Thriller Bark

Warship.

"Colonel, shall we open fire?"

Carl shook her head. Open fire? It didn't matter; Moria would make a move.

The Flame Pirates had already taken the bait, and she refused to believe Moria wouldn't reel the line in. Chances were that the people on their warship were also one of Moria's targets.

A Shichibukai, huh? They were nothing like the lackeys of the World Government and the Marines that pirates claimed.

"Master, the prey has taken the bait. It's the Flame Pirates, but there are Marines behind them."

Moria, who was dozing off on his throne, opened his eyes, spread his hands, and laughed. "Shishishishi~ Whether it's pirates or Marines, I want every single one of their shadows!!!"

"Leave them all to you, Absalom."

"Yes, Master!"

With that, Absalom walked out of the castle, ready to close the net.

Out on the sea, the Flame Pirates were fleeing frantically. Originally, they had wanted to fire a warning broadside, but the moment they got off a single cannonball, a massive flying slash flew over from the warship behind them, directly shaving off their Lookout Tower and nearly scaring the wits out of them.

A flying slash was the hallmark of a swordsman, meaning there was a Marine swordsman among the warships in pursuit. That was definitely the kind of person they couldn't afford to provoke.

Therefore, they could only run for their lives with all their might. Carl wasn't in a hurry to chase either, following leisurely right behind the Flame.

"Boss, how come there's a wall ahead?!"

"What! How is that possible?! How could there be such a huge wall in the middle of the ocean?"

Roach rubbed his eyes, finding it hard to believe, but there really was a stone wall stretching for a thousand meters ahead of them. The only gap was right in front of them, and even a fool knew something was wrong.

The problem, however, was that they had Marines tailing them. If they didn't head through the gap, they could only sit and wait for death, getting chopped into minced meat by that Marine swordsman.

"Damn it, screw it! Steer the ship in there!"

"Boss, this is a ghost wall! We absolutely can't go in! Once we go in, we'll be devoured by evil spirits!"

Roach spun around and slapped him hard across the face. "Fuck your mother, are you the captain or am I? Steer the ship in for me, or do you want to wait to be hauled off to Impel Down by the Marines?"

With that, the Flame adjusted its course slightly and pushed forward toward the gap.

"Colonel, they've headed toward the gap. Should we follow them in? This is obviously a trap!"

Carl waved her hand. "Follow them. We Marines aren't afraid of any shady schemes!"

"Yes, sir!"

Ten minutes later, after Carl's warship sailed into the gap, a series of booming noises echoed from behind. As it turned out, the opening at the rear was slowly closing.

It finally ended with a loud bang, resembling a beast snapping its bloody jaws shut, and the atmosphere grew increasingly eerie.

Had Carl not stood calmly at the bow of the ship without a shred of fear, the Marine soldiers probably would have started panicking long ago.

After all, out on the sea, such absurd and bizarre occurrences easily brought to mind things like demons.

Carl was no hawk-faction commander; she didn't have any particular thoughts about this group of terrified Marine soldiers—it was just human nature, after all.

I have to hand it to him, that shut-in Moria really has some tricks up his sleeve. The atmosphere is staged quite nicely.

Knowing full well who the mastermind behind the scenes was, Carl remained completely unfazed, thinking that if Moria quit being a pirate and went into the haunted house business, he would definitely blow up, and might even earn the title of King of Terror.

"Colonel, why have the Flame Pirates stopped moving? Huh! They actually dared to drop anchor!"

Nelson was astonished. The pirates who had been fleeing in a panic just moments ago were now dropping anchor right in front of them—they certainly had a lot of nerve! Were they planning to put up a desperate fight?

Little did they know, the pirates aboard the Flame had already descended into absolute chaos.

"Who is it? Which asshole did this?"

The underlings looked at each other in dismay. None of them had moved! Could there really be ghosts?!

"B-B-Boss, l-look!"

Roach fell silent as he stared at the completely jammed anchor and the clanking footsteps, because there wasn't a single shadow of a person around.

The lackey behind him then let out a scream higher-pitched than a woman's.

"Aiiiyah! There are ghosts!!!"

"Thud~"

Dropping in from the sky, Carl looked at the chaotic Flame Pirates and chuckled dryly. They hadn't even boarded the island yet and were already scared shitless like this—no wonder Moria felt like a fish in water hanging around this dump!

"Pirates, you're under arrest!"

Hearing Carl's voice, these terrified pirates acted as though they had spotted a straw to clutch at.

One of the thugs slid across the deck right up to Carl and dropped hard to his knees. "Take me away! I want to go to Impel Down, this place has ghosts!"

"Don't worry, don't worry. You won't be scared in a moment!"

The Raven on Carl's shoulder let out a caw, transforming into a sharp blade that swept across the pirates' throats and spattering a pool of bright red blood.

"Marines! The Marines are here!"

"Forget whatever ghosts they are! Kill this damn Marine first!!!"

Carl smiled faintly, holding the Raven in one hand as she slowly walked toward the group of pirates.

A few minutes later, the only person still able to stand on the pirate ship was Roach Thompson, but his arms had already been hacked off by Carl.

For scumbags like this who slaughtered civilians and raped women, Carl was already being merciful—at least their departures were peaceful.

After hitting Roach with a Holy Light Ball to keep him from dying of blood loss, he was tied up.

"Nelson, throw him in the brig."

"Yes, sir!"

Nelson saluted excitedly, marveling inwardly that Commander Carl was simply too strong. This was a pirate crew with a total bounty of around 140 million! Colonel Carl had easily wiped them out single-handedly.

Granted, the process was a bit bloody, but for pirates, this was the fate they deserved.

Absalom, who had been lingering on the sidelines, was practically scared out of his wits. He didn't dare breathe a single loud breath, terrified of being spotted by this Marine god of slaughter.

This man was even more terrifying than Hogback; he was simply a bloodthirsty demon.

No way, I've got to get back as fast as possible and report this news to Master. This Marine is too strong, I can't beat him!

With that, Absalom tiptoed and sneaked stealthily through the corpses. He thought his camouflage was flawless, but all of it was perceived by Carl's Observation Haki—she simply pretended not to see it.

Hahaha, this Marine didn't notice! My ability is just too useful!

A wave of wild elation washed over Absalom as he rushed impatiently toward Thriller Bark.

"Colonel, we've locked Roach in the cell. What should we do next?"

With a smile, Carl looked toward the Thriller Bark ahead and said, "A pirate attempted to ambush me earlier and escaped after failing. Gather some men, we're going in to take a look!"

Well, this excuse worked quite well; even if Moria confronted her face-to-face, she had her story straight.

Nelson stared blankly at Carl. There were still pirates who could escape from her hands?

...You provided the work "One Piece: Starting as a Marine Lieutenant, I Get Stronger by Slacking Off" by Xu Dingling.