Pirates: I Loaded a Game Interface

Beside the winding coastline, a medium-sized wooden sailing ship had long been waiting, a huge World Government emblem emblazoned on its white sails.

As they boarded, Adrian could not help asking, "Instructor Kumadori Yamamba, I forgot to confirm something earlier. Are Dawson and I really carrying out our mission in the West Blue?"

"Of course! Are you questioning your superior's judgment?" Kumadori Yamamba replied impatiently.

"I wouldn't dare," Adrian said. "I'm just curious. Isn't this island on the Grand Line? How are we getting to the West Blue? As far as I know, unless they can fly, people from the four seas have to cross Reverse Mountain to reach the Grand Line. Otherwise, they have to risk crossing the Calm Belt. If getting here is that hard, going back must be just as difficult, right?"

"You talk too much, but at least you read carefully. Looks like I picked the right person after all." Kumadori Yamamba raised an eyebrow. "Your thinking is still off, though. The sea isn't the only way to reach the West Blue."

"You mean?"

"You think we're sailing this ship straight to the West Blue?" Kumadori Yamamba patted the railing. "Of course not! We're only taking it as far as the Red Line!

"We're not going by sea. We're going over the wall!"

"I see. We're crossing the Red Line, the continent that circles the planet?" Adrian suddenly understood. That had indeed been a blind spot for him.

But then his expression turned strange.

"So the first leg of our journey takes us to the Celestial Dragons' home, the Holy Land of Mary Geoise?"

Kumadori Yamamba looked surprised. "Why would we go to Mary Geoise? We're not heading to the New World!"

Adrian suddenly realized what he had missed.

Mary Geoise was not the only way across the Red Line.

The Red Line divided the world's oceans into eastern and western halves; the Grand Line and the Calm Belt divided them into northern and southern halves.

In other words, Mary Geoise was only the land connection between Paradise and the New World. To travel from the first half of the Grand Line to the New World, anyone who could not fly had just two options: cross Mary Geoise or dive down to Fish-Man Island.

They were only going to the West Blue. There was no need to pass through Mary Geoise. They simply had to find any stretch of the Red Line bordering the West Blue and cross there.

The days at sea were long and leisurely. The weather in the first half of the Grand Line was harsh, but nowhere near as wildly unpredictable as it was in the New World.

More than ten days later, Adrian and the others finally reached their destination: an obscure little Affiliated Nation at the foot of the Red Line, who knew how far from Mary Geoise.

Crossing the Red Line took even longer than the sea voyage. After a month of travel in all, Adrian finally saw their destination: the West Blue!

Xilian Island.

A small island on the edge of the West Blue, ruled by an obscure little gang.

The West Blue had thousands upon thousands of islands like it. Its countless mafia families were the true uncrowned kings of the underworld.

An ordinary-looking sailing ship docked at the harbor, and its passengers disembarked one after another.

Beside the towering Dawson, Adrian, who was of ordinary build, disappeared into the crowd.

Kumadori Yamamba had chosen Xilian Island as a temporary stop. She planned to rest there for a while and replenish their supplies.

The dock rang with vendors' cries and bustled with activity.

"Come on over! My prices are the lowest around!"

"Sure, his stuff's cheap, but you get what you pay for! My fish are the freshest!"

"..."

"Hello, sir. Would you like a free tour?"

Adrian stopped and studied the stranger who had suddenly appeared before him. The man wore a gray short-sleeved shirt.

The gray-shirted man spoke with enthusiasm and waved his arms around. Everything he said and did was calculated to draw the eye.

"If it were really free, that would be lovely. Unfortunately..." Adrian shot out a hand and caught an arm sneaking toward his pocket, then dragged its owner into view: a scrawny little man with a pinched face.

Adrian shoved the little man, who was grimacing in pain, toward the gray-shirted man, then pointed at the hulking Dawson.

"Why pick me? That big guy looks much easier to fool."

The gray-shirted man glanced at Dawson and shrank back. Someone that huge could flatten him with one punch!

"I'm warning you, you little—"

The gray-shirted man was about to make a threat and reveal who he was when the little man tugged at the hem of his shirt. He looked at his accomplice's wrist, where five dark finger marks had appeared, and his pupils contracted.

"Little what?" Adrian rubbed his chin and watched him with interest.

"Good sir, I feel obliged to offer you a friendly warning," the gray-shirted man said, abruptly changing his tune. His voice turned earnest and humble. "There's a very dangerous gang on this island. Please be careful as you look around... Now, if you'll excuse me!"

Adrian could only laugh as the pair bolted.

The West Blue really is dangerous. Even on the docks of an out-of-the-way island like this, there are people stealing and extorting.

"But I can't just let you run off. I was looking for the local gang anyway, so I could ask about the surrounding waters..."

Adrian followed the pair at an unhurried pace.

Past the docks, past the shacks, through the streets...

The gray-shirted man and his short accomplice ran without stopping until they reached a deep, dark alley. Only then did they catch their breath.

"I told you not to do it, but you insisted we try!" the short man complained, flexing his wrist. "That guy came off the same ship as that other huge, terrifying monster. I saw them!"

"My fault. I didn't think he'd be that strong!" the gray-shirted man apologized. "He looked so short... Forget it. I'll treat you to—"

"So sorry I'm so short!"

