That exaggerated?
The surrounding crew members looked at Ariki, their faces full of shock.
Could they not even withstand a single glance from a strong person?
"But such strong people generally won't appear in the Four Blues. Only the Grand Line is where people like that belong. We just need to do our jobs well. With this great swordsman aboard this time, we won't need to worry about pirates anymore."
Ariki spoke, explaining things to the crew.
But judging by how animated he was, he seemed to be enjoying this as well.
After all, there were no other forms of entertainment at sea, only bragging and drinking.
Now that he saw the stunned looks in the crew's eyes, his enthusiasm naturally rose.
"Captain, what is that treasure of the sea?"
A young crew member asked curiously. He had heard Ariki mention it earlier, so he was very curious.
After all, anyone who went to sea, even if they were not pirates, cared greatly about treasures and such.
"It's a treasure known as a Devil Fruit. They say that those who eat one can gain all kinds of miraculous powers, though I've never seen anyone who has eaten one myself."
Ariki said this without feeling the slightest embarrassment over never having seen such a thing.
After all, it was a great treasure.
The other crew members did not find that strange either.
"If I could eat a treasure like that, perhaps I could become strong too."
One crew member spoke with a yearning look on his face.
"Heh, how vast is the sea? And how many such treasures are there? Rather than fantasizing about that, you'd be better off training hard and learning swordsmanship. You could become a strong person of the sea that way too, like this gentleman."
Seeing the yearning look on the crew member's face, Ariki chuckled.
He did not think they were being foolish, because he himself had once dreamed of eating such a treasure one day.
Unfortunately, after more than ten years at sea, he had met plenty of people and fought pirates before, yet he had never personally seen what a Devil Fruit looked like.
"I've decided! Once I earn enough money, I'm definitely going to learn swordsmanship!"
A young crew member declared resolutely, his face full of longing.
The crew immediately burst into laughter, but there was no malice in it.
Most of them simply thought he was naive.
Still, some of the other younger crew members wore similarly yearning expressions.
"Then you'd better work hard. This captain won't treat you poorly."
Ariki took the opportunity to say so.
"Yes, Captain! I'm going to scrub the deck!"
"Captain, I'm going to scrub the mast!"
"I'll go cook. Uh, should I make a separate meal for that gentleman?"
A crew member who looked like the cook had somehow joined them as well. Inspired by the younger crew members' enthusiasm, he spoke up too, only then remembering why they had come over.
"Hmm, make him a separate meal. Make sure you put your heart into it."
Ariki thought for a moment before answering.
"Yes, Captain."
The cook hurried away. Ariki watched everyone busily at work and nodded in satisfaction.
Being able to speak with a great swordsman this time made Ariki feel deeply honored as well.
It was as though a figure from legend had appeared before him.
But he also knew that this voyage would likely be his only connection with such a strong person.
Over the following days, Lin Ye rarely came out.
A week later, some crew members had nearly forgotten there was a great swordsman aboard, until the pirate ship appeared.
A sharp warning bell rang across the ship. Everyone put down what they were doing and grabbed their weapons.
Those who sailed the seas on merchant ships had generally fought pirates before.
After all, merchant ships were large and had more people. Compared with a merchant ship, some small pirate vessels with only a dozen or so men were no threat at all. Even pirate crews with dozens of men would give up when they found they could not intimidate a merchant ship with even more people aboard.
Of course, this merchant ship had also been lucky enough not to encounter any formidable pirates.
Still, they had run into stubborn pirates before, pirates who refused to give up even after seeing that the merchant ship was not easy prey.
"Men, charge them! Fire the cannons! Fire!"
A pitch-black cannon emerged from the bow of the pirate ship and turned toward the merchant vessel.
Ariki's face darkened.
These pirates actually had cannons.
If the merchant ship was hit, the damage would be one thing, but the greater blow would be to the crew's morale.
They might even give up resisting the pirates.
Worried, Ariki remembered that there was a great swordsman aboard and quickly turned to ask Lin Ye to come down.
The moment he turned around, he saw that Lin Ye had somehow already arrived and was standing beside him.
"Sir, these pirates..."
Startled, Ariki quickly placed a hand over his chest in salute and spoke.
"I'll handle them."
Lin Ye looked at the pirate ship in the distance and spoke.
"Thank you, sir!"
Ariki immediately sighed in relief, his face brimming with joy.
So this was what it felt like to have a strong person by your side?
It was truly reassuring.
Boom!
With a cannon blast, a black cannonball howled through the air toward the merchant ship.
It looked as though it was about to strike the merchant ship.
A slash flew out and cleaved apart the incoming cannonball.
Boom!
The cannonball exploded in midair.
The merchant ship fell silent for a moment before cheers erupted.
He could even cut apart a cannonball in midair?
Many people looked at Lin Ye with fervent eyes, their faces full of admiration.
The pirate ship fired cannon after cannon as it continued drawing closer, seemingly intending to board them.
Watching Lin Ye casually swing his blade a few times and cut every incoming cannonball apart before it exploded, Ariki relaxed even further.
Even as he watched the pirate ship approach, he did not feel the slightest worry.
He only wondered how this gentleman intended to defeat the incoming pirate ship.
Lin Ye estimated the distance.
When he could already see the arrogant expressions of the pirates aboard the opposing ship, Lin Ye swung his blade.
The Flying Slash split into more than a dozen streaks in the air, striking directly at the incoming pirate ship.
Boom!
The pirate ship instantly came apart, sliced vertically into more than a dozen pieces. One of the slashes even struck the enemy's cannonballs inside the cabin.
The already shattered pirate ship detonated in a chain explosion, becoming a brilliant firework upon the sea.
More than a dozen transparent bubbles floated out from the exploding pirate ship.
Lin Ye sheathed his sword and looked at the large amount of shattered wood scattered across the sea, still burning with flames.
Then he turned and walked back toward his room.
Ariki watched Lin Ye leave with fervent eyes.
"So powerful!"
Only after Lin Ye's figure disappeared did Ariki let out a breath and speak with a shocked expression.
"Captain, there are still pirates alive in the sea!"
A crew member shouted loudly.
"Haul them up! We may be a merchant ship, but that doesn't mean we can't play bounty hunters for once."
Ariki immediately roared upon hearing that.
Most pirates did not have specific bounty posters, but as long as someone could be confirmed as a pirate, a reward could be claimed from the Marines.
Ariki had already decided to use the merchant ship's profits from this journey as payment, but he had not expected this unexpected gain.
It would depend on how many pirates there were.
Perhaps they could really make a fortune this time.
Before you continue