In a stretch of sea several dozen kilometers away.
A fierce battle was raging on an island teeming with pirates.
A large battleship from Marine Headquarters lay moored by the shore.
Marines and pirates were locked in a bloody fight on the island.
And the situation was clear: the Marines were actually being overwhelmed. These were pirates from the Four Seas, yet the battleship had come from Marine Headquarters.
"Damn it, what is our intelligence division doing? Why is there a great pirate like this on this island?"
The rear admiral leading the Marines cursed inwardly, retreating again and again as he blocked the powerful attacks coming at him.
The great pirate, whose bounty exceeded two hundred million Beli, wore a cruel grin.
"Damn Marines, you just had to come looking for trouble. I'd already decided to retire, and I've been living comfortably all these years. Yet you still came to mess with me."
"If you won't leave me alone, none of you are getting out alive."
"Just the few of you and a bunch of little Marines, and you dare attack us? You're asking to die!"
A tremendous blow struck his crossed arms, leaving his forearms numb.
Deep craters and cracks formed in the ground beneath his feet.
Yet he refused to give an inch.
He could not back away, because behind him were the young cadets of the Marine Elite Training Camp.
And they were students personally taught by Zephyr.
Their training had to be tested through actual combat.
The Elite Training Camp had several hundred cadets. They could not all be sent out every time.
With too many people and too much strength, they would get in one another's way, gain little useful experience, and be difficult to monitor closely.
So Zephyr generally assigned assistant instructors to