"Who's there?"

"Who said that!?"

The pair cried out in terror.

"Forgotten me already?"

Adrian stepped in from the alley entrance, his tone sour. He hated it when people talked about his height, and these two gangland lowlifes had dared mock him behind his back!

"We're sorry! We were wrong!" they shouted together.

The two gangsters read the situation instantly. The moment they saw Adrian, they dropped to their knees and bowed low in apology, their movements so synchronized they might have rehearsed them.

You're making this difficult for me...

Adrian frowned. He had meant to teach them a harsh lesson, but he had not expected them to surrender so readily.

Not bothering to pick a fight with small fry, Adrian asked coldly, "Do either of you have a chart of the nearby waters?"

"Yes, yes!" The short man nodded frantically.

"The chart's at our place. If you want it, I'll take you there right away!" the gray-shirted man added.

"At your place?" Adrian raised an eyebrow. "It wouldn't happen to be a gang headquarters, would it?"

"Of course not!" they said in unison.

Both wiped sweat from their foreheads.

You look so guilty even a ghost could tell something's wrong...

Adrian was at a loss for words.

"Adrian, why do you need a chart of the nearby waters?"

Just then, the light dimmed. An enormously broad figure blocked the alley entrance like a boulder.

"To leave, of course, Dawson," Adrian said without looking back. "Are you planning to serve the World Government for the rest of your life?"

"I knew something felt off..." Dawson fell silent for a moment, then charged toward him. "Then I have to stop you!"

"Ah! He's charging!"

"The monster's coming at us!!"

The pair screamed in terror.

"Adrian, I don't want to fight you right now!" Dawson roared. His towering frame almost completely eclipsed Adrian. "Come back to the ship with me! We have a mission to carry out!"

"Sorry, but that's not possible," Adrian replied calmly. "I never intended to serve the World Government, not from the very beginning."

"Adrian!!"

Dawson roared in anger, clenched his fist, and lunged.

"Finger Pistol: Fist Cannon!"

His fist shot toward Adrian like a cannonball, carrying overwhelming force. He meant to send Adrian flying.

"Three days ago, you couldn't do a thing to me..."

At the instant the blow was about to land, Adrian moved like a weightless sheet of paper. Riding the rush of air from the punch, he drifted several meters backward and slipped neatly past Dawson's fist.

Six Powers: Kami-e!

"And I'm not the same man I was three days ago!"

Six Powers: Iron Body: Iron Fist!

A flush spread across Adrian's fair-skinned fist. Reinforced by Iron Body, his once-soft skin turned hard as steel, and he met Dawson's Fist Cannon with no less force.

Their fists collided with a sound like a cannon blast. A violent shock wave tore outward, cracking the walls of the narrow alley and kicking up clouds of dust.

Crack... Drip... Drip...

A sharp snap of bone rang out, followed by drops of blood striking the ground.

Despite his greater size and intimidating presence, Dawson had lost the contest of strength. A clear dent had been driven into his huge fist, and blood streamed from split skin at its center.

Adrian, by contrast, had merely gotten his clothes a little dirty.

"That's impossible!"

"How can that man be so strong!!"

The two onlookers stared in a daze, babbling incoherently.

"You're no match for me now, Dawson. Do you still want to keep going?"

Adrian dusted off his clothes and asked the question calmly.

"If Dawson isn't a match for you, what if I join him?"

"Still not enough." Adrian turned around. "Instructor Kumadori Yamamba."

But the instant he turned, a cold blade flashed out of the shadows.

Soru: Flash Step!

His feet struck the ground with explosive force. The recoil hurled Adrian backward, letting him narrowly evade the blade that had come from the dark.

"You really live up to your reputation as a master assassin, Instructor Kumadori Yamamba. You nearly got me."

Adrian wiped nonexistent sweat from his forehead.

"I'm the one who taught you the Six Powers! Don't get arrogant, brat!"

Kumadori Yamamba's expression turned icy. Her sure-kill strike had missed?!

How was that possible?

"You only taught me the basics, didn't you?" Adrian replied lightly. "Besides, who says a student can't surpass his instructor?"

"Don't get cocky! Soru!"

Anger on her face, Kumadori Yamamba used the Six Powers to close in. Her finely made sword whistled through the air as she brought it down hard, as though to cleave Adrian in two.

Adrian immediately drew the standard-issue sword at his waist and met her unrelenting assault.

Come on. Swordsmanship is what I do best, not punching and kicking!

Clang, clang, clang, clang!

Two blurred figures fought furiously in the dark alley. Only when their weapons clashed could their positions be made out for an instant.

Their blades rang sharply together, scattering red sparks that dazzled the eye.

Adrian was indeed less agile than Kumadori Yamamba, but his higher-level Kami-e let him sense the shifts in air caused by changes in her attacks. He could block or evade dangerous strikes before they landed.

Besides, Kumadori Yamamba was an assassin by trade. She was used to striking from the shadows, not fighting head-on!

As the fight went on, Adrian began to gain the upper hand. He brought out his sword techniques one after another, every blow carrying fearsome force. Chops, slashes, cuts, thrusts... He moved through them all with effortless fluidity, each attack flowing into the next.

Clang!