Watching Roger's Execution at the Start

According to Atlas's memories, her predecessor had escaped because her parents had hidden her in a wine barrel. The current carried her all the way to Loguetown, where she struggled to survive for a few months before joining the Kanos couple...

"Philoc and his crew have entered our jurisdiction. I was going to deal with them myself, but I think it would be better if you settled this."

Atlas slowly left the base's office building. She decided to fulfill her predecessor's "dying wish." It was one small way to repay the debt she owed for taking over this body.

With that in mind, Atlas collected all the intelligence on the Philoc Pirates from the Staff Office and immediately set out to capture them.

"Atlas, can you take me with you? I want to kill pirates too!"

Smoker had somehow heard about Atlas's past and was already waiting at the dock.

"Kid, you're still too weak." Atlas waved a hand and headed for her boat without looking back. Then she added, "This is my business."

"I..."

Smoker wanted to say more, but Atlas's words stopped him. He could only watch her figure recede into the distance.

"Hey, Mitchell! Sailing is boring as hell! How much longer till the next island?" Jim asked impatiently.

Skull-Crusher Jim was the vice-captain of the Philoc Pirates, with a bounty of twelve million Beli. Powerful and cruel, he loved smashing his enemies' heads and watching their brains splatter. He was as twisted as they came.

"Lord Jim... It'll be several more days before we reach the next island."

Mitchell, the navigator, was nervous. He had witnessed Jim's cruelty too many times not to be. He had no desire to die with his brains spilled across the deck!

"That's enough, Jim. If you're bored, find something to do. Don't scare our navigator!"

Seeing Jim about to speak again, Philoc cut him off and gave Mitchell a gentle smile.

But Mitchell felt no warmth. The captain, who usually seemed like a mild-mannered gentleman, was the most terrifying monster aboard! Philoc enjoyed not only killing his enemies slowly but also tormenting their minds, letting them taste the descent from hope into despair.

"Tch."

With Philoc having spoken, Jim did not dare push it. Smashing a civilian's head on the last island had already displeased the self-styled gentleman. Talking back now would only invite trouble.

Elsewhere, Atlas studied the intelligence on the Philoc Pirates and worked out that they were heading to Mien Island for supplies. She decided to intercept them at sea before they could prey on another island.

"Captain! Small boat ahead! Looks like it's navy!"

The Philoc Pirates' lookout spotted Atlas approaching and immediately reported it to Philoc.

"Hahahaha! The navy? Finally, something to do. Hope they can give me a little fun."

Before Philoc could speak, Jim sprang forward, rubbing his hands together in excitement.

Philoc did not stop him. His eyes flickered; he intended to let Jim test the waters first. He had always been cautious. Otherwise, he would not have survived this long.

Seeing that she had been spotted, Atlas wasted no time. She leaped from her boat and landed steadily on the pirate ship's bow, looking down at the sea scum below—some calm, some excited, others panicked.

"Hey, kid! You're navy, right?"

Jim was the one shouting again.

Atlas said nothing. She flipped through the Wanted Posters in her hand, pulled out Jim's, and studied it against his face.

"Hey! That's enough, you bastard! There's a limit to looking down on people!"

Enraged, Jim charged at Atlas, drawing back a fist.

Atlas remained unruffled. Having apparently confirmed his identity, she swung her own fist into his.

Bam!

Jim had clearly not expected such strength. Atlas sent him crashing into the cabin, where he coughed up a small piece of an internal organ.

The other pirates froze, then rushed at Atlas with a roar, swinging their blades.

Atlas shifted just enough to evade every strike. Her own blade never paused—chop, slash, thrust. She cut through the pirates as easily as vegetables.

Philoc did not charge in on a rush of blood. Instead, he slowly drew the sword from his cane and backed away...

Before long, Atlas had killed more than half the Philoc Pirates. Not a drop of blood stained her navy uniform, as though she had merely gone for a stroll, while the deck was awash in crimson. The survivors hesitated. After all, everyone feared death.

Then a cold glint flashed toward Atlas from her blind spot...

Behind it came a face dark with malice and smug anticipation.

Dog-Dog Fruit User

My name is Philoc, and I'm a pirate captain. I aspire to the elegant life of a nobleman. I despise crude people, especially my vice-captain, Jim. Today, I had the misfortune of meeting a navy brat who killed so many of the crew I worked so hard to recruit. What an unpleasant child! But this intruder is about to die. As for my dear crew, your sacrifices were worthwhile...

"I was waiting for you, Philoc!"

As if she had expected it all along, Atlas turned slightly and easily dodged the sneak attack.

She drove her long-prepared fist into Philoc's chest.

But...

Philoc merely swayed. A clear fistprint marked the front of his clothes.

"How!?"

For the first time since boarding, Atlas's composure cracked. Her pupils contracted sharply. How could someone with a fifteen-million-Beli bounty take her punch so cleanly?

"Heh heh heh... I ate the Zoan Dog-Dog Fruit, Mane Dog Form!"

Philoc laughed low. He was surprised that his ambush had failed, but he did not believe for a moment that this brat could defeat him.

He had revealed his power openly because he wanted to see despair on Atlas's face. In the East Blue, the Weakest Sea, Devil Fruits existed only in legend. He had acquired this priceless fruit while raiding a merchant ship two months earlier. Even the unremarkable Mane Dog Fruit had greatly increased his strength. He had kept it secret even from his crew, knowing that only the cautious survived on these cruel seas.

