Even after they had boarded the ship and escaped the waters near Spahn Island's harbor, the surviving pirate underlings kept glancing around, afraid a blood-red figure might suddenly appear.
Several had already lost their nerve. They secretly swore that once they got off the ship, they would go straight and leave piracy behind for good.
Catarina Devon was still venting her helpless fury when—
Boom!
A thunderous blast rang out once more.
The pirates, already traumatized by the Blood Harbor Phantom, jolted and wailed in terror.
A few of the more timid ones vaulted over the ship's rail and jumped straight into the vast sea.
Catarina Devon jumped too. But as the pirate ship's captain, she had considerably stronger nerves than her underlings.
Her bloodshot eyes swept the ship. She saw no heads exploding as they had before.
Relieved, Catarina Devon belatedly pulled out a brass telescope, climbed to the masthead lookout, and surveyed the surrounding sea.
"You idiots! It's not that ghost thing from before! It's the Marines!"
Catarina Devon's rough voice carried down from the lookout to the deck.
"The Marines found us! They're the ones firing cannons!"
Through the brass telescope, she saw a Marine Warship flying a blue-and-white seagull flag. The South Blue Branch Marines had hurried over after receiving Spahn Island's warning signal.
For historical reasons, the people of South Blue had little faith in their Marines. But the Blood Harbor Phantom had terrified the people at Spahn Island's harbor too.
That horrifying blood-red apparition was the real reason the Marine Warship had sailed this way!
Dealing with the pirates was merely a bonus.
The Marines hadn't expected to run into the very pirates who had planned to raid Spahn Island. Thanks to the information sent from the island, the warship immediately opened fire on