Black Cat Pirates

Under the horrified gazes of all the Marines, the "invincible" Captain Morgan had actually been defeated just like that.

Some of the onlookers from Shells Town, seeing the brutal Captain Morgan defeated, even began to cheer.

Only Helmeppo, Morgan's son, who was holding onto a white wolf, felt incomparable terror.

His pillar of support seemed to have collapsed!

"The conspiracy between Morgan and Klahadore will be reported by me personally to Marine Headquarters once I capture Klahadore."

"As for you, Commander, I now order you to immediately restore order to the 153rd Branch."

"Furthermore, news of the Four-Leaf Kingdom being annexed by the Goa Kingdom will reach here very soon."

Wang Shi shouted coldly while pointing at Commander Ripper, as his subordinates had already hauled the heavily wounded Captain Morgan onto the warship.

"Yes!"

Under Wang Shi's majestic gaze, Commander Ripper stood at attention nervously and offered a military salute to Wang Shi, the King.

In truth, he was also very happy inside to see the brutal Captain Morgan being taken into custody.

He had been dissatisfied with Morgan for a long time.

It was just that a lower rank meant being crushed by the one above, leaving him powerless to resist Captain Morgan's rule.

Wang Shi couldn't be bothered to deal with Morgan's son or other trivial matters.

He didn't even disembark, and the three warships set sail once more, heading directly for Syrup Village, where Klahadore was located.

The six warships he had left behind in the Four-Leaf Kingdom would likely finish broadcasting the news to all the islands of that small nation, including Shells Town, very soon.

Moreover, some of the conservative nobles within the Goa Kingdom had already set sail one after another to take over the Four-Leaf Kingdom.

Wang Shi had said that the glory of the Empire belonged to them as well.

Now was the time for them to play their part.

"Tsk tsk, I didn't expect that guy Klahadore to still be alive."

Eric, a bounty hunter and mercenary for the Marines, knew the pirates of the East Blue like the back of his hand.

Especially these "great pirates" with bounties exceeding ten million.

Following Wang Shi, the King, and being able to legally attack a Marine Captain made Eric feel incredibly satisfied.

It was several times more satisfying than being a mercenary for Admiral Nelson Roy.

Van Augur watched Wang Shi, the King of Goa.

He didn't look like a king at all; instead, he resembled a great pirate seizing territory.

This swift, decisive, and fiery style of action was truly ambitious.

Goa Empire?

Was this the ambition of the Wang Clan?

Van Augur felt it went even further than that.

Wang Shi was currently lifting a dumbbell to train.

To deal with these sorts of people, the actions of these mercenaries were already sufficient.

Otherwise, wouldn't his money have been spent in vain?

Once he eventually brought these bounty hunters under his command, he might even save that money.

Though, he would have to convert the mercenary fees into salaries and rewards.

For this voyage, Wang Shi's main strategy was speed.

In any case, the Marine branches and kingdoms of the East Blue were relatively isolated in terms of information.

Perhaps by the time Marine Headquarters and the World Government reacted, Wang Shi would have already completed the upgrade of the Goa Empire.

By then, the various royal families would have vanished, and the occupation would be a settled fact.

The World Government wouldn't say anything either.

It still came down to the same thing: as long as the Heavenly Tribute was paid in full.

Syrup Village in the Moonlight Kingdom was not far from Orange Town in the neighboring Organ Kingdom.

These two kingdoms, like the Konomi Kingdom, were both archipelago-style kingdoms, possessing many small islands.

The Konomi Kingdom, for instance, had at least thirty or forty small islands and dozens of small towns and villages, yet Arlong had occupied over twenty of those islands and villages.

Smaller islands were classified as villages, while larger, more prosperous ones were towns.

This was the common structure for island kingdoms and archipelago kingdoms in this world.

Once Wang Shi finished dealing with the Moonlight Kingdom, he might have to take a trip to that Organ Kingdom.

He wondered if Buggy the Clown was currently in that sea area.

Seeing Wang Shi, a king, still practicing so diligently, left Eric feeling increasingly wary, a suffocating sense of pressure weighing upon him.

