powerful Captain Jack!" Captain Jones cautiously asked, "But if we hand over the treasure, will the powerful and wise Captain Jack let us go?"

"Old man, are you threatening me?" The Red-Haired Pirate Captain snarled as he pulled the trigger, and a bullet instantly shot into the other man's thigh.

"Ahhh!" Captain Jones let out a pig-like squeal, making quite a few pirates instinctively flinch.

"On these seas, no one has ever dared bargain with me, Captain Jack. Do you understand?"

"I understand, I understand! All the wealth on the ship was exchanged for an equal amount of gold and hidden in the compartment inside the captain's cabin wall."

"Heh! Old man, you really know how to have fun, don't you? Still, since you're being so reasonable, I'll give you a quick death. Once you get down there, remember to thank Captain Jack for his generosity!"

When the black muzzle was once again aimed at his eyes, Jones no longer had the time to curse the other man for breaking his word. He shouted desperately, "You can't kill me! If you kill me, none of you will survive!"

"Oh? Don't tell me you're some king's bastard, and killing you will bring an army after us?" The Red-Haired Pirate Captain pretended to cry out in fear, then suddenly said as if he had just remembered something, "Oh, right, I almost forgot. At your age, you could at most be some king's bastard father, couldn't you?"

"Hahahaha!" The other pirates burst out laughing along with him.

"You—you—you... Don't think I'm joking! A true big shot is staying on my ship. If you disturb him, every one of us will die!" Jones's voice was filled with an inescapable terror, as though he could not even bear to recall the memory.

"A true big shot? Let's hear it. Is it Pirate King Roger or Whitebeard Newgate? Or perhaps that newly appointed Marine Fleet Admiral, Sengoku?" the Red-Haired Pirate Captain said with a yawn.

Captain Jones, who was being pinned beneath his foot, froze. He inwardly cursed bitterly, Are rookie pirates these days really this arrogant? They casually throw around names like Pirate King and Fleet Admiral. Go to hell!

"He's the traveler from hell—the Demon Sword Apophis!" Even so, his tone weakened by three points. After all, though Apophis's vicious reputation was fearsome, he had only risen like a shooting star a year ago. Compared with the three great figures mentioned by the Red-Haired Pirate Captain, he was still far behind.

"Apophis? The Demon King of Slaughter who calls himself a traveler, the one mentioned in the papers?" Robin was startled. When she had been captured on the Grand Line, she had heard someone from the Black-Clothed Pirate Group mention him. He seemed to be a monster who specifically targeted Slave Ships, one even their captain was unwilling to face.

The fact that the Black-Clothed Pirate Group had been preparing to exchange her for protection was largely because of this.

"Old man, you really shouldn't be a captain. With your talent for making up stories, wouldn't you be much better off as a third-rate performer?" The Red-Haired Pirate Captain bent down and smilingly patted the other man's cheek.

"I'm really not putting on an act this time! That Great Person is staying in the first-class cabin at the very front!" Seeing that the Red-Haired Pirate Captain seemed to be growing impatient, Captain Jones spoke rapidly.

"Enough! I don't care whether you're acting or not. At most, he's just a moderately famous adventurer. Even if he really is on this ship, I'll send him rolling back to hell!"

Bang!

The bullet pierced his skull. The fat Captain Jones stared wide-eyed, seemingly still unable to believe that he would die here.

"Ah!"

When the blood stained the deck red, the crowd instantly erupted into chaos. Many people quickly covered their mouths, afraid of attracting the pirates' attention, but they were still too late.

"Captain, what should we do with these people?" a green-haired pirate with a rooster-comb hairstyle asked, licking his lips.

"Kill them all! I'm a pirate who keeps his word. Since I said I'd slaughter this ship if anyone resisted, I naturally have to follow through!" The Red-Haired Captain casually decided the fate of everyone aboard.

"Heh-heh, understood! I'll try my best to make their deaths peaceful!"

The pirates did not lower their voices, so everyone on the ship heard their conversation clearly. A middle-aged man dressed like a noble stepped forward and said, "Y-you're joking, right? We're still valuable. We can pay a ransom, so please don't..."

Bang!

"Who's interested in listening to you old geezers ramble?" The green-haired pirate lightly blew away the smoke from his gun and shouted excitedly and frenziedly, "Run! Why aren't you running? Hunting is only fun when you run!"

Seeing that the pirates were determined to carry out a massacre, the passengers on the ship finally scattered and fled.

"Help! Somebody save us!"

"Damn pirates! I'll fight you to the death! Let's go to hell together!"

"Jump into the sea! If you're lucky, you might drift to some island!"

Curled up in a corner, Robin's little face was deathly pale. She had just escaped from hell, only to fall into an abyss so soon after. Could it be that she really was a Devil Child who brought misfortune to everyone around her?

No, I absolutely can't die so easily. I said I would live on with my mother's share of life. I'm going to live better than anyone else! Robin wiped away her tears and looked hesitantly toward the sea.

That won't work. They might still have a chance of surviving if they jump into the sea, but I'm a Devil Fruit user. Jumping down would be no different from seeking death. Perhaps...

"Little girl, so you were hiding here?" A greasy, fat-faced pirate looked at the delicate Robin, his smile gradually turning perverse.

"Such a cute little thing. It seems like a waste to kill you. How about... ohhh!"

The pirate who had been attacked rolled his eyes back, clutched his crotch, and fell to his knees, his whole body convulsing.

"There's no time. No matter what, I have to try!" Robin's eyes hardened as she rushed out. Relying on her small frame, she quickly crossed the slaughterhouse, but she still attracted the pirates' attention.

Seeing pirates already charging after her with knives, Robin stopped hesitating. She closed her eyes and slammed open the door of the room the fat captain had mentioned earlier.

I... I'm not dead? Robin leaned against the door, thinking with lingering fear.

Suddenly, a melodious and pleasant tune reached her ears.

Robin looked up and discovered, to her astonishment, a man wearing a Ghoul Mask lazily reclining in a chair. On the table before him sat a Sound-Recording Phone-Snail playing music.

He... he's Apophis? Robin was somewhat dazed. His appearance was far too different from the cold-blooded murderer she had imagined.