One Hundred Against Three, the Advantage Is Ours!

It was getting late.

By the time Sphinx's three major pirate crews had assembled their fleets at the harbor, the dusk had stained the sky a flowing amber. The harbor's usual clamor gradually faded, and the air grew faintly murderous.

"Looks like those guys occupying Sphinx don't intend to give it up so easily."

After glancing at the formation of the three pirate crews, Ripley hoisted the club carved from the heartwood of Adam Wood onto her shoulder and said with interest.

"Are you afraid?"

"With you as our captain, how could I be?"

Ripley giggled. Magnus had not backed down, so how could they, his crew members, possibly retreat?

"They're nothing but a rabble."

Having just grasped Haki, Rocks was brimming with fighting spirit. He had not forgotten what Magnus said: Haki could only grow through battle.

After resting for an afternoon, although his wounds from the battle against the Heart Pirates had yet to heal, his stamina had mostly recovered.

"Haha, no matter what, let's first hear what those little brats over there have to say. I'm their senior, after all. I can't just bully the young whenever I please."

A faint smile curled at Magnus's lips.

With the help of Observation Haki, he had more or less taken in the entire harbor and already had a clear grasp of the three pirate crews' strength.

The strongest among them were still the captains of the three pirate crews—three Great Pirates with bounties exceeding a hundred million. If this were the future, they would probably be around the level of the Three Calamities, Flying Six, or commander officers under the Four Emperors.

And they were not even among the best of them, merely middle-tier fighters.

Even compared with the captain of the Blood Skull Pirates whom he had encountered a year ago, shortly after awakening the system, they still fell somewhat short.

Beneath the three Great Pirates were several fairly capable fighters, but none had reached the level of the Three Calamities or Flying Six. Their strength was roughly on par with Ripley's current level.

"Truly terrifying~"

Magnus sighed. Three Great Pirates with bounties over a hundred million, six or seven capable combatants, and nearly five thousand pirates—anyone below admiral level might be buried beneath sheer numbers.

"White Wolf Magnus!"

A vigorous male voice rang out from one of the three large pirate ships.

"You haven't managed this island for more than a decade. It now falls under our Black Gold Pirate Alliance. You trespassed into our territory and injured my men. Are you trying to start a war with us?"

The moment the man spoke, Magnus immediately knew who he was.

Undead Jason.

The undying man who had eaten the Zombie-Zombie Fruit. No matter what injuries he suffered, as long as the missing parts were filled in, he would not die.

Even opponents of the same level would not dare clash head-on with Undead Jason's reckless, injury-for-injury fighting style.

Magnus had just chopped off one of his subordinate's arms with a single slash.

"White Wolf Magnus, this is no longer your era. Sphinx does not belong to you. If you don't want to face the combined assault of all three of our pirate crews, I suggest you leave Sphinx at once!"

From another pirate ship, Black Heart Merchant Dukemon called out loudly.

Unless necessary, he truly did not want to fight Magnus to the death. As a merchant, he hated loss-making deals most of all.

Though the lion was old, its lingering might remained.

No one knew how much of his peak strength White Wolf Magnus still possessed.

Then he heard Gargantua Moz let out an enraged roar from the side.

"White Wolf Magnus, dare you fight me?"

On the Gargantua Pirates' ship, Gargantua Moz leaped onto the bow, and a terrifying aura suddenly erupted, sweeping across the entire area.

"Damn it, that idiot!"

Black Heart Merchant Dukemon and Undead Jason had both hoped to subdue their enemy without fighting, but Gargantua Moz had released Conqueror's Haki right from the start.

How had such an idiot even awakened Conqueror's Haki?

Buzzzzz—

Gargantua Moz's Conqueror's Haki spared neither friend nor foe, directly covering half the harbor. Many weaker pirates rolled their eyes back and fainted on the spot.

Yet Newgate and the others aboard the Black Pearl felt nothing at all.

They only saw Magnus step onto the bow, spread his arms, and laugh wildly. "Puhahaha! Conqueror's Haki? Looks like one of you three has some guts!"

"But this much is nowhere near enough!"

Gargantua Moz's Conqueror's Haki was, at most, at the level of someone who had just mastered it. He could not even distinguish friend from foe or control its direction.

Magnus, however, was different. After consecutive battles against Scarlet Snake Rona and Giant King Harald, followed by the system's enhancement, Magnus's Conqueror's Haki had improved tremendously.

"Let me show you what true Conqueror's Haki is!"

With a laugh, Magnus unleashed the Conqueror's Haki within him without holding anything back.

The collision of Conqueror's Haki caused black-and-crimson lightning to flash through the sky, bringing a dreadful pressure that felt as though the heavens were collapsing and the earth were splitting apart.

But what no one expected was that Gargantua Moz's Conqueror's Haki lasted only an instant before being completely crushed by Magnus's.

Even from a considerable distance away, that horrifying pressure made the pirates gathered at the harbor to watch struggle to breathe. The air seemed to solidify, and many weaker pirates simply collapsed onto the ground.

Watching from atop a high roof, Stussy had made sure she was far enough from the Black Pearl. Yet when Magnus stood at its bow and released his Haki, her breathing still became uncontrollably rapid.

"Is this the strongest pirate on these seas?"

Stussy breathed quickly. Merely standing there, he seemed to be the focus of the entire world, an unparalleled king.

Was someone like him truly within her reach?

Facing Magnus's Haki, the three Great Pirates at the forefront felt even more suffocated. They had never imagined that Magnus, an old man in his seventies, could still unleash such a terrifying presence.

"C-Captain, quite a few men couldn't withstand it. They've all gone down!"

A pirate said tremblingly.

"How many men do we have left?"

Black Heart Merchant Dukemon gritted his teeth. Judging from Magnus's stance, there was likely no chance of reconciling with the White Wolf Pirates. Their only consolation was that they had more men, while the White Wolf Pirates had only three people in total!

"W-We still have a hundred men!"

"What!?"

Black Heart Merchant Dukemon's eyes widened, and he nearly roared at the pirate. "I brought a full three thousand men for this operation!"

Black Heart Merchant Dukemon was drenched in sweat.

His pirate crew was already considered one of the stronger ones among the three major crews. If even his men had ended up like this, the other two crews' situations would be even worse.

But at this point, they had no room left to retreat.

"Prepare the cannons!"

Black Heart Merchant Dukemon roared.

"No matter how strong White Wolf Magnus is, he's only one man. As long as we sink his ship, no matter how strong he is, he'll have no choice but to fight us head-on!"

One hundred against three—the advantage was ours!