He made up his mind that once this mercenary contract was fulfilled, he would leave the Goa Kingdom immediately, distancing himself from this pretty-boy king to continue his life as a bounty hunter and mercenary.

As for joining the Guard Army under Wang Shi like those other bounty hunters? That was impossible.

He still preferred the freedom of a mercenary's life.

Van Augur, however, was contemplating that if Wang Shi refused to let them leave, he would have no choice but to join Wang Shi's ranks, become a high-ranking official of the Goa Kingdom, and incidentally rebuild his own family.

His plans to continue as a bounty hunter or switch to piracy would have to change.

In any case, what Wang Shi was doing now was not much different from those pirate kingdoms.

People like Van Augur, who possessed a surname, had some degree of family heritage and could see further and deeper than Eric.

There were countless commoners and pirates who didn't even have a surname.

One day later.

By the time Wang Shi's three warships reached the waters of Syrup Village, the main force of the Goa Kingdom had fully entered the Four-Leaf Kingdom, incorporating it into their territory.

The expedition fleet that had been freed up continued to rush toward the Moonlight Kingdom to rendezvous with Wang Shi.

They knew that their King's appetite was not limited to just the Four-Leaf Kingdom.

"Your Excellency Wang Shi, there appears to be a pirate ship over there! It seems to be the Black Cat Pirates."

Through his long-range scope, Van Augur spotted a pirate ship flying the Black Cat flag.

It seemed Klahadore truly hadn't died and was still active in the vicinity.

Otherwise, why would his pirate crew be loitering in these waters?

"Take them down!"

Wang Shi didn't even pause his cultivation as he issued the order.

"Yes!"

The Guard Army immediately maneuvered the three warships to surround the Black Cat Pirates.

Eric was already prepared to capture the wanted criminals of the Black Cat Pirates and earn an extra bounty.

Meanwhile, aboard the Black Cat Pirates' 'Hundred Plans Black'.

Vice-Captain Jango, Siamese Cat Sham, and Spotted Cat Buchi saw the warships closing in and nearly mistook them for the Navy, fleeing in a panic.

However, they soon realized the flags on the opposing ships were not Navy flags, but those of a kingdom.

Yet, the sheer force of three ships still left them too terrified to engage, forcing them to flee immediately.

However, they had underestimated the warships of the Goa Kingdom; these were new-model vessels comparable to Navy warships.

Before long, the Black Cat Pirates were overtaken.

Eric and Van Augur immediately launched their assault.

"Fire the cannons!!"

Jango screamed in terror, and the pirates opened fire with guns and cannons in retaliation.

"Do not damage my ship..."

With a soft whisper, the pirates of the Black Cat crew watched in horror as their artillery fire vanished in mid-air.

They were instantly stunned, cold sweat pouring down their faces.

Eric, Van Augur, and the others were once again shocked by the power of Wang Shi's Devil Fruit.

To think he could even 'banish' high-speed projectiles.

Did that not mean that anything approaching Wang Shi could be banished?

Eric even saw the wind blades he had launched at the Black Cat Pirates get instantly banished, disappearing without a trace.

Eric realized that Wang Shi, whom he previously felt was no stronger than himself, might be far more powerful.

If his proudest wind blades could be banished into nothingness, it proved that his strongest techniques were not worth mentioning in Wang Shi's eyes.

A hint of dejection flickered in Eric's eyes.

Wang Shi had only shown a small display of power, yet he clearly sensed the shift in the expressions of Eric and Van Augur.

These two fellows would just have to serve as his beasts of burden from now on!

As for wanting to leave? Not a chance.

If they truly insisted on leaving, it wasn't as if Wang Shi lacked slave collars or Seastone shackles.

As a tyrannical king, having a few slaves under his command shouldn't be a problem, right!

Once someone became Wang Shi's slave, wanting to regain their freedom would be a grueling ordeal.

They wouldn't even be able to dream of it without serving as low-level beasts of burden for a few years.

Under the combined assault of Eric and Van Augur, Jango and his crew were quickly subdued.

With three warships surrounding them, a small crew like the Black Cat Pirates had no chance of escape.