"Death Knell" Davy

The sea wind howled, swelling the warship's sails. Soldiers busied themselves weighing anchor and getting underway, while rhythmic footsteps and the clang of metal rang across the deck.

"I wonder if Instructor Zephyr will give this 'answer sheet' of mine a passing grade..."

Gern stood at the stern, gazing impassively at the receding island. Black Blade: Eight Desolations hung quietly at his waist, its bandages fluttering in the wind.

Then, without warning, Gern's pupils contracted.

Whoosh! A series of sharp whistles tore through the air as several jet-black bullets shot toward Gern from the island.

Each was coated in dense Armament Haki, gleaming with a cold metallic sheen beneath the sunlight.

Gern tilted his head slightly from side to side. The bullets whistled past his ears, their slipstreams lifting a few strands of his hair.

His movements looked casual, yet he precisely evaded every lethal shot.

"Armament Haki bullets?" Gern turned, his hawklike gaze locking onto a massive tree on the island's eastern side.

He immediately unleashed his Observation Haki, detecting the figure concealed in its crown.

It was a tall, thin man wearing a top hat and holding a long Sniper Rifle. Faint smoke still curled from its barrel.

Meanwhile, the soldiers finally registered the smoking bullet marks on the steel plating, and cries of alarm erupted.

"Enemy attack!"

"All hands, stay alert!"

"Don't move." Gern raised a hand to silence them, his voice frighteningly calm.

After two years with Zephyr, he knew virtually every notorious pirate of this era.

Including the man attacking him now...

"The Golden Lion's Flying Pirates, Third Division Commander, 'Death Knell' Davy. Bounty: 800 million Beli."

As he spoke, Gern never took his eyes off the figure. "Looks like the man Doger wanted to pledge allegiance to has come to welcome him personally."

The soldiers who had stopped in their tracks went deathly pale at his words.

A bounty as high as 800 million Beli meant their opponent was a true powerhouse of the New World, far beyond the likes of Doger.

Meanwhile, in the treetop on the island's eastern side, Davy narrowed his eyes, stunned.

"Hey, hey, hey! Are you kidding me?"

He hadn't earned the name "Death Knell" for nothing. His sniper shots had never missed.

Especially not with advantages like Armament Haki-coated bullets and a surprise attack!

Yet even then, his target had easily dodged them with his back turned.

Is this Marine's Observation Haki really that strong...? Davy gritted his teeth and placed his finger on the trigger again.

But before he could fire, Gern had already raised his right hand aboard the warship, pointing his index finger straight at him.

"Attacking someone from behind isn't very nice!"

"And..." As he spoke, a pale high-energy vibration particle condensed at his fingertip. The high-frequency tremors caused tiny fractures in the air around it.

"I see you."

Whoosh! A Spiral Pale Ray shot through the air, leaving distinct ripples in its wake. It moved so fast that the naked eye could barely track it.

The ray was soundless, yet carried terrifying penetrating power and the ability to destroy from within.

Davy, himself a skilled Observation Haki user, paled instantly. His body instinctively rolled to the side.

Boom! Crack! A moment later, the ray pierced the treetop where he had just been.

A muffled explosion followed from within the trunk. The entire massive tree shattered from the inside, sending splinters flying everywhere.

Davy leaped into another tree and landed on one knee. His top hat was long gone, exposing his pale, sinister face.

Although he had foreseen and avoided a direct hit, the spreading tremors still churned his blood, leaving a trickle of it at the corner of his mouth.

"Damn it, what kind of Devil Fruit power is that...?" He wiped the blood from his mouth, a trace of wariness flashing in his eyes.

Aboard the warship, Gern stood at the stern, the sea wind lifting his Justice Cloak.

"He dodged it?" He stared coldly in Davy's direction and gave a chilly smile. "Not bad."

Davy slowly rose, spun his Sniper Rifle in his hands, and took aim again.

Then he bared his teeth in a savage grin. "You young Marine brat, do you think beating some third-rate pirate means you can run wild in the New World?

You haven't seen how terrifying the Flying Pirates really are!"

A vicious gleam flashed in the enraged Davy's eyes. Just as he was about to act, the shrill ringing of a Den Den Mushi interrupted him.

"Buru buru buru..." The sound came from his waist.

He hesitated for a moment, then took out the Den Den Mushi.

The Den Den Mushi mimicked a grim face, and a hoarse voice emerged as its lips moved.

"Davy, orders from the admiral. Return immediately.

We've run into the Whitebeard Pirates."

Davy's expression instantly became respectful. "Understood. I'll return right away."

He put away the Den Den Mushi, then looked back at Gern, his eyes now filled with venom. "You're lucky, Marine.

The next time we meet, I'll ring your death knell myself." With that, Davy said no more. His figure flickered and vanished into the depths of the forest.

After a long wait with no further attack, the soldiers aboard the warship finally breathed a sigh of relief, though the fear in their eyes had yet to fade.

"Captain Gern." Worried that Gern might get carried away, an officer spoke cautiously.

"We aren't authorized to start a conflict with the Flying Pirates."

"I know." Gern shook his head. "The mission is complete. There's no need to complicate things.

Besides..." He gazed toward the distant horizon, his eyes deep. "The Golden Lion as he is now isn't someone I can afford to provoke."

With that, he turned toward the cabin, leaving them with a calm order. "Continue back at full speed, and report everything that just happened to headquarters."

"Yes, sir!" The soldiers exchanged looks, both relieved and awestruck.

They knew the brief clash they had witnessed today would become a new topic of conversation at Marine Headquarters.

On his very first mission, Captain Gern had not only arrested "Island-Splitter" Doger,

but also single-handedly driven off the Third Division Commander of the Flying Pirates, the infamous pirate "Death Knell" Davy, whose bounty stood at 800 million Beli, in a head-on confrontation.

The sea wind grew stronger. The warship cut through the waves, speeding toward Marineford.

Gern stood on deck, his fingertips unconsciously stroking his sword's hilt. His gaze rested on the distant horizon, but his thoughts had already drifted toward a more distant future.

"The Golden Lion... the Flying Pirates..." he murmured.

Truthfully, he had no intention of pursuing "Death Knell" Davy, or rather, of picking a fight with the Flying Pirates.

After all, the Golden Lion, who did not yet have a ship's wheel lodged in his head, was truly strong beyond compare.

The Float-Float Fruit's power, top-tier mastery of the three types of Haki, and a master swordsman wielding Two-Sword Style!

That strength at its peak, combined with a host of powerful officers under his command...

Even Gern, living in this era, couldn't help instinctively believing it-or rather, couldn't shake that conviction.

The Flying Pirates at this moment were more terrifying and powerful than the Roger Pirates...

After all, the Battle of Edd War that would take place in a few years was not merely a matter of several large ships surrounding Roger's lone little vessel.

It was the Golden Lion and his officers-infamous pirates with bounties approaching or exceeding a billion Beli-joining forces to encircle and destroy the Roger Pirates!

"Looks like the New World is more interesting than I imagined."