Of course, he had not had the fruit long enough to master switching freely between its three Zoan forms. For now, he could only fight Atlas in his human-beast form. His hat had hidden the two ears sticking up from his head, so Atlas had not noticed them earlier.

"Whatever brought you here to trouble Captain Philoc, you're not leaving today!"

Philoc tossed his cane sword onto the deck and licked his newly exposed claws.

"You ate one Devil Fruit and think you're invincible!?"

Recovering from her initial surprise, Atlas stared hard at the man before her, whose anticipation of the slaughter to come was twisting his expression.

The remaining pirates unconsciously took a step back at the sight of their captain's face, leaving a wide space for the duel.

Philoc crouched into an attacking stance, his calf muscles tensing. His trouser legs, already strained by his transformation, burst apart.

As scraps of cloth fluttered up and obscured the view, Philoc moved! He rushed Atlas at a speed nearly impossible to follow with the naked eye.

Atlas did not panic. Philoc was almost too fast for her eyes to track, but she had made progress over the past year too. Her body was not yet superhuman, and her swordsmanship had not reached the Iron-Cutting Realm, but countless fights had brought her to the brink of awakening Observation Haki. She already possessed fighting instincts almost as keen as a beast's. Perhaps this battle would be enough to awaken it!

Atlas slowly closed her eyes and tried to sense Philoc's movements instead.

"Brat, now you've made me angry!"

Seeing Atlas close her eyes, Philoc bristled. Ignorant of advanced techniques like Observation Haki, he thought she was mocking him.

In Atlas's perception, a dark blur swept toward her. She ducked, trying to evade it, but Philoc's claws raked her back, leaving three shallow gashes. Under the Horse Talisman's power, they healed visibly, without leaving the faintest scar.

Philoc stared at the closed wounds in alarm, shaken by her astonishing recovery. The Horse Talisman's imprint in Atlas's mind had almost faded away. It would be fully absorbed before long, and she was sure that would bring a pleasant surprise. For now, wounds this small meant little to her formidable vitality.

"Who the hell are you, brat?"

Philoc's bluster could no longer hide his fear. He was beginning to think of retreat.

"The one who's going to kill you!"

Atlas wasted no more words. She gripped her sword in both hands, her gaze sharpening as she took a textbook opening stance.

One Sword Style: Iris!

Philoc caught the strike with his claws, but it had not been useless.

Philoc discreetly shook out his arm. The collision had left it numb and faintly aching; a bone might even have cracked. He was nowhere near Atlas's equal in strength. Her hellish training had raised her strength to a terrifying level. He, meanwhile, had obtained his Devil Fruit only recently, and the Mane Dog Fruit did not specialize in power. There was no question who had the advantage in a contest of strength.

Clang! Clang! Clang, clang, clang!

After several fierce exchanges, Philoc began to tire. The resilience his Zoan Devil Fruit granted him kept him fighting hard, but he knew he could not let this continue.

Damn it. I need to wear her down somehow.

Philoc cast a ruthless glance at the surviving pirates...

"Boss Philoc..."

The pirates felt a chill run down their spines under his gaze. Then he came straight for them, with Atlas close behind.

They had no choice but to raise their weapons against Atlas.

It was like trying to stop a carriage with their bare arms.

"Argh! Damn brat!"

"Please, spare me!"

"Waaah! I'm sorry..."

Curses, pleas, and sobbed apologies rang in Atlas's ears. She showed no mercy. Not one of these pirates was innocent.

Soon, Atlas had cut down every last one of them. The effort had barely made a dent in her stamina.

Still, it had bought Philoc a moment to catch his breath.

It had also reminded him of his advantage.

Speed!

If he used the speed his Mane Dog Fruit gave him to keep Atlas occupied, he might still win!

Awakening! Observation Haki

Philoc made up his mind to use his speed to keep Atlas on the defensive!

Swish! Swish! Swish!

Philoc attacked again and again, soon leaving cuts across Atlas's body. Each quickly faded to a pale mark. For all her physical strength, Atlas was still slightly slower than Philoc in his human-beast form.

"Kehahaha! Scared now, navy brat?"

Philoc tried to frighten her off with words.

Atlas did not answer. She focused on what she had learned from fighting through her senses, and her understanding of Observation Haki steadily deepened.

Atlas did not know much about the Three Types of Haki. She knew only that Haki arose from the mind and will, and that Armament Haki awakened within a person once their physique reached an inhuman level.

Awakening Observation Haki depended more on talent than Armament Haki did, and it had no strict physical requirement.

As things stood, Atlas had that talent.

Conqueror's Haki was even more mysterious. Supposedly, only one person in a million was born with the potential for it, making it rarer than the other two types.

Atlas felt that her Observation Haki was on the verge of awakening. She needed only one final push.

Philoc was the perfect opponent for that. Atlas had thought she would have no chance to awaken Haki in the East Blue.

After all, finding a pirate who could threaten her there was difficult.

With his new fruit, Philoc's strength was probably comparable to a pirate with a bounty of thirty to forty million Beli.

Though weaker than Atlas overall, his fruit made him faster than her.

At that thought, Atlas looked at Philoc with eager eyes. She had come to avenge her predecessor, never expecting a reward like this. Good deeds really did pay off!

Philoc shuddered under her gaze, then shook his head and cast the unease aside.

With a savage grin, he charged, claws outstretched. Atlas again relied on her senses to meet him...

Yes!

That's it!

Faster!

Come on, faster!